New Cham Hiding

[Hakai]

I got my cham yesterday and he's been hiding in my pothos plant since I put him in the cage. Pretty much in the exact same spot. I knew that he would hide for a little while when I got him, but I'm just worried he wont be basking as he should. Should I move the light over him? I don't want to move it from where the perch is. I'm also fairly certain he hasn't eaten as well.

 

[deadhd5]

He is probably just getting used to his new home, and is being shy. This can take up to 2 weeks, although he should start moving and eating prgressively more over the course of this week.

Just be sure that he is keeping his eyes open during the day.

Good luck!

 

[Hakai]

thanks, I couldn't quite tell if his eyes were open honestly. They look a little sunken and he just looks super tired or something. The humidity is kinda hard but I'm managing to keep it around 50%. =/ I had to put up some trash bags on the sides (I didn't have any extra shower curtains).

 

[Padose]

It's pretty common for them to stay in hiding for the first day, and then make baby steps of improvement over a week as they familiarize with the new cage. My veiled pretty much didn't come out the first half day. Then the next day he came out, but only when he thought no one was in the room. Even a month later he still hates us being anywhere near his cage, but he's coming along Pictures would be great, everyone here loves pictures, then we can also see how hydrated he is too.

 

[Lovereps]

A most important thing is to make sure he is well hydrated.
The eyes being sunken in looking can be a sign that he needs more water.
Here's some info on hydration:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/water/

Posting pics is a good idea, since people with cham experience can tell if he looks OK or not.

 

[Hakai]

Sorry for only one pic. That's pretty much the only angle I could get without causing him stress. I think his eyes might be closed too much and they look a little sunken. My humidity is usually around 40-50% as it is very hard to keep it higher with PA's dry winters.

 

[CarlyMK]

I think some pics of the cage set up would help, if you're having humidity issues you can take a garbage bag and cover 2-3 of the outsides of the cage with it. Assuming you have a screen cage.

Was this photo taken during the day?

 

[Hakai]

I think some pics of the cage set up would help, if you're having humidity issues you can take a garbage bag and cover 2-3 of the outsides of the cage with it. Assuming you have a screen cage.

Was this photo taken during the day?

I have done exactly that with the garbage bags (on two sides of the cage). Here is a link to the enclosure picture. https://www.chameleonforums.com/my-first-setup-make-sure-its-good-103318/. Since then I have added a few more horizontal pathways and I have an exo terra mister thing that goes of every 3 hours for 60 seconds. I have also constructed a dripper out of an iced tea bottle. I also hand mist the cage for a bit before I go to bed to increase humidity for the night. This picture was taken around 6:30 pm and his bedtime is 7, but I think his eyes were like that most of the day. I'm not sure though because I don't get home from school till 3.

 

[Lovereps]

It gets so dry in my house that I bought a humidifier for both the people and the chams to benefit from.
I would have the mister spray for 3-4 minutes to get him drinking.
Some chams won't drink enough without a good long misting.
The dripper is excellent, too.
I hope you've put another plant or two for him to hide behind. It will not only make your cham more secure/less stressed but will also help humidity levels.
Don't mist too close to bedtime. You want things to dry out enough to not promote mold growth.


A great way to get a cham to drink enough to rehydrate is the shower--not directly on him but like this:
Place a large plant in the tub, aim the shower head against the wall, and run the water so that only a fine mist reaches the chameleon. The water should be room temperature (not hot!). They may drink for up to 30 minutes. Make sure to supervise your chameleon at all times while using this method.
Excerpted from https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/water/

He doesn't look terrible and hopefully just needs to acclimate.
See how active he is today.

 

[Hakai]

thanks much. My mom texted me today and said that he was doing some roaming around, so he appears to be getting more used to it. Hopefully he will be out and about when I get get home today. I'll defiantly add another plant in the top left area soon and maybe look into getting a humidifier.

 

[ReptiGeek]

Besides his eyes being closed, he has some gorgeous colours for a young veiled. And so chunky!