New chameleon! Husbandry evaluation.

[Noah_411]

Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?

Veiled Chameleon
Male.
I'm pretty confident he has tarsal spurs.
A couple days
Not really sure of his age. Could anyone estimate?

Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?

Never handled. Don't really plan on it at this point.

Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?

Right now I just have crickets. I plan on trying to get him some hornworms maybe once a week. I dust them and put them in a makeshift feeder I made.
I've been offering 5 crickets a day for right now. I know he's young and will probably need more than that but as of right now he's only eating 2 or 3 at a time. I've been offering them to him in the afternoon. I'm not too stressed about feeding yet as I've only had him a couple days and I know a reduced appetite is normal for the first little bit as they get used to it.
I've been keeping my crickets in a bin with a soaked sponge and chopped up pieces of carrot, bok choy, oranges, and collard greens.

Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?

I have Arcadia EarthPro and Repashy Calcium plus LoD.
I have been dusting with Arcadia every feeding and plan to use Repashy Calcium plus LoD every two weeks.
I have Repashy Calcium Plus that I use for my dart frog, but I'm not sure if it's necessary or helpful to incorporate into his diet. I'm probably most nervous about supplementation so any advice on if this is ok would be amazing.

Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?

I have an automated mister set up to mist in morning before the lights come on and at night when the lights go off for a full minute. I also have a drip system set up that drips water onto leaves for about 5 hours of the day that I refill daily.
I have not seen him drink anything. Should I be concerned? I’ve been trying to give him his space so maybe I missed it.
Question: How do you guys handle all the water? With my setup I can't really put any holes in the cage to drain. I've been collecting the water from the drip in a bowl and emptying it when it gets full but was wondering if anyone has any other effective methods.

Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?

Haven't seen any droppings yet.

History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

I got him from a local pet store but they weren't too knowlegable about chameleons. They told me some stuff that I knew was wrong...I've never seen chameleons at their store before so I don't know if it's something they usually keep. I was wondering if anyone might be able to estimate this guy's age?

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?

It's a screen cage. I've covered two of the sides with shower curtain to keep in moisture.
It's two feet wide, two feet long, and four feet high.

Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?

I'm using Reptisun 5.0 in a reflector i got off amazon. The light is on for 12 hours and off for 12 hours. I had the light resting on the top of the cage but the little guy kept climbing on the top screen and I was worried about him getting burns so it's know suspended a couple inches off the screen. Is this going to give him enough UVB? I don't really have the money to spend on a solarmeter so I've just been guessing.

Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?

The cage is between 70-75 degrees. The basking area is between 83-87 degrees.
Overnight temp is between 68-70.
I have a temp gun that I've been using and then I also have a hygrometer that measures the ambient air.
I worry about him getting burns from walking on top of the cage. It's suspended a bit off the cage but I'm not sure if there's anything I can do to prevent him from climbing on top.
I use a 60 watt bulb in a heat lamp for his basking point.

Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?

Humidity during the day is between 40-55%. It goes up to 55 after a misting and then returns back to 40 for most of the day. As noted before the misting occurs twice a day and then there is a drip system. The natural humidity of my room is between 40-50% due to the large number of plants and aquariums.
At night I have a humidifier running that brings night time humidity to 70%.
I use a hygrometer that I got off amazon that was recommended to me when I started keeping dart frogs.
I plan on cleaning it weekly. I assume soap and water is as good as anything else?

Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?

Yes there is a pothos and schefflera.

Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?

My cage is located in the corner of the room. No fans or vents anywhere. It is in my bedroom so he pretty much just sees me when I'm around.
It's on a dresser so it's probably 3 feet off the ground. The top point of the cage is almost at the ceiling.

Location - Where are you geographically located?

I'm located in SLC Utah

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

Just wanted to see if there are anything clearly wrong or advice that can be given.
--------------

PHOTOS: I photos were from yesterday morning. I’ve since raise the light and heat lamp of the cage by a couple inches as well as installed the automatic watering system.

 

[Beman]

If you give me a bit I will go through everything.

 

[DonKeesh]

I can't tell by the pics... But is there window film on top of cage? The top needs to be screen for air flow.

 

[Beman]

See my feedback in bold. Let me know what questions you have.


Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?

Veiled Chameleon
Male.
I'm pretty confident he has tarsal spurs. If you can take a picture of the back feet from the side we can confirm gender.
A couple days
Not really sure of his age. Could anyone estimate? Looks to be somewhere in the 3-4 month range.

Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?

Never handled. Don't really plan on it at this point.

Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?

Right now I just have crickets. I plan on trying to get him some hornworms maybe once a week. I dust them and put them in a makeshift feeder I made.
I've been offering 5 crickets a day for right now. I know he's young and will probably need more than that but as of right now he's only eating 2 or 3 at a time. I've been offering them to him in the afternoon. I'm not too stressed about feeding yet as I've only had him a couple days and I know a reduced appetite is normal for the first little bit as they get used to it. So at this age you want to feed only small 1/4 inch sized feeders and this baby should be getting at least 2 dozen feeders every morning. This gives them the day to bask and digest. Hornworms would need to be very very small for a cham this young.
I've been keeping my crickets in a bin with a soaked sponge and chopped up pieces of carrot, bok choy, oranges, and collard greens. you can remove the sponge they are getting moisture from the veg you are giving them. I will post the gutload sheet below for you. Drop the oranges citrus fruit is not the best gutload.

Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?

I have Arcadia EarthPro and Repashy Calcium plus LoD. Which earthpro are you using? EP-A? If so this is fine and the Repashy LoD every two weeks on say the 1st and the 15th.
I have been dusting with Arcadia every feeding and plan to use Repashy Calcium plus LoD every two weeks. correct.
I have Repashy Calcium Plus that I use for my dart frog, but I'm not sure if it's necessary or helpful to incorporate into his diet. I'm probably most nervous about supplementation so any advice on if this is ok would be amazing. No need to use this as well. You have supplements covered with what you are providing and the schedule you are using.

Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?

I have an automated mister set up to mist in morning before the lights come on and at night when the lights go off for a full minute. I also have a drip system set up that drips water onto leaves for about 5 hours of the day that I refill daily. good. adjust misting as needed to achieve humidity levels.
I have not seen him drink anything. Should I be concerned? I’ve been trying to give him his space so maybe I missed it. They are shy drinkers. as long as the dripper is on and dripping on plants baby will find it.
Question: How do you guys handle all the water? With my setup I can't really put any holes in the cage to drain. I've been collecting the water from the drip in a bowl and emptying it when it gets full but was wondering if anyone has any other effective methods. Get a washing machine drain pan to go under your cage. You can then modify this with a drain to go into a bucket or you can wet vac it.

Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?

Haven't seen any droppings yet.

History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

I got him from a local pet store but they weren't too knowlegable about chameleons. They told me some stuff that I knew was wrong...I've never seen chameleons at their store before so I don't know if it's something they usually keep. I was wondering if anyone might be able to estimate this guy's age?

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?

It's a screen cage. I've covered two of the sides with shower curtain to keep in moisture. Ok and its not covered on top right?
It's two feet wide, two feet long, and four feet high. Good.

Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?

I'm using Reptisun 5.0 in a reflector i got off amazon. The light is on for 12 hours and off for 12 hours. I had the light resting on the top of the cage but the little guy kept climbing on the top screen and I was worried about him getting burns so it's know suspended a couple inches off the screen. Is this going to give him enough UVB? I don't really have the money to spend on a solarmeter so I've just been guessing. So with a single bulb T5HO fixture and a 5.0 bulb you can raise the fixture 4 inches off the top then have a basking branch 5 inches below the screen for a total distance of 9inches. This will make it so that at the branch baby is in the correct 3 UVI level and when screen climbing baby is still below the max levels.
With baby screen climbing you want to raise the basking fixture up off the top as well. Or there is a thermal burn risk.

Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?

The cage is between 70-75 degrees. The basking area is between 83-87 degrees. Basking is too hot. You want it 80 max. You can raise the fixture to see if this gets you the right temps. Make sure you are using a gauge with a probe hooked in at the basking spot to get a real temp.
Overnight temp is between 68-70.
I have a temp gun that I've been using and then I also have a hygrometer that measures the ambient air.
I worry about him getting burns from walking on top of the cage. It's suspended a bit off the cage but I'm not sure if there's anything I can do to prevent him from climbing on top. Nothing you can do to keep baby off the top. This is what they do climb high to feel safe.
I use a 60 watt bulb in a heat lamp for his basking point.

Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?

Humidity during the day is between 40-55%. It goes up to 55 after a misting and then returns back to 40 for most of the day. As noted before the misting occurs twice a day and then there is a drip system. The natural humidity of my room is between 40-50% due to the large number of plants and aquariums.
At night I have a humidifier running that brings night time humidity to 70%.
I use a hygrometer that I got off amazon that was recommended to me when I started keeping dart frogs.
I plan on cleaning it weekly. I assume soap and water is as good as anything else?
Your levels are perfectly fine. Cleaning what weekly?

Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?

Yes there is a pothos and schefflera.

Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?

My cage is located in the corner of the room. No fans or vents anywhere. It is in my bedroom so he pretty much just sees me when I'm around.
It's on a dresser so it's probably 3 feet off the ground. The top point of the cage is almost at the ceiling.

Location - Where are you geographically located?

I'm located in SLC Utah

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

Just wanted to see if there are anything clearly wrong or advice that can be given.
--------------

PHOTOS: I photos were from yesterday morning. I’ve since raise the light and heat lamp of the cage by a couple inches as well as installed the automatic watering system.

Pull the fogger out of the cage. You do not want this in the cage. 1 it is dangerous to have electrical where you have water and 2 you do not want baby pooping in the opening and contaminating the system. You can set it next to the cage and aim it to the cage for night time running. But please make sure you can get temps down below 67 for fogging. It should not be done in a warm room or there can be a risk of the cham developing a respiratory infection.

 

[Noah_411]

I can't tell by the pics... But is there window film on top of cage? The top needs to be screen for air flow.

There was but it's been removed.

 

[Beman]

There was but it's been removed.

I did a full review. Make sure you scroll up through your thread. you will not get alerts for all of the posts to your thread.

 

[Lindasjackson]

He or she is a beauty! Welcome by the way!

 

[Noah_411]

See my feedback in bold. Let me know what questions you have.


Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?

Veiled Chameleon
Male.
I'm pretty confident he has tarsal spurs. If you can take a picture of the back feet from the side we can confirm gender.
A couple days
Not really sure of his age. Could anyone estimate? Looks to be somewhere in the 3-4 month range.

Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?

Never handled. Don't really plan on it at this point.

Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?

Right now I just have crickets. I plan on trying to get him some hornworms maybe once a week. I dust them and put them in a makeshift feeder I made.
I've been offering 5 crickets a day for right now. I know he's young and will probably need more than that but as of right now he's only eating 2 or 3 at a time. I've been offering them to him in the afternoon. I'm not too stressed about feeding yet as I've only had him a couple days and I know a reduced appetite is normal for the first little bit as they get used to it. So at this age you want to feed only small 1/4 inch sized feeders and this baby should be getting at least 2 dozen feeders every morning. This gives them the day to bask and digest. Hornworms would need to be very very small for a cham this young.

Good to know! Just ordered some smaller crickets and will up the amount when they arrive.

I've been keeping my crickets in a bin with a soaked sponge and chopped up pieces of carrot, bok choy, oranges, and collard greens. you can remove the sponge they are getting moisture from the veg you are giving them. I will post the gutload sheet below for you. Drop the oranges citrus fruit is not the best gutload.

Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?

I have Arcadia EarthPro and Repashy Calcium plus LoD. Which earthpro are you using? EP-A? If so this is fine and the Repashy LoD every two weeks on say the 1st and the 15th.

Yeah it’s the EP-A

I have been dusting with Arcadia every feeding and plan to use Repashy Calcium plus LoD every two weeks. correct.
I have Repashy Calcium Plus that I use for my dart frog, but I'm not sure if it's necessary or helpful to incorporate into his diet. I'm probably most nervous about supplementation so any advice on if this is ok would be amazing. No need to use this as well. You have supplements covered with what you are providing and the schedule you are using.

Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?

I have an automated mister set up to mist in morning before the lights come on and at night when the lights go off for a full minute. I also have a drip system set up that drips water onto leaves for about 5 hours of the day that I refill daily. good. adjust misting as needed to achieve humidity levels.
I have not seen him drink anything. Should I be concerned? I’ve been trying to give him his space so maybe I missed it. They are shy drinkers. as long as the dripper is on and dripping on plants baby will find it.
Question: How do you guys handle all the water? With my setup I can't really put any holes in the cage to drain. I've been collecting the water from the drip in a bowl and emptying it when it gets full but was wondering if anyone has any other effective methods. Get a washing machine drain pan to go under your cage. You can then modify this with a drain to go into a bucket or you can wet vac it.

Great idea!

Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?

Haven't seen any droppings yet.

History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

I got him from a local pet store but they weren't too knowlegable about chameleons. They told me some stuff that I knew was wrong...I've never seen chameleons at their store before so I don't know if it's something they usually keep. I was wondering if anyone might be able to estimate this guy's age?

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?

It's a screen cage. I've covered two of the sides with shower curtain to keep in moisture. Ok and its not covered on top right?

No not covered anymore.

It's two feet wide, two feet long, and four feet high. Good.

Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?

I'm using Reptisun 5.0 in a reflector i got off amazon. The light is on for 12 hours and off for 12 hours. I had the light resting on the top of the cage but the little guy kept climbing on the top screen and I was worried about him getting burns so it's know suspended a couple inches off the screen. Is this going to give him enough UVB? I don't really have the money to spend on a solarmeter so I've just been guessing. So with a single bulb T5HO fixture and a 5.0 bulb you can raise the fixture 4 inches off the top then have a basking branch 5 inches below the screen for a total distance of 9inches. This will make it so that at the branch baby is in the correct 3 UVI level and when screen climbing baby is still below the max levels.
With baby screen climbing you want to raise the basking fixture up off the top as well. Or there is a thermal burn risk.

Perfect! This is just what I needed to know

Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?

The cage is between 70-75 degrees. The basking area is between 83-87 degrees. Basking is too hot. You want it 80 max. You can raise the fixture to see if this gets you the right temps. Make sure you are using a gauge with a probe hooked in at the basking spot to get a real temp.

Will do.

Overnight temp is between 68-70.
I have a temp gun that I've been using and then I also have a hygrometer that measures the ambient air.
I worry about him getting burns from walking on top of the cage. It's suspended a bit off the cage but I'm not sure if there's anything I can do to prevent him from climbing on top. Nothing you can do to keep baby off the top. This is what they do climb high to feel safe.
I use a 60 watt bulb in a heat lamp for his basking point.

Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?

Humidity during the day is between 40-55%. It goes up to 55 after a misting and then returns back to 40 for most of the day. As noted before the misting occurs twice a day and then there is a drip system. The natural humidity of my room is between 40-50% due to the large number of plants and aquariums.
At night I have a humidifier running that brings night time humidity to 70%.
I use a hygrometer that I got off amazon that was recommended to me when I started keeping dart frogs.
I plan on cleaning it weekly. I assume soap and water is as good as anything else?
Your levels are perfectly fine. Cleaning what weekly?

I was speaking of the humidifier, but per your comment below I removed it from the cage and don’t plan on using it during the summer as I don’t believe I will get room temps below 67 and don’t want the little guy to get an RI. So far I think the humidity levels will be fine without it.

Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?

Yes there is a pothos and schefflera.

Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?

My cage is located in the corner of the room. No fans or vents anywhere. It is in my bedroom so he pretty much just sees me when I'm around.
It's on a dresser so it's probably 3 feet off the ground. The top point of the cage is almost at the ceiling.

Location - Where are you geographically located?

I'm located in SLC Utah

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

Just wanted to see if there are anything clearly wrong or advice that can be given.
--------------

PHOTOS: I photos were from yesterday morning. I’ve since raise the light and heat lamp of the cage by a couple inches as well as installed the automatic watering system.

Pull the fogger out of the cage. You do not want this in the cage. 1 it is dangerous to have electrical where you have water and 2 you do not want baby pooping in the opening and contaminating the system. You can set it next to the cage and aim it to the cage for night time running. But please make sure you can get temps down below 67 for fogging. It should not be done in a warm room or there can be a risk of the cham developing a respiratory infection.

View attachment 322252

 

[Noah_411]

See my feedback in bold. Let me know what questions you have.


Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?

Veiled Chameleon
Male.
I'm pretty confident he has tarsal spurs. If you can take a picture of the back feet from the side we can confirm gender.

That little bump is a tarsal spur right? Let me know if you need a better pic.

 

[LukeTheLizard]

Yup, that’s a boy! Welcome to the forums btw!

 

[Noah_411]

Yup, that’s a boy! Welcome to the forums btw!

Awesome! Thank you!

 

[Sonny13]

At first welcome to forums and a beautiful cham and enclosure you get there, well done.

Pull the fogger out of the cage. You do not want this in the cage. 1 it is dangerous to have electrical where you have water and 2 you do not want baby pooping in the opening and contaminating the system. You can set it next to the cage and aim it to the cage for night time running. But please make sure you can get temps down below 67 for fogging. It should not be done in a warm room or there can be a risk of the cham developing a respiratory infection.

Completely agree with @Beman comment and as tip, if you use the humidifier try to put it as high as possible or maybe somewhere on top. Because, the ´fog´ is heavy and falls directly down to the bottom. Therefore having it on the bottom, the humidity doesn´t spike that much (I read 70% in your comment), it only fills up the bottom of the cage. Most effective is when your chameleon sits in the fog at night, when your chameleon has a sweet spot for sleeping, try to positioning the fogger there.

 

[Beman]

That little bump is a tarsal spur right? Let me know if you need a better pic.View attachment 322281

Yeah I would prefer better pics... If male that is not much of a spur at all. It should be quite obvious at this age.

 

[Beman]

Good to know! Just ordered some smaller crickets and will up the amount when they arrive.


Yeah it’s the EP-A


Great idea!

No not covered anymore.

Perfect! This is just what I needed to know


Will do.

I was speaking of the humidifier, but per your comment below I removed it from the cage and don’t plan on using it during the summer as I don’t believe I will get room temps below 67 and don’t want the little guy to get an RI. So far I think the humidity levels will be fine without it.

Sounds good. Just let me know if you have any other questions. And I would prefer to see a few more pics of those back feet. I am not convinced you have a male. By 3 months old the tarsal spur is very obvious.