new female jackson’s set up!! please tell me what you think :)

[jadeloveschams26]

hi guys!! this is marleys brand new set up.
to start off we have the medium size reptibreeze, the linear T5 UVB with a 75 watt basking bulb. no light at night whatsoever.
inside the cage we have coconut bedding, might have to put a lay bin down she possibly could have eggs. there’s then 2 live plants. a gold capella schefflera (arbicola) and a golden pothos. they were both replanted into her coconut bedding and all fertilizer was completely washed from the roots, leafs and pots. on top of the coconut in the pots i washed rocks and covered all exposed substrate. they take up most of the tank but i think she likes that!! i have twisted together my jungle vine so it’s more stable for her, the vine has areas that feed through plants for dense hiding spots, as well as come right through the middle so she can bask when feels necessary. i also have the solo monsoon set up. she does NOT like when the mister sprays her, so im also trying to find a position that acts more as rain - that’s a working progress. i’m now figuring out the best cycle. right now i’m on 8 seconds of spray every hour, please let me know if you have tried other cycles and have success. i’m also thinking my temp & humidity gages were thrown off by the move because neither seem to be right, so if anyone has recommendations for those that would be appreciated. she’s been through quite a lot in the past week, leaving the pet store, going to the vet, getting changed into another tank etc. so i’m planning to leave her entirely for a week, once that’s up start hand feeding to build trust (i’m gonna have to get over the worms being on my hand lol). so far, pretty good. i’m brand new to chameleons, and to be completely honest, reptiles in general. i know that’s not recommended however i have a bunch of people giving me pointers and marley seems to be happy exploring her new home. at this point my main goal is to have her more comfortable with my hands. she’s very timid, won’t bite or even puff out, but very clearly upset with being bothered. chameleons obviously aren’t going to jump right into your hand, just wanting that mutual trust to make everyday tasks a little less stressful. any and all feedback is greatly appreciated.

 

[Ares05]

Hey! this cage look awesome!! so much improvement! To only thing id say is watch her to make sure she doesn't eat the bedding by mistake. And with your temperature gauges, are they the ones with the probe or the the stick on circles?

 

[Ares05]

If they are the circles ( I looked closer at the pictures and they are) , those can be up to 20 degrees off. Good quality brands with stick on humidity gauges seem to be alright, but if you can find a hygrometer with a probe thats good too. Definitely find a thermometer with a probe, not the stick on circle ones. And how is she eating, with the new lights and supplement schedule? how's the humidity doing?

 

[jadeloveschams26]

If they are the circles ( I looked closer at the pictures and they are) , those can be up to 20 degrees off. Good quality brands with stick on humidity gauges seem to be alright, but if you can find a hygrometer with a probe thats good too. Definitely find a thermometer with a probe, not the stick on circle ones. And how is she eating, with the new lights and supplement schedule? how's the humidity doing?

working on the eating part, i got her horn worms and she seemed to like those, the roaches not so much. i am concerned because she’s sleeping at the moment (it’s 2:45pm) which i know isn’t good. there are times where i can still see ribs, but there are also a good amount when i don’t! which i guess is progress. my gauges are circles, they seem to be off. if you have any brand recommendations that would be great. at the moment it’s hard to monitor humidity, just because the gauge is so off, but i just make sure there’s droplets on the leafs of my live plants.
i’m also unaware of how to prepare her food for her, i’ve heard about gutloading just unsure of exactly what it is and how to do it.

 

[Ares05]

Well, we need to fix that, now don't we, eh?

Gut loading: You are what you eat, and what it eats!
Gut loading is feeding your feeder before your chameleon eats them. For example, you feed your crickets, lets say, some greens. The eaten greens are now in the cricket/feeder, and then when your chameleon eats it, it gets the nutrients from both the feeder, and the feeders food. feed your cricket leafy greens (no spinach, it binds calcium! ) veggies, and some fruits for moisture. Also order some repashy bug burger, it turns into a gel with water and is great for gut loading (Beman recommended it to me)
I believe for Jacksons its calcium w/o d3 almost every feeding, with d3 once a month and vitamins once a month. Confirm that with jacksjill.

Temp and humidity:
Thermometer brand I use:

https://www.amazon.com/Zacro-Aquari...al+thermometer+reptile&qid=1573423005&sr=8-10

Hygrometer:

I use a high quality stick on one ( I forgot the brand) But ive used this one with my other reptiles in the past and it works awesome. Its also helpful because it'll tell you the highest and lowest humidity for the day. to reset the high and lows of the day, I believe you just hold down the button. to see the highs and lows, I think you just click the button and it scrolls through them.

https://www.amazon.com/Exo-Terra-Di...rds=hygrometer+reptile&qid=1573423181&sr=8-21

Let me know how this works, and if I clarified your questions.

 

[Syreptyon]

There isn't a branch to perch on underneath the basking spot. That's the biggest failing of the setup to me

 

[jadeloveschams26]

There isn't a branch to perch on underneath the basking spot. That's the biggest failing of the setup to me

this is where i thought would be a basking spot

 

[jadeloveschams26]

Well, we need to fix that, now don't we, eh?

Gut loading: You are what you eat, and what it eats!
Gut loading is feeding your feeder before your chameleon eats them. For example, you feed your crickets, lets say, some greens. The eaten greens are now in the cricket/feeder, and then when your chameleon eats it, it gets the nutrients from both the feeder, and the feeders food. feed your cricket leafy greens (no spinach, it binds calcium! ) veggies, and some fruits for moisture. Also order some repashy bug burger, it turns into a gel with water and is great for gut loading (Beman recommended it to me)
I believe for Jacksons its calcium w/o d3 almost every feeding, with d3 once a month and vitamins once a month. Confirm that with jacksjill.

Temp and humidity:
Thermometer brand I use:

https://www.amazon.com/Zacro-Aquari...al+thermometer+reptile&qid=1573423005&sr=8-10

Hygrometer:

I use a high quality stick on one ( I forgot the brand) But ive used this one with my other reptiles in the past and it works awesome. Its also helpful because it'll tell you the highest and lowest humidity for the day. to reset the high and lows of the day, I believe you just hold down the button. to see the highs and lows, I think you just click the button and it scrolls through them.

https://www.amazon.com/Exo-Terra-Di...rds=hygrometer+reptile&qid=1573423181&sr=8-21

Let me know how this works, and if I clarified your questions.

sweet! i’ll start feeding her feeders, i’ll definitely read up on that and see the best way to do so, also go get those 2 gauges, once again you save the day, thanks for the help

any thoughts on why she might be sleeping during the day?

 

[Ruthless]

I don’t like the type of vines you are using. Chams have very soft skin and that type of vine you are using is like a very rough sandpaper feel. Imagine yourself trying to walk in them. Maybe look into getting something a bit more smoother.

 

[Ares05]

Hornworms aren't good for nutrition. Hydration pretty much, and nothing else. Try and get her eating good on gut loaded roaches and/or crickets.

There is a branch that gets close, but I suppose that it would be better if there was one directly under the bulb. These mossy sticks are great for perching under lights/sun spots.

https://www.amazon.com/Galapagos-05...ds=mossy+sticks+reptile&qid=1573424420&sr=8-1

If it gets too hot for the branch to be any closer, lower the wattage and raise the branches.

for sleeping, it could be a sign of illness id think. I see some medicine next to her cage in the background, if its for her, why was she prescribed it? ( if its not for her, ignore the question )

 

[Ares05]

I have never personally used the same branches she/he uses, I use these.

https://www.amazon.com/Fluker-Labs-...?keywords=bend+a+branch&qid=1573424596&sr=8-1

 

[jadeloveschams26]

Hornworms aren't good for nutrition. Hydration pretty much, and nothing else. Try and get her eating good on gut loaded roaches and/or crickets.

There is a branch that gets close, but I suppose that it would be better if there was one directly under the bulb. These mossy sticks are great for perching under lights/sun spots.

https://www.amazon.com/Galapagos-05...ds=mossy+sticks+reptile&qid=1573424420&sr=8-1

If it gets too hot for the branch to be any closer, lower the wattage and raise the branches.

for sleeping, it could be a sign of illness id think. I see some medicine next to her cage in the background, if its for her, why was she prescribed it? ( if its not for her, ignore the question )

it’s calcium for her, 0.3 syringed everyday, i’m having trouble with that, i know she doesn’t like it and it’s hard to bring my self to force her to do something she visibly dislikes. i was thinking of maybe putting that into the worms somehow??
i took her to the vet, the vet said there’s a possible chance of eggs coming soon and possibly metabolic bone disease, the calcium i believe was prescribed to just help with being malnourished.

 

[jadeloveschams26]

I have never personally used the same branches she/he uses, I use these.

https://www.amazon.com/Fluker-Labs-...?keywords=bend+a+branch&qid=1573424596&sr=8-1

i got her the jingle vine branches because that’s what petco told me she liked best, i’ll make sure to set up a moss perch under her basking light

 

[Ares05]

What I do for my other reptiles medicine is find their favorite treat, (warning graphic) poke a small hole in it, use th syringe to put the medicine inside, and give it to em'.

 

[Ares05]

a lot less stressful.

 

[jadeloveschams26]

What I do for my other reptiles medicine is find their favorite treat, (warning graphic) poke a small hole in it, use th syringe to put the medicine inside, and give it to her.

that’s what i’ll do, it is a bit graphic but that seems to be better than syringing her mouth

 

[Ares05]

well I have to rip off the hind legs of crickets for one of my partially blind Leopard geckos for her to catch them (she's my very first reptile). I stopped caring about that stuff.

 

[MissSkittles]

i got her the jingle vine branches because that’s what petco told me she liked best, i’ll make sure to set up a moss perch under her basking light

Most Petco’s know nothing and just want to make sales.

 

[Ares05]

I would wait before changing to much things in her cage for a few days (except for the thermometers and basking spot) because she just was put into a new cage and changing more things may stress her out more.