new female veiled- advice and feedback please.

[cincomangooo]

just purchased my first chameleon. She is a female veiled, and she is absolutely beautiful. Firstly, approximately how old is she? she’s about 6.5 inches long from nose to tail end. I’ve done a lot of research, but i have the tendency to doubt myself in just about everything, even beyond chameleons. so if i can get any feedback it would be greatly appreciated! Any tips/criticism i can get it’d really help. Lastly, i know she isn’t quite there yet, but the thing i’m most concerned about is the laying bin. Again, i doubt my ability to do it right, any guidance would be very very very helpful.

 

[PoseidonTheChameleon]

You should fill this out so we can review your husbandry.
Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
• Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
• Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
• 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?
• Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

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Please Note:

1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
2. Photos can be very helpful.

 

[cincomangooo]

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care? Veiled chameleon, female, not exactly sure of her age but she appears to be around 3 months-4 months. Been with me for 2 days.
• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon? i’ve handled her once. she’s very shy.
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders? right now, feeding her crickets. try to feed her however much she’ll eat, but don’t keep exact count. i feed the crickets fresh fruit and vegetables in the morning, and feed them to the chameleon in the afternoon.
• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule? rep cal is what i use, multivitamin, calcium with d3, calcium no d3. calcium every day, try to do calcium with d3 and multivitamin twice a month each.
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking? mist in morning, mist before turning lights off. if i feel like she hasn’t drank enough, i’ll do a little bit in the afternoon. dripper on top of cage for drinking. Mist for a couple minutes. I haven’t seen her drink yet. Use ro water.
• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? looks very standard, ordinary colors. She hasn’t been tested for parasites yet.
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you. She was bred and raised by the reptile store.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions? fully screen exo terra, 18x18x36 (the 24x24x48 wasn’t in stock.)
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule? standard 50 watt heat bulb, and linear t5 ho 5.0 fixture. on 12 hours off 12 hours.
• Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps? ambient temp around 74-75. under basking spot almost exactly 80. At night, drops to high 60s at lowest. measure using digital thermometer.
• Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity? try to keep it around 30-50, but briefly jumps to 60 after a mist session. Usually stays right around 40 through the day. Digital hygrometer to measure.
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind? At the moment, only one type. an umbrella tree, Schefflera arboricola.
• 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? The cage is in my room where i sleep, which is quiet and dark at night, and a little bit of indirect sunlight during day. I tried placing the enclosure as high as i could, around a foot below my ceiling.
• Location - Where are you geographically located? Florida.

To be honest, i’m a little concerned that i won’t do the egg laying process correctly. Other than that, i’m pretty happy with how it’s going. Any tips/ criticism/ helping words would be highly highly appreciated since this is my first chameleon. I’m doubting myself however, even if i know i’m doing the right thing. i often struggle with self confidence. any reassurance like i said would be great. Anything i can do to improve would be great. Thanks.

 

[Haley Hendrix]

Give me one moment to review

 

[Haley Hendrix]

Feedback in bold

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care? Veiled chameleon, female, not exactly sure of her age but she appears to be around 3 months-4 months. Been with me for 2 days.

Where did you get her?

• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon? i’ve handled her once. she’s very shy.

Give her some time to settle in. Then if you want her to be “friendly” start hand feeding and luring out.

• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders? right now, feeding her crickets. try to feed her however much she’ll eat, but don’t keep exact count. i feed the crickets fresh fruit and vegetables in the morning, and feed them to the chameleon in the afternoon.

Good Gutloading, feed in the morning all at once. I’ll attach pictures for different feeders.

• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule? rep cal is what i use, multivitamin, calcium with d3, calcium no d3. calcium every day, try to do calcium with d3 and multivitamin twice a month each.

Good. Calcium without D3 everyday.

• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking? mist in morning, mist before turning lights off. if i feel like she hasn’t drank enough, i’ll do a little bit in the afternoon. dripper on top of cage for drinking. Mist for a couple minutes. I haven’t seen her drink yet. Use ro water.

Just make sure that you let it dry out in between sessions.

• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? looks very standard, ordinary colors. She hasn’t been tested for parasites yet.
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you. She was bred and raised by the reptile store.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions? fully screen exo terra, 18x18x36 (the 24x24x48 wasn’t in stock.)

Eventually you should upgrade.

• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule? standard 50 watt heat bulb, and linear t5 ho 5.0 fixture. on 12 hours off 12 hours.

Good.

• Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps? ambient temp around 74-75. under basking spot almost exactly 80. At night, drops to high 60s at lowest. measure using digital thermometer.
• Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity? try to keep it around 30-50, but briefly jumps to 60 after a mist session. Usually stays right around 40 through the day. Digital hygrometer to measure.

Good. You can run a fogger at night to raise humidity. It’s great for them to have that nighttime spike, it hydrates them.

• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind? At the moment, only one type. an umbrella tree, Schefflera arboricola.

You need to remove the fake plants and go all real. This species is known for eating the fake plants and becoming impacted. Pothos is a great choice.

• 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? The cage is in my room where i sleep, which is quiet and dark at night, and a little bit of indirect sunlight during day. I tried placing the enclosure as high as i could, around a foot below my ceiling.
• Location - Where are you geographically located? Florida.

Great climate. Get a plant for outside so she can have outside time and you can watch her. or once you upgrade to a bigger cage take your other one out there so you won’t have to be right next to her whole outside.
To be honest, i’m a little concerned that i won’t do the egg laying process correctly. Other than that, i’m pretty happy with how it’s going. Any tips/ criticism/ helping words would be highly highly appreciated since this is my first chameleon. I’m doubting myself however, even if i know i’m doing the right thing. i often struggle with self confidence. any reassurance like i said would be great. Anything i can do to improve would be great. Thanks

@MissSkittles can help you through the process so you know you’re doing everything correctly

 

[Haley Hendrix]

Here are feeder choices

 

[cincomangooo]

i really appreciate the reassurance. Thank you for the kind words. I will use this to improve her enclosure, make her as happy as she can be. I just really hope i do the egg laying right.

 

[Haley Hendrix]

i really appreciate the reassurance. Thank you for the kind words. I will use this to improve her enclosure, make her as happy as she can be. I just really hope i do the egg laying right.

You’re doing much much better than many new keepers. Thank you for doing your research. If you go to chameleonacedemy.com and read about laying eggs i’m sure you’ll do great with it.

 

[cincomangooo]

very helpful. thanks again.

 

[MissSkittles]

Hi and welcome! What a little beauty! You’re off to a great start and if husbandry is correct, the egg laying process should be no problem at all. Yes, we still get anxious about it and that’s ok.
Your little sweetheart is a bit young for laying, but they do grow fast! Although each chameleon is different, usually they can be mature enough to lay as early as 5-6 months old.
First she’ll start becoming restless...roaming thru her enclosure almost constantly, climbing the screen, circling endlessly on her vines, going up then down, etc. Around this time you’ll also start seeing her big girl colors starting to show...teal, yellow/orange and maybe some spots and patterns. She is receptive. She’s gotten all dressed up and pretty and is searching for a man! This can last anywhere from a week to a few weeks. This is when you want to get your lay bin ready and put it in her enclosure. Get at least a 12x12” (long and wide) plastic container and fill it to about 6-7” with moist washed play sand. I drill a few tiny holes in the bottom of the bin so it can drain excess water. You want the sand to be moist enough to hold a tunnel without collapsing. Keep in mind that while they do dig down, they can also dig across a bit. At this time I also get my sheet ready. I pin it to one side of the enclosure so when lay day comes, all I need do is pull it across and pin it in place.
Anywhere from a few weeks on after being receptive, you’ll see she’s getting plump, maybe a bit lumpy and she may be slowing down on her appetite a little. You may also notice a change to her colors or patterns. On my girls, their dots get darker, but it’s subtle. One day you’ll find she’s in her bin and has started digging. Cover up the visible parts of her enclosure and don’t disturb her. I cut peek holes in my sheet so I can monitor progress. You don’t need to worry about feeding her. If you have an automatic mister, you’re all set. If you don’t, you can place a dripper so she has access to hydration without needing to disturb her. She may dig several tunnels until she’s happy with one. When she’s got her tunnel, she’ll turn around and lay her eggs. She may sleep in her bin or tunnel. The whole process can take 1-2 days. You’ll know she’s done when she’s in her basking spot, looking much thinner and quite dirty. Give her a good long misting and feed her very well for 2-3 days. I like to give hornworms and silkworms to help hydrate my girls.
Now, after you’ve let her recover for a few days, you’ll want to cut back on her feedings. I give my girls 3-4 feeders, 3 days a week (plus occasional treats). You’ll also want to keep her basking temps no higher than 80. This should help reduce not only the number of eggs she produces, but the frequency as well. My one girl hasn’t laid since February 2020 and the other went almost a full year without laying. I suspect she wouldn’t have laid if she hadn’t discovered my boy‘s enclosure next to her and snuck peeks at him. Both did have at least 2 receptive periods during the year, but they weren’t as strong/pronounced as their first. It’s always a good idea to keep the lay bin as a permanent part of her enclosure so you don’t have to guess when she needs it.
So, this is it...egg laying in the veiled from start to finish and then some.
If it makes you feel any less anxious, I got my first cham when she was maybe around 5 months old and she had all incorrect husbandry. I not only knew nothing about caring for a chameleon and made some serious mistakes, but I had all wrong stuff for her. Thankfully I learned and got everything changed just in time for her to have an uneventful first laying 2-3 months after I got her. Whatever I know I learned from the incredible and experienced members here...and still have so much more to learn. Don’t be afraid to ask questions.

 

[cincomangooo]

this was exactly what i was looking for. Thank you for the encouraging words, and will absolutely use this to improve my husbandry. I was doubting myself, however now i see that I am capable of doing it correctly.