New friend

[cornelius.rex]

Thank you so much @Beman!!! Pictures attached of supplements - the Reptivite is the one we've only used twice (once on day one, once on day 15 of him in our care), ExoTerra every day aside from those 2 days.

One question; If I'm able to ensure the basking bulb in the deepdome is 8" above him (or her), perhaps by raising the basking lamp, would it be safe to raise the basking branch so that it's closer to the UVB light/UVI 3? The T5HO should be here Friday, but I'd like to do as well as we can today and tomorrow until it arrives.

 

[cornelius.rex]

Also updated feet pics. Looking more we may have a little lady?

 

[elizaann2]

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions? 4x2x2 Reptibreeze XL Deluxe (mostly screen, with the acrylic front upper panel+LEDs) - the Reptibreeze XL was so hard to source in my area that I had to settle for the Deluxe LED combo. I do not use the red LEDs as I've read they can damage Cham eyes and disrupt sleeping cycles. Perfect you are on point with everything you have learned for this.
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule? We were provided with the Fluorescent housing seen in the photo - the bulb is brand new out of box (also provided) and is a Zilla T8 15W 18". There's a chart on the box which indicates the UVB intensity/UV index and the light is arranged so that he's in 2-5uv index while basking. ~8-10" from bulb. He's positioned next to a large window upstairs to receive as much ambient sunlight as possible. Arcadia T5HO should be here this weekend. The basking lamp itself came with the deep dome housing, it's a blue daylight UVB+Basking bulb. Lights on roughly 9AM, off roughly 8PM. Ok this is what I wanted to double check. So UVB needs to be upgraded asap. you want a T5HO fixture and a 5.0 or 6% bulb strength. I only recommend the arcadia ProT5 kit or reptisun brand name. This fixture sitting directly on the cage top you want to then measure down 8-9 inches that is where your highest branches should start to put baby in a 3 UVI level. Unfortunately with that T8 the output they say is not correct. They do not account for the screen in between which reduces the UVI output by about 40%. So you actually have to have a branch 5-6 inches down from the screen to get baby into a 2-3 UVI. Where baby is at right now it is not getting the UVI levels needed to slow down the MBD so it will continue to progress.
• Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps? Awaiting the proper tools to fully measure the enclosure, but the home is kept at 72F and commonly 70F at night. So to fog at night you have to drop your ambient house temp. Basking spot feels warm to the hand and in my absolutely unequivocally expert hand-measuring experience I would say 80F. I've got a shipment with some items coming to incl. the correct measurement devices so I can get accurate readings inside his enclosure, but at the moment he's positioned about 10ft away from our home thermostat which measures Temperature and RH at its location. He's positioned next to a large window upstairs which I've been opening at nighttime to tank the temperature to around 63-65F, as well as provide air flow through the cage. Due to nighttime drops here being around 50F, I close this window at around midnight. So I would not position the cage right next to a window. It is fine being in the room with an open window but right next to a window you will have the exposure influencing temps season to season. Sun coming through a window can drastically increase ambient temp.
• Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity? We live on the Gulf Coast of the US, so daytime RH hovers around 55% and nighttime is generally 70%+. I've got a shipment with some items coming to incl. the correct measurement devices so I can get accurate readings inside his enclosure, but at the moment he's positioned about 10ft away from our home thermostat which measures Temperature and RH at its location. With living in a high ambient humidity level you will want to watch how long you mist in the morning time. You will more than likely have to reduce this or eliminate it all together because you need your daytime ambient level to stay lower. Hot moist air with chameleons can lead to respiratory infections. Really looking for a 40-50% range daytime. Night can be up to 100% with cold temps.
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind? Only live plants. Schefflera, Pathos. Bendable branches provided by an acquaintance. The enclosure in total will be updated more this weekend but some things have been surprisingly hard to source in our area. Planning to build wooden upright supports inside the corners this weekend to hold the pathos plants at the top and add more branches in the higher regions. Then another tall growing plant (taking recommendations!) in the bottom with the Schefflera. So for anything wood structure wise... You want to use something like flex seal to totally seal the wood. This will contain VOC's that cut wood can produce which can be harmful for their lungs. But also it is going to keep your structure from degrading. There are lots of ways to attach to a cage. I like the vinyl lattice cut to size and slid in along the sides and into the back panel. then you can secure it to the screen with floral wire (sharps on the outside) or zip ties. This can also help prevent screen climbing which can harm their nails breaking them off as they get larger. Keep in mind flex seal still has to gas off before you can put the structure into the cage.
• 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? Located in an upstairs office. This is not a high traffic area, but I'm commonly in the room. It is a calm and quiet area of our home. There is a ceiling fan and floor air purifier in the room, both remain on most of the time. Cage is located on a stand ~3ft high, putting the entire 4ft enclosure at ~7ft at the top. He looks down on me from his basking spot and I'm 6ft tall. Sounds great.
• Location - Where are you geographically located? Gulf Coast, USA

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Thank yoU!

 

[Beman]

Thank you so much @Beman!!! Pictures attached of supplements - the Reptivite is the one we've only used twice (once on day one, once on day 15 of him in our care), ExoTerra every day aside from those 2 days.

One question; If I'm able to ensure the basking bulb in the deepdome is 8" above him (or her), perhaps by raising the basking lamp, would it be safe to raise the basking branch so that it's closer to the UVB light/UVI 3? The T5HO should be here Friday, but I'd like to do as well as we can today and tomorrow until it arrives.

My pleasure. Ok the exo terra calcium is perfect to use this is just plain calcium without D3 and they have magnesium in it. Now the reptivite I would go ahead and switch to repashy calcium plus LoD version. It has a jackson chameleon on the label. Reason for this. As I mentioned I am not a big fan of the reptivite. While it has everything needed they additionally add phosphorus. Phosphorus can interfere with calcium absorption. Now with a healthy cham this may never cause an issue but with a chameleon that is MBD compromised it is the last thing you want to add to the equation. Because to get those bones strong again they need the absorption of the plain calcium no D3. This is why almost universally you will see a vet prescribe special liquid calcium to treat the MBD faster. The bones never return to normal shape but it stops them from getting even worse. You kinda have a double whammy because I am betting you have a little girl. If you do you have to get her bone health on point asap as they will lay infertile eggs. We do things to control clutch size as they mature which we can talk about later once we know for sure you have a female. But for a female to be able to dig a tunnel and lay their eggs we want those limbs to be strong and working as they are supposed to.

Yes you can raise that basking fixture up higher. Easy way is to get a plant hook and screw it to the wall behind the cage at the distance needed. If you are using the 60 watt daylight blue bulb then there would be little to no risk of thermal burn with an 8 inch distance from bottom of fixture to top of cham.

Also updated feet pics. Looking more we may have a little lady?

I really think you do have a little girl after seeing this angle.

 

[cornelius.rex]

My pleasure. Ok the exo terra calcium is perfect to use this is just plain calcium without D3 and they have magnesium in it. Now the reptivite I would go ahead and switch to repashy calcium plus LoD version. It has a jackson chameleon on the label. Reason for this. As I mentioned I am not a big fan of the reptivite. While it has everything needed they additionally add phosphorus. Phosphorus can interfere with calcium absorption. Now with a healthy cham this may never cause an issue but with a chameleon that is MBD compromised it is the last thing you want to add to the equation. Because to get those bones strong again they need the absorption of the plain calcium no D3. This is why almost universally you will see a vet prescribe special liquid calcium to treat the MBD faster. The bones never return to normal shape but it stops them from getting even worse. You kinda have a double whammy because I am betting you have a little girl. If you do you have to get her bone health on point asap as they will lay infertile eggs. We do things to control clutch size as they mature which we can talk about later once we know for sure you have a female. But for a female to be able to dig a tunnel and lay their eggs we want those limbs to be strong and working as they are supposed to.

Yes you can raise that basking fixture up higher. Easy way is to get a plant hook and screw it to the wall behind the cage at the distance needed. If you are using the 60 watt daylight blue bulb then there would be little to no risk of thermal burn with an 8 inch distance from bottom of fixture to top of cham.

I really think you do have a little girl after seeing this angle.

Roger that thank you! We've been reading quite a bit on laying bin setup, etc. just in case (I had a feeling those weren't tarsal spurs, as other pics seem much more pronounced). Will get that set up this weekend as well.

 

[cornelius.rex]

View attachment 362726


Am another vote for a a girl. I mean, dat tail taper...

I think you might be on to something!

 

[Gloriawood]

Also updated feet pics. Looking more we may have a little lady?

I’d like to change my vote to girl

 

[Beman]

I’d like to change my vote to girl