New Jackson owner Questions

[ArrowTheJackCham]

Hi everyone! So I purschased my little Arrow ar a local pet store this past Wednesday. He is my first reptile and, while I know that Chams are notorious for being difficult keepers for a novice, I tried to do as much research as I possibly could to make sure he would be happy. (I will fill out the pet info sheet in a few minutes). That being said, I do have a couple questions/ concerns regarding my little guy.

1. I will post a picture momentarily. I am hoping that someone can help estimate his age.

2. His skin looks pretty "loose" to me. Is this normal for a younger Cham or is this a sign of dehydration/ malnutrition? He seems to be at a healthy size when he is "curled up" (feet close together, tail curled under) on a branch,
but when he stretches out to move around he seems so thin and his skin (especially on his arms/legs) seems loose.

3. He does this strange eye thing when I mist his environment. He pulls it into the socket and then puffs it back out repeatedly. Originally I was worried about infection/ injury, but he does not do this behavior with every misting leading me to believe it is not a continuous problem. Is exhibiting this behavior occasionally just part of what Chams do?

4. Have not seen him poop at all!?!

Thank you so much for any and all advice - it is greatly appreciated. I just want to make sure my little guy is happy and healthy. As I said, I will post the info shert and pics in a moment as soon as I figure out how to.

-Ashleigh


Your Chameleon: male Jackson. Unsure of age. In my care for 6 days.
Handling: have not handled except to take him outside once. Did not pick him up but put stick under him and he crawled right onto it.
Feeding: gut loaded crickets. Gutload of collard greens and pineapple. Eating about 5-6 medium sized crickets per day. Did not eat the first two days I had him but now he eats great!
Supplements: calcium without d3 - every feeding. Calcium with d3 - once every two weeks (I dusted with thia the first day he would eat). Multivite - once every two weeks.
Watering: mistings twice a day and constant dripper. Have seen him drink and he seems to thoroughly enjoy mistings.
Fecal Description: none!!! Its making me concerned.
History: have only had him 6 days.


Cage: 18x18x24 combo glass and screens. (I know that he will need a larger cage down the road, but this seems to be plenty of space for him at the moment. He's so tiny!) Also, I know a lot of people say not to keep them in glass cages but this one is screen on two sides and I was concerned about keeping the temp/ humidity consistant in an all screen cage.
Lighting: ZooMed 5.0 tropical 13 w. UVB. ZooMed 25w repti basking spot lamp. Both on from 8am to 8pm.
Temperature: digital thermometer on top ranges from 77-82.
Humidity: digital reader ranges from 45-60% (struggling to maintain a consistent humidity ugh).
Plants: one large fake leafy vine twined all around the enclosure (top/ bottom/ sides). One medium thickness non-leaf vine wrapped around the enclosure. One large grapevine stick. One plastic "fallen tree" thingy in the middle. The plastic thing is tall enough that he can climb on it, but it is mainly used to keep the reptile carpet flat since it came rolled up and continued to want to roll up when I put it down.
Placement: in my bedroom. No one goes in there and I only go in there to sleep and get ready for work. It really is very low traffic. He sits in one corner on top of a bar-height table so he is actually very high off the ground.
Location: Cincinnati, OH

 

[Rango3d]

He looks good.

I'm guessing he's 4-5 months old.

Eye thing normal all chameleons do it.

He probably just finished shedding so he's gotta grow into his new skin.

Hope that helps.

 

[ArrowTheJackCham]

He looks good.

I'm guessing he's 4-5 months old.

Eye thing normal all chameleons do it.

He probably just finished shedding so he's gotta grow into his new skin.

Hope that helps.

Thanks so much! That really helps. So should he be turning more green soon if he is 4-5 months. Right now he's usually a kind if off-green/ light brown color. I keep getting conflicting reports on Jackson Chams "chilling" colors. Thanks for the info!

 

[Lathis]

First: Totes adorbs! Look at those little horns!! I would also say 4 to 5 months. Make sure to feed him plenty. He will have quite a growth spurt over the next few months.

Second: Jax have a much more "footie pajama" look that other chams, so you will notice more skin particularly on the legs.

Third: The eyeball thing is totally normal - in fact, it's good for him to have plenty of time to clean out his eyes everyday. Jax can be slow drinkers and eye swishers, so you may find that he longs a several minute shower first thing in the morning.

Have you reviewed the caresheet here? It's really great info.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/jacksons/

One big thing with Jacksons is diet and nutrition. You'll want to step up your gutloading process. Only collards and pineapple will not provide everything he needs to stay health. Rotate in other foods like green peppers, apples, butternut squash, etc. Save cores and cooking scraps.

Get him some house flies from Mantidpets.com. That will be hours of entertainment for both of you!

Multivitamin and calcium with D3 once a month only - once every two weeks is likely too much for a Jax, as a rule of thumb.

You will find over the next several months that Jax can be very active climbers! You definitely will need a larger cage at about 8-10 months. The larger the better. Even now, make sure he has TONS of things to climb on of various materials and widths. A real plant like a pothos would be very helpful for climbing and to help balance your humidity.

For humidity, you don't have to have a constant high level, but if you can get several spikes during the day from misting and if you have a dripper running, that is probably sufficient. My humidity runs about 40-50% - the automated mister goes off 5 times a day were the humidity spikes at 80% then drops back down, plus we often run him a dripper. I also have a very efficient drainage system to deal with all this water.

Another issue with the glass/combo vivs is drainage - Jax like a lot of water as you are probably finding out, so drainage is always a challenge.

You may have to look hard for poops. They are probably pretty small. If he is eating, he is pooping. Chams sometimes go in the same spot. The white part (urate) will often stick to things, but the brown jellybean (feces) will usually fall to the bottom.

Long response, but I'm so excited for you! I absolutely fell in love with my Jax the first time I saw his frowny little face. They are a lot of work but have so much personality

 

[ArrowTheJackCham]

@ Lathis.

Thanks so much! I haven't had him long but I'm already a proud Mamma and it makes me happy to have someone else say he's cute haha. His little baby horns are what got me too. Thanks so much for all the info! I will definitely step up my gut-loading game. I can just picture him plucking off some house flies. What kind of misting system do you use/ recommend? I've read mixed reviews on some of the more common brands. Also, I would like to get him a pothos. How do I go about setting it up in his enclosure? Do I leave the base with the roots inside of his cage? Or should I actually put down a layer of dirt and "plant" the pothos inside the cage?

Thanks again for helping me out! Such a newb over here but I love my little guy.

 

[Psychobunny]

Cute little jax

I have found that a rain system works much better for jax than a mist system.
Jax can be very tricky to keep hydrated.

I'm not satisfied unless I actually see them drinking.

You can use a hand spray bottle, with the nozzle adjusted so you get a coarse spray, and spray from above on top of his head.
They drink the water that runs down from their head.
He may also lick water from leaves and stuff, but I never saw mine do that.

They tend to run and hide from the mistking mister, but if it's rain, they will stand under it long enough to drink.
Sometimes it takes them a few minutes before they start drinking, so you end up dumping a lot of water.

 

[ArrowTheJackCham]

Cute little jax

I have found that a rain system works much better for jax than a mist system.
Jax can be very tricky to keep hydrated.

I'm not satisfied unless I actually see them drinking.

You can use a hand spray bottle, with the nozzle adjusted so you get a coarse spray, and spray from above on top of his head.
They drink the water that runs down from their head.
He may also lick water from leaves and stuff, but I never saw mine do that.

They tend to run and hide from the mistking mister, but if it's rain, they will stand under it long enough to drink.
Sometimes it takes them a few minutes before they start drinking, so you end up dumping a lot of water.

Thanks for the info! So far I have been hand misting him from above like you said, but he likes so much water that my arm gets tired haha. I definitely need something automated. What brand of rain system do you recommend?

 

[spottea]

Congrats on your new little one! Most folks here either use the MistKing or Aquazamp. They are about the same price, and have a good reputation.
The people that have fancier, more integrated systems either adapt the above two systems, or make their own, and this is because they have a lot of chams to keep hydrated!
You should keep the bottom of the cage clear of anything, as it is easier to keep clean. I don't recommend the carpet. You can also hang your pothos by placing a wood bar across the top of the cage, and then hanging it from that. Many pothos already come in a hanging pot. Your cham will love it, and it will keep him from hanging off the mesh screen so much.
Anyway, good luck! There are lots of knowledgable people on here, so don't be afraid to ask. Study the care sheets, they will be a big help.

 

[kplatvoet]

Welcome to the forum-
With a Jackson one of the pump sprayers from the garden section at Lowes or Home depot works better than a hand sprayer-
I went with a raindome when I went automated- stay away from Monsoons I had one of them before I got the rain dome and they break -

 

[Psychobunny]

Actually, I make my own rain system.
I dont like the ones on the market.

Here is the link:


https://www.chameleonforums.com/diy-rain-attachment-128607/

 

[Leslie11]

plants

All of my plants, pothos, rubber tree, etc. are all planted in pots and sit at the bottom of the cage. Plant in good soil, but arrange large river rocks to cover the soil. Do not put substrate in the bottom of your cage, as the chams may eat it. Good Luck with your cutie.