New Owner!!

[MOJO]

I jus got one of these little critters! And i absolutly love him! but im not sure if he is doing ok. im wanting to get some tips from all of you that may help me out. Jus some random things....like....misting, feeding, the temp and humidity, how often can you take them out of their home, and things like that. i would really jus like to know more to help him live long and happy! Thanks!!

 

[wezeman512]

first off you gotta tell us what kind of cham you have

 

[MOJO]

first off you gotta tell us what kind of cham you have

Well lets see....he is a veiled, and about 3 months old. i have him in a tank at around were it is about 80 degrees and humity at 60 to 65 almost all the time. i have a waterfall that he drinks out off. are you supposted to mist them? i dont think he likes it... he like shrugs his sholders and crouches down. and color....do all veiled cams change color and get bright....cause it seems like he jus changes shades..... with like strips.... Like i said i dont know much about cams, besides that i live them!

 

[Chamero]

Yea, let us know what type and how big your cage. How old he is and what your feeding him? Also whats the temp and humidity?

 

[Chamero]

The cage temps sound fine but the waterfall should come out, it can harbor bacteria. What type of lighting do you have. You'll need both a uvb light and a basking light. The color changing sounds normal, they will have patterns.

 

[MOJO]

The cage temps sound fine but the waterfall should come out, it can harbor bacteria. What type of lighting do you have. You'll need both a uvb light and a basking light. The color changing sounds normal, they will have patterns.

i was told that the water would be the same as a dripper....could i keep the falls and jus buy a dripper..... i have a uvb bulb for daytime and red bulb for at night. i usually have the uvb on for a good 12 to 14 hours and then the red bulb for at night....sound good?

 

[Veiledviscorous]

Well lets see....he is a veiled, and about 3 months old. i have him in a tank at around were it is about 80 degrees and humity at 60 to 65 almost all the time. i have a waterfall that he drinks out off. are you supposted to mist them? i dont think he likes it... he like shrugs his sholders and crouches down. and color....do all veiled cams change color and get bright....cause it seems like he jus changes shades..... with like strips.... Like i said i dont know much about cams, besides that i live them!

I'm no expert on the matter, but, from what I hear: The waterfall needs to come out. The temp needs to be lowered just a little bit- he's still young, and young chams can't really regulate their body temperatures well. Most veileds don't like to be misted, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't. Mist him three to four times a day for five minutes at -least-. One of the best ways to tell if your cham. is dehydrated is to check his fecal matter. If the white part is a yellowish tint, keep up with the mistsings. My veild is just over two months old at the moment, and he still stays shades of green and brown with stripes. As he grows older I'm sure he'll use more colors. You'll need to change the tank, if it's glass, to a screened enclosure. The glass tends to stress out the chameleons and it causes problems. Also, they need the ventilation. As mentioned above, you need a UVB light and a basking light. Both of which should be turned on in the morning around sunrise, and off at night, at sunset. You can adjust these times as you see fit, but just try to keep it in time with the sun. Feed him twice a day on average 10-15 small crickets. Before you feed, you should first "gut-load" your feeders, with a supplemented diet. Try to make sure it's got D3 in it, and dust the feeders with calcium and other vitamins once. Because he's one of the faster growing types of chameleons. It's a good idea to invest in a chameleon care book, and to read up on how to care for them. There are plenty of qualified cham. owners on the site, so... Keep in touch.
-Good Luck!

 

[Zoey]

You should look into getting him a screen/mesh cage soon if you don't have one laying around all ready. He should be in one like at 4 months or sooner I would think.

As for handling, they like to be left alone most of the time. Maybe take him out once every two weeks, or once a week.

 

[spatulars]

Chameleons are tricky! Recreating their natural environment is very important, or they can slowly die. A linear reptisun 5.0 fluorescent bulb is $20 online at reptilesupply.com and will last between 6 and 8 months and will help keep your chameleon very healthy, it's very close to natural sunlight. In addition to UVB, they need a basking site, which you can provide with a 50 or 60 watt incandescent lightbulb (maybe less for a smaller tank). You don't need any night-time heat source unless it gets below a certain temperature at night (I'm not sure what that temp is for veileds). Screen cages promote airflow, in a tank chameleons are prone to upper respiratory infections. Also, chameleons need temperature gradients (higher temps at the top of the cage, lower at the bottom), and it's hard to achieve those in glass terrariums and tanks. Non-toxic live plants are good for your chameleon, and having spots in the cage with plenty of foliage will make your chameleon feel more secure. Search the forum for "safe plants" and you'll get a good idea of what you need. My little guy likes misting some days and runs for cover for others, but if you think about it, they would be rained on in the wild, so... haha, just pretend you're a raincloud.

cricket gutload recipe

chameleon news - the archived articles are interesting and helpful

link on general veiled husbandry

and, you don't have to only feed crickets, silkworms and phoenix worms are good staple feeders too, but you have to stab phoenix worms with a pin

 

[SuperRad]

If you visit my site keepingchameleons.com i have a shopping list on the front page in pdf format to download. That should be the most major things you'll need for your cham. also view the intro page for an intro on proper care of chameleons.

 

[Justin Carl]

Read this:

Read this:
Veiled and Panther Care sheet

HOUSING- Adult- With Veiled and Panther chameleons their seems to be a standard of 24(w) x24(d) x48(h). One chameleon per cage! These numbers can be tweaked slightly, such as width and depth. A chameleon cage can never be too high. I would try not to make your cage any less than 18x18, and this is if you don’t have any room. The cage should always be made up of screen. At least four sides (top, left, right, back and front) the top must always be screen because your light will be coming in from there. As far as the other four sides any choice off three is sufficient. I have found the best screen material to use is aluminum. It doesn’t rust or melt. It is also easier to see through and UV light enters the cage easier.
Juvenile- An average size juvenile cage is around an 18x18x36. This size cage is good until about the age of one year. If it is a large male you can upgrade sooner.
BABIES- newly born chameleons can be kept in a glass cage together for 7-8 weeks tops. After the age of two months they should be placed in a fully screened cage, and they can still be kept together. Once they are separated around the age of 2.5-3 months and sold they should be kept in a screen enclosure measuring 12x12x24-30. This should be suffice until the age of 6 months. Now it’s time to upgrade to a juvenile cage.
Safe Plants- Hibiscus-my favorite choice, Jasmine, Ficus Benjamina, Croton, Scheffelera Arobricola (Umbrella Plant), Photos, and Airplants. I have used all of these personally and I have found them easy to find and care for.
WATERING- most chameleons will not drink from standing water. There are rare cases that this occurs, but is not a substitute for proper watering. Proper watering should be done through a dripper all day and misting. I have found that the “Big Dripper” will go all day long if you have it dripping at one drop per second. Hand or automated misting should be done 2-3 times daily. You can use a spray bottle or buy a Pro Mist set-up for about 200$ and it does it by itself. Chameleons drink by shooting his/her tongue out at water droplets on leaves. Live plants are far superior to fake plants. They hold water droplets at the end of each leaf. Silk plants usually have the water drip off as soon as it makes contact. I have found that fake moss is a great way to supply water. If it is placed right under your dripper the water will run down to the tips of each piece. This is between 30-70 ends. Waterfalls and bowls help to harbor the growth of bacteria some of these bacteria can cause an Upper Respiratory Infection (URI), so they should be avoided at all cost.
HUMIDITY- The ambient humidity in the cage should be in the 40-50% range. With a spike of 70-80% during and after misting. This isn’t as true for Veiled Chameleons; they can be kept at a lower humidity. If you aren’t lucky enough to live in Florida a cheap humidifier from Walgreens will be fine. Try to stay away from foggers, as these can be frightening to your chameleon. Not to mention more expensive than a humidifier. Higher humidity also helps aid in the shedding process for your chameleon. Generally you will see an “explosive” shed when humidity is high. Meaning all the skin will come off at once. In lower humidity it may take days for it to come off.
LIGHTING- This is a huge area of concern to a chameleon’s health. UVB light helps with absorption of calcium to create strong bones. UVB also aids in the absorption and production of D3. Without proper UVB light a chameleon can develop MBD (Metabolic Bone Disease). The most fool proof light on the market is the Reptisun 5.0. studies have found it superior to the Reptiglo 5.0 for chameleons. Do not purchase the compact bulb. These have been known to cause eye problems, such as photo-kerato-conjunctivitis. Lights should be kept on for 10-12 hours a day. Chameleons can only absorb the UV from these lights close up. The maximum effective range is about ten inches. I have personally used the latest lighting on the market with great success, the Mercury Vapor Bulbs. They are an all in one, both heat and UVB output. The maximum effective range of these bulbs is over 12 inches. As far as temperature goes, Veiled’s are a little warmer about 95 basking temperature or what I call the “hot spot”. The “hot spot” temperature can be acquired using standard house light bulbs ranging from 45-75 watts. A household bulb admits UVA light that stimulates appetite. This should be the temperature in one area on the top of the cage and the rest should be in the 80’s. The rest of the cage should vary, and into the mid 70’s at the bottom. Panther’s should have a basking temperature around 90 degrees. Same goes for the cage having varying temperatures. Babies should always be cooler around 85 basking for both species. Remember nothing can compare to natural sunlight. The best time to put your chameleon outside is between 10 and 2 o’clock.
SUPPLEMENTING- This is a key factor in the survival of your chameleon. In captivity we do not supply the chameleon with enough feeders to meet the vitamin/mineral demands of a chameleon. So this is taken care of through dusting and gutloading. Most of the feeders we buy today are high and Phosphorous and low in calcium. There is only one way to take care of this problem. I like to use Herpcares cricket duster because it saves supplement and you don’t need to touch the feeder. Not every cricket needs to be dusted either, nor do they need to look like ghost from being covered in so much calcium. Gutloading is a term used when feeder insects are given food to eat that is rich in nutrients. There are several cricket foods on the market today that can be used. Try to stay away from potatoes because they are very high in phosphorous. There are 3 main supplements used today. My schedule looks like: Mondays and Thursdays- Calcium, Tuesdays and Fridays-Rep Cal Herptivite, Wednesdays and Saturdays- T-Rex Chameleon Formula or Mineral-All(indoor). A lot of people have their own schedule and tricks. I also rotate every week between Calcium with D3 and without D3. A chameleon can overdose and die from too much D3.
FEEDERS- Chameleons need a wide range of feeders to stay healthy. We as owners will never be able to supply them with what they would get in the wild. That is why having several staple feeders with proper supplements and gutloading is critical to the survival of captive chameleons. Some of my favorite feeders are; Crickets, roaches, super worms, Silkworms, hornworms, phoenix worms, butter worms, wax worms, and mealworms. Crickets will most likely be you main feeder, that being said they are very poor in nutritional value. They need to be gut loaded with a good cricket food and 2/3 of them should be dusted per feeding. Silkworms and hornworms are fantastic feeders; these can be placed in the cage and don’t need dusting. They are also ferocious eaters, so keep plenty of food available. Phoenix worms are great for juvenile and baby chameleons; they are high in calcium and do not need to be supplemented. They only grow to about ¾” so aren’t much good for adults.

 

[MOJO]

You should look into getting him a screen/mesh cage soon if you don't have one laying around all ready. He should be in one like at 4 months or sooner I would think.

As for handling, they like to be left alone most of the time. Maybe take him out once every two weeks, or once a week.

Here are some pics of him and his home..... what do you all think......

 

[Justin Carl]

It does look like a he.
So, that much is true.
Read my caresheet above, he needs a mesh cage for sure.

 

[Zoey]

Veileds and other kinds tend to do a lot better in screen/mesh rather than in glass. (I know this one first hand!) If you want chameleons that can be housed in glass than pygmys are the way to go. His cage looks okay But I would look into buying him a screen/mesh cage soon

Also, if no ones said it yet, When you do upgrade AVOID compact bulbs

 

[MOJO]

It does look like a he.
So, that much is true.
Read my caresheet above, he needs a mesh cage for sure.

AWESOME! ill get right on that! you guys are helping me out tons! thank you. something else i wanted to mention is that he has been rubbing his eye on branches and things.... and he is usually squinting it..... any thoughts....
as far as the lighting....is it ok to leave the red light on at night.... the temp is usually the same at night as the day with the red light on....

 

[spatulars]

The vines are good, and the silk albutilon (I have one of those too), and I wish I could have found a feeder cup like you have, that thing is exactly what I was looking for. If there's any moss or anything on the bottom, you should just take that out, and then get a plant riser and put a small non-toxic plant (washed and re-potted in fertilizer-free soil) for him in the middle. That would give him a good place to climb and hide, he looks like he's out in the open. You could then just use that same plant for your screen cage.

You could provide him with some supervised open-door time everday for air circulation until he outgrows that tank and/or you purchase a screen enclosure, maybe take him outside if the temperature gets around 70 degrees fahrenheit or higher. I don't think it would be the same, but it would help.

Soon you'll see, he'll be bigger next week.

They actually like it to be 10 or so degrees colder at night, I don't know the reason for this, but I can guess that it helps them slow down their metabolism for sleep.

 

[Zoey]

can you get a close picture of his eye? NO flash Pictures help.

Might be something mild.

as long as the temperatures in the room dont get lower then 65 degress you dont need a night light on, they need a 10-15 degree temp drop at night

 

[Justin Carl]

No you shouldnt need a ceramic light at all.
chameleons species like a Fishers(almost all species) need a drop in temperature at night for a "good nights sleep".
Chameleons cant see the ceramic bulbs light so i would suggest replacing it with a white lite. such as, any house bulb you may have.
As far as the rubbing the eye on braches situation....It might be irritated, so try giving him a shower or give him a good misting. Place him in the shower with a fake plant, and make sure the water is luke warm. No direct spray, point the spray towards a wall. that way it can bounce onto his plant. If their is anything in his eye this may help to wash it out. If this continues he may need to see a vet. I have seen my chameleons rub their eyes on a branch several times, but they dont do it more that twice. just keep an eye on him.

 

[MOJO]

thank you! as far as the feeder cup..... i believe that came from an outback steakhouse dipping dish from some appetizers.....

 

[Brad Ramsey]

No Waterfall.
No Red heat light at night.
He's rubbing his eyes on the branches because he is about to shed.
Read this:

http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/

-Brad