New veiled cham not eating or drinking.

[Kittensocks]

Hello, i am a brand new veiled chameleon owner. I just got my little cham a few days ago and he doesnt seem to be interested in eating or drinking. I have been feeding him small crickets and he shows little to no interest in them. Everything ive been reading indicates that young chams should have a hearty appetite but mine does not seem too =\. Any thoughts on how i can get my little cham to eat and drink? Thanks

 

[Samcham1]

Hello kittensocks, welcome to the forum. Try answering the questions in this link best you can so some of the knowledgeable keepers here can help you out.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/

 

[Julirs]

Filling out the how to ask for help form will help us help you. We certainly need to know how old your cham is and the temps you are keeping him at among other things to figure out what may be going on.

 

[DeviousMike]

He's new, so that is probably one of the reasons. Perhaps he is shy and does not like to eat or drink in front of you. Do you see urates and fecals? If he's not gaping and urates are white, then he's probably drinking. Fecals will mean he's eating. Just give him time to settle in.

 

[camimom]

He's new, so that is probably one of the reasons. Perhaps he is shy and does not like to eat or drink in front of you. Do you see urates and fecals? If he's not gaping and urates are white, then he's probably drinking. Fecals will mean he's eating. Just give him time to settle in.

I agree with Mike. I have a 5 week old male veiled and the first several days I had him, I never saw him eat or drink. It wasn't until He'd been in his cage for almost a week that I saw him eat two crix at the same time. ALso, just because you don't see him eat doesnt mean he isn't. While cup feeding helps you monitor what they eat, mine refuses to eat that way. So I just let loose crix in his cage and let him do his own thing. I also mist and drip water multiple times throughout the day so if he's thirsty he has water.
It's just your chams way of settling in to his new home and routine. Like Mike said, as long as fecal and urates are normal looking and his eyes are sunken in (sign of dehydration) then just relax and enjoy your new friend!

 

[ryno202]

It's just your chams way of settling in to his new home and routine. Like Mike said, as long as fecal and urates are normal looking and his eyes are sunken in (sign of dehydration) then just relax and enjoy your new friend!

*eyes are NOT sunken in.*
(i know that was an accident, camimom)

 

[camimom]

*eyes are NOT sunken in.*
(i know that was an accident, camimom)

haha oops, i meant not...

 

[Kittensocks]

Thank you everyone for your suggestions. I've been looking for droppings in the cage but haven't found any which worries me. Here is the extra info. Any suggestions would be really appreciated!

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - Veiled Chameleon, Male, Baby, Has been in my care for 5 days.
Handling - Not often.
Feeding - I have been feeding my chameleon small crickets. Around 5-8 per day about 30 minutes after I turn his basking light on.
Supplements - I haven't given him any suppliments yet.
Watering - I have a drip set up at the top of the cage and i mist about 3 times a day.
Fecal Description - I have been looking for signs of waste but haven't seen any.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Screen cage. Smallest level reptibreeze enclosure.
Lighting - Zilla UVB light/60 watt blue basking light.
Temperature - The highest tempurature reaches around 90 degrees during the day. Coldest temperature is at night at about 50.
Humidity - The humidity level is about 20%. Misting 3 times a day and constant drip system.
Plants - All plants inside the enclosure are fake.
Placement - The cage is located in a low-traffic area about 5 feet from the ground.

Current Problem - Chameleon not eating or drinking.

 

[Julirs]

Do you have a picture of your cage and cham and give us an idea of where in the country you are? Your high temps are too high and your lows are too low. I would not let a baby get higher than the low 80's and I would not let a baby drop below 60. Zilla lights are known to cause issues with eyes, so I would shut it off and get a Reptisun or Reptiglo linear flourescent tube ASAP. A young cham could easily eat up to 15+ appropriately sized feeders. You need to start supplementing ASAP also.

 

[Kittensocks]

I am located in southern california where it is very dry. I'll try to get a picture of the cage up ASAP. I'm not sure how to present dusted crickets to my cham. He does not seem to eat the crickets i put in his cage or hand-fed mealworms. The crickets will walk around him or climb on the screen and my cham will seem uninterested in them.

 

[Julirs]

Hopefully you are using a digital thermometer to measure temps. And I would still get rid of any light that says Zilla.

 

[Zechariah]

I just got a male veiled chameleon. At first I'd give him 10 krickets a day but now today he's not touching them. I am worried about him. Please help me with any answers you have. Also he is pooping dark brown with white but mostly brown. I don't think he's getting enough water. Should I put another water dripper on top?

Hopefully you are using a digital thermometer to measure temps. And I would still get rid of any light that says Zilla.

Hopefully you are using a digital thermometer to measure temps. And I would still get rid of any light that says Zilla.

 

[JimmySpinks]

This thread is mostly 6 years old.

I just got a male veiled chameleon. At first I'd give him 10 krickets a day but now today he's not touching them. I am worried about him. Please help me with any answers you have. Also he is pooping dark brown with white but mostly brown. I don't think he's getting enough water. Should I put another water dripper on top?

You should look at this basic caresheet for information - https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/veiled/

To answer your question - the white part of his poop is called the urate. If it is white then he is getting enough water. If it goes yellowy then he is a bit dehydrated. If it goes orange and crystalline then he has a real problem with hydration.

 

[dboddy31]

I wouldn't feed your Cham mealworms. Use super worms instead. They are a crappy feeder and have a hard shell could lead your Cham getting impacted