Newbie Dad

[Azorian]

Hi Guys,

Baileys out of the aquarium!
I broke down and bought and flexrium 16.5x16.5x30. I noticed that Bailey had some white stuff coming out of its nostrils, at first I thought to much humidity problems, but I was over supplementing.
Humidity is at 40 sometimes high 30s and when misted it will shoot up into the 60s
Temperature is around 78-85 12inches under basking light(50watt) hotter closer to light maybe high 80s'maybe 90s' (I got AC) Cage is nowhere close to a vent.
Cause the cage is horizontal he's got a lot of places to run away from the heat!
I have a dripper all day and I warm water mist 2-3 times a day
I put 5-10 crickets in everyday (only found two dead ones so far)

My Question-> I never had a cham before. (owner for a week now)

Do they lay around all day! in the same spot? No roaming around!
Bailey stays under the basking light 80% of the time
Moves down in the evening and sleeps at a lower lever under the covers of leaves.
Is this normal?
I free roam the crickets and he just waits for the to come to him.
I put the dripper right by the place he lounges at. I was worried of dehydration. He does drink! his poop has a white tab not yellow or orange.

Do I have a 2 month old LAZY cham?
Does he look healthy to you guys?
What is normal Cham behaviour? No roaming?

Thanks Newbie Dad

 

[Elizadolots]

If it were me, I'd rotate the cage to vertical and reduce the temp at the basking point to around 85 degrees right below the light. When he gets older, he might want a warmer temperature. The temperature should fall off as you get lower in the cage. It's fine if the bottom of the cage is 72 degrees. Chameleons like to roam up and down, from cooler to warmer zones.

 

[Azorian]

If it were me, I'd rotate the cage to vertical and reduce the temp at the basking point to around 85 degrees right below the light. When he gets older, he might want a warmer temperature. The temperature should fall off as you get lower in the cage. It's fine if the bottom of the cage is 72 degrees. Chameleons like to roam up and down, from cooler to warmer zones.

I'm worried about him falling great heights 30" is quite the fall for a small guy
What about him not roaming is that normal behaviour??
Thanks

 

[hallenhe]

Unless you know that he has trouble hanging on or has suffered from calcium deficiency, I wouldn't worry about him falling; in the wild, he'd be several feet or meters up in a tree or bush by now. It would be more natural for him to have the vertical orientation on his cage; that would also provide a better temperature and light gradient.

Are you home/in the same room with him all day to know that he's not roaming? - I ask because when I had my first chameleon, he'd be on one perch in the morning when I left for work, and on the same perch, in the same position when I came home at night. I was working a lot of weekends then, and it wasn't until I'd had him about a month and took a day off that I saw he was clambering all over the place between 10 and 3 (when I was usually gone), then returning to his favored spot. Chameleons are not the most active of lizards, and they can remain in one place for some time, but they should be moving sometimes, and younger ones are generally more active than older.

 

[Elizadolots]

Besides, one of the best things about those reptarium cages is the soft mesh bottom. Mount the cage over a drain pan. You can mist and drip all day long and not worry about water (it goes through the bottom, into the pan) and should he take a fall, he lands on soft mesh, not a hard floor.

 

[jannb]

A two month old should have temps of 80 for the basking area. I never used a basking light with my babies. I used a double fixture with a regular light in one side and the UV bulb in the other and the temps stayed at 80 in the top of the cage except right after misting.

A two month old veiled should be eating you out of a house and home.....15 feeders or so a day.

 

[Azorian]

Unless you know that he has trouble hanging on or has suffered from calcium deficiency, I wouldn't worry about him falling; in the wild, he'd be several feet or meters up in a tree or bush by now. It would be more natural for him to have the vertical orientation on his cage; that would also provide a better temperature and light gradient.

Are you home/in the same room with him all day to know that he's not roaming? - I ask because when I had my first chameleon, he'd be on one perch in the morning when I left for work, and on the same perch, in the same position when I came home at night. I was working a lot of weekends then, and it wasn't until I'd had him about a month and took a day off that I saw he was clambering all over the place between 10 and 3 (when I was usually gone), then returning to his favored spot. Chameleons are not the most active of lizards, and they can remain in one place for some time, but they should be moving sometimes, and younger ones are generally more active than older.

Right now I'm on holidays. Most of the time we are in a different room, but once in awhile we will sneak a peek to see whats he up too. Usually hes in the same spot! maybe altittle left or right but same spot! Crickets' will be crawling along the bottom of thr cage, but he doesn't care. he waits until they climb up the side of the cage and pick them off! I figured being young he would explore every corner of his cage. Nope not for him.

Thanks Newbie Dad