preparing for new cham!

[aksdgff]

So, my little guy or girl will be born sometime in the next month. then, two-three months after, i will be picking him/her up and bringing him/her home. I'm looking for suggestions on the best things i can do to prepare for the arrival. I know little ones are a little harder to take care of, so is there any extra little things i can do?

i have my medium reptibreeze cage, two dome lights: one compact reptiglo 5.0 and one 50 watt zilla day white bulb, a pothos plant, some branches: one large and a couple of small ones, one vine that i don't like, supplements: calcium, calcium w/d3, and multivitamin, and a spray bottle.

- im thinking about buying a small ficus tree to go along with my pothos (which still needs to be replanted).
- i also need to get more branches and vines.
- i need to figure out a good food source that im comfortable with. (for some reason, all of the online places that sell silkworms give me a funny feeling. however, i volunteer for my local aquarium, and i'll probably get them through them )
- i'm also thinking about getting rid of the compact reptiglo. (and getting a it seems that all of the eye problems were caused by the 10.0, but because my baby died from an eye infection, i'm taking NO chances.)
- should i keep him/her in a smaller cage until he/she gets a little older?
- still very undecided about whether i want a male or female.

- any extra information is appreciated!

 

[jannb]

You might find my blog helpful. I raised my veiled babies this away with great success.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blo...-keepers-young-veiled-panther-chameleons.html

 

[MollyT]

How exciting that you will get to see pics of it when it hatches and as it grows! It sounds like you have a good start on supplies. As far as plants, I have heard that the pothos and ficus are great plants for them. I have a couple of umbrella plants in my guy's cage. I have a 3 month old make veiled. I've had him almost 3 weeks now. I think we had similar experiences with our first males. My first one lived only 10 days after I got him. As far as your concerns about the bulb, I completely understand. Although there is probably nothing wrong with the new compact bulbs, I just had so many people sending me pm's about them when my first guy was sick. Before my new little one got here I went ahead and got a tube bulb just for the peace of mind. As far as the cage, I would think that a medium would be fine. If you are planning on cup feeding I don't think it would matter what size the cage is. I have my guy in a 16x16x20, but the breeder I got him from raised him hunting his food rather than cup feeding, so it's been pretty perfect for him. I doubt a medium would be too big, though. I can't wait for you to get your new little one! Can't wait to see pics!

 

[aksdgff]

thanks guys! i'm very excited, but also scared. any more advice?

 

[NolaGirl]

I am a new owner of a male baby Veiled cham. The best advice I can give is to make sure to do your homework on the care of this animal. You are definitely in the right spot to learn. This forum has been a tremendous help to me.

First off, make sure that you have all of the essentials, i.e., UVB (I use a reptisun 5.0 tube), basking light (I use a 60 watt basking bulb), hydrometer and thermometer (the digital type is the most accurate), multivitamins, calcium with D3, calcium without D3, plants and vines, open air enclosure of suitable size for a baby cham (you don't want anything too big), dripper, mister (unused spray bottle or automatic mister), feeders of suitable size (1/4 inch crickets would be a good size for a 3 month old cham...that's what I feed mine), good gutload for your feeders (sandrachameleon is an expert...read her blog).

Also, give your cham some time to become acclimated to it's new environment upon receiving him/her. Keep handling to a minimum. This is very important. Your cham may not eat or drink much until it gets comfortable in it's new environment. Try not to monitor it too closely. It's going to be scared and probably won't eat or drink if you're watching. I learned this the hard way. LOL! I was freaking out because my baby cham wasn't eating much. Fellow members of this forum told me to let it get used to it's environment and stop watching it so closely...it would start to eat when it felt comfortable. They were right!

Here are few helpful links that have become my "go to" sources :

Info for new keepers with young veiled or panther chameleons

https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/jannb/325-info-new-keepers-young-veiled-panther-chameleons.html

Safe Plants
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/gerhartrx/523-chameleon-safe-plants.html

The basics of gutloading

https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/ferretinmyshoes/446-basics-gutloading.html

There is a wealth of info. on here. Don't hesitate to ask for help. The members of this forum are extremely helpful and friendly. Don't forget to post pics of your new baby when you get it.

 

[NolaGirl]

thanks guys! i'm very excited, but also scared. any more advice?

Don't be scared! I have to admit, I was nervous at first. I just wanted to make sure that I was doing everything possible to take proper care of my cham. They're so teeny tiny when they're babies. It can be a bit intimidating to care for such a fragile little creature. Don't worry. You will get the hang of it. Don't hesitate to ask questions, no matter how big or small. If you're the slightest bit unsure about something, ask questions. You will get an almost immediate response from someone who knows what they're talking about. It's awesome! You'll enjoy caring for your cham. It's cool to watch them grow and thrive.

 

[aksdgff]

Don't be scared! I have to admit, I was nervous at first. I just wanted to make sure that I was doing everything possible to take proper care of my cham. They're so teeny tiny when they're babies. It can be a bit intimidating to care for such a fragile little creature. Don't worry. You will get the hang of it. Don't hesitate to ask questions, no matter how big or small. If you're the slightest bit unsure about something, ask questions. You will get an almost immediate response from someone who knows what they're talking about. It's awesome! You'll enjoy caring for your cham. It's cool to watch them grow and thrive.

agreed! thank you