Scared Chameleon?

[Progrmor]

Hi. Got my 2 months old veiled chameleon for 3 days now. And she have eaten only ONE cricket so far.

But here´s the thing... I understand that she will be really nervous about me being around and bugging her. But how long will she be like "Scared" of me? I now cover her cage with a couple of shirts at day so that she will not notice me when working on the computer since she wont climb out of her plant if Im around. But if I walk away for like 1 hour and come back, she might be in the roof or some other place. And she is refusing to eat when I giv it to her.

But what do you recommend? I dont want her to be a aggresive chameleon when she grow up. But on the other hand I dont want her to die from stress of me bugging her all the time...

What do I do?

 

[NHenn]

I would give her a good two to three weeks before you try handling her. At that point you can start getting her out every or every other day but only for 2-3 minutes at a time. She just needs some time to settle in and get use to her new environment.

Not sure if a shirt is necessary, just make sure she isn't in a high traffic area and she should be fine.

 

[kdc5019]

I would give her a good two to three weeks before you try handling her. At that point you can start getting her out every or every other day but only for 2-3 minutes at a time. She just needs some time to settle in and get use to her new environment.

Not sure if a shirt is necessary, just make sure she isn't in a high traffic area and she should be fine.

What NHenn said. Be patient.

 

[Progrmor]

Okey thanks! But what will I do about the feeding problem? Im not 100% sure that he even got that cricket that I thought he had eaten. But I have wasted 6 crickets so far that she hasen´t shown any interest in. I´ve seen her being around the feeding bowl and checking it out, but he still isn´t eating... She´s been food refusing for 3 days now(Since I got her).

I kind of want to show the whole bowl up her face just to point out "HERE IS YOUR FOOD!", but I guess she have to find out herself?

 

[NHenn]

How large are your crickets? Make sure that their length is not longer than the width of her head. Smaller would be better.

If you can get some other form of food I would give that a try as well. Maybe silkworms, fruit flies, mealworms, etc. Just make sure they are small as well.

As you are using a bowl, maybe try hanging it below her favorite spot to sit so she can see the food while she is chilling there.

 

[Progrmor]

How large are your crickets? Make sure that their length is not longer than the width of her head. Smaller would be better.

If you can get some other form of food I would give that a try as well. Maybe silkworms, fruit flies, mealworms, etc. Just make sure they are small as well.

As you are using a bowl, maybe try hanging it below her favorite spot to sit so she can see the food while she is chilling there.

They are "medium". Dont really know what that means but the owner where I bought them told me they were the right size.. But they do look kind of big. Well, she dont really have a fav spot yet I think. But can it be put on the ground or does it need to be hanging high?

 

[NHenn]

I would hang it. Could you post some pictures of your setup and any of her you might have?

Also take a look at the care sheet and see if anything you are currently doing stands out as incorrect. https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/veiled/

 

[Progrmor]

Here´s the cage. To the right, in the corner is a white bowl. That´s the feedingbox. Since I got a glas terrarium its kinda hard to hang it.. Any suggestions?
(Keep in mind, she is 2 months old. 9cm long.. kind of)

 

[NHenn]

Hang it off your vine or branch, doesn't have to be on the side of the cage.

You should add some more branches and hanging plants so she has more places to hid and feel safe.

If you could, I would fill out the https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/ as well.

 

[Progrmor]

Hang it off your vine or branch, doesn't have to be on the side of the cage.

You should add some more branches and hanging plants so she has more places to hid and feel safe.

If you could, I would fill out the https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/ as well.

Ok, I´ll try that in the morning! Thank you!

 

[MelissaB]

I would try to get some more horizontal branches at different levels. I know that's kind of hard on glass so I would tie the branches together. Almost like making a wide open at the top teepee if that makes sense. That way it could support itself. The branches you would tie in between the vertical supports would hold it together. Then I'd take some silk vines, or live pothos vines and wind them around the sticks, to give her some hiding spots.

Or you could buy some plastic chain (Action Jackson did this on a screen cage), cut some to the length you need, and tie the chain to the screen top. Then put branches through the chain. That would be pretty easy. You wouldn't need the clips, since you would just thread wire or fishing line through the screen to tie to the chain links.

here's a link to Action Jackson's setup:https://www.chameleonforums.com/new-cage-setup-111202/

 

[DakotaB]

Yeah you need some more up top. This is were a hot glue gun will become your best friend. Also with the cup you could hot glue it to the glass if u wanted..