Should I place the 3 Panther hatchling in a Zoomed nano screen 10x10x12 instead of what I am using?

[aapuzzo]

I still have not seen them eat after 4 days which is when the first one hatched. The youngest is 2 days old. I understand I may just not be seeing them eat. Here is the setup

- Zilla bow front 18x21x25
- Zoomed 18" T5 HO 10.0 placed diagonal (Can switch to a 12" T5 Ho 5.0) Used 10.0 because I limited vertical height to over a ft away for time being.
- Zilla 50w mini halogen (I have multiple heat lights at my disposal but this was best for achieving below)
- Thermostat on basking spot set to 85F degrees for safety but heat bulb only gets to ~83 and the misting schedule lowers it for a period of time.
- Climbing branches and silk vines placed randomly to about 14" height.
- 2x small Pangea cardbord feeding cups with a drop of Crested gecko diet to atract the melanogaster wingless and winged ffies) I used a mixture of both flies. I am not taking them out after 15m. I always see about 5 flies in each cup with more at times. One cup is placed near basking spot and one on bottom of enclosure.

- The breeder told I received the eggs from told me he uses a 12x12x12 screen because it keeps them closer to the food and they get the sides for climbing space being screen. I noticed many use tubs that are = or greater in size to what I am using.
- I could weight them with a gram scale that can weight down to .001g to really see if they are eating
- The 2 females are usually a dark color and the male seems to be lightening up and already displays banding and a bright white bar. I used the sticky post to sex them so I am pretty sure I have 1.2.

Sorry I am asking this outside of the breeding section where I asked the similar question but its been over 2 days and didn't get a response. I am starting to worry. I am seeing much more activity here and technically this isn't about getting them to breed.

 

[AmandaS]

I would just open the cup of flies and set the whole thing in the enclosure. They will likely stay close to the cup since that is where their food is. And then you will be certain they have plenty of food.

Have you seen any poo in the enclosure? It will be teeny tiny. If they are passing fecal, then they are eating.

I'd drop the temps if you can. I'd keep it between 78-80 but not higher. The babies dont really need the heat and can overheat very quickly.

 

[aapuzzo]

I would just open the cup of flies and set the whole thing in the enclosure. They will likely stay close to the cup since that is where their food is. And then you will be certain they have plenty of food.

Have you seen any poo in the enclosure? It will be teeny tiny. If they are passing fecal, then they are eating.

I'd drop the temps if you can. I'd keep it between 78-80 but not higher. The babies dont really need the heat and can overheat very quickly.

I could drop the temp a little but the temp in most of the enclosure is 74 this is only directly under the light and where they seem to want to sit is 83 when it finally maxes out after a few hours post misting. It doesn't stay 83 long because another misting cycle starts. I could make it lower but it would drop the temps in the cool side more which they have been avoiding. For the fruit flies I could put an entire ff cup in there but it could also become a disaster in my house. Here is a picture of the cups and flies. Disregard the empty top cup I just added more pangea for my daily change so it chased them away in that one and flies haven't found their way back yet. The enclosure has a ton of flies in it. They literally walk over the chameleons and I see them start breathing heavy when they do so I think it stresses them out when this happens. Would that many flies stress them out or do I really need that level to get them started? I know adding too many crickets with other reptiles can have that effect. I only have 3 hatchlings and my cultures are booming 32oz cups. Not the small little petco cultures.

 

[aapuzzo]

I just caught one eating. A fly walked over her face and she opened her mouth and it walked in. After that I saw her snipe one from a body length away. I guess I will just make sure they have enough flies in that cup area a few times a day. There are rogue flies all over the place now. Not sure if she was the first one out of the egg but I know how to identify them now.

 

[cham girl]

that is great for their observation when aggression starts or dominance is observed you will want to separate them

 

[janjan20]

I had my bin set up like this (3 babies) with a T5 hanging above. I did have a solar meter to check the UV output. I didn’t have a basking light I just used the heat from the UV light and the ambient temp. Basking temps I kept around 80 but they did have cooler areas below if they wanted.
I had a problem with the first one that hatched. He didn’t eat for the first 4 days. He didn’t cup feed or eat pin head crickets. Once I got fruit flies I just dumped them in there and he finally started eating. They did crawl on them which they didn’t like but eventually they all started eating well. I did have some escapees but I placed oranges out and that worked lol.
Since they are so small I just looked to see if they were pooping vs weighing them. It can be stressful to handle them too much. Also, if they can see each other well that may stress them out too and they may not eat.
For your set up I would get a small Pothos to help with humidity and more coverage. Also, recommend a solar meter to make sure they are getting enough UV. I started dusting the fruit flies with plain calcium at around a month.
Hope this helps!

 

[aapuzzo]

I had my bin set up like this (3 babies) with a T5 hanging above. I did have a solar meter to check the UV output. I didn’t have a basking light I just used the heat from the UV light and the ambient temp. Basking temps I kept around 80 but they did have cooler areas below if they wanted.
I had a problem with the first one that hatched. He didn’t eat for the first 4 days. He didn’t cup feed or eat pin head crickets. Once I got fruit flies I just dumped them in there and he finally started eating. They did crawl on them which they didn’t like but eventually they all started eating well. I did have some escapees but I placed oranges out and that worked lol.
Since they are so small I just looked to see if they were pooping vs weighing them. It can be stressful to handle them too much. Also, if they can see each other well that may stress them out too and they may not eat.
For your set up I would get a small Pothos to help with humidity and more coverage. Also, recommend a solar meter to make sure they are getting enough UV. I started dusting the fruit flies with plain calcium at around a month.
Hope this helps!

Thanks. I actually have live plants to make it bioactive but didn't want to disrupt them again until they started eating. Also it would be easier to see dropping on a paper towel. I could add another silk vine which wouldn't disrupt them too much for the time being. if you think I need it. Good advice on the UV meter. I'll pick one up. I have been all over hand misting and have a mist king system loop. I just didn't add them in yet.

 

[Reptofreak]

I usually don’t catch babies eating tell they’re a week or two old.

Also, I find it better to hand mist hatchlings because I have seen them drown with a mister.

 

[janjan20]

Definitely hand mist for now, as far as adding extra vines that’s up to you. I just like to use real plants vs the silk ones. Hopefully they start eating soon! We love baby pics too lol!