The chameleon crossed the road (w/images)

[therainstopped]

Once upon a time (about a week ago) while driving, my dad spotted something very slowly creeping across our street. He pulled over and rescued this little guy from a very uncertain future. We asked around, knocked on doors, and no one came looking for him. I don't know anything about his past. He was friendly enough (no attempt to bite) and was okay with handling (he did hiss once that day but I haven't heard him do it again).












Current statistics: age (?), sex (apparently male), shedding (some dried skin flakes when I found him), length (12ish inches), food (eating about 5 crickets a day, no interest in mealworms), misting (warm water misting by bottle 5x a day), feeders (gut-loaded with sweet potatoes/blueberries), ReptiBreeze (XL cage), 100 watt heat lamp (overhead 24/7), UVB 5.0 light (10ish hours every day), plants (golden pothos and umbrella), calcium (only have the calcium w/D3 so I've only dusted once), temperature (top cage: low 80's bottom cage: low 70's), defecation (every one or two days with light orange urate). Anything else?

He seems a bit sluggish with the recent rain but his eyes are all over the place. I've never owned any type of reptile and I just hope I'm doing right by him. Any advice would be great! Does he look okay?

Oh, and his new name is DROGO!

 

[camimom]

Lucky find!
hes very pretty.
Are you leaving that 100 watt bulb on 24 hours a day>?
if so, dont.
they need dark to sleep, which could explain his sluggishness.

ALso, he needs supplements.
calciwum without d3 ever feeding
calciwum with d3 twice a month
multivitamin twice a month

 

[thephotoprincess]

where are you located? I saw an ad on craigslist that someone lost a chameleon recently.

http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/pet/2660704322.html

 

[therainstopped]

1) It's a red light 100 watt bulb, is that not okay for sleeping purposes? The bright light visible is the UVB.

2) Sadly, I'm nowhere near the Inland Empire. But, I hope they find their chameleon.

 

[camimom]

We dont recommend any lights for sleeping chams. and never red bulbs for day time.
Most of us use regular house bulbs for basking, and reptiglo or reptisun uvb bulbs.

 

[Pilotman800]

Thats a beautiful panther! Someone definitely either let it go or lost it. Either way, nice find!

 

[camimom]

So, can you click the following link, fill out the how to ask for help form, and post it here, we can help you from there.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/

 

[therainstopped]

We dont recommend any lights for sleeping chams. and never red bulbs for day time.
Most of us use regular house bulbs for basking, and reptiglo or reptisun uvb bulbs.

Okay, so during the day I should use a regular 100 watt bulb for basking. It gets a bit cold in my house during the night (55ish). Isn't that a bit cold without any kind of heat? What can I do to make sure he's comfortable?

Yes, the uvb is a reptiglo bulb.

 

[therainstopped]

Thats a beautiful panther! Someone definitely either let it go or lost it. Either way, nice find!

He's a mystery. I know everyone up and down my street as well as a few from the streets over, no one owns or has ever owned a chameleon. I put out a Craigslist ad and canvassed the area. Nothing!

 

[camimom]

Okay, so during the day I should use a regular 100 watt bulb for basking. It gets a bit cold in my house during the night (55ish). Isn't that a bit cold without any kind of heat? What can I do to make sure he's comfortable?

Yes, the uvb is a reptiglo bulb.

panthers like temp drops at night. If it gets below 50, you can get a ceramic heat emitter, which has no light, but provides warmth.
what are his basking temps under that 100 watt bulb?

 

[therainstopped]

panthers like temp drops at night. If it gets below 50, you can get a ceramic heat emitter, which has no light, but provides warmth.
what are his basking temps under that 100 watt bulb?

Good to know. Under the bulb, during the day, mid 80's. Under the bulb, in the evening, mid-70's to low 80's.

 

[mankc]

That is an awesome find!

 

[Elizadolots]

Have you considered looking for the owner? You might want to put a flyer in local reptile/pet stores and vets.

If your pet were lost, wouldn't you want the person who found it to at least try to find you?

 

[therainstopped]

Have you considered looking for the owner? You might want to put a flyer in local reptile/pet stores and vets.

If your pet were lost, wouldn't you want the person who found it to at least try to find you?

I'm not sure if you read anything else I've written in this thread but aside from asking my entire street, canvassing for missing posters, posting flyers, a Craigslist ad, and knocking on doors I don't think anyone is looking for this guy any longer.

And, yes I would, which is why I went through all of the previous steps

 

[panthercham]

Depending on how long he has been free (as the weather has been mild at the moment in So Cal) he could have traveled for at least a mile or 2. Many chams have done that and many owners dont think they can travel that far and wont for long so wont search that far and may have given up on him.

On the flip side...place a Craigs list ad and local posters and see if he is claimed. If not then congratulations on a wonderful cham

 

[Elizadolots]

I'm not sure if you read anything else I've written in this thread but aside from asking my entire street, canvassing for missing posters, posting flyers, a Craigslist ad, and knocking on doors I don't think anyone is looking for this guy any longer.

And, yes I would, which is why I went through all of the previous steps

You just mentioned knocking on a few doors.

We asked around, knocked on doors, and no one came looking for him.

It's entirely likely that the owner was not in the immediate vicinity.

If you posted flyers and put an ad on Craig's list, that's good. That's the sort of thing I was suggesting you do.

Depending on how long he has been free (as the weather has been mild at the moment in So Cal) he could have traveled for at least a mile or 2. Many chams have done that and many owners dont think they can travel that far and wont for long so wont search that far and may have given up on him.

On the flip side...place a Craigs list ad and local posters and see if he is claimed. If not then congratulations on a wonderful cham

Exactly.

 

[JackP308]

Nice find , someone is definitely missing a good looking chameleon one way or another.

 

[wendyeeeo]

He's lucky that you found him and are taking good care of him. He could have easily been run over or killed by an animal. Good luck with your new guy. He's gorgeous!

 

[therainstopped]

He's lucky that you found him and are taking good care of him. He could have easily been run over or killed by an animal. Good luck with your new guy. He's gorgeous!

There was a band of cats looking to harass him when he was found Luckily no damage was done.

 

[therainstopped]

You just mentioned knocking on a few doors.



It's entirely likely that the owner was not in the immediate vicinity.

If you posted flyers and put an ad on Craig's list, that's good. That's the sort of thing I was suggesting you do.



Exactly.

Whoops, sorry guys, I misunderstood before. Yes, I definitely posted Craigslist ads and put flyers around the neighborhood. I'm in a really hilly area and there are not too many people around. I know everyone on my street (no luck there) and they've also asked around. Sadly, no one knows this guy. I would be devastated if this happened to my pet so I tried my best to find the previous owners.