The Messy Introductions!

[Mael]

Hello Everyone! I'm front Toronto, Ontario, Canada. I've just joined up here and wanted to tell you about my boy Theodore. He's my second attempt at keeping a Cham and I've had him since Octoboer. The first one died quite young due to an accidental ingestion of substrate. I've learned my lesson.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - 3'x3'x5' (i think... maybe larger. It's rather large)
Lighting - One heat bulb (120W I think?) and Two Flourecent Bulbs - one with full specrtum UV for the plants and one specific tropical reptile UV bulb.
Temperature - Honestly, I don't know.
Humidity - Spraying twice a day. Having two plants in the cage that are watered regularly also help keep the humidity high
Plants - One Benjamini Ficus that fills most of the cage and a newly added Pothos to give Theodore some room to hide if he needs to. The base of the cage is usually just covered in a few paper towels to clean up his messy poo.
Location - In the living room of the house. He's in a corner far away from most things so people usually keep a good distance from his cage at all times. It's part of the problem living in a smaller apartment - there really isn't anywhere else good to put him!

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - Veiled Chameleon, Male, around 1 year old.
Feeding - Crickets with Silkworms bi-weekly. A half-dozen to a dozen a day. It really depends on how much he wants to eat honestly - every morning before work around 8am. Feeders are given various vegatables and fruits (Carrots, Pinapples) as well as fish food.
Supplements - Calcium once weekly
Watering - Misting. Usually Theodore will drink but I have to actually hit him with the water to do it. It's definitely not an ideal solution, but I can't seem to get him to drink otherwise.

Some Random Notes:
Lately he's hit that "stage in life" and has become exceedingly anti-social. I've been trying to re-socialize him a bit by taking him outside but i'm not sure if this is a good idea based upon what i've been reading here. When he goes outside he likes to explore the dense garden plants and generally takes on very vivid bright colours that may indicate an actual lack of stress. I've added the Pothos (devils ivy) to his cage in the past week to see if he appreciates the extra hiding space.

I've added some pics for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy!

 

[Ryan Jarosek]

Welcome to the forum, This place is great as you will find out. Your setup looks great and a very good looking Cham.

You mentioned you give your feeders fish food. I believe that is not a very good idea. You would be better off with a gut load mix. Also hitting him with the water is fine. You should make sure it is warm water so you don't shock him. It will actually trigger them to drink.

Do you supliment with Cal + D3 at all?

 

[bucky]

Whats the problem? Chameleons arent meant to be social, especially veileds.

 

[mika]

What do you mean by anti-social?

What was he doing before that he's not doing now?

 

[Mael]

Do you supliment with Cal + D3 at all?

I think so. I'm not sure to be honest. I had Calcium suppliment left over from my original baby (Eugene) that didn't make it. I'm 95% sure it's cal + d3 suppliment however.

Whats the problem? Chameleons arent meant to be social, especially veileds.

When I first got him he was suprisingly social. Constantly when I would to to feed him he would dart (as fast as chams can anyway) out of the cage and onto my arm. I was a real pain to get him back into the cage when i was trying to head to work! He's got to the point where he's become very anti-social because I didn't hold him for an extended period (two months or so). Now under no circumstances will he come out of his cage. The only way I can get him out is to actually take the entire Ficus out of the cage with him in it!

I think he's just hit that change in life. Horny makes Theodore crazy, basically.