Veiled Chameleon always brown?

[Jshimmy]

Hey all. First time poster here. I recently got a male veiled a couple months ago and he always seems to be mostly brown unless he’s sleeping. He also tends to sit around his basking spot most of the day. Is this normal or is something wrong with my husbandry that’s causing this? I attached a picture of his enclosure for reference

Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - Male veiled chameleon, approx. 9mo-1yr old
• Handling - Only when necessary, recently switched his enclosure
• Feeding - 5-6 dubias a day and a super worm. Recently ended a two week hunger strike where he’d eat only hornworms
• Supplements - All feeders dusted with Pangea reptical, reptivite multivitamin w d3 1-2x a month
• Watering - hand mist once in the morning and once before lights go out. See him drink often
• Fecal Description - solid brown w white urates. Never been tested for parasites
• History - got him from a breeder at a reptile show a couple months back. Previously was using the smaller reptibreeze and incorrect lighting (compact uvb) until about a week ago

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - 2x2x4 reptibreeze with weather proofing on the back/sides for humidity
• Lighting - 75w Arcadia floodlight w deep dome for basking and reptisun 24” t5 5.0 uvb
• Temperature - ambient reads high 80s in the basking spot and 72 towards the bottom
• Humidity - high 30s/low 40s during the day. Fogger goes at night and keeps it around 60-70%
• Plants -All live plants. A couple different pothos, philodendrons and monstera at the bottom
• Placement - Corner of my living room
• Location - northeast Ohio
  

 

[Beman]

Hey there welcome to the forum. Could you please post some pics of your chameleon as well? Give me a few to go through your husbandry form.

 

[Beman]

See my feedback in red bold.

Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - Male veiled chameleon, approx. 9mo-1yr old
• Handling - Only when necessary, recently switched his enclosure
• Feeding - 5-6 dubias a day and a super worm. Recently ended a two week hunger strike where he’d eat only hornworms. If he is really 9-12 months old you want to switch to an every other day feeding now. Once they hit a year old you really want to watch food intake and reduce to 3-4 feeders every other day. While watching casque girth and cheek pads to ensure they are not getting overweight.
• Supplements - All feeders dusted with Pangea reptical, reptivite multivitamin w d3 1-2x a month.. Can you please post a picture of the label for the Pangea supplement you are using? Just want to double check it. The reptivite would be used 2 times a month say the 1st and the 15th. Important not to skip these and keep them on this rotation because they need the vitamin A that is in the reptivite multivitamin.
• Watering - hand mist once in the morning and once before lights go out. See him drink often. Consider running a dripper during the day. They really need multiple ways to drink. With hand misting it is often not a long enough misting session to really soak everything down and give him ample places to drink from.
• Fecal Description - solid brown w white urates. Never been tested for parasites. Always a good idea to get a fecal test especially when they come from a reptile show. Not all breeders have the same level of husbandry or cleanliness. Parasites can be a common issue.
• History - got him from a breeder at a reptile show a couple months back. Previously was using the smaller reptibreeze and incorrect lighting (compact uvb) until about a week ago. I would like to see pics of your boy. With the incorrect uvb being used I just want to make sure I can not see physical signs of MBD.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - 2x2x4 reptibreeze with weather proofing on the back/sides for humidity. Perfect.
• Lighting - 75w Arcadia floodlight w deep dome for basking and reptisun 24” t5 5.0 uvb. For basking are you running a temp gauge with probe on the branch below the heat to ensure your basking temps are not too hot? Males would need a basking temp range of 80-85. A 75 watt floodlight can produce higher temps at the distance your using it. Also with it sitting directly on the screen top at that distance I would be concerned about a thermal burn risk. UVB is perfect. This would need to be replaced ever 6-9 months. If you get the arcadia 6% bulb you could replace this one every year instead. With the 5.0 or the 6% sitting directly on the screen top you want a measured distance of 8-9 inches to the branches below this fixture to get an approximate 3 UVI.
• Temperature - ambient reads high 80s in the basking spot and 72 towards the bottom.. High 80s at basking is a bit too high... Double check temp there with a wired probe guage. Low 70's is what your looking for in the rest of the enclosure.
• Humidity - high 30s/low 40s during the day. Fogger goes at night and keeps it around 60-70% Both of these ranges are good. Veileds tollerate lower daytime humidity down to 30% so your ambient daytime is fine. With the fogging at night make sure you are acheiving lower temps when doing this. You want it ideally below 67. But they really need the cool down. If you can drop ambient temp to 60-65 that is even better. If temps are hot at night while running a fogger you increase risk of a respiratory infection.
• Plants -All live plants. A couple different pothos, philodendrons and monstera at the bottom
• Placement - Corner of my living room

 

[Jshimmy]

Appreciate the feedback! Unfortunately he’s not being very cooperative for pictures but the first is from today. He is finishing a shed. The other two are from when he was in the smaller cage during a hunger strike. Also was likely dehydrated due to inconsistent misting on my end.

 

[Beman]

Appreciate the feedback! Unfortunately he’s not being very cooperative for pictures but the first is from today. He is finishing a shed. The other two are from when he was in the smaller cage during a hunger strike. Also was likely dehydrated due to inconsistent misting on my end.
View attachment 347026

Ok if you could open the cage door to try to get pics that would be helpful. Right now he looks very thin. Hold off on reducing food schedule to every other day. I would get a fecal test... Because of what I am am able to see in the image from today and the two prior. Very thin in the casque girth but also cheeks are sunk in and not looking like that of a healthy cham that eats every day 6 feeders.

 

[CalamityCrow]

Appreciate the feedback! Unfortunately he’s not being very cooperative for pictures but the first is from today. He is finishing a shed. The other two are from when he was in the smaller cage during a hunger strike. Also was likely dehydrated due to inconsistent misting on my end.
View attachment 347026

I also wanted to add, it looks like I spot red lights there - red lights are not good for chams. It messes with their eyes - that could be a source of stress for him as well. You'll want to replace that ASAP with a white-light only bulb. I'm not sure if you've got that for heating or something else, but the only lights they should have are natural white/incandescent bulbs.

 

[Jshimmy]

I also wanted to add, it looks like I spot red lights there - red lights are not good for chams. It messes with their eyes - that could be a source of stress for him as well. You'll want to replace that ASAP with a white-light only bulb. I'm not sure if you've got that for heating or something else, but the only lights they should have are natural white/incandescent bulbs.

It was a plant light I had on his old enclosure. I have since replaced it with white LEDs after hearing how red lights weren’t good for chams. Appreciate your response!

 

[Jshimmy]

Ok if you could open the cage door to try to get pics that would be helpful. Right now he looks very thin. Hold off on reducing food schedule to every other day. I would get a fecal test... Because of what I am am able to see in the image from today and the two prior. Very thin in the casque girth but also cheeks are sunk in and not looking like that of a healthy cham that eats every day 6 feeders.

Got it I’ll try again tomorrow. And while he’s been eating more lately he was on a hunger strike for the better part of a month where he would only eat hornworms and the occasional wax worm until I cut the treat bugs off a couple weeks ago. He is now happily back on his dubias though

 

[Raymond1412]

Welcome!! I love that you have a big enclosure and lots of vines and branches for your cham to climb on. I would add more greenery for your chameleon to hide and blend into. Make sure they are chameleon-safe! It seems like you have a Veiled, and they are well-known for being plant eaters! This should help: https://chameleonacademy.com/plants/
Also, what color was your chameleon when you bought him? Some chameleons just stay similar colors, and I have seen a lot of panthers that have been that similar to that brown color. It is a little odd that your chameleon won't change colors, because they rely on their color changing heavily when they are in the wild. Just wondering, how many bugs are you feeding a day, what kinds of bugs you feed, and what kind of reptile calcium and reptile vitamins are you giving with your bugs??

 

[Jshimmy]

Welcome!! I love that you have a big enclosure and lots of vines and branches for your cham to climb on. I would add more greenery for your chameleon to hide and blend into. Make sure they are chameleon-safe! It seems like you have a Veiled, and they are well-known for being plant eaters! This should help: https://chameleonacademy.com/plants/
Also, what color was your chameleon when you bought him? Some chameleons just stay similar colors, and I have seen a lot of panthers that have been that similar to that brown color. It is a little odd that your chameleon won't change colors, because they rely on their color changing heavily when they are in the wild. Just wondering, how many bugs are you feeding a day, what kinds of bugs you feed, and what kind of reptile calcium and reptile vitamins are you giving with your bugs??

Yes I was thinking about making a run to the store to grab him a couple more plants today! Here are some pics from when we first got him.

 

[Raymond1412]

Yes I was thinking about making a run to the store to grab him a couple more plants today! Here are some pics from when we first got him. View attachment 347092View attachment 347093

Wow!! He sure is pretty!! Are you sure It's a male? Does he have the little spurs on his back legs? Also, this might help!
https://reptilecraze.com/why-is-my-chameleon-brown/

 

[Jshimmy]

Ok if you could open the cage door to try to get pics that would be helpful. Right now he looks very thin. Hold off on reducing food schedule to every other day. I would get a fecal test... Because of what I am am able to see in the image from today and the two prior. Very thin in the casque girth but also cheeks are sunk in and not looking like that of a healthy cham that eats every day 6 feeders.

Here are some pictures of him being very upset I’m in his cage misting

 

[Jshimmy]

Wow!! He sure is pretty!! Are you sure It's a male? Does he have the little spurs on his back legs? Also, this might help!
https://reptilecraze.com/why-is-my-chameleon-brown/

Yes he’s definitely a male. That’s what’s confusing! Brown can mean too cold and he spends a lot of time basking but my temps are on the higher side and can also mean he’s too hot. I had no idea how tricky these little guys can be!

 

[Beman]

Here are some pictures of him being very upset I’m in his cage misting

Ok so he is underweight... Make sure you are feeding him well every day. He needs to fill out. But you also need to add a dripper. Eye turrets are sunk in which could mean health issue but it is also a sign of dehydration. Note I would not worry about even feeding him 10 feeders a day for a few weeks. See if he fills in more. I would still get the fecal sample to ensure there is not a parasite load.

Per the color. All the pics you see of bright vibrant males... Most of those are fired up. Meaning they are reacting to something around them causing the extreme colors. Resting colors for Veileds are muted browns and or greens. So dull and not vibrant at all. Dark can mean soaking up more heat. Does not mean something is wrong.

If he is not feeling well that could be why he is basking more than a healthy male would. But they do bask a lot especially when on an every day feeding schedule. They need to process the food they are eating and the only way to do this is to get warm.

 

[Raymond1412]

Yes he’s definitely a male. That’s what’s confusing! Brown can mean too cold and he spends a lot of time basking but my temps are on the higher side and can also mean he’s too hot. I had no idea how tricky these little guys can be!

Yes!! They can be pretty tricky at times! Maybe his natural colors are just brown? But the picture you showed me when you first got him, the colors in that picture should be close to his natural colors. Have you talked to your exotic vet about this?

 

[Jshimmy]

Yes!! They can be pretty tricky at times! Maybe his natural colors are just brown? But the picture you showed me when you first got him, the colors in that picture should be close to his natural colors. Have you talked to your exotic vet about this?

Haven’t had the chance to take him to the vet yet. Definitely wanna make sure he’s healthy though so I’ll be setting up an appointment soon!

 

[Raymond1412]

Haven’t had the chance to take him to the vet yet. Definitely wanna make sure he’s healthy though so I’ll be setting up an appointment soon!

Yup! I think that is all you can do, as far as keeping your chameleon happy and healthy!!

 

[CalamityCrow]

Haven’t had the chance to take him to the vet yet. Definitely wanna make sure he’s healthy though so I’ll be setting up an appointment soon!

Yeah, I'd definitely do that sooner than later. And bring a fresh fecal sample in to the doc to see if they'll do a float for a parasite check. Fingers crossed he'll bounce back!