Water Question

[joeandsoph]

Hi guys,

Now I know we only got Colin yesterday. He's about 9 weeks old and although we have seen him eat, we haven't yet seen him drink. We do have water dripping into his enclosure over the leaves but all he seems to do is walk through it! Obviously we can't monitor him 24 hours a day, so how are we going to know if he is drinking. Just a little worried as we haven't seen him drinking and I don't really know how often he should be drinking.

Thanks!!

 

[hallenhe]

They can be furtive drinkers. Watch his waste - if the urates (the lighter-colored pellet) are white, that is an indication that he's well hydrated. If it's orange, then he could use some more water. (He'll also put out a brown colored pellet that includes the more solid matter.)
Misting them can stimulate them to drink - I use a plant mister and spritz above the lizard (not straight at him). You can put warm water in the mister, as it will cool off by the time it hits him (feel it to make sure) - I spritz from about a foot or a foot and a half a way. Be prepared to keep it up for a long time - mine needs to be spritzed for three to five minutes before he'll even open his mouth; once he starts actually tasting the water, he gets in to it and will let you spritz him indefinitely. Mine will sometimes walk away - I don't chase him, but keep spritzing where he was. Often he'll stop just out of range and come back in a minute or two; if he keeps marching away, I give up on it for the time being.
Colin is a cute guy; best of luck with him!

 

[joeandsoph]

Thanks for your reply. I have been advised but someone but can't remember who not to mist them when they are babies as it cloggs his nostrils up? Anyway we mist the plant until they are completely dripping and carry on but he just completely un-interested. His urates are whitey yellow tinged so I'm very unsure.

 

[hallenhe]

I've heard that about not misting babies for pygmeleons; I haven't heard it for veileds or panthers, but can't say that I've looked into it much, either. Maybe try a very fine mist and supervise him closely? - I would guess if he's big enough to be sold, he's probably big enough to mist, and many chameleons like to catch the water that runs down their heads to their lips.

 

[joeandsoph]

Ok we'll just keep a close eye on him and his faeces. What are we going to do though if we find out he just completely isn't drinking. :-(

 

[hallenhe]

I would guess he is - if he genuinely isn't, a vet visit would be in order; if the urates don't get progressively oranger, you're probably okay. Thaxter is interested in quickly moving water, in volume - when he last yanked the dripper out of his drip system, such that the water poured from the reservoir like from a faucet, he watched it in fascination and took several drinks from it (like a kid from a drinking fountain) - so you could try increasing the drip rate, or (under close supervision) allowing him access to a trickling faucet.

Some chameleons just won't let you watch them drink. If the dripper's dripping and the plants stay wet for 15+ minutes or so, with water beaded up on them, he is likely all right.

 

[joeandsoph]

Thanks for your help. I'd a bit dubious about taking him to a vet (if it comes to that) cos if they aren't reptile expertcs they can sometimes do more damage than it's worth. He just runs under the water and goes dark green and then stop's dead as if to say what the hell's going on. Then he turns round and goes and has a climb haha. Will just keep a close eye on him. I'll find out a little more about misting a baby Veiled just incase.

 

[Murrdox]

Ok we'll just keep a close eye on him and his faeces. What are we going to do though if we find out he just completely isn't drinking. :-(

Make sure you mist him 2-3 times a day. The misting sessions should last 3-5 minutes. Chameleons react slightly better to mistings when using warm water, but it's not totally necessary. Don't spray your chameleon directly.

Make sure you provide a drip which will drip down onto leaves, and that the drip will keep dripping for at least 20-30 minutes. One drop every 2-3 seconds should be about right. Refill the drip at least twice a day.

You still may rarely ever catch your chameleon drinking. Keeping an eye on his urate is the best way to know he's drinking. If his eyes ever appear sunken, that's a bad sign as well.

Chameleons are notoriously shy about drinking. If your chameleon is in a high-traffic area, he might be too stressed to drink. Try leaving him alone for 10-20 minutes after you mist him. Watch him from a distance and be very still. You might be able to catch him in the act.

 

[sandrachameleon]

If you wish to mist in addition to using a dripper, Misting can be directed at the leaves, sides of the enclosure etc rather than directly at the chameleon, thus avoiding any chance of getting water in the nostrils.

 

[joeandsoph]

Well we sprayed lot's and lot's this morning. The little guy just hid as usual so I'm not sure if he has drank yet or not. Finger's crossed.

 

[ChamNovice]

Like you were told before, just keep an eye on his urates. I have had my veiled for about 2 months and have never seen him drink. It bothered me too at first never seeing him drinking, I thought maybe something was wrong. I have found that he doesn't like doing a lot of things while I'm watching. His urates are white though, so he has to be drinking at some point.

 

[joeandsoph]

Yeh thanks. I think I'm a little nervous as he's such a tiny delicate thing and we want to look after him the best we can =D

 

[joeandsoph]

Finally, we've seen Colin drink. His urates were white today and he came down and did a lot of licking!! Much happier now =D

 

[sandrachameleon]

You must be relieved
It is not unusual for some chameleons to be shy about eating and / or drinking when watched.

 

[joeandsoph]

He didn't seem bothered, he just drank away! I'm impressed hehe. At least we don't have to worry now. Beginner's nerves I think