worried.about my little guy

[lameza]

Chameleon Info:

* Your Chameleon -
sub adult Jackson...roughly 4 inches nose to butt, not sure how old be is exactly ordered him from lllreptiles
How long has it been in your care?
1 week
* Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
Handled him today only in an atttempt to hand feed him a cricket...maybe 5 minutes
* Feeding -
Gut loaded crickets medium ish size...gut loaded with apple, carrots, greens
* Supplements - have calcium with d3 only right now, dusted crickets.but he didn't eat any of them
* Watering - mist daily about 2 minutes worth in the morning plus any time that I see.the humidity levels low...I'm a stay at home mom...he also has a dripper set up drips at a drop a second...he drinks a few minutes every morning...plus I see him drinking throughout the afternoon.
* Fecal Description - haven't seen any dropping
* History - no

Cage Info:

* Cage Type -all screen 36 high...18 square
* Lighting - reptisun 5 uvb, regular heater light....50 watt but its not on full emitting total heat.
* Temperature - temp is about 75-80 in basking spot, lower part of cage are about 70...have thermometers near basking spot and at bottom.
* Humidity -stays about 75%...have live plants in cage....and mist often to maintain humidity...use a humidity gauge
* Plants - ficus and hibiscus
* Placement - cage is in bedroom...little traffic...only in morning and evening at bed time...on top of book shelf...top is about 6 feet from floor.
* Location - los angeles, ca

Current Problem - he's a brownish color more often than not and has only eaten 2 crickets since I got him....worried he's starving to death...also wondering of regular.crickets are too big for him should I try pin heads?

 

[Tweaked tC]

how long is your uvb bulb?

My first female veiled did this when I got her, and she had parasites, so a vet check might be a good idea.

My current chams eat mediums and are about the same size you mentioned yours is.

Maybe a pic might be able to help the senior members with a diag.

 

[mcleodschams]

i would feed 1/4 size crickets pins might be too small. brown is stress something is stressing him out is my guess. what is his supliment schedule??

 

[KylieT]

is he brownish when he's sitting under his light? They go a darker color when they bask because they need to absorb more light to get more heat. and if it is stress it could just be the stress of being new to the situation.

 

[Elizadolots]

I agree with trying smaller crickets, but not pinheads. It can take them awhile to adjust to a new environment, plus there's the strain of being shipped so I think you need to cut him some slack. While it's good you are concerned, it's too early to be worried that he's starving.

Are you only feeding by hand? I would suggest starting off with either free ranged crickets or a cup. Once he's used to his new home you can start trying to get him to eat out of your hand.

 

[lameza]

Ive been feeding from a cup...I only tried the hand feeding to see if he would take it. He didnt. Getting smaller crickets right now and hopefully that will help.

 

[lameza]

how long is your uvb bulb?

My first female veiled did this when I got her, and she had parasites, so a vet check might be a good idea.

My current chams eat mediums and are about the same size you mentioned yours is.

Maybe a pic might be able to help the senior members with a diag.

My uv light is 18 inches...runs along the back of his house.

 

[KylieT]

Make sure that his UVB bulb runs across somewhere he sits often or that he can gain access to, so that you know he's getting what he needs. I put mine diagonally so that anywhere they are they are sitting under it.

 

[kinyonga]

You said..."roughly 4 inches nose to butt"...so you aren't including the tail? That means that he is not a baby and likely can eat bigger crickets than people are telling you to use.

Here's some information I hope will help you with supplementing, etc.....
Appropriate cage temperatures aid in digestion and thus play a part indirectly in nutrient absorption.

Exposure to UVB from either direct sunlight or a proper UVB light allows the chameleon to produce D3 so that it can use the calcium in its system to make/keep the bones strong and be used in other systems in the chameleon as well. The UVB should not pass through glass or plastic no matter whether its from the sun or the UVB light. The most often recommended UVB light is the long linear fluorescent Repti-sun 5.0 tube light. Some of the compacts, spirals and tube lights have caused health issues, but so far there have been no bad reports against this one.

A wide variety of insects that have been well fed and gutloaded should be fed to it.

Since many of the feeder insects we use in captivity have a poor ratio of calcium to phosphorus in them, its important to dust the insects just before you feed them to the chameleon at most feedings with a phos.-free calcium powder to help make up for it. (I use Rep-cal phosphorus-free calcium).

If you also dust twice a month with a phos.-free calcium/D3 powder it will ensure that your chameleon gets some D3 without overdoing it. It leaves the chameleon to produce the rest of what it needs through its exposure to the UVB light. D3 from supplements can build up in the system but D3 produced from exposure to UVB shouldn't as long as the chameleon can move in and out of it. (I use Rep-cal phos.-free calcium/D3).

Dusting twice a month as well with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene (prOformed) source of vitamin A will ensure that the chameleon gets some vitamins without the danger of overdosing the vitamin A. PrEformed sources of vitamin A can build up in the system and may prevent the D3 from doing its job and push the chameleon towards MBD. However, there is controversy as to whether all/any chameleons can convert the beta carotene and so some people give some prEformed vitamin A once in a while. (I use herptivite which has beta carotene.)

Gutloading/feeding the insects well helps to provide what the chameleon needs. I gutload crickets, roaches, locusts, superworms, etc. with an assortment of greens (dandelions, kale, collards, endive, escarole, mustard greens, etc.) and veggies (carrots, squash, sweet potato, sweet red pepper, zucchini, etc.)

Calcium, phos., D3 and vitamin A are important players in bone health and other systems in the chameleon (muscles, etc.) and they need to be in balance. When trying to balance them, you need to look at the supplements, what you feed the insects and what you feed the chameleon.
Please note that various supplements have various amounts of D3 and vitamin A and so some can be given more often than others. The idea still is not to overdo the fat soluble vitamins like D3 and prEformed vitamin A.

Here are some good sites for you to read too...
http://chameleonnews.com/07FebWheelock.html
http://web.archive.org/web/200605020...Vitamin.A.html
http://web.archive.org/web/200406080...d.Calcium.html
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/
http://web.archive.org/web/200601140...ww.adcham.com/
If you can't access the sites above that have the word "archive" in you can do it through the WayBackMachine.

 

[lameza]

He's definately not a baby...4 inches not including tail...

I'm hoping that hes just adjusting to his new environment...hes also sheddig which I just read can cause some fluctuations with eating habits...he's drinking water often and was moving all around his cage today literally...crawled along walls even down to the bottom and along the roof....hoping that's a good sign.

 

[Elizadolots]

That's why people are saying "not pinheads"...if you have a source for "medium" sized crickets (reptile stores often carry them) that would probably be a good choice. The classic measurement is the feeder should be no wider than the space between the chameleon's eyes.

It can take several days, even a week to fully adjust. Just keep putting appropriately sized food in the cup and maybe step back a bit so he doesn't feel like he's being watched closely. Mine will not eat if they know I'm watching.