Screaming Veiled Chameleon

I have a veiled that I got about 2 months ago. Her mesh cage is 18 x 18 x 30 and the top of her cage is about 5 ft from the floor. She is in the corner of my living room so it is high traffic, but I am mostly the only one that visits her in the corner (slightly behind the TV). I mainly feed her crickets and meal worms. I gut load the crickets with different lettuces (kale, collard greens) and veggies (carrots, broccoli).. Lately we have heard her, at first sounded like a "squeak" but the last couple of days she has almost made a "screaming" noise...!?! I can't find any information on what the heck that is all about as I am new to owning a chameleon. She has also gone on a eating strike, hasn't eaten but a couple of crickets in the last 3 weeks but she still will eat her worms. I make sure she eats lots of her worms since she is refusing to eat her crickets. I just recently read that I can feed her collard greens and veggies directly, but she has yet to figure out what they are. I'm still putting fresh collards and veggies every day but not sure what else to do of she doesn't get it eventually. Please help. She hates me and always hisses and puffs up when I get near her until she is ready to eat her worms, then she eats out of my hand but, when she's done, she vacates that spot and hides. If I try again, she hisses at me. I've never tried to move her, so I don't believe that I've done anything to make her hate me. I know VC don't like to be held much, but at least starting to eat again would be nice! I have also noticed in the last week or two, that she has one eye closed while the other eye looks around. I have been misting her more in case she is dehydrated. I have a drip system that I turn on at least 3 times a day for about 30 minutes intervals. Her baking spot is about 95 degreesF... is that to warm? Should I lower her branch that she hands around in for her baking area to cool it down or should I figure out a way to raise her light?

How old is she? Could be a respiratory infection...but need more information to be sure. Please answer the questions in the how to ask for help thread at the top of the health forum. Also please post a photo.

I'm guessing that she is 3 to 3-1/2 months old... I'm not exactly sure how to post a picture..

mine does the same thing but its been eating well im a pretty experenced owner but this is my first chameleon i dont know what to do????

Ok, I uploaded a few photos, showing her different colors and one of her cage... Hope this works..

This is her cage. In working on getting more plants in there. The ones on top are fake that came with the kit when I bought her cage. Then I added the Pothos plant which I'm waiting (impatiently) to grow and fill the empty space. I think I am going to have to buy some temporary fake plant till then..

So if it is a respiratory infection that she has... What causes that? And what reason would she be"screaming" our making weird noises? The screening sounds are when she's awake, the squeaking noises are more when she is sleeping..??

One of the causes for respiratory infection is constant high humidity.

I'm not sure that is the case here though with it being in a full mesh cage.

What are the humidity levels?

MissMeela said:

This is her cage. In working on getting more plants in there. The ones on top are fake that came with the kit when I bought her cage. Then I added the Pothos plant which I'm waiting (impatiently) to grow and fill the empty space. I think I am going to have to buy some temporary fake plant till then..

Click to expand...

That pothos plant will not ever grow up and fill in your space. Go to someplace like Home Depot and buy a bushy umbrella plant, hibiscus or ficus in a two gallon pot. A hibiscus would be the best choice because it is so edible and veiled do eat their plants. I was just in and bought a bunch of umbrella plants that were really bushy and around 2.5 feet tall including the pot. I put some on an upturned bucket and others on a shelf depending on the cage.

I've done things like hung small plants off the crisscrossing bendy fake vines at the top of the cage.

Your cage is very bare, which will be very stressing for your new chameleon. The picture looks as if it is well furnished, but that is only because of the backdrop you've put in. I would assume your chameleon sees the backdrop as a flat bare wall.

The smooth dowels are not very good for your chameleon to climb on; they are too smooth (and being so smooth, too large). Bamboo is also too smooth. I use bendy vines and branches from my trees. I don't bake them to disinfect them, only hosing them off. I have baked things if they are dead branches (or cork I've bought) not to remove germs, but to kill any possible wood-eating bug that might be tagging along to protect my house and furniture.

As far as the sound your chameleon is making, Veileds are capable of producing infrasound, a low frequency buzzing noise that is on the boundary of human hearing. A squeak sounds like it would be a high frequency sound, so not something your chameleon is making intentionally. I wonder if what you are hearing is some sort of whistling/wheezing sound caused by a respiratory infection. Her one poor appetite and closing one eye is indicative of illness. I could be wrong, but I think the prognosis for a chameleon with a respiratory infection without veterinary care is very poor.

Good luck.

95 is much too hot. I would aim for 82 in the basking area.

Thanks so much for all the info! It's so hard to find good information. I just wish I had found this forum before I got her. But, as you have suggested, I will buy an umbrella/ficus tree as soon as I can, and even change out all of her branches. Dang, no wonder she is so unhappy! And as for her baking area being too hot, OMG, I have already moved her branch down do now it is around 85°F.. With some fine tuning, maybe she will warm up to me eventually!?! I just found a reptile doctor about an hour away from where I live, so I will have to get her in as soon as they can see her! I would hate for her to suffer! Thanks again! I will post more pics once I fix her cage! Oh and yes, that back drop is just a flat piece taped to the back of her cage. I had it left over from my tortoise enclosure window, so I thought that would be better than empty space behind her as she like to hide in the back. It can only get better.. I hope

I hope this will encourage her to come to me when I feed her, at least! :/ *staying hopefull*

Please answer the questions in the how to ask for help thread at the top of the health forum so we can help you better. Be particular about the supplements....brands and how often for each and the UVB light...brand and is it a long tube or compact, etc.