10 month old Kenya jackson chameleon

[melonman]

Hi im new to this amazing forum. i have a couple questions among my new Kenya Mountain jackson chameleon. first of all he is 10 months old and i bought him from a breeder. He is about 3 to 4 inches from s to v. I was wondering about how many crickets should he be eating a day, and how many hours of uvb lighting should i be giving him. Another question is what is a good supplement or fruit or vegtable to gut load my crickets with. thats all i have for now.

Thank you

 

[Chali2naRap]

first of all, i would love to see some pictures of your cham if your crickets are medium to large he will most likely eat anywhere from 5-8 a day, 5 should get him by until he gets bigger, anything more isnt neccessary but shouldn't hurt him just make sure he doesnt have abnormal growth. heres a list of gutloading goods.----- http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html ------make sure to vary up, dont give any goitrogens and dont give him too much oxalates. your supplementation really depends on what brands you are using, be very specific and post pics and ingredients plus percentages of your sups to get the most accurate answers. Jacksons as you probably already know have a problem with D3, i would recomend you dust 2 crickets 2 times a month with d3, anything more than that you will start to see problems and he will be overdosed. once again it depends on your brands and the ingredients and everything. make sure things are phosphorous free. i use a multivitamin with D3 for my jackson, then your going to want your calcium without D3, i do 2 feeder insects powdered with this two times a week. make sure he stays hydrated and be sure to have his temps proper for his basking and everything, should be around 75 degrees for basking temps, a ten degree drop at night is good for them, they will survive lows to 40 at night but i recommend not letting it drop below 60, at the lowest i would maybe let 55 slide, anything lower i would get a small wattage night light. now the more sunlight he gets the less d3 he will need, if hes strictly indoor i would follow the regiment i just gave you, some people will recomend d3 given to jacksons once every 6 weeks, some things are just personal choices, chameleons are a lot about living and learning. just do not over supplement even with calcium cuz it will lead to metabolism problems and digestion problems, one day you will just wake up and he will be dead, over supplementing will not always be noticeable which is why its crucial. D3 over supplementing may result in him climbing on the screen and having a week grip and falling a lot. just be carefull with your sups and you should be ok

 

[Chali2naRap]

also keep in mind that jacksons like lower temps with high humidity. they also like wet periods and dry periods, what i do is i run my 2 foggers on high all day during the day and low during nights. i also spray his tank about 5-8 times a day. 12 hours of uvb and uva. 12 hours of no light. hope this helps

 

[melonman]

ok thanks

First of all thanks i have not dusted any insects yet, im going today or tomarrow to buy powder both with D3 and just calcium. What brand from Petco would you recommend. On the lighting i have a 10.0 UVB long tube light on for about 8-9 hours a day,(whats the uva), and then i have his basking light on from 7am till it gets dark then switch to an infared night light. The morning basking spot is about 80-85 at the hottest point. I spray his cage 2-5 times a day,and have a dripper dripping all the time. Hes been eating about 6 medium crickets a day.

This is a picture of him, ive made some changes to his cage ill post them once i get home though

 

[Action Jackson]

I sent you a PM

 

[Chali2naRap]

nice man he looks great although a little light in color, this could be due to the high temp exposure. i would fix that ASAP, i really wouldnt recomend anything from petco for they are retarded, as is petsmart but if its your only choice then i would get the calcium and multivites with d3, just dont take advice from the people there unless they own jackson chameleon. UVA is the same thing as a heating light, i would run both heat and uvb for twelve hours a day, im not sure how much uvb exposure jacksons need unfortunately theres not a lot of people who do. and if your basking temps are that high then you are overheating him. they need to be no higher than i would say 77 but 75 is the best, also make sure you have multiple basking points, not just one. you want of course cooler areas so he can cool off, its just like when your in the sun, you want shade to cool off, same concept. also one side of your tank should be cooler and moist other side dryer and hot but just make sure he gets dry and moist periods. i recomend u fix those basking temps before you do permanent damage to his skin... this will also set his metabolism right

 

[melonman]

thanks

I had a 100 watt with my old baby vield chameleon that passed due to selling it to me too small. They said i needed a 150 watt for the vield to be good, so i returned the 100 and got the 150. But if i get a 100 for the jackson wont that mean i have to get a 50 for the night bulb? ???

 

[camimom]

I had a 100 watt with my old baby vield chameleon that passed due to selling it to me too small. They said i needed a 150 watt for the vield to be good, so i returned the 100 and got the 150. But if i get a 100 for the jackson wont that mean i have to get a 50 for the night bulb? ???

no night bulbs!!!!

jacksons need cooler temps than veileds.

pick a wattage based on what temps it gives you for a baskng spot.

 

[melonman]

Ok so at night nothong should be on no bulbs or anything.....wont that be too cold

 

[Action Jackson]

My Jackson's see temps in the 40's every night in the late Fall, Winter and early Spring.

Ok so at night nothong should be on no bulbs or anything.....wont that be too cold

 

[JoeRueg]

Dont listen to that chali2narap guy he is talking out of his ass.

 

[coldbloodedAL]

My Jackson's see temps in the 40's every night in the late Fall, Winter and early Spring.

And I thought I was crazy keepin mine outside when its that low lol, I dont think many people realize they can handle that low of temps in the evenings and nights. To be honest he really seems to enjoy that drop in temp.

 

[melonman]

thanks

Ok thanks alot that makes me feel better.


Thanks alot

 

[melonman]

thanks

thank you that makes me feel better

Thank for the replies