1st time senegal chameleon owner plz help

[thepope77x]

Hello I don’t seem to be running into any problems just yet but i have only had him for 2 weeks and i think hes a young to juvenile so any input would be great as i am in the dark and trying to do it alone so i signed up for this sight for any help I can get( I wana do this right lol). He’s in a 10 gal tank for now i know tanks are not the best and when I get a diff place and some more money I might go for an open cage but for right now it keeps more humidity in then the open would and I have him in my room I fixed most the glare problems of him seeing himself so he’s not palling at the glass. Even then he never turned black or brown which I am told means high stress. The temps are good I know it never gets colder then mid 70s maybe if rare low 70s but that's only at night so I don’t think it’s too cold for him. He has a heat lamp and a 13w UVB 5.0 Repti glo lamp that sits on top of his cage I run them both for 12hrs then 12hrs off at night give or take 45mins or so some times. I live in FL so I don’t think he needs the heat at night ill add it when its winter maybe. I use a spray bottle that I picked up new and run only filtered water that I spray his cage down with a few times a day for his water and humidity. I see him drink all the time but prob like all owners do I fear if he is getting all the water he needs. His habitat stays wet alot so there's water for him when he wants to find it I just worrie about if he will find it but I guess that he dose as I see him from time to time getting what seems to me to be the smallest amounts of water lol. I have been feeding him an assortment of small to large grass hoppers although he seems to eat more of the bigger ones so I think I’ll just stick to the bigger size. It’s hard to keep a count on how many crickets he eats a day till all the small ones are gone (I keep the crickets fed and in their own thing only put some in at a time) for right now but I do see him eat some times and would like to think till I can keep a better count that he eats one to two a day most days I see him eat one for sure. Would like to give him some mill worms or something to maybe fatten him up some he looks fine just I heard u don’t really wana see there arm muscles so I want him to eat just a little more for right now maybe? Also im guessing hes starting to peel on his head? how do I know if he’s peeling or how long it should take if he is. His head has been kinda looking like that since I got him I guess they peel slow? or has some strange kind of mold problem If that’s even possible and his little spikes that run along his back seem to be not as formed looking right now and maybe more off white as the ones that run along the underside of his body are nice and are green could this be the peeling starting to happen along the ridge also? Also when I spray should I spray him? I mist him some times but not much and he don’t seems to mind most the time as he just dry’s off....what’s the deal with misting them right on? Also some times and for not long I just look over and see him doing it(its more rare I guess) he has this what i like to call a beard? under his neck mouth area it’s got orange lines on it and he likes to stick it out and or blow it up kinda and sometimes holds his mouth open like a kinda wired stretch and sometimes he even adds like a strange body torque or something from side to side like maybe a hard core yawn or like he’s trying to get something out but I hear no sounds like that (his color/mood seems to stay fine when this is going on). But not always with the mouth open and body movement sometimes just the beard thing and it’s not something he does very much. Only seen it more lately then when I got him. He seems to like me and also know who I am from other people I do take him out like one time a day but only when he wants to. I see lots of diff patterns that he does. not sure about most of them but I know black and brown are bad and have not seen that much at all of them not seen black at all so am guessing he’s a happy guy. Sometimes I do see that he gets diff kinds of spots and diff strip like patterns? I kinda got a ruff idea on some of them but still clueless anybody with help on Senegals or senegal patterns plz fill me in.The store said they get there’s from breeders but I’m thinking of having him checked just to be sure all though I don’t see any signs and not sure that I have the money right now also I wouldn’t know much. Well that’s all the specs I can think of for now sorry it’s so long felt I should get all the info out there I can so I can get all the good help I need. I’ll try to post pics anything any one would have to add PLZ PLZ HELP Thanks!
Thepope77x

 

[DanSB]

A couple of suggestions right off:

Yes I think there are some improvements to your overall husbandry to have the happiest chameleon possible.

I doubt a lot of people are going to take the time to read this because it is very long and there is nothing in the way of paragraph formatting to separate thoughts. Please don't take that the wrong way it is just a suggestion to help pull more advice in.

If you have no specific questions but mainly want help with review of your overall husbandry I would present the information as outlined here:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/

You will likely get a lot more assistance. There are people on here that have an incredible amount of experience and knowledge and it is worth the effort to use this form.

I am also a first time Senegal owner for several months now. I am no expert but have done a lot of reading so take my advice as such.

I would ditch the 10 gallon ASAP! It is not only way too small but the stagnant air can cause respiratory issues. If you really want to use glass look into an Exo-Terra terrarium or another true terrarium that has ventilation to allow for air flow, NOT an aquarium. To me the minimum size for a young Senegal would be Exo Terra's 18x18x18.

My Senegal only eats one or two crickets a day, but be careful you aren't feeding a cricket that is wider than the space between his eyes or longer than his head. This is what I was told and it seems to be good advice.

Many here will also tell you to look into gut loading and dusting your circkets as well as looking for a variety in feeders, also good suggestions.

I highly recommend reading the sticky threads, search the site for any specific questions before asking, and finally filling out the how to ask for help form and asking your further specific questions at that time. Once you do that you will find you get ALOT more out of this site. The people are very good and helpful here and aren't charging a nickle!

 

[kinyonga]

You said..."His habitat stays wet alot so there's water for him when he wants to find it"...its not good for it to stay wet all the time....and you have to be sure that the water doesn't lay stagnant in the cage.

Meal worms are not the best insect to be feeding the chameleon. You could try silkworms, superworms, phoenix worms...and once in a while waxworms in additon to the crickets.

Can you post a photo so I can see what you're talking about concerning the head and spikes please?


You said..."Also some times and for not long I just look over and see him doing it(its more rare I guess) he has this what i like to call a beard? under his neck mouth area it’s got orange lines on it and he likes to stick it out and or blow it up kinda and sometimes holds his mouth open like a kinda wired stretch and sometimes he even adds like a strange body torque or something from side to side like maybe a hard core yawn or like he’s trying to get something out but I hear no sounds like that"..hard to know for sure what this might be. Is there excess mucus in its mouth or does it wheeze?

You said..."The store said they get there’s from breeders"...not many (if any) people have been able to breed them...so I wonder about this.

Do you gutload/feed the insects well? So you dust them with the proper supplements regularly before giving them to the chameleon?

Are you sure its a male?

 

[ChamFreak]

these guys are right. Ditch that cage quick, sounds like he's getting a URI.

Mold is most likely growing, that is bad, very bad. You need to get even if a smaller one but a screened cage.

I have had 2 senegals, they are 99% wild caught. He may have gotten them from a breeder, but that doesnt mean they bred him. Wild caught animals have all kinds of issues (or could)

You need to get him on a suppliment schedule

and from what I could tell, you said your using a CFL light, the corkscrew bulb. They can be used in a good manner but most of the time could cause blindness if a chameleon stares at it due to it being so bright.

I know I missed alot here, others will chime in. And she was right, I really debated reading your post due to its layout but I said, well he took the time to come here and ask for help, so I will. but in the future I would better layout your words so it doesnt look so painful.

POST pics... let us see your setup,, let us see your cham.... Helps tons

 

[thepope77x]

Sorry for the crazy post i was in a rush and had little time but wanted to maybe have some info by the time i got back. As for the yawn thing that kinyonga asked about there is no excess mucus in its mouth that i can see and a no on the wheezing sound. ChemFreak as for the light he dose some times like to climb on top of the cage for some reason seems like hes just chilling and he never stays up there for long but i do get worried about if hes looking into the light. ill try to get some pics and im working on getting a terrarium ASAP.