8month old male veiled cham not drinking water

[Sailormoon1998]

Hi everyone my 8 month old male veiled hasn't been drinking any water. I must him about 5 times a day for 3 minutes long and still he refuses to drink . He eats fine , acts fine . Only problem is when I checked his urate it was all orange. What can I do I dont want him to dehydrate and die on me please someone help

 

[ERKleRose]

Do you mist water droplets down leaves for him to drink? Is something wrong with his mouth?

 

[Sailormoon1998]

Hi everyone my 8 month old male veiled hasn't been drinking any water. I must him about 5 times a day for 3 minutes long and still he refuses to drink . He eats fine , acts fine . Only problem is when I checked his urate it was all orange. What can I do I dont want him to dehydrate and die on me please someone help

Mist not must

 

[Sailormoon1998]

Do you mist water droplets down leaves for him to drink? Is something wrong with his mouth?

I mist everywhere I have a hand mister so I mist all the leaves and even his Crest just so they drop into his mouth and no his mouth is fine and his tongue as well . He gets all his vitamins and eats well gut loaded crickets .

 

[Pearl Fields]

He may be drinking you just don't see it... it is common for people to never see their chameleons drink. I rarely see mine drink. Also do not mist him, if he is thirsty and healthy, he will drink.

 

[Sailormoon1998]

He may be drinking you just don't see it... it is common for people to never see their chameleons drink. I rarely see mine drink. Also do not mist him, if he is thirsty and healthy, he will drink.

Okay , because I do pay attention to him since I'm a stay at home worker I'm right there with him. He does eat fine and moves fine has all he needs but the urate this morning was a bright orange so slimy too what can I do to get his urate back to his usual cream white color ?

 

[ERKleRose]

Do you have a picture of the fecal?

 

[Sailormoon1998]

I picked it up on a napkin and layed it on a pee pad to observe it .

 

[Arpretty]

Hey there, so a couple things - you really shouldn't need to mist that much unless you are having issues retaining humidity... in theory, he should be fine with 2-3 mistings a day for a duration of 2-4 minutes. An automatic mister, such as a Mistking, makes this a very feasible thing to do. There are other tools you can add to this, such as a nighttime fogger, but that's a tool that is contingent on a few factors. You can use a dripper during the day for an hour or two to supplement the misting schedule. Definitely want to make sure there is enough surface area for him to drink from - lots of plants, leaves, and branches.

Check out this for a guide to hydration: chameleonacademy.com/basics-hydration-for-chameleons/ (sorry, I couldn't get a hyperlink for this - maybe someone else can post it here, or you can just copy & paste it into your search bar)

Additionally - the fecal does not look typical. Is this how they've been looking lately? I would encourage you to take a fecal sample to an experienced exotic vet for testing.

Here is a thread that you can look through to maybe gain some insight from other people's posts regarding atypical fecals: https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/chameleon-poop-101.120171/

 

[Sailormoon1998]

Hey there, so a couple things - you really shouldn't need to mist that much unless you are having issues retaining humidity... in theory, he should be fine with 2-3 mistings a day for a duration of 2-4 minutes. An automatic mister, such as a Mistking, makes this a very feasible thing to do. There are other tools you can add to this, such as a nighttime fogger, but that's a tool that is contingent on a few factors. You can use a dripper during the day for an hour or two to supplement the misting schedule. Definitely want to make sure there is enough surface area for him to drink from - lots of plants, leaves, and branches.

Check out this for a guide to hydration: chameleonacademy.com/basics-hydration-for-chameleons/ (sorry, I couldn't get a hyperlink for this - maybe someone else can post it here, or you can just copy & paste it into your search bar)

Additionally - the fecal does not look typical. Is this how they've been looking lately? I would encourage you to take a fecal sample to an experienced exotic vet for testing.

Here is a thread that you can look through to maybe gain some insight from other people's posts regarding atypical fecals: https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/chameleon-poop-101.120171/

Oh no so something is wrong with his fecal matter ??

 

[CasqueAbove]

Every thing @Arpretty said. The poop looks over hydrated almost runny. Have you been feeding horn worms? Do you fog ? As mentioned they should only be misted morning and evening twice is plenty. Veiled need it to dry out during the day even down to 30%. The night time is where you really want 100% humidity and temps below 70f min 65f is better even down to 50f. They are fog drinkers, in the wild this is how they would get most of their moisture. In captivity this get trick to replicate but can be done. The lower the night temp and higher humidity the less you will see them drink.

 

[Sailormoon1998]

No this lady who sells reptiles at her pet store had lied and told me he can have superworms at least 4 a week well little did I know because this is my first cham he got really sick and I'm assuming this is the aftermath of my ignorant self listening to this lady. but hes fine and I cut off superworms for a good long time . Usually his urate is cream and his feces are brown and hard never this slimy . I really love my cham and I'm trying so hard to keep him healthy and happy . He loves me a lot which is crazy because they say veiled aren't usually affectionate .

 

[ERKleRose]

If you want us to check your husbandry to make sure it is all correct, fill out this form in as much detail as possible, including pics of your cham, his entire cage, and his lights:

Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
• Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
• Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
• Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
• Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

--------------

Please Note:

1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
2. Photos can be very helpful.

 

[Sailormoon1998]

If you want us to check your husbandry to make sure it is all correct, fill out this form in as much detail as possible, including pics of your cham, his entire cage, and his lights:

Chameleon Info:

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
• Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
• Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
• Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
• Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

--------------

Please Note:

1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
2. Photos can be very helpful.

I've had him for about 1month .
He eats 7 crickets thru out the day
His crickets eat cricket care food from zoo med .
Vitamin b12 powder
He has a uvb& uva lamp
Hibiscus tree live
Some plastic plants from zoo med
He has 5 feet tall and 4 feet wide screen cage habitat. No high traffic .
I'm currently getting his humidifier thermometer
Hes cool at night but not to cool and my house temp during the day is usually 76


Also do I keep the fogger on all night?? I will take pics when I get back home

 

[Sailormoon1998]

Please nobody judge me I'm trying my best

 

[Sailormoon1998]

 

[Sailormoon1998]

I'm currently working on buying him more plants and foliage .

 

[Sailormoon1998]

Rn I'm headed to my local pet store and buy the repti fogger and some more plants anything for my little loki

 

[Arpretty]

You are safe here to ask your questions! Please be assured of that. We ALL start somewhere, and owning a chameleon is a journey that involves lots of trial and error, changes, and research. The husbandry review is your ticket into action, but you must be sure to complete the husbandry form in its entirety - you can copy and paste it into your reply and enter the answers that way. Unfortunately, that is not a typical poop that you posted a picture of. I encourage you to look through the thread I linked earlier to get an idea of what you do and don't want to see. It is okay - many, if not most of us on here, have had to either take our chameleon(s) to the vet and/or have fecal tests. It's just a part of being a responsible chameleon caretaker. In this case, along with making changes to your husbandry, you really need to get a fecal test done if that is what his poops have been looking like.

 

[Arpretty]

Rn I'm headed to my local pet store and buy the repti fogger and some more plants anything for my little loki

If you are buying a fogger, please be sure to read through what @CasqueAbove stated earlier, and look through the naturalistic hydration cycle on the Chameleon Academy to understand the function and use of a fogger. It can be an excellent tool, but it can cause other issues if not used correctly.