A bit concerned about Handsome Jack's growth

[boosh96]

I'm worried that Handsome Jack isn't as big as he should be. He's four months old and he looks a lot more baby-ish than this other chameleon I saw on a growth thread at an even younger age. Am I just concerned about something trivial and stupid? Probably. But I want to know if that means there may be anything wrong with him as far as previous care or anything. He looks really healthy, he's active and he drinks like a little camel. I might want to add that I'm sorry if I'm posting a bit obsessively about him-I just want to make sure the little guy's okay. Any help would be fantastic.

 

[jannb]

Filling out the Ask For Help form and posting a few pictures would make it easier to determine in there might be a problem with Jack.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/

 

[boosh96]

Chameleon Info:

Your Chameleon - Male Trioceros jacksonii xantholophus. 4 months old. He's currently been in my care for 8 days.

Handling - I haven't handled him since the day I got him.

Feeding - I offer him food every day, switching between Dubias and crickets. He hasn't eaten in front of me yet, but I think he has eaten.

Supplements - I've dusted one of his feedings with calcium+D3 powder so far. I also have pure calcium and multivitamins, but I'm keeping the calcium+D3 and vitamin supplementation to twice a month.

Watering - I mist and use a dripper so far. I mist and fill up the dripper two or three times a day. He drinks like a little camel right in front of me.

Fecal Description - I haven't seen any poop yet.

History-He's four months old and he came from Chameleon Cans at the Kansas City reptile show.


Cage Info:

Cage Type -My dad and I made a screen cage for him. The dimensions are 27 x 17 x 37".

Lighting - For basking, he has a 50w halogen bulb with the temperature of the basking spot at 84 degrees. He also has an 18" ReptiSun 10.0 bulb for UVB.

Temperature - The ambient air temperatures are in the mid-70's during the day. The basking spot is 84 degrees, and I turn the lights off at night. Night temps are in the lower 70's.

Humidity - I've been working to get ahold of a hygrometer-I can't measure the exact humidity at the moment. I try to keep up humidity by misting, using a dripper, and furnishing with a live plant.

Plants - I use a live Shefflera arboricola.

Placement - The cage is on a coffee-table type thing in the front hall of my house. It's a pretty low traffic area.

Location - Kansas City, MO.

Current Problem - I'm concerned that Handsome Jack isn't as big as he should be after I saw another Jackson's growth thread. I figured either I'm just being stupid or there may have been some sort of an issue with his previous care, OR maybe he's just naturally small or a slow grower.

Here's his picture thread: https://www.chameleonforums.com/handsome-jacks-picture-thread-118003/

 

[Lathis]

Are you sure he actually is four months old? (I'm not saying anything negative about the vendor since I don't know anything about them, so please don't take my words that way). Last May I was at the KC reptile show and one of the vendors was selling maybe a dozen Jax that were less than an inch long. Obviously far too young to be selling. Again, not saying that's the case here, but it does happen. He could be a bit younger than originally thought.

Edit: OMG he is ridiculously adorable! But so tiny! I would have expected quite a bit larger for four months, but it could be he's about to have a growth spurt.

 

[ChameleonMom]

Handsome Jack is a cute little guy!! It seems to me that he may be younger than what you were told, although I do not keep Jackson's so cannot say for sure. He is indeed a tiny little fella but I have a cham that hatched LAST from a clutch and my Dexter is bigger than his first born clutchmates. It does happen, just like humans are all shapes and sizes, so are chams! I wouldn't worry too much about his size, but instead be more concerned that his cage and husbandry requirements are bang on. If these requirements are correct then he will grow and thrive just like he should!

One thing that jumps out at me is you have a 10.0 UVB bulb, which is mainly used for desert dwellers and those requiring ALOT of UVB. Since the heat and humidity requirements of the montane species are different from desert dwellers, I believe this bulb may not be the correct one for Jack. I would recommend a 5.0 UVB bulb instead.

I would also recommend you check the Chameleon Care Resources (CCR) on this site to find the proper supplement schedule for your Jack. He will require plain calcium, calcium with D3 and multivitamins, but at a different schedule than say what a veiled or a panther has. You will be able to find this information on the CCR.

Never, ever apologise for too many posts on your cham...we all LIVE to help other cham keepers and we LOVE to see pictures of everyone's little lovelies, Jack included!

Good luck with him and keep us posted on his progress!

 

[boosh96]

Long story short, Handsome Jack hasn't grown up much since I got him. Can anyone help me troubleshoot here? He gets a decent sized meal every day, he gets a lot of water, and his temperatures are right. I've given him calcium+D3 once since I got him and I make sure his crickets are gutloaded well. In addition, he's active, he looks vibrant, he gets around perfectly fine, he drinks like a camel and has a great appetite. Any help would be great.

 

[Blueberry2223]

He looks the same size as my 3 month old Jacksons.

 

[Lathis]

If he is eating, drink, and acting normally, I don't know that I would be too worried about his size at this point. Reptiles' metabolism is so different from that of mammals... he may not grow linearly but in spurts.

Do you let him eat as much as he wants in the morning? Or do you provide a certain number of feeders?

If you are not already, you need to start weighing him weekly and charting his growth that way, rather than relying on your eyes. Remember that when you only weigh 3 grams and 1/2 gram increase is a huge growth! Get a good scale that measures in grams. I got one from Target for about $20.

From my personal experience, my Jax has put on a ton of weight since I got him (from 20g back in March to 55g as of today). Honestly, it's not that visible to the eye. He has not "grown" but has more "filled out". He was underweight back in March, but now he is a bit of a plumper.

We need more photos to properly assess him (actually, he's just adorable and I want more cuteness).

 

[boosh96]

If he is eating, drink, and acting normally, I don't know that I would be too worried about his size at this point. Reptiles' metabolism is so different from that of mammals... he may not grow linearly but in spurts.

Do you let him eat as much as he wants in the morning? Or do you provide a certain number of feeders?

If you are not already, you need to start weighing him weekly and charting his growth that way, rather than relying on your eyes. Remember that when you only weigh 3 grams and 1/2 gram increase is a huge growth! Get a good scale that measures in grams. I got one from Target for about $20.

From my personal experience, my Jax has put on a ton of weight since I got him (from 20g back in March to 55g as of today). Honestly, it's not that visible to the eye. He has not "grown" but has more "filled out". He was underweight back in March, but now he is a bit of a plumper.

We need more photos to properly assess him (actually, he's just adorable and I want more cuteness).

Alright, I'll do that. I'll take some more pictures after I do my FRIGGIN' AP HOMEWORK.

 

[Lathis]

I would do your AP homework for more photos

 

[boosh96]

Check out his picture thread! It looks like he's put on a little size. Do they start out kinda slow and start growing up faster once they've put on a little size?

 

[boosh96]

Alrighty, so he's going to be turning 1 in May and at the moment he's probably about 6 inches long. I'm worried he's not as big as he should be, but he's definitely been showing signs of growth lately. In addition, he's basically been fed almost every day since I got him. Any thoughts?

 

[Lathis]

Keep it up! Have you been tracking his weight? My Jax has tapered off at about 65g over the last few months, still way smaller than a lot of people's Jax that I hear about, but he's healthy, so I don't stress too much. Ferdinand will be 2 in July, so he may not get any bigger. HJ may just be a little guy like my Ferds.

 

[boosh96]

I haven't actually been tracking his weight, mostly because he hates being handled and I don't want him to associate me with a stressful experience. But he definitely has been growing lately.