Bokaru
Member
Sorry for how long this is... I have a few questions. They are at the bottom of this post. I will add pictures of the cage and my Senegal, Peppers, in the next comment.
Chameleon Info:
* Your Chameleon - Peppers - Senegal - Presumably Female- ~1y 3 mo old / 4 months of care.
* Handling - I handle Peppers usually once or so a day. She attempts to climb out onto my hand when I open the cage at least once a day.
* Feeding - Store bought feeder crickets. Wild caught field and cave crickets. 2-3 feeders or 1 cave/field a day. Gut-load : T-Rex Calcium Plus Cricket Supplement.
* Supplements - Just started using Fluker's Calcium + D3 dust (plan to use twice a month)
* Watering - I have a drip system, i spray twice a day for about 3-5 minuets at a time. I use a space heater to keep the room warm so I run a humidifier about 1.5 hours a day. (Humidity stays between 40 and 50 usually)
* Fecal Description - No parasite testing. Black is usually fairly chunky (partially digested exoskeleton) Urea is slightly yellowed. Mucus is sometimes included (i will talk about this more in a bit)
* History - Peppers is very friendly and will step out onto an open hand almost every time presented to her. She was wild caught, held by the capturer for 3 months and then at least 4 mo by the seller to make sure she was in good health before being sold. I don't know if any parasite testing / care was taken during these periods. No aggression and very minimal stress have been shown during the four months I have cared for her.
Cage Info:
* Cage Type - Hand made wooden frame with screen. 2x2x3'
* Lighting - 8:00am -8:30pm One Exoterra UVB compact light, One plain incandescent bulb for heat and light, One 24" Repti Glo 5.0 on top.
* Temperature - The cage usually stays between 80 and 89 during the day. Lowest overnight =70
* Humidity - Humidity is normally 40 to 50% It has gotten to 37 before, but I have started monitoring it much closer.
* Plants - Live plants include a schefflera and a philodendron vine (She has never eaten plants so I have not removed the Phil. If I happen to see chewing, I will remove it immediately.)
* Placement - I keep it in the room behind mine in my house's attic. It is facing a window for lighting, and is about 2' away from it to avoid any cold. There is very low traffic. The cage sits about 3 feet off the ground.
* Location - North Central West Virginia
Current Problems - I have a few.
Peppers has been very dark when I open the cage. I don't know if this is just basking or what, but as soon as the cage is opened she turns back to a normal, calm green.
Peppers has recently been excreting a bit of mucus with her feces. Not every time, but usually once every other day or so.
I have never been able to sex her. I originally thought she was about 6mo old, but now I know from talking to the dealer that she is much older so adolescence should not be a problem. I added some sand to the bottom of the cage in a container just in case Peppers is a she, but i have yet to see any plugs or eggs. If anyone has any ideas from the pictures below please tell me.
My final three are questions. I am using a potting soil substrate right now. I have not had any problem with moisture because any liquid evaporates fairly quickly, but I figure I should replace it with something else, any ideas?
It is getting cool here (the normal temperature outside has been 50-55 already this year) , and I would like to take Peppers out to a vet to get checked up some time. How should I go about transport during cooler months?
Finally, based on the cage info and pictures below. I would like to know how I'm doing so far?
If anyone has some opinion on anything I posted, please feel free to give me some advice. Peppers is my first chameleon and I want to make sure I am doing all I can to keep him/her in good shape so I can enjoy her/his company for years to come.
Thanks for bearing with the size of this post.
-I will add pictures shortly-
Chameleon Info:
* Your Chameleon - Peppers - Senegal - Presumably Female- ~1y 3 mo old / 4 months of care.
* Handling - I handle Peppers usually once or so a day. She attempts to climb out onto my hand when I open the cage at least once a day.
* Feeding - Store bought feeder crickets. Wild caught field and cave crickets. 2-3 feeders or 1 cave/field a day. Gut-load : T-Rex Calcium Plus Cricket Supplement.
* Supplements - Just started using Fluker's Calcium + D3 dust (plan to use twice a month)
* Watering - I have a drip system, i spray twice a day for about 3-5 minuets at a time. I use a space heater to keep the room warm so I run a humidifier about 1.5 hours a day. (Humidity stays between 40 and 50 usually)
* Fecal Description - No parasite testing. Black is usually fairly chunky (partially digested exoskeleton) Urea is slightly yellowed. Mucus is sometimes included (i will talk about this more in a bit)
* History - Peppers is very friendly and will step out onto an open hand almost every time presented to her. She was wild caught, held by the capturer for 3 months and then at least 4 mo by the seller to make sure she was in good health before being sold. I don't know if any parasite testing / care was taken during these periods. No aggression and very minimal stress have been shown during the four months I have cared for her.
Cage Info:
* Cage Type - Hand made wooden frame with screen. 2x2x3'
* Lighting - 8:00am -8:30pm One Exoterra UVB compact light, One plain incandescent bulb for heat and light, One 24" Repti Glo 5.0 on top.
* Temperature - The cage usually stays between 80 and 89 during the day. Lowest overnight =70
* Humidity - Humidity is normally 40 to 50% It has gotten to 37 before, but I have started monitoring it much closer.
* Plants - Live plants include a schefflera and a philodendron vine (She has never eaten plants so I have not removed the Phil. If I happen to see chewing, I will remove it immediately.)
* Placement - I keep it in the room behind mine in my house's attic. It is facing a window for lighting, and is about 2' away from it to avoid any cold. There is very low traffic. The cage sits about 3 feet off the ground.
* Location - North Central West Virginia
Current Problems - I have a few.
Peppers has been very dark when I open the cage. I don't know if this is just basking or what, but as soon as the cage is opened she turns back to a normal, calm green.
Peppers has recently been excreting a bit of mucus with her feces. Not every time, but usually once every other day or so.
I have never been able to sex her. I originally thought she was about 6mo old, but now I know from talking to the dealer that she is much older so adolescence should not be a problem. I added some sand to the bottom of the cage in a container just in case Peppers is a she, but i have yet to see any plugs or eggs. If anyone has any ideas from the pictures below please tell me.
My final three are questions. I am using a potting soil substrate right now. I have not had any problem with moisture because any liquid evaporates fairly quickly, but I figure I should replace it with something else, any ideas?
It is getting cool here (the normal temperature outside has been 50-55 already this year) , and I would like to take Peppers out to a vet to get checked up some time. How should I go about transport during cooler months?
Finally, based on the cage info and pictures below. I would like to know how I'm doing so far?
If anyone has some opinion on anything I posted, please feel free to give me some advice. Peppers is my first chameleon and I want to make sure I am doing all I can to keep him/her in good shape so I can enjoy her/his company for years to come.
Thanks for bearing with the size of this post.
-I will add pictures shortly-