Am I missing anything?

[MD19]

Sorry for the long post lol. Here we go.

I currently have my senegal chameleon in a 14x14x36 custom screen cage with a small (for a few branches/leaves) and "vine" (old cable) while I look around for a good place to get him a taller plant from. In addition he is under a 15W repti-glo 5.0 I had previously bought for a turtle who passed soon after and a 15W fluorescent aquarium bulb. I have misted twice today (he doesn't seem to like it...He appears to run when I mist near him) and I have a DIY dripper going on a leaf in a corner. Basic needs appear to be taken care of, yet he's still his same color of tannish rather than green. He's also been climbing the sides and roof of his cage by the screen mesh. Should I be concerned at all? This is probably me over-worrying but I like to be sure. He recently defecated and he released one solid(ish) grey piece, a yellowish urate and a bit more waterish slime. That's pretty much all there is to tell for the moment, but a bit of input would be appreciated to assure me/let me know if I need to change anything. Thanks!

Matt

 

[camimom]

Sorry for the long post lol. Here we go.

I currently have my senegal chameleon in a 14x14x36 custom screen cage with a small (for a few branches/leaves) and "vine" (old cable) while I look around for a good place to get him a taller plant from. In addition he is under a 15W repti-glo 5.0 I had previously bought for a turtle who passed soon after and a 15W fluorescent aquarium bulb. I have misted twice today (he doesn't seem to like it...He appears to run when I mist near him) and I have a DIY dripper going on a leaf in a corner. Basic needs appear to be taken care of, yet he's still his same color of tannish rather than green. He's also been climbing the sides and roof of his cage by the screen mesh. Should I be concerned at all? This is probably me over-worrying but I like to be sure. He recently defecated and he released one solid(ish) grey piece, a yellowish urate and a bit more waterish slime. That's pretty much all there is to tell for the moment, but a bit of input would be appreciated to assure me/let me know if I need to change anything. Thanks!

Matt

first, you need more hiding places in there, fill up that cagewith plants. the more places he can hide, the better he will feel. if his urates are yellow, then he is deydrated. I dont think the aquarium bulb is good fo him. you can just use a regular 60 watt house bulb for his basking light.

 

[MD19]

first, you need more hiding places in there, fill up that cagewith plants. the more places he can hide, the better he will feel. if his urates are yellow, then he is deydrated. I dont think the aquarium bulb is good fo him. you can just use a regular 60 watt house bulb for his basking light.

Sure thing. That plant was the only thing I had that I was 100% certain was not covered in pesticides. I'm planning to go and get him a nice ficus or hibiscus in a little bit. I've sprayed him and set a drip but should I attempt to use a hand dropper?

 

[CBPanther]

Dont use a hand dropper, cold stress him out. Just spray atleast 3 times a day for 2 mins or so and keep that dripper going. Also, next time he is out of the cage, you might want to snip back those ziptie ends, they look sharp. Fish bulbs are NOT good for chams, get yourself a reptisun 5.0 TUBE light, not a coil light.

 

[MD19]

Dont use a hand dropper, cold stress him out. Just spray atleast 3 times a day for 2 mins or so and keep that dripper going. Also, next time he is out of the cage, you might want to snip back those ziptie ends, they look sharp. Fish bulbs are NOT good for chams, get yourself a reptisun 5.0 TUBE light, not a coil light.

The repti-sun is a tube light if I'm not mistaken. Those lights are on their sides so that the picture is looking from the side. Also I replaced the aquarium with a "natural daylight bulb".

Also, should I be spraying him directly?

 

[camimom]

The repti-sun is a tube light if I'm not mistaken. Those lights are on their sides so that the picture is looking from the side. Also I replaced the aquarium with a "natural daylight bulb".

Also, should I be spraying him directly?

dont spray him directly. most chams dont like that. just spray the leaves until they are dripping wet. spray arond him, but you will probably end up spraying him a bit anyway.

 

[MD19]

dont spray him directly. most chams dont like that. just spray the leaves until they are dripping wet. spray arond him, but you will probably end up spraying him a bit anyway.

Yeah that figures. My Mountain Horned Dragons love getting sprayed but to each their own. If/when he is feeling relieved since this is probably move/lack of security related stress, will his color also relieve as quickly or should I expect it to be a gradual thing?

 

[camimom]

Yeah that figures. My Mountain Horned Dragons love getting sprayed but to each their own. If/when he is feeling relieved since this is probably move/lack of security related stress, will his color also relieve as quickly or should I expect it to be a gradual thing?

Maybe. Sometimes they will go back to there normal coloring. sometimes even when they dont appear to be stressed they may stay a darker duller color. It just depends. Just do everything you can to reduce the stress on him, and see what he does.

 

[camimom]

Is this your first cham? if so, fill out the how to ask for help form, just so any suggestions can be made regarding your husbandry. If its not your first cham,then enjoy!

 

[OrangeCrush]

Looks like you have a start but need to put some more work into the cage. You need humidity and temp controls to be able to tell what they are in his cage. Also u neeeedddd a heat bulb and provide him with a basking spot. Also you need to make sure u have all the proper vitamins to give him. There is no way around this he needs them to survive. Also just go to lows and buy some wooden dowels they r very cheap and will provide climbing space for him. Also go to ur local craft store and buy some fake plant for him to hide in try and get plastic because they hold water better. Next, yellow urine is nooooo good. This means he is not getting enough water. Think about buying a MistKing best way to ensure he is getting proper water level through out they day, and watch how much he eats a day. Cham r not CHEAP AND EASY pets to care for. They need also of these thing to survive or they will die. If you have anymore question please ask!

 

[seanUTD]

Okay so after having a LONG conversation and back and forth with a very well respected Chameleon guy (Chris Anderson) I will have to say I went through plenty of resources and articles and research and I will openly correct myself as I feel I should correct this misconception for everyone. It was a few yeas back that it was actually the REPTISUN compact that was considered to give eye problems not the REPTIGLO. But as I said that was years ago and most cases were isolated and had many other issues that could have been involved. These products that came into question have been remade several times over to fix these issues which were centered with the type of shorter wavelengths that were causing blindness. These products, if still plagued by these issues, would not be on the shelves. And to comment on the use of fish lights, many of these are simply brighter grow lights with a range of usually about 6500K and greatly influence plant growth and provide a lot more ambient loght and have shown no issues as far as I know. If you are looking at say petsmart an aquarium light such as the T18 area is commonly used in fact and a search of these forums will return several results for this.

 

[MD19]

Is this your first cham? if so, fill out the how to ask for help form, just so any suggestions can be made regarding your husbandry. If its not your first cham,then enjoy!

Yes he is. And will do, thanks.

Looks like you have a start but need to put some more work into the cage. You need humidity and temp controls to be able to tell what they are in his cage. Also u neeeedddd a heat bulb and provide him with a basking spot. Also you need to make sure u have all the proper vitamins to give him. There is no way around this he needs them to survive. Also just go to lows and buy some wooden dowels they r very cheap and will provide climbing space for him. Also go to ur local craft store and buy some fake plant for him to hide in try and get plastic because they hold water better. Next, yellow urine is nooooo good. This means he is not getting enough water. Think about buying a MistKing best way to ensure he is getting proper water level through out they day, and watch how much he eats a day. Cham r not CHEAP AND EASY pets to care for. They need also of these thing to survive or they will die. If you have anymore question please ask!

He doesn't have a heat bulb right now because the room he's in doesn't fall below 68-90 low/high at the moment. I breed and feed my own roaches who are gutloaded with a special mix I blend as well as supplemented with fruits. All receive a dusting of Calcium + D3 prior to feeding. He just arrived here a day ago so that's why everything is so basic. One of the pics above is his excrement, if it was dark yellow then I would be concerned but to me it looks only a little tinged. Also I am going to get him a fake plant set up to climb on and I mist whenever things look to be drying up.

 

[seanUTD]

Looks like you have a start but need to put some more work into the cage. You need humidity and temp controls to be able to tell what they are in his cage. Also u neeeedddd a heat bulb and provide him with a basking spot. Also you need to make sure u have all the proper vitamins to give him. There is no way around this he needs them to survive. Also just go to lows and buy some wooden dowels they r very cheap and will provide climbing space for him. Also go to ur local craft store and buy some fake plant for him to hide in try and get plastic because they hold water better. Next, yellow urine is nooooo good. This means he is not getting enough water. Think about buying a MistKing best way to ensure he is getting proper water level through out they day, and watch how much he eats a day. Cham r not CHEAP AND EASY pets to care for. They need also of these thing to survive or they will die. If you have anymore question please ask!

Also basking spot bulbs are only an addition, if they are NEEDED it is due to having an improper temperature range. If your temps in your cage reach temps that a cham needs then a basking bulb isn't actually necessary. If the top of the cage reaches about 85 then it wont be needed at all because it would actually cause the temps to go OVER what you want

 

[MD19]

Updated with pics of how the cage looks now. Still yet to see him drink but at least he has a more dense area to hide. The vines surrounding the cage are fake while the middle plant is a piece of real tree.

 

[camimom]

Updated with pics of how the cage looks now. Still yet to see him drink but at least he has a more dense area to hide. The vines surrounding the cage are fake while the middle plant is a piece of real tree.

Better. Now, as for the drinking, you may not actually see him drink. Ive have owned my veiled for 7 months,and have seen him drink a total of 4 times. NAd im home all day everyday. As long as their eyes are not sunken in and their urates are white, they are drinking.
fill out the how to ask for help form so nething else that needs changing can be done.

 

[MD19]

Your Chameleon - Senegal chameleon, unknown gender (presumed female since that's what I was told and I fail to see any bulges), in my care for going on three days.
Handling - I handle her for feeding because the PVC cage has openings crickets could escape from
Feeding - So far she's only had crickets dusted with calcium/D3 powder. She's eaten between 8-12 in one day in my care and so far refused to eat today. I also have roaches she'll get to eventually.
Supplements - Exo-terra calcium + D3
Watering - Handheld mist. 3-4 times a day if things look dry. Have not seen her drink yet.
Fecal Description - Picture posted earlier in thread. One solid lump, one slightly yellow urate, and a little bit of liquid surrounding. From my knowledge she is CB.
History - None to note.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Custom PVC screen cage. 14x14x36
Lighting - Exo-terra repti-glo 5.0 tube light, "day" light bulb 15W.
Temperature - Room is kept between 70(night) to 90 (day). Have not taken any specific temps.
Humidity - Have not taken yet. Humidity is created through misting when cage is looking dry from last mist.
Plants - Fake plants used.
Placement - Cage located on floor near window. Height of cage comes p to bottom of window.
Location - Long Island, New York

Also of note is that while she is still similarly colored to how she has been, there IS a slight change to green I noticed upon removing her to feed today.