Are we doing something wrong?

N

narmstrong

Member
My husband bought a panther cham is Aug, guessing it was about a month old. Idk is was pretty small (size of 1st joint on finger). Well it’s now end of December and I feel like it should be bigger. It has shed 3xs; most recent within the last week. I think the colors are just starting; looks like I can see a faint green. It def gets dark lines/spots. It’s in a fairly small cage…… does it need a bigger cage to grow? Not sure if we are doing anything wrong. It eats quite a bit, mostly fruit flies. Doesn’t really seem to go for the black fly larvae. Have been giving bean beetles also. Waiting on some other food options to come (crickets and other wormy things). It seems healthy…… just isn’t very big.
 

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I think you might want to upgrade cage to a 4ftx2ftx2ft 👍 might want to start feeding bigger pray the ones you already feed are more for baby juveniles. Larger pray will be more easy too dust supplements too which ones are you using do you mind me asking?
Also real plants & sticks in larger cage they take alot of filling.
Not forgetting uvb tube to fit accross top
 
Last edited:
o
Pickle-cham said:
I think you might want to upgrade cage to a 4ftx2ftx2ft 👍 might want to start feeding bigger pray the ones you already feed are more for baby juveniles. Larger pray will be more easy too dust supplements too which ones are you using do you mind me asking?
Also real plants & sticks in larger cage they take alot of filling.
Not forgetting uvb tube to fit accross top
Click to expand...
what kind of food should we start getting? I haven’t tried to hand feed yet, he doesn’t seem to want to be held (won’t climb into hand), and he doesn’t seem to eat a lot of the larvae and they escape from the bowl. We dust flies/beetles with Repticalcium with D3.
 
As above just size accordingly
. No larger than space between eyes,, crickets are easily obtainable wouldn't go for dubias just yet around 6+ months.
Hoppers if the are available in your location
 
Great! Thanks. Husband said he did order dubias roaches so I guess we will see if they are too big. 🤷🏼‍♀️ Is there any other supplements we need? Also what kind of cage is best. We have a glass with screen top now. We keep the house at 68 and the cham isn’t under a vent. Just worry a full screen (which I read is best) would be too cold.
 
narmstrong said:
o

what kind of food should we start getting? I haven’t tried to hand feed yet, he doesn’t seem to want to be held (won’t climb into hand), and he doesn’t seem to eat a lot of the larvae and they escape from the bowl. We dust flies/beetles with Repticalcium with D3.
Click to expand...
So repticalcium with d3 is very potent with its d3 content and would consider introduction of plain calcium no d3 for a majority of feedings. And a multi vitamin

Especially when you upgrade uv light with new larger (adult cage) or you could build up medium cage beforehand but its more costly to upgrade twice.
 
Hi and welcome to the forum. :) Regardless of how small he is, that enclosure is much too small for him. He will be needing a much larger enclosure of a minimum of 2x2x4’ and it would be okay to put him in it from now. The main concern with putting little chameleons in large enclosures is that they will be able to find their food. Setting up a feeding station of some sort will help with that and he’ll quickly learn where the food is. I use the shooting gallery https://tkchameleons.com/products/shooting-gallery?variant=30018608595032 and even made my own for a new cham.
Having more branches and plants (preferably all live and safe) will also benefit your little guy. They are arboreal and you’ll want to recreate a forest edge type of environment for him.
Correct lights and supplements are absolutely essential. For uvb the standard is a linear T5HO with either a 5.0 ReptiSun or 6% Arcadia. It will need to be as long as your enclosure’s width and then about 8-9” above basking area. For supplements, you are currently giving too much D3. You want to use a phosphorus free calcium WITHOUT D3 at every feeding except one per week. That one feeding you’ll alternate between using a phosphorus free calcium WITH D3 and a multivitamin. An alternate regimen for the D3 and multivitamin is using one that is a combo (I like Reptivite with D3) that you’d use one feeding every other week.
Basking temps should be around 80f with a good temp drop at night. Ideal humidity should be between 30-50% during the day.
Misting should be for at least 2 minutes, 2-3 times a day - just before lights on, just before lights off and you can add a mid day session or instead use a dripper for about 15-20 minutes.
There is a ton of just plain bad info out there on chameleons. The most accurate and up to date site to learn everything you could ever want (and then some) is https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-husbandry-program-getting-started-with-chameleons/ Do be sure to check out the species profile for specific keeping guidelines. You can also check out Neptune the chameleon on YouTube.
 
MissSkittles said:
Hi and welcome to the forum. :) Regardless of how small he is, that enclosure is much too small for him. He will be needing a much larger enclosure of a minimum of 2x2x4’ and it would be okay to put him in it from now. The main concern with putting little chameleons in large enclosures is that they will be able to find their food. Setting up a feeding station of some sort will help with that and he’ll quickly learn where the food is. I use the shooting gallery https://tkchameleons.com/products/shooting-gallery?variant=30018608595032 and even made my own for a new cham.
Having more branches and plants (preferably all live and safe) will also benefit your little guy. They are arboreal and you’ll want to recreate a forest edge type of environment for him.
Correct lights and supplements are absolutely essential. For uvb the standard is a linear T5HO with either a 5.0 ReptiSun or 6% Arcadia. It will need to be as long as your enclosure’s width and then about 8-9” above basking area. For supplements, you are currently giving too much D3. You want to use a phosphorus free calcium WITHOUT D3 at every feeding except one per week. That one feeding you’ll alternate between using a phosphorus free calcium WITH D3 and a multivitamin. An alternate regimen for the D3 and multivitamin is using one that is a combo (I like Reptivite with D3) that you’d use one feeding every other week.
Basking temps should be around 80f with a good temp drop at night. Ideal humidity should be between 30-50% during the day.
Misting should be for at least 2 minutes, 2-3 times a day - just before lights on, just before lights off and you can add a mid day session or instead use a dripper for about 15-20 minutes.
There is a ton of just plain bad info out there on chameleons. The most accurate and up to date site to learn everything you could ever want (and then some) is https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-husbandry-program-getting-started-with-chameleons/ Do be sure to check out the species profile for specific keeping guidelines. You can also check out Neptune the chameleon on YouTube.
Click to expand...
Ok. We bought some contraption to be able to dust better. Will get a calcium without D3. I figured we weren’t supplementing right. Had a hard time figuring it all out. Once we get home from Xmas will get a bigger cage with live plants and better lighting/UVB. His temp and humidity seem to be good. I spray 3x a day. The mister we have was too big for his current enclosure. Thanks for the links I will check them out
 
If the dubia that you’ve ordered are too big for your little guy, you could start your own colony with them. By the time they fully mature and start reproducing, your little guy should be big. It not only saves you $$ but you never have to worry about running out of feeders.
Equally important to all that we’ve all mentioned is taking good care of your feeder insects and keeping them well fed. Most of us have gotten the orange cubes and then learned that while they will keep your bugs alive, they really offer no nutritional value to pass on to your chameleon. So, here’s another graphic for you. :)
Do feel free to ask as many questions as you like and share your wonderful and exciting journey with your little cutie.

C502E350-9998-4C27-8273-07950013E860.jpeg
 
MissSkittles said:
If the dubia that you’ve ordered are too big for your little guy, you could start your own colony with them. By the time they fully mature and start reproducing, your little guy should be big. It not only saves you $$ but you never have to worry about running out of feeders.
Equally important to all that we’ve all mentioned is taking good care of your feeder insects and keeping them well fed. Most of us have gotten the orange cubes and then learned that while they will keep your bugs alive, they really offer no nutritional value to pass on to your chameleon. So, here’s another graphic for you. :)
Do feel free to ask as many questions as you like and share your wonderful and exciting journey with your little cutie.

View attachment 317024
Click to expand...
We need to figure the insect stuff. We keep having to buy insects. Can’t seem to get them to reproduce. So I’m going to do some research on here. We are trying the bean beetles right now. Tried crickets and they all died; not sure if something screwed up when the cat knocked over the containers. Fruit flies have also failed.
 
narmstrong said:
We need to figure the insect stuff. We keep having to buy insects. Can’t seem to get them to reproduce. So I’m going to do some research on here. We are trying the bean beetles right now. Tried crickets and they all died; not sure if something screwed up when the cat knocked over the containers. Fruit flies have also failed.
Click to expand...
Roaches are super easy to breed. I’ve found that they breed best in a bioactive substrate…a bit of organic soil, some coco coir and dwarf white isopods and springtails. Add some pieces of cork bark and leaf litter for them to hide under and keep them around 90f. It may take a little bit of time, but before you know it you’ll be seeing babies. You don’t have to go bioactive with them if you don’t want. I hated having to clean their bin which is why I started. The heat is important though and you’ll probably need to stick a heat mat onto the side of the bin.
I started breeding my own feeders just out of curiousity, but I’ve since acquired a small horde of reptiles so it’s become a necessity. I haven’t bred crickets though. They’re just too dirty and stinky and it’s easier for me to buy them.
 
MissSkittles said:
Roaches are super easy to breed. I’ve found that they breed best in a bioactive substrate…a bit of organic soil, some coco coir and dwarf white isopods and springtails. Add some pieces of cork bark and leaf litter for them to hide under and keep them around 90f. It may take a little bit of time, but before you know it you’ll be seeing babies. You don’t have to go bioactive with them if you don’t want. I hated having to clean their bin which is why I started. The heat is important though and you’ll probably need to stick a heat mat onto the side of the bin.
I started breeding my own feeders just out of curiousity, but I’ve since acquired a small horde of reptiles so it’s become a necessity. I haven’t bred crickets though. They’re just too dirty and stinky and it’s easier for me to buy them.
Click to expand...
I will have to figure out a good place to do all this. Probably will be my office as I don’t want a ton of bugs in living area or guest room. Will def have to figure out the heating of these creatures.
 
narmstrong said:
I will have to figure out a good place to do all this. Probably will be my office as I don’t want a ton of bugs in living area or guest room. Will def have to figure out the heating of these creatures.
Click to expand...
I keep mine in the garage. I’m in Florida so for most of the year it’s like an oven out there. For colder months I use a reptile heat mat. To prevent overheating and fire risk, I use aluminum tape and stick it on the side of the bin. I used to have them hooked to thermostat temp regulators, but skipped that this year.
 
What type of Panther did you get ambilobe,ambanja,nosy be,nosy Faly ?
First off it was sold to you at too young of age but you did well and second of it’s a Nosy be or Nosy Faly they will grow at a slower rate. For caging if you your concern are screen cages then IMHO if I only had the one and wanted not only a functional but beautiful piece of furniture I would go with this https://tamura-designs.com/products/24x24x48
 
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