baby chameleon wont drink.

rango123veiled

Established Member
I just got a new ambilobe juvenile chameleon and he is very small, he will eat crickets but wont drink, every time i try to give him a drink they get scared and run. I dont consider this unusaul i just want them to stop and drink for a sec, i can tell they drink from their plants though because their urate is almost completley white. Plz tell me how to get them to stop running 😁
 
They are not pets for playing and touching.. It is totally normal for them to run away from you if you got them these days. How do you mean you want them to stop and drink? How are you giving them water?
 
Can you fill this form out and post it back here?


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:
The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
Photos can be very helpful.
 
chameleon - ambilobe panther chameleon, been in my care for 3 days but was 3 months when gotten, handled once a day, because they are so small they at the moment can only eat crickets and small mealworms, zoo med calcium and vitamins, i spray my cage with a mist'r lizard JR, i do it in the morning evening and afternoon (sometimes at night) and i have yet to see them drink infront of me. Their fece's are anywhere from brown to black and their urate is almost fully white, this chameleon has not gone to the vet. I have no history all i know is it was bred at cbr reptile and shipped right when it was considered a juvenile so its kind of a baby.

cage - my cage is from a starter pack, its all screen but I plan to get a combo, its dimensions at the moment are 16'' x 32'', the width and length is 16'' while the hight is 32''. Im not sure of the brand for the lights but i have 2 uvb lights (one dome and one long) and a dome heat lamp. when i wake up (8-9) i turn them all on, when its getting dark i turn off the long one, at arond 8 i turn off the other uvb, and then i turn off the heat about 30 mins later. I then give the chameleon about 10 mins to find a sleeping spot and then i turn off the rooms lights. I have a basking spot at the very top of my cage about 6" away from the heat lamp. The temperature varys anywhere from 70-80 during the day, i measure this with a humidity gauge i stick to my dragon ledges and my heat gauge, my humidity levels are kept in the 80s and i keep this by spraying the cage 3-4 times a day, i spray for about 1 minute, im using fake plants, the cage is sitting on a table near zero fans air vents or anything, the table is about 2ft. i live in nc in the us.

My current problem is i dont know how much my chameleon drink because ive never seen them drink infront of me
 
oh also, i want them to drink ins
They are not pets for playing and touching.. It is totally normal for them to run away from you if you got them these days. How do you mean you want them to stop and drink? How are you giving them water?
i want them to stop and drink for a second but instead they run into the leaves and hide, I make sure to spray from a distance and a couple inches away from the door to the cage to not startle them, ill then turn the pressure on my sprayer down allot and give him a stream to drink from
 
Okay so you dont need two uvb lights. You jeed just one linear 5% or 6% uvb light. About drinking, chameleons are shy drinkers and you should not be worried if your chameleon eyes are not sunken in or if his urates is white. How much d3 are you giving him/her?
 
chameleon - ambilobe panther chameleon, been in my care for 3 days but was 3 months when gotten, handled once a day, because

You said...they are so small they at the moment can only eat crickets and small mealworms... Are the crickets the right size for it?

zoo med calcium and vitamins, ...need more specifics than this. How often for the calcium? Does it have D3 in it? Do the vitamins have D3 in them? Retinol or carotene form of vitamin A?

i spray my cage with a mist'r lizard JR, i do it in the morning evening and afternoon (sometimes at night) and i have yet to see them drink infront of me...since the urates are white it's likely drinking enough.

Their fece's are anywhere from brown to black and their urate is almost fully white,

this chameleon has not gone to the vet.

I have no history all i know is it was bred at cbr reptile and shipped right when it was considered a juvenile so its kind of a baby.

cage - my cage is from a starter pack, its all screen but I plan to get a combo, its dimensions at the moment are 16'' x 32'', the width and length is 16'' while the hight is 32''.

Im not sure of the brand for the lights but i have 2 uvb lights (one dome and one long) and a dome heat lamp. when i wake up (8-9) i turn them all on, when its getting dark i turn off the long one, at arond 8 i turn off the other uvb, and then i turn off the heat about 30 mins later. I then give the chameleon about 10 mins to find a sleeping spot and then i turn off the rooms lights. I have a basking spot at the very top of my cage about 6" away from the heat Are the uvb lights the long I near tube lights? Why 2? Is the basking light a white light?

The temperature varys anywhere from 70-80 during the day,

i measure this with a humidity gauge i stick to my dragon ledges and my heat gauge, my humidity levels are kept in the 80s and i keep this by spraying the cage 3-4 times a day, i spray for about 1 minute, im using fake plants, the cage is sitting on a table near zero fans air vents or anything, the table is about 2ft. i live in nc in the us.

My current problem is i dont know how much my chameleon drink because ive never seen them drink infront of me Many chameleons are "secret drinkers"...so as long as the urates are white or almost white the chameleon should be drinking enough.
 
Last edited:
chameleon - ambilobe panther chameleon, been in my care for 3 days but was 3 months when gotten, handled once a day, because

You said...they are so small they at the moment can only eat crickets and small mealworms... Are the crickets the right size for it?

zoo med calcium and vitamins, ...need more specifics than this. How often for the calcium? Does it have D3 in it? Do the vitamins have D3 in them? Retinol or carotene form of vitamin A?

i spray my cage with a mist'r lizard JR, i do it in the morning evening and afternoon (sometimes at night) and i have yet to see them drink infront of me...since the urates are white it's likely drinking enough.

Their fece's are anywhere from brown to black and their urate is almost fully white,

this chameleon has not gone to the vet.

I have no history all i know is it was bred at cbr reptile and shipped right when it was considered a juvenile so its kind of a baby.

cage - my cage is from a starter pack, its all screen but I plan to get a combo, its dimensions at the moment are 16'' x 32'', the width and length is 16'' while the hight is 32''.

Im not sure of the brand for the lights but i have 2 uvb lights (one dome and one long) and a dome heat lamp. when i wake up (8-9) i turn them all on, when its getting dark i turn off the long one, at arond 8 i turn off the other uvb, and then i turn off the heat about 30 mins later. I then give the chameleon about 10 mins to find a sleeping spot and then i turn off the rooms lights. I have a basking spot at the very top of my cage about 6" away from the heat Are the uvb lights the long I near tube lights? Why 2? Is the npbasking light a white light?

The temperature varys anywhere from 70-80 during the day,

i measure this with a humidity gauge i stick to my dragon ledges and my heat gauge, my humidity levels are kept in the 80s and i keep this by spraying the cage 3-4 times a day, i spray for about 1 minute, im using fake plants, the cage is sitting on a table near zero fans air vents or anything, the table is about 2ft. i live in nc in the us.

My current problem is i dont know how much my chameleon drink because ive never seen them drink infront of me Many chameleons are "secret drinkers"...so as long as the urates are white or almost white the chameleon should be drinking enough.
yes the crikcets are the right size (small, sometimes medium)
i have two uvb lights because my dome light has two sockets and i dont want it to go to waste so i used its uvb spot, and i decid-
wait this was all useless he just drank while i was wrighting this... anyways the dome light is for uvb in his basking area because he normally goes their and the long uvb light is on the other side of the cage so it does not reach, thx for the info.
 
I hope you get your lights figured out so they are best for the chameleon and that the supplements are being don't right too. I can't tell if you don't give the information needed.

It's good that your ch,ameleon is drinking....but everything else needs to be right too if you want it to live a long healthy life.
 
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