Brown Chameleon??

[steph]

Hi, I'm New to Chameleons and new to this forum. I have recently got myself 3 veiled Chameleons. They are all the same terrarium together at the moment but i know i will probably have to split them as they get older. We brought them home 3 days ago and they seem to be eating fine etc. My problem is that for the last 2 days two of them have been light green but one of them is brown. i got it out onto my finger earlier and it quickly turned back to green but it is brown again now. Could anyone tell me why this might be as the other 2 are very green?? Any suggestions would be helpful for this little guy! Thanks

 

[Syn]

First of all, how old are they? Being together like that will cause them to be stressed, depending on age. The brown one could be brown because the other two are eating all its food and are just stressing it out in general.

 

[Lizardlover]

yeah, some veilds are brown when juvis though. fill out the link in my signature

 

[steph]

They are 14 weeks old and pretty tiny

 

[ChrisnLisa]

A general rule of thumb is that they be separated by 3 months.

 

[steph]

Cage Info:
• Cage Type – exo terra terrarium 30x30x45 high
• Lighting - uvb 5 13w compact bulb, 100w basking bulb on top of the mesh so they don’t get burned
• Temperature – 85f near top of cage using a thermometer strip to measure temp.
• Humidity – I haven’t got a hygrometer yet they were out of them so I will be getting one on Monday but I have been spraying loads of spray on everything twice a day
• Plants – no live plants just 2 silk ones
• Location – viv is in my living room so not majorly busy but not that quiet either. It is on the sideboard next to beardie but with a big plant in between so they can’t really see each other.

Chameleon Info:
• Your Chameleon – veiled, 14 weeks, 2 females 1 male
• Handling – I handled them the day I got them and have got the brown one out today and he went back to green but apart from that been leaving them to settle in
• Feeding – I have been feeding them tiny size 1 hoppers and have seen 2 of them eating them but couldn’t say for definite they are all eating. There are a few roaming around so not all been eaten today
• Supplements – dusting with komodo calcium dust
• Watering – spraying all of the inside of the terrarium twice a day. Have not seen anyone drink
• Fecal Description – can’t see any droppings yet
• History -
• Current Problem – one of the 3 is brown while all the others are green. It has previously been the same colour as the others for the first day

 

[ChrisnLisa]

They sound stressed, and it is imperative to separate them and adjust some husbandry issues you have.

Cage Info:
• Cage Type – exo terra terrarium 30x30x45 high
• Lighting - uvb 5 13w compact bulb A linear tube is needed, not compact. Buy a Reptisun 5.0 if they have them in the U.K. , 100w basking bulb on top of the mesh so they don’t get burned100w is way too high in my opinion for a glass enclosure
• Temperature – 85f near top of cage using a thermometer strip to measure temp. Those strips are useless, try and get at least a digital thermometer with a probe to take a more accurate temp. reading. I would be willing to bet it is warmer than that with a 100w bulb
• Humidity – I haven’t got a hygrometer yet they were out of them so I will be getting one on Monday but I have been spraying loads of spray on everything twice a day
• Plants – no live plants just 2 silk onesIf you have a nursery, I recommend ficus and schefflera...they do well for us and are easy to care for
• Location – viv is in my living room so not majorly busy but not that quiet either. It is on the sideboard next to beardie but with a big plant in between so they can’t really see each other.A room wthout much movement is best as well.

First and foremost I would separate allthree of them ASAP to assess their individual needs and behavior

Chameleon Info:
• Your Chameleon – veiled, 14 weeks, 2 females 1 male
• Handling – I handled them the day I got them and have got the brown one out today and he went back to green but apart from that been leaving them to settle in
• Feeding – I have been feeding them tiny size 1 hoppers and have seen 2 of them eating them but couldn’t say for definite they are all eating. There are a few roaming around so not all been eaten today
• Supplements – dusting with komodo calcium dustNot sure on that brand but you want a calcium supplement with D3, a calcium supplement w/o D3, and a multivitamin
• Watering – spraying all of the inside of the terrarium twice a day. Have not seen anyone drink
• Fecal Description – can’t see any droppings yet
• History -
• Current Problem – one of the 3 is brown while all the others are green. It has previously been the same colour as the others for the first day

 

[WelshOneEmma]

They do sell reptisun 5.0 linear's in the UK as thats what we use. We also use Calypso Calcium dust for most dustings, and then nutrobal when we do the d3 and vitamin dustings.

 

[steph]

sorry just realised the bulb is 50w not 100 the 100 is for the snakes lol
the calcium powder has d3 in but will get some multi vits and will pick up a digital thermometer and hygrometer on monday and get them split up asap. is the terrarium ok before i buy another 2?

 

[steph]

calypso is the same brand its just changed to komodo. Trex have just rebranded as komodo so everythings being repackaged. with regard to the compact bulb rather than tube why would this make any difference as its the same uvb strength?

 

[ChrisnLisa]

Most people prefer screen enclosures or Reptariums, so if you have access to those in stores that is what I would go for. I have never used a glass enclosure but I assume air circulation could easily become an issue.

 

[WelshOneEmma]

calypso is the same brand its just changed to komodo. Trex have just rebranded as komodo so everythings being repackaged. with regard to the compact bulb rather than tube why would this make any difference as its the same uvb strength?

The calypso dust that i have is made by Critters choice, not t-rex, i don't know what is in that one. Also the compact bulbs differ in the way the UVB is projected into the tank (i believe) and causes damage to their eyes. I believe a few members now have to hand feed their chams as they can't shoot properly due to the damage done to their eyes.

 

[steph]

i haven't found anywhere that sells the screen ones just that glass ones with creen tops and wooden ones which are all long not tall. Its pretty cold here so does that mean air circulation shouldn't be a problem?

 

[BocaJan]

Whatever viv you use you must have air circulation or your cham will get a URI. Maybe someone from UK can suggest a place for you to purchase something better.

 

[SaZzY]

Hi Steph.

I currently keep my cham in a flexarium which a mesh cage made of soft material. Some people dont like them but i have had my veiled chameleon 4 months and have not had one problem with him (fingers crossed). My breeder got me this but im sure they are readily available. I would be worried about using the glass tank as im sure someones already said but chams can be prone to respiritory problems which can be aggrivated by this sort of enclosure.

Sarah

 

[steph]

i have kept my beardie in a bigger one of these for the last year with no probs but are chameleons different?

 

[SaZzY]

Yes chams are different. This was in thread from this morning,cant remember which one,but it was said that as chams live at the top of the trees they need fresher cleaner air than those reptiles which live on the ground