Caring for a tailless, 6 year old Chameleon

[ChamCham69]

Hello,

Recently (today, 10/22) my chameleon had his tail amputated from tail rot.. Now that he has no tail I am seeking advise on husbandry and other general care. I’d imagine he won’t be able to climb as well or could fall easier, and as you can see his cage is rather tall. Any advise and even story telling is welcome.

Attached are photos of Cam without his tail including his cage.

Below is the general info for those interested.

Your Chameleon - Veiled Chameleon. He has been in my care since he was about 2 months old. He is over 6 years old now.
Handling - I do not handle him often. Maybe once a week.
Feeding - I feed him crickets that have been both calcium and multivitamin dusted/gut loaded with veggies. I do not have a set schedule in which i feed him. I leave the cage open for him to crawl down and eat.
Supplements - The brand of calcium I use is ZOOMED and I dust them about three times a week. I also have a multivitamin (includes A) that I dust about once a week, same brand.
Watering - I mist water over him about everyday. I also tilt a water bottle and let him drink from it.
Fecal Description - Solid white (sometimes yellow) and dark brown stool.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - My cage is coarse screened and measures about 4ft tall by 2ft wide and about a foot deep. I have a vine plant with a dowel rod in the center of the cage. Along with ladders. He has tree cover and he has basking spots.
Lighting - I have a ZooMed 18in UVB bulb and a PetSmart 60W blue heat bulb hanging overhead.
Temperature - The bottom of the cage is about 73 degree and increases upward to about 90 degrees.
Humidity - I do not measure humidity.. I know shame on me. But I do spray him with water 1-2 times a day day.
Plants - I have real vine, and fake one. He never eats either, probably because he’s free to go grab a cricket or two.
Placement - My cage is located in a sunroom facing due East.
Location - I am located in Southern, US.

 

[Lindasjackson]

He could really use a nice tree in the center of his enclosure with lots of foliage and branches to climb. I’m not sure how loosing his tail is going to effect him but he’s looking good and so far acting good so soon after surgery! I would recommend ditching the blue basking bulb and getting a white one as well as getting a couple temp/ humidity readers in different levels of the cage as well. The colored lights can damage their eyes so I’ve been told.

 

[Snuits]

Aw poor baby. He's a cutie. I agree a better tree might help.
Also. You said you don't have a set feeding schedule, & with him being this old you should 3-4 bugs 3 times a week.
Also you noted you give crickets.. is that all? he should have way more variety.
Also you said you don't measure humidity. I understand you know that's a no no. But like that's a big nono. & should invest in a hygrometer to make sure his levels are correct.

 

[PlanetRemulak]

Poor baby, thank you so much for taking him!

You’re definitely going to want to measure RH/humidity levels. That’s best done with a thermometer/hygrometer combo with a probe. I use these:

https://www.amazon.com/Rojuna-Therm...locphy=9031826&hvtargid=pla-974020187994&th=1

Keep in mind that they might crap out after a while if the probes get too wet, but they’re relatively accurate and easy to replace.

 

[PlanetRemulak]

I also wanted to add - supplementation is VERY important and you don’t want to skip out on that. correct and consistent supplementation essentially means whether or not your chameleon lives or dies. Does the supplement you use have vitamin D3 in it? You really want to dust feeders at every feeding with a calcium powder with NO D3. Then two times a month, you‘ll want to dust with calcium that has D3 in it 2 times a month (let’s say the first and the 15th of every month). You also want to be SURE you have a multi vitamin (with PREFORMED A, NOT beta carotene) 2 times a month as well. There are several all in one calcium powders that contain vitamin D3 AND preformed A:

Repashy LoD
Reptivite

 

[ChamCham69]

All,
Thanks for the advice. I will take it. I’ll get a white heat bulb, hygrometers, and a new tree. The vines are so big that they don’t grow leaves anymore except at the ends.

As for those asking if I feed him different types of insects, I do. I also feed him veggies and fruits. He loves carrots and cantaloupe. Must be the color? For those asking if I use supplements, yes. Calcium w&w/o d3, and a mixture with a bunch of different vitamins, including A. I also use vitamin A dropper on his food every few weeks. I do not have a set feeding schedule, no. But I feed him every day. He’s a big eater so at only 3 times a week he would climb out and try to hunt for himself. When he had his tail he would climb down to the cricket box and snag a few whenever he pleased, then climb back up and bask. But I do feed him and supplement him, always have.

About humidity - what levels should they be? From my understanding veileds are from many different climates from tropical to semi arid. Apparently tail rot is from too high of humidity but his cage stays mostly dry. Once I mist the lights evaporate the water pretty quickly.

 

[PlanetRemulak]

All,
Thanks for the advice. I will take it. I’ll get a white heat bulb, hygrometers, and a new tree. The vines are so big that they don’t grow leaves anymore except at the ends.

As for those asking if I feed him different types of insects, I do. I also feed him veggies and fruits. He loves carrots and cantaloupe. Must be the color? For those asking if I use supplements, yes. Calcium w&w/o d3, and a mixture with a bunch of different vitamins, including A. I also use vitamin A dropper on his food every few weeks. I do not have a set feeding schedule, no. But I feed him every day. He’s a big eater so at only 3 times a week he would climb out and try to hunt for himself. When he had his tail he would climb down to the cricket box and snag a few whenever he pleased, then climb back up and bask. But I do feed him and supplement him, always have.

About humidity - what levels should they be? From my understanding veileds are from many different climates from tropical to semi arid. Apparently tail rot is from too high of humidity but his cage stays mostly dry. Once I mist the lights evaporate the water pretty quickly.

Forgot to include the bit about humidity last night, sorry about that. Veileds do well at 30-40% humidity during the day. 75% to 100% saturation at night is best! To keep humidity up, you can use window shrink wrap film or corrugated plastic sheets to cover the sides of the cage. I’d start by getting the thermomete/hygrometer combo with a probe, cover the left and right sides and see where that gets you as far as humidity goes. If that’s still not getting you where you need to be, you can cover the back of the cage as well. There also exist some pretty nice hybrid cages:

Zen Habitats
Dragon Strand
Tamura designs is also an option. Beautiful cages, but Dale Tamura can be a little difficult to get ahold of (AND they are quite pricey).