Cham is hiding and not eating much ?

C

Callum1168

New Member
Hi everyone, I am new to reptiles and have got my self a 4 or 5 month old male nosy be panther. I've had him 4 days now but the last 2 days he has been hiding underneath leaves during the day. I have a reptiglo 10.00 UVB. Could this be the reason, or could it because it has been very warm over the weekend. Also could some one tell me how many medium size crickets he should be eating ? Any help is much appreciated as I want to make him feel as comfy as possible! Thanks.
 
Hi! The 10.0 could be too bright for him. What enclosure do you have and is the light on the outside or the inside?

At that age he should be eating a lot, maybe 10-15 apropriately sized feeders, no bigger than the gap between his eyes is the general rule around here.

Can you fill in this form please? Then folks can maybe give you an idea of what's up witht he little guy :)https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/
 
I agree with the above, 10% is too much for your little guy.
He is hiding because he has not gotten used to you and his new home yet.

You have only had him 4 days, he needs lots more time.
They usually explore their new cage when you first put them in. That's why you could see him, he was still in the
process of looking for hidding places. So by the 3rd day, he found some good ones and you havent seen him since! ;) that's pretty normal ;)

It can take a while before he comes out of hidding and realizes that you are not a preditor about to eat him!!

Look at my old posts on this subject of acclimation.

When he comes out in the open to bask and will eat in front of you (he knows when you are watching, even if you dont realize it) then you can start hand/cup feeding.

Make sure he sees your hand every day for feeding.
I would feed him about 10 crickets, maybe throw in a few more if he wont come out when your around and you have to "free range" hunt the crick down method.

For the acclimation time, you may not know how many he is eating, or if drinking, so watch for his poops.
Make sure they are dark color and solid and there should be a seperate white part called urates (lizzards dont exactly pee!!).

As long as you see this, he is getting what he needs.

The key word with a new cham is PATIENCE!!

As for the UVB, you want a 5 to 6% Arcadia HO w/ fixture (my top choice), or a ZooMed Reptisun 5%.
Make sure to buy a tube style, not the compact type.

Also, make sure he has total dark at night (no night lites!!)
They need cercadien (spelling!!??) cycle just like us :)

Lets see some pics of your new guy :)
 
Last edited:
Your Chameleon - 4 month nosy be panthet in my viv for 4 days
Handling - He has come on to my hand once
Feeding - Travis has eaten about 5 crickets. I think they are to large for him as he gagged after eating one. I make sure there is about 3 in his viv at all times. Also I have put a wax worm in his viv this morning.
Supplements - I have a mixed nutrient powder which I have used once but will make sure crickets are dusted twice a week.
Watering - I mist my cham 2 - 5 times a day I see him drinking off the viv wall I recently put a very shallow bowl in as well
Fecal Description - I've seen 3 poops one was very large with a white tip and 2 others which were smaller with white tips
History -

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Viverium. Is wooden with front sliding glass doors. I would aprox say it's 1 foot deep, 3 foot wide an about 4 1/2 tall.
Lighting - I have a reptiglo 10.00 UVB and a 100w reflector heat bulb. I've got the reptiglo on a timer from 8:30 am to 8:30 pm but have recently been turning off about 6 as i believe it's to bright
Temperature - the average is just about 80 in the centre of the cage I believe the basking spot is about 85
Humidity - About 70% I maintain this by misting and I measur by having a hydrometer in the centre of the viv
Plants - I only have fake plants
Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? My viv is on the floor so the top of the viv is about 4/12 or 5 foot high. There is a fair amount of movement as it is in my bedroom but during the day there is not as Im at work
Location - uk

Current problem - Cham is not eating a lot and keeps hiding in dark places in viv

I tried to fill out to the best of my knowledge as I'm not sure on viv measurements.

My repti glo and heat lamp are both inside the viv I could upload a pic if this would help ?

Thanks for your quick reply it's much apreciated !

P.s he does not hide all day he does roam about. When he hides he generally goes a dark colour
 
s34a3.jpg
 
I would raise your cage up off the floor. Put it on a table or something. He probably feels intimidated being lower than you are. Take into account you have only had him for 4 days and he is getting used to things. I don't think the 10.0 is your problem. There are plenty of members who use them sucessfully. Just make sure being inside, there is no possible way for him to get at the bulbs and burn himself. You need to create more of a temp change in your viv. 5 degrees is not much. You are only getting a 85 degree basking temp with a 100 watt bulb? I would feed your chamelon like 1/4 inch or a little larger. He should be eating about 15 crickets a day or so.
 
Thanks for the advise about raising the viv will do that ASAP ! About the tempurature Wat heat would u recommend for the basking area ? And to create more of a tempurature difference should I add mor fake plants about half way up the viv to keep the bottom cooler? He has not eaten anywhere near 10 to 15 crickets a day :/. Wat would be a good live plant to put in there for him? Or any other objects that Chams enjoy.
Thanks
 
Callum1168 said:
Thanks for the advise about raising the viv will do that ASAP ! About the tempurature Wat heat would u recommend for the basking area ? And to create more of a tempurature difference should I add mor fake plants about half way up the viv to keep the bottom cooler? He has not eaten anywhere near 10 to 15 crickets a day :/. Wat would be a good live plant to put in there for him? Or any other objects that Chams enjoy.
Thanks
Click to expand...

I would say...
- 82-85F basking
- 70-75F ambient
Yes, live plants are always a great option. You can place it under the basking spot to stop any light from overheating the rest of the cage. Some great plants to use include schefflera, pothos/devil's ivy, hibiscus, ficus, and more. Here is a list of all safe plants. http://www.flchams.com/safe_plant_list.asp

EDIT: Don't worry about his eating just yet. He is still getting adjusted. I have heard of chams that will not eat at all for the first week or longer.
 
Thank you all so much I will try to get his cage up off te floor and add some live plants for him. I will have to upload some pic of the lil fella so u can let me know Wat you think of him and his set up
Thanks :D
 
Hi CalLum. Can you be a bit more specific about your supplements. You say you have a mixed nutrient powder and you will dust twice a week. What is your supplement ?
 
My panthers all use 10.0 UV bulbs. Their output is still a lot less then they would get outside in the sun. a brand new 10.0 is about 110 and outside in the sun can be in the 400's. My vet says 100 UV is good and don't let it get under 50.

Don't worry about that bulb.
 
I would suggest life plants. They keep humidity better and also help to supply the needed temperature gradient.

I would get a 5.0 as it is the right one for tropical species. 10.0 is designed for desert species.

You should supplement calcium without d3 every feeding and with d3 and minerals every 2-3 weeks. I figured out that my Chams don't really like the feeding with d3. They tend to ignore the prey until the powder wears off.

On top of it your Cham might be less sociable by nature. So hiding from you might be its preferred condition.
 
Oki ive just got back from work and ive noticed he has eaten a few crickets ive noticed he is leaving the bigger ones, i do think the crickets ive got are to big and they wont stop growing :mad: !the wax worm i left in a transparent pot is also still there.

The nutrients i use is called NUTROBAL

Also ive now had the chance to to measure the viv

Depth - 1 ft 3inch
Width - 2 ft
Height - 3ft.

I have a microclimate ministat100 i have it set to 84'f but my thermometer reads 79. this is at the centre of my viv should i work with the average or stick to one or the other ?

What % should i try to maintain the humidity at baring in mind he is young

In concern with the light i think i will buy a 5.00 uvb and see if this will change his behaivour
 
Is the bulb actually in the enclosure? I've never seen that. I think a 10.0 inside the enclosure is probably too much. Outside, some is filtered by the mesh.

How is the cage ventilated? Good airflow is important.

Elevating the cage will not only make your chameleon more comfortable (they like to loom) but it will give you drainage options because cages can get wet and if they're sitting right on the floor it's hard to set up a drain of any kind.

I think you need more plants in there. Pothos plants make great chameleon plants. They seem to thrive on water and chameleon poop and the vines can be pinned around the cage to create walkways.
 
The viv has ventilation holes at the top just above the uvb light, i also try to keep the front open to let it vent through.

As for the drainage i have bark chippings at the bottom of the tank which would soak up any excess water.

I will upload some more pics of the actual Viv

I welcome any constructive criticism

thanks

Would it be wise not to have the UVB light on for less than 12 hours then as it is to much for him ?
 
Callum1168 said:
Oki ive just got back from work and ive noticed he has eaten a few crickets ive noticed he is leaving the bigger ones, i do think the crickets ive got are to big and they wont stop growing :mad: !the wax worm i left in a transparent pot is also still there.

The nutrients i use is called NUTROBAL

Also ive now had the chance to to measure the viv

Depth - 1 ft 3inch
Width - 2 ft
Height - 3ft.

I have a microclimate ministat100 i have it set to 84'f but my thermometer reads 79. this is at the centre of my viv should i work with the average or stick to one or the other ?

What % should i try to maintain the humidity at baring in mind he is young

In concern with the light i think i will buy a 5.00 uvb and see if this will change his behaivour
Click to expand...
As others have suggested you need calcium with no d3 and vits most feeds and you can use nutrabol twice a month. This can change a bit when you get more experienced with your feeders and gutloading. Believe me keeping chams correctly is a steep learning curve.LOL:)
 
Oki so what you are saying is that i should dust his food every 2 weeks with the nutrobal and use another supplement without D3 in it twice a week ?
 
Callum1168 said:
Oki so what you are saying is that i should dust his food every 2 weeks with the nutrobal and use another supplement without D3 in it twice a week ?
Click to expand...

Supplement w/o d3 every day till you learn more about supplementation. And there is loads on here.
 
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