Chameleon Won't Eat?

[ocyr.05]

Hi all! I just got a veiled chameleon hes a little over a year old, and the pet store I got him from explained to me he hasn't been growing a lot, but assured me he could be a runt and there is nothing wrong with him. I got him about two days ago and he hasn't eaten since. I've been offering him crickets and greens but he doesn't eat either. I know that it can take them about a week to get acclimated in their new environment but I just want to be 100% sure this is normal behavior because this is my first reptile. I also want to be sure hes healthy because he is so small for his age and thin. I also wanted to make sure my setup was good for him its a exo-terra screened cage in the extra large size (I forget the measurements). I also have a draecana plant that I researched is nontoxic for them. I have a dial thermometer and humidity dial as well. I have a log and some smaller sticks and a vine for him to climb. I do plan on getting fake vines so he can feel more secluded. My light is an exo-terra mercury bulb at 160 watt. My trouble is keeping the humidity levels up in the cage, I managed to cover three sides of the cage with clear shower liner and partially in the front and my humidity gets around 60-70% and higher, then goes down to about 20-30% after an hour, leaving me misting him about 5 times a day. I also have a humidifier that I keep on throughout the night and day to maintain humidity, but it doesn't seem to be much of help.The temp stays about 75-80 degrees until I shut his lamp off at night and goes down to about 50-60 degrees, and his basking spot is normally 85-90 degrees as well. I know they can go on hunger strikes if they're dehydrated or not comfortable with their surroundings so I'm just wondering if that could be it. I do realize I just got him so he probably isn't fully comfortable eating just yet. I also just want to make sure that everything i've been doing is okay and that hes not sick or anything. He also pooped for the first time today and there was some white, but it was very dry and wasn't necessarily a solid log like how it normally should look and it was a bit smelly, I know that can be alarming so I'm not sure if thats okay or not. The poop didn't show worms it just looked like a bunch of cricket parts and flaky bits as well. I just want some peoples input and tips and to make sure I'm doing the right things to keep him healthy and happy. I also uploaded some pictures of my setup and my lil dude (He was hiding after I just misted his cage so I couldnt get a great shot of him)Thank you!

 

[Angelwolf]

They sold you a sick chameleon! That poor thing is skin and bones. You need to take it back and get your money back! Or, demand they pay for a vet visits.

 

[Bokaru]

Hunger strikes can be scary. Adapting to a new home may be the culprit (and two days is not a terribly long time not to eat. Reptiles in general can normally go for a while. In the wild, who knows how long you'll be in between meals?), but Angelwolf has a point. This poor cham does not look too good and appears to have much more abuse than two days worth of not being fed (looks like you are doing a wonderful job so far. chams can be finicky).

You may be able to hold him a bit steady and place a feeder up to his lips and rub. It seems like veileds tend to accept food pretty well this way, but it does add to stress especially the first few times, so I have heard. Another option may be trying to get one in while he is opening his mouth for water. Pedialyte in an unflavored variety in a flat syringe in between water sips may be good to jump start the little guy. Additionally, consider mixing up feeders. Super worms or horn worms may be accepted better than crickets, at least to get him eating in the beginning.

My final suggestion is to consider a new location to house him if you aren't deciding to return him (which seems bad, but chams can be so fragile). It looks like you have him near a banister which makes me guess he's in an open area that additionally probably gets a lot of foot traffic. The traffic will contribute to stress and the large, unclosed room will let humidity slip away in a heart beat as you have noticed (Not to mention, if you don't get a basin to put under that cage, you will destroy your floors from all the water you'll be pumping into that cage).

Best of luck, and hopefully your little guy will pull through!

 

[Remkon]

They sold you a sick chameleon! That poor thing is skin and bones. You need to take it back and get your money back! Or, demand they pay for a vet visits.

While I wouldn't say he looks super healthy I think this is a bit overdone.
If it were really emaciated you would start to see it clearly in the tail and hipbones.
Looking skinny is also a defense mechanism for chameleons used to make predators think that it's a sick animal and not a good choice for a meal...
Odds are he's still settling in and not trusting his caretaker yet. He won't eat because of the stress of moving and is doing his little trick because OP could well be a predator.

I'm not sure why you would need a 160Watt vapor lamp for a Veiled...
If anyone uses these 2 in 1 bulbs it's usually the 100Watt.
In my opinion you're way better off using 2 separate lamps because it's easier to regulate basking temperatures without affecting the range between chameleon and UVB light.
Vapor lamps are mainly nice for desert reptiles that need High UVB output and high temperatures.
160Watts will give off a lot of heat and will draw away your humidity quicker too.

I'd cup feed him for the next week so you have an idea when or what he eats, also increase mistings a bit for the next few days in case he was dehydrated in the store(?). If you free range feed him his poop will be a good indication for if he has eaten. Also give him a lot of privacy.

Hope this helps

 

[ocyr.05]

Hunger strikes can be scary. Adapting to a new home may be the culprit (and two days is not a terribly long time not to eat. Reptiles in general can normally go for a while. In the wild, who knows how long you'll be in between meals?), but Angelwolf has a point. This poor cham does not look too good and appears to have much more abuse than two days worth of not being fed (looks like you are doing a wonderful job so far. chams can be finicky).

You may be able to hold him a bit steady and place a feeder up to his lips and rub. It seems like veileds tend to accept food pretty well this way, but it does add to stress especially the first few times, so I have heard. Another option may be trying to get one in while he is opening his mouth for water. Pedialyte in an unflavored variety in a flat syringe in between water sips may be good to jump start the little guy. Additionally, consider mixing up feeders. Super worms or horn worms may be accepted better than crickets, at least to get him eating in the beginning.

My final suggestion is to consider a new location to house him if you aren't deciding to return him (which seems bad, but chams can be so fragile). It looks like you have him near a banister which makes me guess he's in an open area that additionally probably gets a lot of foot traffic. The traffic will contribute to stress and the large, unclosed room will let humidity slip away in a heart beat as you have noticed (Not to mention, if you don't get a basin to put under that cage, you will destroy your floors from all the water you'll be pumping into that cage).

Best of luck, and hopefully your little guy will pull through!

Thanks so much! I haven't seen him drinking either so this morning I gave him a shower for 30 mins and he seemed to perk up a little bit I then tried to hand feed him a cricket by rubbing and he opened his mouth a little bit but still didn't take it. I'm worried it could be dehydration because he pooped again this morning and it was pretty runny and smelly. I will try and find a better place to put him my apartment is pretty small so its difficult the thing I'm also worried about is my apartment isn't always the warmest and I share a room with my sister so she needs a fan at night and my room would be pretty much the only room that could keep humidity in better but it can get chilly in my room. I will certainly buy worms today and try that out I plan on calling the pet store I got him from as well, see what they say. I honestly have no idea how they really treat their animals they have very good reviews and are accredited well, and they answered all of my questions and seemed to know what they were doing so who knows. But again thank you for your advice!

 

[ocyr.05]

While I wouldn't say he looks super healthy I think this is a bit overdone.
If it were really emaciated you would start to see it clearly in the tail and hipbones.
Looking skinny is also a defense mechanism for chameleons used to make predators think that it's a sick animal and not a good choice for a meal...
Odds are he's still settling in and not trusting his caretaker yet. He won't eat because of the stress of moving and is doing his little trick because OP could well be a predator.

I'm not sure why you would need a 160Watt vapor lamp for a Veiled...
If anyone uses these 2 in 1 bulbs it's usually the 100Watt.
In my opinion you're way better off using 2 separate lamps because it's easier to regulate basking temperatures without affecting the range between chameleon and UVB light.
Vapor lamps are mainly nice for desert reptiles that need High UVB output and high temperatures.
160Watts will give off a lot of heat and will draw away your humidity quicker too.

I'd cup feed him for the next week so you have an idea when or what he eats, also increase mistings a bit for the next few days in case he was dehydrated in the store(?). If you free range feed him his poop will be a good indication for if he has eaten. Also give him a lot of privacy.

Hope this helps

I am hoping that is the issue. The pet store did give me a 100 watt bulb but the temperature in the cage was still pretty low and so was his basking spot, so just as a precaution I got him the 160 watt, but I will switch it out because it does dry out the water fast and he doesn't seem to want to be in his basking spot a lot. I'm going to try and cup feed him and try superworms as well so hopefully all goes well. Thank you!

 

[RandellTheCham]

Thanks so much! I haven't seen him drinking either so this morning I gave him a shower for 30 mins and he seemed to perk up a little bit I then tried to hand feed him a cricket by rubbing and he opened his mouth a little bit but still didn't take it. I'm worried it could be dehydration because he pooped again this morning and it was pretty runny and smelly. I will try and find a better place to put him my apartment is pretty small so its difficult the thing I'm also worried about is my apartment isn't always the warmest and I share a room with my sister so she needs a fan at night and my room would be pretty much the only room that could keep humidity in better but it can get chilly in my room. I will certainly buy worms today and try that out I plan on calling the pet store I got him from as well, see what they say. I honestly have no idea how they really treat their animals they have very good reviews and are accredited well, and they answered all of my questions and seemed to know what they were doing so who knows. But again thank you for your advice!

Petshops are awful at ageing and sexing chams. So he's most likey not a year old. From what i believe males hit full size at a year old. Once they are a year old they will not eat alot 3-5 feeders every other day

Id say you need more plants in your setup so the cham feels safe. Id also put a sheet/blanket over his viv for couple days to let him settle in.

Its not ideal but maybe offer him wax worms in a cup. Chams go crazy for wax worms.

 

[Bokaru]

A good sign of dehydration is how the urate looks if it's white you're good. If it's orange or yellow, he may be dehydrated. Good call on the shower, since you are dealing with humidity issues this may need to be a common if he'll permit it. Definitely don't overstress him. Definitely read over Remokn's suggestions. I didn't notice your light, but you should be able to get away with a 40 or 60W for heat and then look at a better UVB source. I recommend a tube reptisun if you can

 

[Remkon]

I am hoping that is the issue. The pet store did give me a 100 watt bulb but the temperature in the cage was still pretty low and so was his basking spot, so just as a precaution I got him the 160 watt, but I will switch it out because it does dry out the water fast and he doesn't seem to want to be in his basking spot a lot. I'm going to try and cup feed him and try superworms as well so hopefully all goes well. Thank you!

if you use a normal termometer it will give you air temperature, not surface temperature.
Get an IR termometer to get surface temp but keep in mind your chameleon will have to go in between so basking spot surface should be bit lower in temp than is reccomemded.
Also let the lamp burn for an hour or so before measuring.

160watts ull never need youll have to place that so far off that uvb values will be crap.