Dark brown or black colored Veiled Cham--What to do?

[Jabba93]

Hey guys! Just got my very first Cham! Leonard is a spry little veiled chameleon but is understandably skittish with his recent move. He stays brown during most of the day and changes green at night. I gave a big misting session recently and he flared bright green, ran around the terrarium drinking all the droplets, then went totally black after the misting stopped. Could I get any tips on normal and abnormal chameleon behavior during the acclimation period? I want him to be relaxed and happy, so that I can try hand feeding or some mild handling soon.



◦ Your Chameleon- Veiled Chameleon, Male. He was about 2-3 months when we got him. Roughly 6-8” long from snout to tail. Very thin but very active.

◦ Handling - I got him just 2 days ago, so I have not handled him at all. He already seems very shy and skittish whenever I open the cage to feed him, so I am keeping my distance

◦ Feeding - I feed him 5-6 crickets a day. Always in the evening. I also have 5-10 mealworms that I add in the morning. He is a skinny little guy and has cleaned the bowl every time.

◦ Supplements - no schedule in place yet for supplements. I plan on dusting the crickets with d3 calcium powder every other day. Too much? They are being gut-loaded with Fluker's Orange cubes

◦ Watering - I have a misting spray bottle that I fill with water from a Britta filter every day. Mist the cage twice a day for 1 minute, but I have never seen him drink yet (again only had him for 2 days)

◦ Fecal Description - Never had him tested for parasites but feces look fine from what I’ve researched. Brown poop and the white slimy urate.

◦ History - No other history or knowledge since I got him from a local petstore. One of the few places that actually housed their Chams in screen cages and gave some good beginner advice.



Cage Info:

◦ Cage Type - Exo Terra Screen Terrarium 24”x18”x36”

◦ Lighting - Both uvb and uva (25 w each) are on 12 hours a day in the winter. At night both are off. I also have a 100 w basking lamp kept on and off with the other lights.

◦ Temperature - thermometers on the bottom middle and top on the enclosure. It’s between 75-82 F during the day and around 65 at night.

◦ Humidity - Honestly I’m having problems figuring out how to keep it humid in a screen cage and not a tank. Currently humidity is at 47% and jumps up to about 65% after misting.

◦ Plants - live India Rubber Plant (Ficus elastica) Exo Terra jungle vines (large and small) fake English ivy climbing vines as well.

◦ Placement - it’s on a table in our guest bedroom next to a window that gets shade and some sunlight. No other pets at the moment.

◦ Location - Pensacola FL

◦ Any advice on what I should expect as far as problems with Leonard acclimating to his new home and any tips on handling and possibly taming would be very much appreciated.

 

[makkatfloof]

You need to be misting the cage WAY more than what you are doing.
I do mine 4 or 5 times a day for 2 minutes.

As to your concern, it could be two things or a combo of both.
He’s in a new habitat. It takes them a few weeks to get adjusted, so he will be fussy with colors. But the black is what concerns me which leads me to my next point:
Black is sometimes a sign of severe dehydration or just them showing they are extremely thirsty. Make sure his eyes are sunken and when he open a his mouth, check for white mucus-y lines in his mouth. That’s a sure sign of dehydration. Honestly, my cham sometimes will get super pissed off and turn brown or black just when he wants a drink or food, even if he’s not dehydrated or was JUST GIVEN FOOD OR WATER. They can be fussy, especially at your chams age. He’s about to enter his “teenager” phase.

 

[Jabba93]

You need to be misting the cage WAY more than what you are doing.
I do mine 4 or 5 times a day for 2 minutes.

As to your concern, it could be two things or a combo of both.
He’s in a new habitat. It takes them a few weeks to get adjusted, so he will be fussy with colors. But the black is what concerns me which leads me to my next point:
Black is sometimes a sign of severe dehydration or just them showing they are extremely thirsty. Make sure his eyes are sunken and when he open a his mouth, check for white mucus-y lines in his mouth. That’s a sure sign of dehydration. Honestly, my cham sometimes will get super pissed off and turn brown or black just when he wants a drink or food, even if he’s not dehydrated or was JUST GIVEN FOOD OR WATER. They can be fussy, especially at your chams age. He’s about to enter his “teenager” phase.

Thanks so much! I did what you said, and he's already showing more green!!

 

[Syreptyon]

In addition to misting, your feeding and supplements need adjusting. First of all, you should never feed a chameleon mealworms. And 5-10 is a lot. Mealworms have next to no nutritional value and are very difficult to digest, which can lead to impaction and sometimes death. Use waxworms, superworms, BSFL, hornworms, or silkworms as supplements to the crickets instead.

Dusting with vit D3 every other day is significantly too much, and that is not the only supplement you need. Here's how you should supplement: (1) dust bugs w/ phosphorous-free calcium powder WITHOUT vitamin D3 at every feeding, (2) with a calcium powder WITH vitamin D3 twice a month, and (3) a multivitamin twice a month.

Finally, you're going to want to stop using those horrible orange cricket cubes. The pet stores make you think they're good, but they're honestly terrible for chameleons. Their mostly made of things like corn and grains, which are food items to be specifically avoided when gutloading crickets for chameleons. Instead, you should make your own gutload using things like collard greens, turnip greens, escarole, dandelion greens, mustard greens, sweet potatoes, papaya, alfalfa, bee pollen, etc. You can also supplement it with a good dry gutload like Cricket Crack, but those darn cricket cubes are notoriously bad

 

[Jabba93]

Tha

In addition to misting, your feeding and supplements need adjusting. First of all, you should never feed a chameleon mealworms. And 5-10 is a lot. Mealworms have next to no nutritional value and are very difficult to digest, which can lead to impaction and sometimes death. Use waxworms, superworms, BSFL, hornworms, or silkworms as supplements to the crickets instead.

Dusting with vit D3 every other day is significantly too much, and that is not the only supplement you need. Here's how you should supplement: (1) dust bugs w/ phosphorous-free calcium powder WITHOUT vitamin D3 at every feeding, (2) with a calcium powder WITH vitamin D3 twice a month, and (3) a multivitamin twice a month.

Finally, you're going to want to stop using those horrible orange cricket cubes. The pet stores make you think they're good, but they're honestly terrible for chameleons. Their mostly made of things like corn and grains, which are food items to be specifically avoided when gutloading crickets for chameleons. Instead, you should make your own gutload using things like collard greens, turnip greens, escarole, dandelion greens, mustard greens, sweet potatoes, papaya, alfalfa, bee pollen, etc. You can also supplement it with a good dry gutload like Cricket Crack, but those darn cricket cubes are notoriously bad

Thanks!!! I’ll get right on that!

 

[Remkon]

I also have 5-10 mealworms that I add in the morning.

Throw them out... mealworms are useless as a feeder and cause more harm than good (constipation)
Instead use superworms and feed those sparingly as it's not a staple but more a treat feeder.

Supplements - no schedule in place yet for supplements.

That's not good, just use the schedule provided in the resources section... Right now is the MOST important time for your chameleon to get proper supplementation and UVB.
He is growing fast and needs the right things entering his body to support his growth!

I plan on dusting the crickets with d3 calcium powder every other day. Too much?

Calcium with D3 only once every other week and only if your multivitamin doesn't contain D3 already, use plain calcium daily.

They are being gut-loaded with Fluker's Orange cubes

I hear only bad things about flukers, it's better to gutload with fresh vegetables/fruits.

Read this: https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/food/

Lighting - Both uvb and uva (25 w each) are on 12 hours a day in the winter. At night both are off. I also have a 100 w basking lamp kept on and off with the other lights.

A special UVA light isn't needed and what do you mean by 100 w basking lamp kept on and off? You need to offer him a basking spot for 12 hours a day, your cham has to have the possibility to bask and unless you live in an iglo a 100Watt baskingbulb may be a bit much for a 2-3month old veiled, they overheat easily.

Plants - live India Rubber Plant (Ficus elastica) Exo Terra jungle vines (large and small) fake English ivy climbing vines as well.

Do yourself and your chameleon a favour and get some real plants in there, they help keep humidity up and give your chameleon a nice place to hide in.

Humidity - Honestly I’m having problems figuring out how to keep it humid in a screen cage and not a tank. Currently humidity is at 47% and jumps up to about 65% after misting.

47% average humidity is pretty ok for a veiled... It's also pretty easy to increase humidity... Just mist more, introduce life plants, use a humidifier, shield one or more sides off with shower curtain.

 

[Jabba93]

Thanks guys! Not going to lie, I was very worried about my Cham! Really thankful for everyone willing to help me out! I got my work cut out for me now, but I hope I can fix all the damage quickly enough.

 

[Graves923]

In case you havent already, the resource page has a lot of articles on chameleon care. https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/

The veiled chameleon caresheet in the Caresheets section should be followed to the letter. Definitely make the suggestions the other members have mentioned. They wont steer you wrong.

I will also add that you need to try and feed during the first half of the day. Chameleons need time to bask after a meal to help digest properly. Feeding in the evening may not give him enough time to bask and digest before lights out.

 

[Jabba93]

Guys! Leonard is back to green! I’m so excited! He seems a lot more relaxed! Thanks so much for all of your advice! Flukers and mealworms have been thrown away and I’m introducing blackberries and collard greens to my crickets! Misting has doubled and he’s loving it! I even got to hand feed him a few times! It’s all thanks to you guys! Just wanted to let you know!

Happy Cham=happy owner