Do my oustalet chameleons look ok as im worried if they are dyhydrated???

[martindean32]

Hiya Ive just done 2 pictures of my chameleons!!!
I wanna know 1stly if they look ok, and 2ndly if you can tell if they are male or female????

Lastly I have just misted the viv and have put the ceramic bulb on a hook above the viv and am wondering how long is it b4 I can but the ceramic back on the viv so it can continuing heating up the viv????

Anyhows here are the pictures of my 2 chamelons:

My first chameleon:

My 2nd chameleon (done with flash on):

My 2nd chameleon (done without camera flash):

Please tell me what you think?

 

[Kent67]

They look fine to me, although your female is pretty wide and probably packing a clutch of eggs.

 

[martindean32]

Which one is my female???? The 1st or the 2nd????? And would you suggest I put in a place for her to dig??????? Do I do it deep or just shallow???? What would u recommend that I use for a laying site for her??? Lastly can I get a 2nd opinion on whether other members think she is gravid or not???

 

[Chase]

The second pictured. She may be gravid, has she been with the other one? She is quite big.

Definately put a place for her to dig. I suggest 6-12 inches of laying mix. There are multiple mixes you can use, but playsand and soil(both organic, with NO fertilizer) seems to be popular.

Another thing, in case she is gravid, I would recommend maybe some extra feedings with Calcium to help with the making of the eggs.

 

[martindean32]

Is there any signs she would be doing if she is gravid???? Anything for me to watch out for????? I dunno if she has been with the male as Ive only had um a few weeks at the most!!!!!

 

[Chase]

Is there any signs she would be doing if she is gravid???? Anything for me to watch out for????? I dunno if she has been with the male as Ive only had um a few weeks at the most!!!!!

There are a few things you can look at for.

• Decreased food intake
• Restlessness
• Exploring bottom of cage

 

[kinyonga]

IMHO its not worth waiting to see if the chameleon shows signs of being gravid...you should have a place for her to dig in the cage now so that she can show you she's ready to lay them. If you don't you risk noticing the often subtle indications. The container should be opaque and big enough for her to fit into when its empty with several inches to spare on all sides of her including above and below her. Fill it almost full with washed playsand...and make it moist enough that she can dig a tunnel in it without it falling in on her but not so wet that its sopping.

Also...she may be stressed being in the same cage with the male while she is gravid...and it may affect her egglaying, etc.

The male's head pads should be more protruding...have you tried dripping water on the end of his nose to get him to drink?

IMHO since you can't even tell a male from a female it would have been better to wait to breed them until you know more about chameleons.

 

[martindean32]

I didnt know if she was gravid as I swopped them both for some sugar gliders and setup and the person who had um before me didnt have HALF the setup I had!!! Ive had to replace both the 2 uv lights (BEFORE ANYONE GOES ON AT ME THEY A NOT IN THE SAME VIV, THEY ARE IN SEPERATE VIVS!!!) (He didnt know how old the uvs were you see.), and power supplys, ive had to purchase 2 ceramic bulbs (as he had normal household bulbs (the ones that power the light in a downward direction) in them), he only had one thermostat which was an unknown make so ive had to replace that thermostat AND but another (has he only had 1 between 2 vivs), had to buy a plant each for both of the vivs (as he had one thermostat betwenn both vivs as he had one viv on top of the other on his floor and had the thermostat in the lower viv!) and have bought 2 little drippers (As he had just been misting them!!!)

Ill buy the sand tommorow and a small but deep opaque container and put it in the viv tommorow ok????

 

[martindean32]

How long should I give her to start digging you reckon??????If she hasnt dug within about 2 months would u then take her to a vets?????

 

[kinyonga]

I just went and read most of your posts...and I realize that some of them you had no answers to and some of them could have given you clearer answers. I didn't realize that they were in separate cages because some of your threads showed only one cage and I assumed that you were keeping them both together.

Were the male and female together when you got them? How long have they been separated?

I have kept lots of chameleons over the last 20+ years...but not a lot of ousties....but here is what I did for the ones I did have (and its what I do for a lot of other chameleons, lizards too)...

I have kept one pair of oustlet's together and they seemed to do well...but if the female was gravid she would be moved to another cage.

They can basically be kept like panthers or veileds. I provide them with a repti-sun 5.0 long linear fluorescent UVB tube light. There should be no glass or plastic between it and the chameleon. If I need to add a basking light I use a regular incandescent household bulb that produces the proper temperture. I put it in a dome light. I place this light in one of the corners of the cage to produce a wider range of temperatures and because I use glass cages, to help provide a chimney affect for airflow.

I set up the cage inside like I would for a veiled...lots of branches and some foliage for the chameleon to hide in. I use no substrate because too many of them can cause impactions and I'd rather not risk that.

I dust the insects with a phos.-free calcium powder at most feedings to help make up for the often poor ratio of calcium to phos. found in the feeder insects.

I dust with a phos.-free calcium/D3 powder twice a month to ensure that the chameleon gets some D3 without overdoing it and leaving it to produce the rest of the D3 from its exposure to the UVB. D3 from supplements will build up in the system...D3 produced from the UVB exposure shouldn't as long as the chameleon can move in and out of it.

I dust twice a month with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene (prOformed) source of vitamin A so that it won't build up in the system. However there is controversy as to whether all/any chameleons can convert the beta carotene so some people give their chameleons a little prEformed once in a while. Excess prEformed may prevent the D3 from doing its job though....so be very careful with it.

I gutload/feed the crickets, roaches, locusts and superworms with a wide variety of greens (dandelions, kale, collards, endive, escarole, etc.) and veggies (carrots, squash, zucchini, sweet red pepper, sweet potato, etc.).

Calcium, D3, vitamin A and phos. are important players in bone health and other systems in the chameleons and need to be in balance. When trying to attain a balance look at your supplements, what you feed the chameleons and what you feed the insects.

You can use a dripper as well as misting the cage a couple of times a day to provide water for them. If they don't seem to be getting enough, you can try dripping the water on the end of their noses until they do drink.

Appropriate temps aid in digestion so they play an indirect part in nutrients absorbed too.

Regarding sexing them...look at the base of the tail...the male's tale is thicker "south" of the vent while the female's tail is thinner there...but with oustalet's the color is a giveaway in any I've seen too. Females usually have a greenish tint to them.

You also mentioned (night) heat in one thread...can't remember the answers...but unless the temps. at night drop below the low 60's F you shouldn't need heat.

Hope this helps!