First Cham Setup

S

Slyfox22

New Member
Hello all, this is my first thread on Chameleon Forums. I recently aquired my first chameleon, a baby male veiled. I have made this thread to make sure I am doing things correctly.

I mist him at least twice a day(it gets very dry up here in Indiana in the winter).

I dust his crickets with a mixture of Herptevite and Rep-Cal calcium with D3.

He is in a 24''x12''x24'' screened encolsure with an 18'' reptisun 5.0, a basking lamp, a lil' dripper, and has ceramic heater for the winter months.

His name is Murphy.

I also started raising crickets.

I hope these pictures get attached.

One other thing, Murphy is very shy. Whenever I approach to feed or mist him he will run and hide. Will he ever grow out of this behaviour?

Thank you!
 

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Hi and welcome to the forums!
:)!

The cage looks good, but how does he get up to the basking spot?
The crickets have a nice little abode as well, :p!

And as for the shyness--
most chams are pretty solitary, I mean--some people get lucky and get some outgoing ones, but from what I've seen, they're pretty scuurdy of humans.
For my old veiled, I let him settle in for a few days, and then I started handling him, and he was super nice throughout his life, never bit me or anything, just some occasional hisses.
He'll get used to you somewhat, but really I don't know how he'll turn out in the long run!
 
yeah it looks goos but i would add more climbing vines twards the top....but keep them about 4 inches away from the screen you dont want him to get burnt. other then that your aces....(also carpets on the floor can cause bacterial groth becasue of the constant misting....best to use nothing at all ....or if you feel you must use somthing....removable paper towls are nice....but nothing is beter.)
 
When he's older he will probably stop running. You don't need so much d3 or vitamins. Use calcium without d3 5 times a week, use calcium with d3 twice a month, and use multivitamins once or twice a month.

Fill this out and we can tell you what to change pay no attention to the top part.

Here is some recommended information to include when asking for help in the health clinic forum. By providing this information, you will receive more accurate and beneficial responses. It might not be necessary to answer all these questions, but the more you provide the better. Please remember that even the most knowledgeable person can only guess at what your problem may be. Only an experienced reptile veterinarian who can directly examine your animal can give a true diagnosis of your chameleon's health.


Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.


Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
Location - Where are you geographically located?


Pictures are helpful
 
your setup looks good, i would mist at least 3 times a day, do you have a digital thermometer & hygrometer?
 
Chameleon- Male Veiled chameleon, I recieved him December 9th, Murphy is probably about a month old, I don't know for sure though
Handling- briefly once a day but I am going to stop for a week or so to see if he gets calmer
Feeding- only crickets so far, 3 or so a day, every day, the crickets eat crushed cat food
Supplements- Herpetevite, Rep-cal with D3, Miner-all, I currently dust every feeding with the herptevite and rep-cal but that may change soon depending on these responses
Watering- I mist once before school,leave the dripper on during the day, and mist once after school and once before bed, I've seen him drink a few times
Fecal Description- White urate with brown poop, never been tested for parasites
History- Bought from FL Chams

Cage Type- Screened on all four sides, 24'' wide, 24'' tall,12'', inches deep
Lighting- Zoo Med hood with reptisun 5.0, Zoo Med 75W basking lamp, ceramic heater
Temperature- 80 degrees in the basking spot, 65 at the borrom of the cage
Humidity- I have a humidity guage but it gives me inaccurate readings
Plants- Live plants, two Shefflera Arbicola, one Pothos on the ground
Placement- In a small alcove in my bedroom, 4 1/2 feet
Location- Kokomo, Indiana
 
First off, handle him once a week max, or if he voluntarily walks out onto your hand. He should eat ten-twelve well gut loaded crickets a day. Do not feed the feeders cat food or he will develop gout. Use high calcium low phos veggies and fruits here is a link:

http://www.guinealynx.info/diet_ratio.html

D3 builds up in the system and causes problems when used too often. Use plain calcium without d3 five times a week, use the calcium with d3 twice a month, and use the vitamins once or twice a month. How long do you mist for? Try to mist at least three times a day for at least a minute each time. Raise his cage so that his highest branch is above eye level. Also add more branches for basking.

EDIT: I forgot to say that you need a digital thermometer/hydrometer to measure humidity and temps, analog thermometers/hydrometers dont work... You could be cooking your cham and not even know...
 
Last edited:
pssh...you always beat me....i cant put in my 0.02$ in because your a mad geniuose!....she coverd it all lol!
 
Slyfox22 said:
I mist him at least twice a day(it gets very dry up here in Indiana in the winter).
Click to expand...

Not sure if you need the ceramic heater in addition to the basking spot and the UV. The added heat will dry out his cage faster especially in winter. Also, unless your room drops below 55 F at night you won't need it then. Chams need a 10-15 degree drop in temp at night. The best way to check his body temp is with a non-contact infrared temp gun (lots of herp supplies have them...read about them on the Pro Exotics website). Best tool there is IMHO and no longer expensive.

A good electronic hygrometer is a must. Not a little stick on type from a pet shop. They are very unreliable. You will probably find that misting twice a day won't be enough during some seasons. Chams (especially babies) tend to dehydrate faster through respiration in dry air even if they get to drink twice a day. Some tips for keeping humidity up...more live plants. Drape the back or sides of the cage with plastic sheeting (I use clear shower curtains), run a "cool mist" room humidifier off and on with a lamp timer and place it right next to the cage.
 
I don't think lil Murphy can eat ten to twelve crickets in a day, normally he eats about five. :/, and I will look in to the digital hygrometer.
 
Do you offer 10 crickets? He should be eating 10 crickets a day and wanting more at a month old...
 
If you dont want them to run loose you can use a tall plastic container and glue a stick to the inside so that your cham can stand on it and hunt the bugs in it.

Or you can let them loose if you put a small piece of veggie or fruit somewhere for the bugs to snack on.
 
Okay good, I have a tall plastic bucket. It came with my cage and I didn't know what it was for. So you would reccomend leaning a twig against the inside of it or resting on the top of the rim?
 
No, it shouldn't touch the bottom, and it need to be stable. If I were you, I'd hot glue a twig about and inch or two down the inside of the container. The container should probably only be about 6 or so inches high...
 
Your cage looks great! Just add a few more vines and a basking spot for your cham and you should be all set. =]
 
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