Flap Neck on the floor alot

[lemur356]

My flap necked chameleon is normally fairly happy and light in color and hanging around on her branches or in her plants. The past few days she has been laying on the ground and darker in color than normal. She has eaten half of what she normally would the past couple of days. She normally eats a mix between butter worms, waxies, and crickets. She gets calcium. Drinks water regularly, however she has not wanted water in the past 24 hours. She is about a year old. We have a 26W UVB bulb (repti-glo 5.0), temp is about 85 degrees during the day. 70 at night. and her hotspot is about 95. She hasnt moved much other than to get away from the water that dripped on her.

Any suggestions? Could she just be in a mood? What should I be looking for?

 

[KarmaChameleon1337]

Do you have a laying bin? Also, please fill this out, with pictures.

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?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

 

[lemur356]

More info

Your Chameleon - Flap neck, female, just over a year old, i've had her for about a year
Handling - Almost never. only when i need to take her out to clean. She is not people friendly.
Feeding - She loves her crickets which i dust with calcium, she will usually eat anywhere from 4-7 crickets a day, she also eats waxies (4) and butter worms (3).
Supplements - I give her her vitamin supplements (something a vet gave me when i bought her) once a week.
Watering - She likes when i drip water in her cage from the top so i have a container that slowly drops water in over a 5 min span. I spray her every few days.
Fecal Description - She usually has HUGE poops, about a third white and the rest dark brown/blackish. I cleaned her cage less than a week ago and I only see one or two small poops (mostly white)
History - although she is normally moody she is happy most of the time. she doesnt like strangers and can get testy if her life isnt "perfect" which i make sure it is. she is normally a light green sometimes an almost whitish green. unless you get her upset she will range from a deep green to black. sometimes a combo.

Cage Info:
Cage Type - Her cage is glass around the sides and screen on the top. it is about 1'x1'x2'
Lighting - We have a 26W UVB bulb (repti-glo 5.0), temp is about 85 degrees during the day. 70 at night. and her hotspot is about 95. Her light is on first thing in the morning and then i put her to bed around 9.
Placement - Her cage is in the living room as it has always been. it is probably about 4 feet off the ground. Because it is just me and my boyfriend this doesnt seem to bother her because we never have people over. She is also by alot of natural light. her cage is close to our patio door
Location - Chicago land



We do not have a laying tray, but the bottom has papertowels on the bottom, multiple layers

 

[Zubi]

She most likely has eggs, you need to have a bin full of dirt and put it in her cage, she will dig and put the eggs in there. YOU ONLY MIST HER EVERY FEW DAYS!!??. You have to mist her 3-4 times a day

 

[lemur356]

pic of her now

Here is a picture of her now, i do not have any of her recently other than when she was a baby

 

[lemur356]

She most likely has eggs, you need to have a bin full of dirt and put it in her cage, she will dig and put the eggs in there. YOU ONLY MIST HER EVERY FEW DAYS!!??. You have to mist her 3-4 times a day

I only mist her every few days because it really stresses her out. when she gets her water i make sure she not only drinks it but is also getting wet. She for some reason her whole life freaks out when i mist her so i had to stop

 

[Zubi]

What is the humidity in her cage?

 

[lemur356]

her humidity is anywhere from 65-75 on average, but after her water it gets up to 80's

 

[CamiGirl89]

Not to sound insensitive to your chameleon, but she MUST have multiple mistings a day. If she doesn't like it, tell her "tough luck, babe", and continue to mist. If you can't mist her directly, mist the rest of her cage. Chameleons can become dehydrated and deteriorate... Fast. Two of my three chams hate misting, but it is necessary that they must have the water. Make sure you are using water that is warm (NOT HOT), and just spray around her. She needs the misting for 1-3 minutes at a time, approx 3 times per day. It is vital to her survival that she is misted daily!

 

[lemur356]

she doesnt need to be misted as long as she is getting plenty of water and is getting wet while getting her water. i understand the importance of hydration. but i also understand the importance of stressing out animals.

 

[CamiGirl89]

Ask for assistance, and you shall receive!

 

[Zubi]

I live in chicago too, how do you keep the humidity in the upper 60's? Mine only goes as high as the 40's without misting

 

[tkilgour]

she doesnt need to be misted as long as she is getting plenty of water and is getting wet while getting her water. i understand the importance of hydration. but i also understand the importance of stressing out animals.

I would provide more misting. That species requires moderate to high levels of humidity. Every 3 days is likely not enough. I would invest in a quality misting system or be misting 3 x a day and using a dripper for a constant water source.

http://chameleonnews.com/06SepDeckers.html

 

[lemur356]

I live in chicago too, how do you keep the humidity in the upper 60's? Mine only goes as high as the 40's without misting

well its a pain in the ass for sure, i started experiementing with it when i stopped misting her since she needed the moisture. What i found works best (if you have the time to do it) is get a small 2"x2" tupperwear container and put a small hole in it to allow water to slowly drip out over a few minutes at a time. I do this anywhere from 3-6 times a day usually over her plants and atleast once over her. she seems to like it when its indirectly splashing her. I keep papertowels at the bottom to hold the moisture a bit (be careful because if you let the paper towels sit it can produce mold and make him/her sick) so i have to change her papertowels often as well. you can tell when they need to be changed. I also keep a small thing of standing water in the corner (that she never touches) in the hottest spot of the cage to help evaporate it.

 

[Zubi]

Ya i already know the papertowel thing, you also shouldnt leave standing water because that will breed alot of bacteria, but definitely mist her, even if she doesnt like it. What town do you live in?

 

[CamiGirl89]

If you are worried about water evaporation and humidity, you can get small humidifiers that can be placed in rooms. That being said, she still needs misted 3x daily. It will help her health significantly! Dehydration can be/is a very serious problem in chameleons! (or any animal, for that matter)

 

[tkilgour]

What i found works best (if you have the time to do it) is get a small 2"x2" tupperwear container and put a small hole in it to allow water to slowly drip out over a few minutes at a time. I do this anywhere from 3-6 times a day usually over her plants and atleast once over her. she seems to like it when its indirectly splashing her.

Great so you at least are providing a slow drip every day. Some chams just hate misting. If that is the case, then use warm water and mist around her but not on her several times a day. She will eventually get used to it. I have made similar drippers with various containers also.