Fruit for hydration

[AlloEnthusiast]

Hello Cham Forums! Im a new cham owner with an adult male Veiled cham. I've only had him for about 4 days now, but he's eating and sleeping well. However I've just noticed his first dropping and the urate seems yellowish orange to me.

I know some degree of yellow is normal but I cannot tell if my boy is dehydrated or not.
Some extra info to help, he does not have a mister or fogger yet. They are being delivered, but it will be some days before they get here. Since i got him ive been using ice cubes on the top of the mesh to drip water down onto his plants. I've seen him drink once, but there wasnt all that much water on the leaf at that time.

At night I keep my window open to help with temp drops and humidity, in my area (Southern California) the humidity gets pretty high at night, his colors get very bright as well so he seems to like it.

If he is dehydrated, will he eat some fruit? I was thinking seedless watermelon, but I'm under the impression chameleons will generally only eat things that move.
What are your thoughts?

 

[MissSkittles]

Hello Cham Forums! Im a new cham owner with an adult male Veiled cham. I've only had him for about 4 days now, but he's eating and sleeping well. However I've just noticed his first dropping and the urate seems yellowish orange to me.


View attachment 369446
I know some degree of yellow is normal but I cannot tell if my boy is dehydrated or not.
Some extra info to help, he does not have a mister or fogger yet. They are being delivered, but it will be some days before they get here. Since i got him ive been using ice cubes on the top of the mesh to drip water down onto his plants. I've seen him drink once, but there wasnt all that much water on the leaf at that time.

At night I keep my window open to help with temp drops and humidity, in my area (Southern California) the humidity gets pretty high at night, his colors get very bright as well so he seems to like it.

If he is dehydrated, will he eat some fruit? I was thinking seedless watermelon, but I'm under the impression chameleons will generally only eat things that move.
What are your thoughts?

Hi and welcome. Yes, he does need more hydration. Have you been misting/spraying at all? That is probably the best way to offer hydration. A few minutes before his lights go on and off for the day, you should be misting his leaves for about two minutes. If needed, you can add a mid day misting for a minute or use a dropper for about 15 minutes. An easy diy dropper is a plastic party cup with a pinhole in the bottom.
Foggers should be used only at night and only if your temps get below 68F. Heat plus high humidity greatly increases the risks for respiratory infections.
Instead of fruit, hornworms and silkworms are great for added hydration. While many veiled chams will eat plant matter, It’s best for you to only offer live healthy insects. Provide safe, clean live plants, like pothos and others that he can chomp at if he desires.

 

[AlloEnthusiast]

Hi and welcome. Yes, he does need more hydration. Have you been misting/spraying at all? That is probably the best way to offer hydration. A few minutes before his lights go on and off for the day, you should be misting his leaves for about two minutes. If needed, you can add a mid day misting for a minute or use a dropper for about 15 minutes. An easy diy dropper is a plastic party cup with a pinhole in the bottom.
Foggers should be used only at night and only if your temps get below 68F. Heat plus high humidity greatly increases the risks for respiratory infections.
Instead of fruit, hornworms and silkworms are great for added hydration. While many veiled chams will eat plant matter, It’s best for you to only offer live healthy insects. Provide safe, clean live plants, like pothos and others that he can chomp at if he desires.

Thank you for the tips! He does have live plants (Pothos and an Umbrella plant), the only water content he's been getting has been from his crickets and the ice drip I do 3 times a day (morning, mid day, and night).

Running to the store ASAP to get a spray bottle. Horn worms were also recommended to me on another forum, are they ok to keep in the fridge? I want to avoid them turning into moths.

 

[LizardLurkin]

I believe hornworms are cold sensitive. I know at petsmart they'll sell five in a container, so it's easier to go through them quickly. They tend to be on the larger side though, so be mindful of that...But no worries about moths also. They may coccoon if they're large BUT it takes soooo long for them to become moths. In my experience, months.

The day and night misting will make a big difference, though. Good luck!