General questions for a brand new reptile owner

[Asap the veil]

First off I'll apologize for posting something that someone might have posted already. I'm brand new to forums.

So I got my veil baby cham a few days ago I think he's like 3 months but I'm not sure. I've done a ton of research and reading a note taking but would like some opinions if I doing things right. But off that here are my questions.

1. How often or how many times a day should i be feeding him? Should I leave a dish out with food? If so is at the bottom not a good spot or where should I put it. He's a baby and I heard to feed him till he's full. I feed him twice a day till he's full and leave a dish of roaches when I leave.

2. I'm having mass trouble keeping the mesh cage humid. I read to keep it above 50% and I try to keep it above and I mist as much as I can but by the time I come home from work or doing something the himidity drops to 25%. It's an on going fight I really want him to be healthy.
How do I know if he's dehydrated and happy. I do have a real plant in there that he loves way more than the fake stuff. I leave a dish of water at the bottom for humidity also.

3. What exact vegetables and things other than bugs can I feed him and that he will actually eat. How big of bugs can I feed him cuz he likes to eat some meaty roaches. Haven't introduced him to crickets or worms yet.

4. Taming. He likes being out of his cage but doesn't leave willingly by himself so I have him get on my hand and take him out. He doesn't run away lean away from my hand anymore which is good but occasionally he will hiss and lunge. Will he bite am I really pissing him off and back off or should I just go and continue picking him up.

5. There are a few pics of him I want to know if his skin is healthy. I'm really trying.

Thanks guys I'm totally new to things my girlfriend got me him and everything so I'm trying my best View attachment 171239View attachment 171240View attachment 171239 View attachment 171240View attachment 171241View attachment 171242View attachment 171239 View attachment 171240View attachment 171241View attachment 171242View attachment 171243

 

[Theveiled]

1. Since he is still a young baby I would feed him as much as he will take. You can put it in a cup, hold it or free range it in the cage. I put my feeding cup near where my cham basks.

2. The humidity will fluctuate. It will go through periods of peaks and drops. Live plants are really good for holding humidity, my cham loves pothos. You can tell if he is dehydrated by 2 ways: 1 if his eyes are sunken 2. If his urate (the white, yellow or orange part of the waste) is yellow or orange. You want it to be white.

3.most chams will not eat veggies. Since my cham dosent eat them, I dont really have a list they can eat. Usually the role of thumb for feeder size is not bigger than the width of the head for hard feeders (not soft body ones)

4.I would leave him alone for a few days to 2 weeks to acclimate, they all take diffrent times.

5. He looks good to me from the pics

 

[Theveiled]

One recommendation for his cage though, is to add some thicker branches for him

 

[JamesB88]

I had trouble with humidity just as u did, simple fix for me was to just raise the humidity in the whole room with a humidifier, I do this while I'm at work and the level when I get home never goes under 50% quick easy cheep fix if you have a humidifier

 

[Peachypink]

1. Yes, feed him what ever he wants, I would put in about 20 tiny dubia a day and just leave them, I was also offering other feeders by hand feeding too. You can take a 1/2 gallon milk just and cut the front top part out to make a cup with a high back, then take a knife and rough up the back inside walls so the dubia will climb it and be more visible. Then you can use a bent paper clip, make a small hole at the top and use the paper clip like a hook to attach it higher in the cage on the mesh. Works great!

2. Just as @Theveiled said, humidity will fluctuate. I let mine spike a few times a day with misting and then it settles to about 40%. Letting the cage dry out in-between mistings is a good thing to help keep mold from growing. I'm not going to repeat what Theveiled already said on the urate, all good info.

3. Check for a safe list and just start trying things, like us they will have favs and dislikes. I had a veiled that wouldn't touch veggies.

4. Give him time to settle in and then Pay attention to his behavior. If its stressing him, back off. A form of trust will come but slowly is the key. I have a cham that refuses to have anything to do with me and I've had others that came out the door every time I opened it. Watch his cues.

5. Lokks good from what I can see.

I agree, add a few horizontal branches at varying levels and diameters across the top. You can use thumb tacks from the outside to pin them in place but he needs differing sizes to choose from.


Also, make sure to pour over the veiled care sheet....
https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/veiled/

And if you want even more help, go the the health clinic and fill out the How to Ask for Help Form you can find in one of the top threads and fill it out with as much info as you can and we can help you go over your husbandry. It's always a good idea to have others take a look just in case you've missed something or were given the wrong advise elsewhere. This forum is a great resource and we can help you give your cham a long, happy and healthy life!