Help me out

[jakedizzle21]

I have been noticing my veiled chameleon sits in his basking spot most of the time but he will lean to one side so the heat can hit that side and when he does this that side eye will be closed and some times both. and then he will switch so the other side is showing for heat and that eye will be closed. i just got him about a week ago now. He also eats crikets one at a time. will eat one and go back to his basking spot. then alittle later go down eat another then go back. i have a feeding cup for him.

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?

Veiled chameleon. male. not sure age maybe 2 months. and i have had him for one week

Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?

Maybe twice so far that i have had him.

Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?

crickets only so far. i put about 9 into a cup and by 4pm what he hasn't eaten i put back in cricket keeper.

Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?

I am using repashy calcium every feeding. i also did one dusting of rep cal multi vitamin so far and will be doing that once every 2 weeks. also have zoo med D3 i will also be doing once ever 2 weeks but havent used it yet.

Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?

i use a mister that mists once every 3 hours for 30 seconds that starts at 7am and off at 8pm

Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?

normal dark part and a white part and never 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?

retibreeze 18" x 18" x 36" all cage.

Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?

Use repti-glo UVB 10.0 linear tube and a retisun 75w for basking

Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?

basking spot is 85 and floor is 70 i have temp gauges at top and bottom. lowest overnight is mid 60s

Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?

pretty much at 60 to 70 most of the time. i use a humidifier and mister

Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?

using dracena live plants

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?

my bedroom not much traffic at all. top of cage height is 6 ft

Location - Where are you geographically located?

i am in southern california lake elsinore to be exact.


i feel he might be napping during the day cause i have come home and gone to his cage and he had his eyes closed but i also come up to the cage and his eyes are open and is just chilling in some of the plants i have or the fake plants hanging from sides of cage. so let me know if anything you see here is a big no no. thanks for help in advance.

 

[ReptileLove18]

all of your husbandry and care sounds just fine, right where it should be! it does seem rather strange that he leans to one side and then another when basking. closed eyes/sleeping are generally a sign of something wrong but there isnt anything else pointing to that. some pics would be great! if you could manage a pic of him doing what you describe that would be helpful. are you noticing any open mouth breathing, wheezing, or popping sounds when breathing?

the only thing i can think of is it may be that he is closing his eyes because the UVB is a 10.0 and it is may be too strong for him as you said you believe he is 2 months old. to test this theory you could turn the UVB light off for a few minutes the next time you notice him doing this and see if he keeps his eyes open.

 

[jakedizzle21]

ok tomorrow i will try the uvb light test. also will try to get a picture of him. i dont see him open his mouth but it doesnt stay open long. i do notice when he eats he will eat the cricket then go up to the basking spot and stand on back legs pointing his head up and looks like he moves his throat back and forth.

 

[ReptileLove18]

let us know what happens when you turn the light off! just leave it off for a few minutes, see if he closes his eyes again or keeps them open and then turn it back on as he does need the uvb. hopefully others will chime in with their thoughts on whats going on too!

what size of crickets are you feeding him? about how large is he?

 

[jakedizzle21]

i bought the smallest size of crickets lllreptile had and when i feed him i pick out the smallest i can out of container and the crickets are smaller than the width of this mouth. his body without tail is like 3 inches maybe

 

[jakedizzle21]

here is the pic of him.

 

[jakedizzle21]

here is another. and both of these where from yesterday not from 11 at night. haha he is sound asleep right now

 

[ReptileLove18]

those are pinhead crickets so those are plenty small enough for him to eat. i asked just because you have to be careful not to feed them anything that is longer then the width of your chams head, according to the caresheets!

how far down is the feeder cup? if it is fairly far down in the cage i recommend moving it higher up towards the middle/top of the cage near some branches where he can get to it. it may be a bit chilly for him down there and that may be prompting him to go back up to his basking spot before eating another cricket. the temps at the top of the cage are good, 85 is a good basking temp for his age, then 72-80 ambient

 

[ReptileLove18]

awh he is adorable!! looks just like the next baby veiled im going to be getting! course they all look alike at this age

he looks healthy and hydrated to me! showing his stressed colors, but thats fairly normal as you've only had him a week. they generally take a week or two to settle in and really start eating normally. its best to give them this time to get used to their new home

does he have a small spur on the back of the heels on the rear feet? cant tell in the pic!

 

[jakedizzle21]

yea his feeding cup is about 5 inches below his basking spot. so it is very close. and for his spur goes yea it looks like they are there but they are very very small. made be question is he was a female or not. but it does have a small bump there on his feet but you have to look real close.

 

[ReptileLove18]

oh cool! good job doing the research before you brought him home, thats great

he's pretty small so im not surprised his spurs are small! he's a cutie, look forward to seeing more pics of him and watching him grow

 

[jakedizzle21]

ok so i just tried having the retiglo uvb off while he was in his basking spot and still have the eye closed. you think maybe his basking bulb is too bright? even i look into it and wasnt able to keep looking at it too long without it being to bright. any suggestions what i should try? maybe one of those blue blubs?

 

[jakedizzle21]

here is a picture of him. and its not like he just stays still. he will rotate around go to his food and also go to plants on the side but when he is in his basking spot is where i notice him closing his eyes.

 

[ReptileLove18]

it definitely looks like the basking bulb may be too bright and hurting his eyes. try turning that one off and see if he opens his eyes up.

if that works i would recommend getting a regular house light bulb, probably 50 or 75 watt and using that for basking as i dont think that will be as bright and it will put out plenty of heat. lots of forum members use regular house bulbs for basking lights rather then the more expensive reptisun bulbs. just monitor to make sure the temps are staying on track and adjust the wattage of the bulb if you need to to adjust the temps!

 

[Julija]

Hello there!

It is a very cute little baby you got there! love the pattern!

I don't think it is weird that he is leaning to one side, when basking. I have a veiled and he does it all the time - leans to one side and flattens himself out like a pancake they do it to increase the surface area, so that they can absorb more heat.

In regards to the eye closing issue - I think ReptileLove18 is right about the light - it really seems too bright, you should try using a lower wattage bulb for basking, and you might also want to consider switching to 5.0 UVB light.

I am not sure how it is with babies, but in general 30 s misting sessions seem a bit too short - 2-3 minutes is what is usually recommended, because it takes about a minute to trigger the drinking reflex.

Otherwise it sounds like you are on top of things and I am sure it will work out just fine for you and your little guy if you have any doubts - just ask, people here are very friendly and helpful.

Best of luck,
Julija

 

[jakedizzle21]

ok i just changed his heat bulb to one that was a little softer and not too bright i can look right into this one without it being to bright. gunna see if this helps. thanks again for the suggestions guys.

 

[ReptileLove18]

Hello there!

I don't think it is weird that he is leaning to one side, when basking. I have a veiled and he does it all the time - leans to one side and flattens himself out like a pancake they do it to increase the surface area, so that they can absorb more heat.

thanks for telling us this, i had never heard or seen them do this! great to know!

ok i just changed his heat bulb to one that was a little softer and not too bright i can look right into this one without it being to bright. gunna see if this helps. thanks again for the suggestions guys.

let us know how the new bulb works out!

 

[carol5208]

yes they will flatten themselves and that is quite normal. I am surprised you never saw your chameleon doing that. Hopefully the brightness of the bulb is the problem. If he is only closing it when basking, then obviously it has to be something with the light or possibly even the heat being too intense.

 

[jakedizzle21]

yep so i changed the basking bulb from a 75w to a 60w that is still a reptile bulb but much softer on the eyes and i think it is working out much better. he is up walking around and eyes are open under his basking spot. so i think it fixed the problem.

 

[ReptileLove18]

yes they will flatten themselves and that is quite normal. I am surprised you never saw your chameleon doing that. Hopefully the brightness of the bulb is the problem. If he is only closing it when basking, then obviously it has to be something with the light or possibly even the heat being too intense.

i saw him flatten out but never lean to one side or the other, its good to know they do that! saves me some worry for my next baby

yep so i changed the basking bulb from a 75w to a 60w that is still a reptile bulb but much softer on the eyes and i think it is working out much better. he is up walking around and eyes are open under his basking spot. so i think it fixed the problem.

glad to hear that seems to have fixed the problem!!