How do I figure out age based on length?

Beman

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Hi everyone. When I got Beman the end of October they said he was about 4 months old. So that would put him roughly at 7months old. I didn't realize not knowing his age exactly would be a problem. But now I am realizing that I need more of an exact number because his basking temps and feeding amounts/schedule are dependent on his age. From tip of nose to vent he is about 6 inches long. He did not like the ruler when I tried to measure him. But I think 6 inches is pretty close with a small amount of error one way or the other. The first pic was the day I brought him home 10-27-18 (when they said he was 4 months) and the other two are from a few days ago. Thank you :)

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I think that age is pretty accurate. Temps and food guidelines are generally an average. Not going to hurt to be slightly more or less than what’s recommend.
Thank you. He is eating 6 crickets and 6 dubia everyday. I have not cut him back to every other day yet because he eats them all at once in the morning and when I tried to skip a day he kept going to the bottom where the feeder cup is looking for them. He acted very agitated that day. Not aggressive at all just like he didn't want to settle anywhere because he was still looking for food. Is this normal when you start to go to the every other day feeding or is it a sign that he is not ready?
 
Yes if you hit him with cold turkey like that. You don’t just stop feeding him like that, the transition should be made over a couple months, a gradual step down...
 
Age is not directly related to length or size of the chameleon. A female will of the same age will be a different size than a male. If it was raised with siblings versus alone. Some breeders keep babies at warmer temperatures and feed more than once a day, others feed twice a day for a few weeks and then go to once a day. All these Styles of raising the babies alters growth rate. Each has pros and cons. Even genetics, supliment kinds, amounts and suplimentation schedule and types of feeders used alters growth rate! Suffices to say that size is not directly related to age!
 
Age is not directly related to length or size of the chameleon. A female will of the same age will be a different size than a male. If it was raised with siblings versus alone. Some breeders keep babies at warmer temperatures and feed more than once a day, others feed twice a day for a few weeks and then go to once a day. All these Styles of raising the babies alters growth rate. Each has pros and cons. Even genetics, supliment kinds, amounts and suplimentation schedule and types of feeders used alters growth rate! Suffices to say that size is not directly related to age!
Uggg. He was a petco baby when I got him in with 4 other more dominant Chams. Due to him being a Petco baby I am pretty sure he had less then optimal husbandry before I got him. He was eating at a rapid rate the first 6 weeks 18 -24 small crickets a day. In December he started curbing back to about 12 a day. I took that as a sign that he was ready to be on 12 a day. The beginning of this month I switch to 6 crickets and 6 dubia each day. I tried to cut him back to every other day and he freaked. Which @Brodybreaux25 explained above that I should have gradually decreased instead of cold turkey which I will start doing. I am using Arcadia Earthpro A on every feeding and Calcium Pro-MG on every 4th feed. D3 from UVB lighting. Following here what Bill Strand does. His Feeders are getting Insect fuel gutload by Arcadia along with fresh foods from the best list in the resources section.
My biggest lesson in this whole thing is it is extremely beneficial to buy directly from a breeder that can not only mentor you but knows the ins and outs of your baby. Every time I feel like I am ahead and have it mostly figured out I find out I did something wrong. And the books I keep getting are all from like 10-15 years ago so the info is not up to date. :(
 
Yes if you hit him with cold turkey like that. You don’t just stop feeding him like that, the transition should be made over a couple months, a gradual step down...
Thank you so much for clarifying this. I was going by the caresheet which does not specify that. I should have realized that in needed to be gradual. Bad mom moment... :(
 
Big Chain store babies often have short sad lives, even if they end up in perfect homes!
I know you didn't mean for that to come off badly. I know that it is better to buy from a reputable breeder. But honestly this just makes me want to cry. That I have bought all the best for him from a dragon strand 4 foot cage to a mist king to the best lighting. All live plants for him to feel like he is in the canopy. To think that just because his start was not of my doing that he would have a short sad life kills me.
 
I am sorry, some of them do life long happy lives but the odds are against it! One of my friends @Kristen Wilkins has a beautiful f
female veiled that she purchased from a chain. She has pumped thousands of dollars in to the little lady. Frances (the cham) have always been sickly. So sad. And every purchased chameleon gets replaced by another with the same or similar fate. Many, many threads have been made about the issue! So, so sad!
 
Hi everyone. When I got Beman the end of October they said he was about 4 months old. So that would put him roughly at 7months old. I didn't realize not knowing his age exactly would be a problem. But now I am realizing that I need more of an exact number because his basking temps and feeding amounts/schedule are dependent on his age. From tip of nose to vent he is about 6 inches long. He did not like the ruler when I tried to measure him. But I think 6 inches is pretty close with a small amount of error one way or the other. The first pic was the day I brought him home 10-27-18 (when they said he was 4 months) and the other two are from a few days ago. Thank you :)

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Handsome boy . Most chain stores if he come from one are line bred . With this said he may not grow to average size . He is looking good . You will have far more issues with over feeding . You do not want a fat boy . Causes many Heath issues . He looks to be right on track for 7 to 9 months however . High 80s temp . I’m going to tag @jannb . I have not gone through all the posts . Please excuse me If she has already posted . Best of luck .
 
Uggg. He was a petco baby when I got him in with 4 other more dominant Chams. Due to him being a Petco baby I am pretty sure he had less then optimal husbandry before I got him. He was eating at a rapid rate the first 6 weeks 18 -24 small crickets a day. In December he started curbing back to about 12 a day. I took that as a sign that he was ready to be on 12 a day. The beginning of this month I switch to 6 crickets and 6 dubia each day. I tried to cut him back to every other day and he freaked. Which @Brodybreaux25 explained above that I should have gradually decreased instead of cold turkey which I will start doing. I am using Arcadia Earthpro A on every feeding and Calcium Pro-MG on every 4th feed. D3 from UVB lighting. Following here what Bill Strand does. His Feeders are getting Insect fuel gutload by Arcadia along with fresh foods from the best list in the resources section.
My biggest lesson in this whole thing is it is extremely beneficial to buy directly from a breeder that can not only mentor you but knows the ins and outs of your baby. Every time I feel like I am ahead and have it mostly figured out I find out I did something wrong. And the books I keep getting are all from like 10-15 years ago so the info is not up to date. :(
Don’t beat yourself up . Do you best to make changes . If that baby lives 1 year with you it’s a much better life then not . You made a choice to care for this baby . You know better for the next one . Right now in this moment you have this little one . These babies can be picky eaters . Not so much the girls but the boy yes . You can add silk worms ,and horn worms . 3 day feeding would be a good schedule. Take a weight before you start , you can track that way if you have to much of a weight difference .
 
Don’t beat yourself up . Do you best to make changes . If that baby lives 1 year with you it’s a much better life then not . You made a choice to care for this baby . You know better for the next one . Right now in this moment you have this little one . These babies can be picky eaters . Not so much the girls but the boy yes . You can add silk worms ,and horn worms . 3 day feeding would be a good schedule. Take a weight before you start , you can track that way if you have to much of a weight difference .
Thank you!
 
Handsome boy . Most chain stores if he come from one are line bred . With this said he may not grow to average size . He is looking good . You will have far more issues with over feeding . You do not want a fat boy . Causes many Heath issues . He looks to be right on track for 7 to 9 months however . High 80s temp . I’m going to tag @jannb . I have not gone through all the posts . Please excuse me If she has already posted . Best of luck .
Thank you! I am going to start curbing him back today so that he is on an every other day feeding. I am going to start gradually decreasing him every other day as @Brodybreaux25 recommended. With this he will be on every other day feedings within two months.
 
Don’t beat yourself up . Do you best to make changes . If that baby lives 1 year with you it’s a much better life then not . You made a choice to care for this baby . You know better for the next one . Right now in this moment you have this little one . These babies can be picky eaters . Not so much the girls but the boy yes . You can add silk worms ,and horn worms . 3 day feeding would be a good schedule. Take a weight before you start , you can track that way if you have to much of a weight difference .
I adore him and just want him to have a fantastic life. He picked me at the store. I had no intention of getting a chameleon. He followed me back and forth across the cage. I went home and looked up info for three days until I went back to get him. Since then I have been on learning overload trying to make sure everything is perfect. Lurking and reading as many posts as possible, reading books, the resources here, and listening to Bill Strands podcasts.
He fortunately is not very picky. He gets horn worms about 2 times a week when the pet store has them in. He loves dubia roaches and his crickets. The only thing he was not please with was the black soldier fly larvae. Those he stayed away from. I listened to a podcast about weight issues in chams and learned all about the bad stuff which was my reason behind the post to find out if I was right about his age. I don't want a fat boy lol. I really appreciate your feedback. :)
 
I adore him and just want him to have a fantastic life. He picked me at the store. I had no intention of getting a chameleon. He followed me back and forth across the cage. I went home and looked up info for three days until I went back to get him. Since then I have been on learning overload trying to make sure everything is perfect. Lurking and reading as many posts as possible, reading books, the resources here, and listening to Bill Strands podcasts.
He fortunately is not very picky. He gets horn worms about 2 times a week when the pet store has them in. He loves dubia roaches and his crickets. The only thing he was not please with was the black soldier fly larvae. Those he stayed away from. I listened to a podcast about weight issues in chams and learned all about the bad stuff which was my reason behind the post to find out if I was right about his age. I don't want a fat boy lol. I really appreciate your feedback. :)
Your very welcome . Best of luck with him .
 
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