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[Toezie]

Hello, I'm glad I found this site Before I go and start any threads asking questions, I figured I should just introduce myself and perhaps someone will point me in the direction of where I should read first. I have recently welcomed a Panther Chameleon into my home (two days ago) and while I have read a few books and such, I figured I might as well find actual humans with experience that may have tips and suggestions. My little friend is a male and I was told he is about 10 months old. I've read about basic care - the uvb and heat, misting, drinking water off the plants, etc. I want to know what I need to know to make sure the little guy is a happy chameleon. Other things I want to know:

How often is he supposed to poop and what should it look like? What does it look like if I need to get it to a vet ASAP?

What is the best way to feed him? I know there are differing opinions on this, I've been told things from he only needs to eat every other day to he needs 12 crickets a day. I've read some things saying every cricket needs to be dusted in his calcium and vitamins to just make sure a few are. Also, when he is going to sleep, what is the best way to get crickets out of his home so they don't bother him and/or hurt him? What other than crickets should I be feeding him?

In terms of misting - how exactly should I do this, how frequently, and for how long should each misting be? The man I got him from misted him lots but said that he got him from a place that had a fountain he would drink out of, should I only mist him or should he also have a fountain or is that a personal preference?

Also something that concerns me a bit. When I take him outside for real sunlight, with shade available, I have a small tree I set him in. I like to watch him climb around to make sure he doesn't escape, but he seems to prefer to crawl onto me. Does this mean something is wrong or is it just his personality? I do know he was born here and was never wild, so could it just be he was raise with handling?

I have a rabbit and one of the vets at the animal clinic where I take him has experience with chameleons. Should I make an appointment for him to just get checked out to ensure he's healthy? Or should I make sure the vet has experience with this particular type of chameleon first?

Thanks for pointing me in the right direction. I love the little guy already so I want to make sure he is as happy and healthy as possible.

 

[BocaJan]

Welcome to the forum. There are many very knowledgeable people here that helps us all with their knowledge and foresight. You asked some good questions so I am sure that they will jump right in and send you to places you can read about the care of your chameleon. They are fascinating creatures and I spend many hours on husbandtry, lol well, that's what I say when I am in my sunroom watchiing them watch me.

 

[kinyonga]

Welcome to the forum Toezie!

You said..."How often is he supposed to poop and what should it look like?"...he should poop every day or every couple of days. It can vary a bit. It should consist of a brown "sausage" (feces) and a white part (urates) and may contain a clear part that looks like half set (clear) jelly.

You said..."What does it look like if I need to get it to a vet ASAP?"...if it was stinky and/or loose for a number of days it wouldn't hurt to have a fecal done.

You said..."What is the best way to feed him? I know there are differing opinions on this, I've been told things from he only needs to eat every other day to he needs 12 crickets a day. I've read some things saying every cricket needs to be dusted in his calcium and vitamins to just make sure a few are"...at that age, I feed mine every 2 or 3 days (depending on the season). I dust with a phos.-free calcium powder at most feedings because most feeder insects have a poor ratio of calcium to phos.

I dust twice a month with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene source of vitamin A. Beta carotene cannot build up in the system like preformed vitamin A will. There is controversy as to whether all/any chameleons can convert beta carotene to preformed vitamin A or not...so they sometimes give a little preformed. Be very careful though...excess preformed vitamin A can prevent the D3 from doing its job and lead to MBD.

I dust twice a month lightly with a phos.-free calcium/D3 powder. If your chameleon gets direct sunlight then this would not be needed. The UVB light from either tube lights or from the sunlight must not pass through glass or plastic. D3from supplements can build up in the system.

Calcium, phos., vitamin A and D3 are all important players in bone health and need to be kept in balance. Look at the supplements, what you use to gutload/feed to your insects and at what you feed to the chameleon when trying to attain a balance.

Basking temperature plays a part in nutrition too....the appropriate temperature will allow for the best digestion.

You said..."when he is going to sleep, what is the best way to get crickets out of his home so they don't bother him and/or hurt him?"...the idea is to try to only put in as many as he will eat at one time...then there should be none to have to remove. We all know that this is not likely to happen...so putting a small container of food in the cage for the crickets will help.

You said..."What other than crickets should I be feeding him?"...you can use superworms, silkworms, roaches, butterworms, and once in a while, waxworms. (There are likely more that I have missed.)

You asked..."In terms of misting - how exactly should I do this, how frequently, and for how long should each misting be? The man I got him from misted him lots but said that he got him from a place that had a fountain he would drink out of, should I only mist him or should he also have a fountain or is that a personal preference?"...fountains and waterfalls are havens for bacteria and IMHO shouldn't be used. I mist the cage at least once a day for several minutes....and I run a dripper so that the chameleon can drink for a longer period of time.

You said..."When I take him outside for real sunlight, with shade available, I have a small tree I set him in. I like to watch him climb around to make sure he doesn't escape, but he seems to prefer to crawl onto me. Does this mean something is wrong or is it just his personality? I do know he was born here and was never wild, so could it just be he was raise with handling?"...he likely feels safe when sitting on you.

Here are some sites that you might like to read...
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/index.htm
http://www.adcham.com/
http://www.chameleonnews.com/
http://web.archive.org/web/200605020...d.Calcium.html
Supplementation/MBD 1

Hope your chameleon does well with you!

 

[Toezie]

Thanks for the links, I'll read them right now. I've read what I can find, but not knowing what websites are legit, I figured it would be better to ask.

I am glad to hear what his poop should look like. So far I hadn't been able to find anything that told me about that and since his poop doesn't look like other animals that let me feed them, I was concerned that maybe it didn't look correct, but according to your description it is fine. I was also worried that he wasn't pooping a lot more, so that is a big weight off my shoulders.

How often should he be sleeping? I read somewhere that he shouldn't sleep in the day but my little guy seems to like to sleep under his lamp (no worries, it is outside the cage which is all screen except for the solid bottom). Is he sleepy because he's adjusting to his new home or is that bad? When he isn't sleeping he's crawling all over the place exploring and it is amazing to watch him lift himself from one branch to another.

 

[Toezie]

Oh, some pictures might be nice, eh? I think he likes to be photographed (or at least the camera) because twice now I'd have my camera trying to take his picture and he has immediately stopped what he was doing to come climb onto the camera.

And yes, those are fake plants. I wanted to get something for him (that wired bit is gone now) to hide in until I learned what plants weren't going to harm him.