I am having issues with Heating and my Veiled Cham.

Kenny C

Member
So I just picked up my Vieled Chameleon Friday night, I am a first time chameleon owner. Since I picked up up she has for the most part stayed a dark brown to light brown color. I tried fixing the heat but my room is naturally hot I am trying to keep her around 80F but with that I can't get a basking area. She is about 2-3 months old I have a glass screen tank with 2 open vents in the front it is 18x18 36 tall also the whole top is a screen. Her humity I have kept from 70%-90%. I opened my window shades so she still has sunlight but I am worried that I may be doing something wrong for her.... I also lowered her basking light to 40 watts from 75 but very time I turn it on she gets dark so I only keep it on for 2 hours after she eats. Is there anything I am doing wrong?
 
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What uv light are you running.

80F-85F air temps is about perfect during the day. Basking spot for a girl should be in the low 90's and shouldnt be turned on and off during the day. Humidity looks good if the cage is drying out inbetween mistings.

90 day old in a 3ft tall tank, lol how do you find her?

Dark cham= cold most of the time. If they over heat they will turn very bright depending on the species. Veiled will turn yellow/white.
 
Ok if that's the case why is she gaping then? Thats whats confusing me. Right now she has, "daylight blue 40watt reptile bulb by zoo med" before it was "zoo med basking combo pack basking spot lamp and nocturnal infrared heat lamp" 75 watts each, I am using the "zoo med mini combo deep dome lamp fixture".

I had been looking for one for awhile that's why I bought something so big I wanted her to be able to grow into it. I got her at PetSmart.
 
Mouth gapping might be as simple as they are regulating their temp and are too lazy to move. My cham will sit on top of the florescent light dome because its warm, and mouth gape. My beardy will sit on his hot rock all day long and just mouth gape when the temps get into the upper 80's. As long as the mouth is just open you are fine. Mouth popping or labored breathing could mean an upper respiratory problem from like keeping the cage too wet or too cold. normally the top of the cage is hot and the bottom of the cage is cool, its why the chams are in 3-4ft tall cages.


For lights, since you are running sockets, i recommend a 39 watt halogen wide flood for the basking. They radiate more heat rather than getting heat from just the hot bulb. Also since you will be running a cfl instead of a linear tube, i would recommend a reptisun 5.0 (also from zoomed). If you ever upgrade to a 24x24 base i would recommend getting a linear tube 24" or 22"T5 HO bulb.
 
So I should heat her up more then? What else would cause the color change? I read that it should be colder do to her age. Should I be worried about her constant dark color?
 
I have been using I am also gut loading my crickets with Fluker's Hi calcium cricket feed, and Fluker's orange cube complete diet. I have not gotten anything else could that be the issue?
 
I have been using I am also gut loading my crickets with Fluker's Hi calcium cricket feed, and Fluker's orange cube complete diet. I have not gotten anything else could that be the issue?


while the gutloading wont cause your issues, you need to gutload better.

that flukers stuff is just crap.

fresh fruits and veggies are the best way to go.


sandrachameleon is the best when it comes to blogs on gutloading items.
 
Hello sorry im replying to this post because i am new to this site and i dont know how to post my own questions. But can anyone tell me if i can put my chameleon on a flat surface and if so, will it spread salmonella onto the surface and what i should do. Thank you
 
So I just picked up my Vieled Chameleon Friday night, I am a first time chameleon owner. Since I picked up up she has for the most part stayed a dark brown to light brown color. I tried fixing the heat but my room is naturally hot I am trying to keep her around 80F but with that I can't get a basking area. She is about 2-3 months old I have a glass screen tank with 2 open vents in the front it is 18x18 36 tall also the whole top is a screen. Her humity I have kept from 70%-90%. I opened my window shades so she still has sunlight but I am worried that I may be doing something wrong for her.... I also lowered her basking light to 40 watts from 75 but very time I turn it on she gets dark so I only keep it on for 2 hours after she eats. Is there anything I am doing wrong?

it may not be heat that she needs. 80F is fine for the ambient temp, and use a smaller basking bulb (25watts perhaps) if needs be. You dont want such a young chameleon kept too hot.
Non breeding females and Juveniles basking spot should be kept between 80-85F (27C)
day mid-cage / ambient range 70-80F/21 -26C
night to a low of 68F (a lower temp is fine when she's a bit bigger/older)

She could simply be stressed. Gapping can indicate overheating or stress.
Give her time to settle in, make sure that she has plants to hide in, dont mess with her, etc.
You dont need humidity that high all the time. If it is staying above 70% for lengthy periods of time, you risk respiratory infections and fungus issues.
 
I have been using I am also gut loading my crickets with Fluker's Hi calcium cricket feed, and Fluker's orange cube complete diet. I have not gotten anything else could that be the issue?

those are poor gutload choices, but are not causing your new chameleon to have a dark colour.
 
Hello sorry im replying to this post because i am new to this site and i dont know how to post my own questions. But can anyone tell me if i can put my chameleon on a flat surface and if so, will it spread salmonella onto the surface and what i should do. Thank you

To post your own ? Go the opening page it the forum button choose general discussions then just to left of the next page there u will see a thread button tap that and then type your ?
 
Hello sorry im replying to this post because i am new to this site and i dont know how to post my own questions. But can anyone tell me if i can put my chameleon on a flat surface and if so, will it spread salmonella onto the surface and what i should do. Thank you

read these FAQS
https://www.chameleonforums.com/faq.php?faq=vb3_board_usage#faq_vb3_forums_threads_posts

you find the forum area that best matches your topic, then click New Thread
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it may not be heat that she needs. 80F is fine for the ambient temp, and use a smaller basking bulb (25watts perhaps) if needs be. You dont want such a young chameleon kept too hot.
Non breeding females and Juveniles basking spot should be kept between 80-85F (27C)
day mid-cage / ambient range 70-80F/21 -26C
night to a low of 68F (a lower temp is fine when she's a bit bigger/older)

She could simply be stressed. Gapping can indicate overheating or stress.
Give her time to settle in, make sure that she has plants to hide in, dont mess with her, etc.
You dont need humidity that high all the time. If it is staying above 70% for lengthy periods of time, you risk respiratory infections and fungus issues.

So 85F should be fine for basking? And 50%-70% should be ok for her humidity? And what vitamins should I be giving her at this age?
 
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Ok if that's the case why is she gaping then? Thats whats confusing me. Right now she has, "daylight blue 40watt reptile bulb by zoo med" before it was "zoo med basking combo pack basking spot lamp and nocturnal infrared heat lamp" 75 watts each, I am using the "zoo med mini combo deep dome lamp fixture".

I had been looking for one for awhile that's why I bought something so big I wanted her to be able to grow into it. I got her at PetSmart.

that size cage is fine as long as you are sure she is finding her food to eat.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/veiled/
heres some good info to start..:D
 
I will relax alittle and give her time thank you everyone for your help, I will post in a few days to give an update.
 
So 85F should be fine for basking? And 50%-70% should be ok for her humidity? And what vitamins should I be giving her at this age?

yes 85F is fine. Yes, 50-70% is perfect.
Here's some information re supplements and gutloading that you might find helpful:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/65-supplements.html

https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/174-whats-supplements-brand.html

https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/75-feeder-nutrition-gutloading.html

https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/818-young-veiled-prey-intake-july-2013.html

and this care sheet is great too: https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/veiled/

I will relax alittle and give her time thank you everyone for your help, I will post in a few days to give an update.

:)
 
You said you opened the window shades so she would get some light...you do realize that she won't get any UVB to speak of from light coming through a window I hope. Also, her cage could overheat if you do that.

I feed/gutload my crickets, superworms etc. With a wide assortment of greens such as dandelions, collards, endive, escarole, mustard greens, kale, etc and veggies such as carrots, sweet potato, sweet red pepper, squash, zucchini, etc.

Dusting the insects just before feeding them to the chameleon with a phos - free calcium powder helps make up for the usually poor ratio of calcium to phos found in most feeder insects.

I dust twice a month with a phos - free calcium / D3 powder and twice a month with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene source of vitamin A. Dusting with the D3 provides some D3 for it without overdosing it and leaving it to produce the rest from its exposure to the UVB light. D3 from supplements can build up in the system and lead to health issues. Using a vitamin powder containing a beta carotene (prOformed) source of vitamin A prevents a build up of prEformed vitamin A and allows the owner to decide if it needs prEformed or not.

Also...female veileds can produce eggs without having to mate once they are sexually mature..so you need to provide her with an opaque container of washed playsand at least 12" x 12" deep x 8" so she can dig to lay them and not become eggbound.

This will not solve your problem but I thought he information would be useful to you.
 
You said you opened the window shades so she would get some light...you do realize that she won't get any UVB to speak of from light coming through a window I hope. Also, her cage could overheat if you do that.

I feed/gutload my crickets, superworms etc. With a wide assortment of greens such as dandelions, collards, endive, escarole, mustard greens, kale, etc and veggies such as carrots, sweet potato, sweet red pepper, squash, zucchini, etc.

Dusting the insects just before feeding them to the chameleon with a phos - free calcium powder helps make up for the usually poor ratio of calcium to phos found in most feeder insects.

I dust twice a month with a phos - free calcium / D3 powder and twice a month with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene source of vitamin A. Dusting with the D3 provides some D3 for it without overdosing it and leaving it to produce the rest from its exposure to the UVB light. D3 from supplements can build up in the system and lead to health issues. Using a vitamin powder containing a beta carotene (prOformed) source of vitamin A prevents a build up of prEformed vitamin A and allows the owner to decide if it needs prEformed or not.

Also...female veileds can produce eggs without having to mate once they are sexually mature..so you need to provide her with an opaque container of washed playsand at least 12" x 12" deep x 8" so she can dig to lay them and not become eggbound.

This will not solve your problem but I thought he information would be useful to you.

Ok thank you I am going to look into that
 
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