Impulsive hubby brought home a Senegal...

[Mel]

I know you didn't mean it that way. It's my depressed thoughts. Bad joke. You guys ARE trying to be helpful and have given me helpful tips.

OMG, OMG, OMG!!! You guys I saw him eat a cricket!!! I'm so happy!!! I know he's not out of the woods yet but I have a little hope! I watched for some time being very still. He was at least on the prowl. Then I saw it! I wonder if the plants did it or if he needed time to adjust or if he's just starving enough poor thing.

The bulb says 100 watt at 80 degrees now at 6pm. Is that sufficient? I'm not sure the therm was in a good position earlier. I added a ficus tree to his environment today.

Crickets, crickets, good for your heart! No joke!

 

[Mel]

Okay from this thread options are crickets, superworms, silkworms and maybe mealies. Are there other options? Does he eat all the same bugs other chamelions eat as there aren't too many specifics on the Senegal.

 

[Brad Ramsey]

Cockroaches
mantids
waxworms (occasional treat)
butterworms
phoenix worms (see thread by same name)
stick insects (if you can get them)
grasshoppers ( " " )
locust ( " " )
Houseflies ( farm raised only)
small hornworms (farm raised only)

Make sure any wild caught insects are from a pesticide free zone and make sure all feeders are gutloaded to the best of your ability. The exceptions to the gutload rule are butter and phoenix worms.

-Brad

 

[kinyonga]

Temperatures sound fine at 80F! Glad to hear that you saw him eat!

 

[omiga13]

I have kept quite a few Senegals over the years...and have not found them as hard to keep in captivity as their reputation seems to indicate....maybe I've just been lucky?

You didn't mention any temperature for your basking area....but Heika is right. I've always kept the Senegal's basking temperature in the mid to high 80'sF.

I've never had a problem with a Senegal not eating if it wasn't sick and was warm enough....but I have dealt only with WC's which usually arrive hungry.

I have found that Senegals need to be kept well hydrated...some are hard to get started to drink each day...but they drink a lot once they start. I always persevere until they drink each day.

At what age this cham can be considerate full grow? and when they are ready for breeding?

 

[kinyonga]

Sexual maturity is often reached in 5-6 months....but I still wouldn't breed them until they are about 1 year old. I like to make sure that they are really full-grown before I expect them to make eggs. When they reach their full growth depends on how much you feed them (how fast you grown them)...but fast growth can lead to problems...so I prefer to grow them at a moderate rate.

Females can lay 2 clutches per year with up to 70 eggs in a single clutch.

 

[Calavera]

Hi Mel! Well, before i try to give you advice, let me say congrats on your first chameleon! Take a deep breath and then take as much useful advice as you can! First off, you have established that your primary concern is the health of your new found friend! That mentality is what will cause him to grow into a healthy chameleon and you into an experienced keeper. As for advice, i second what Scrappy said about free ranging his food. Because he is WC, he will want to feed as if he is still in the wild; this is what comes natural to him. I also would strongly advise that you take him to a vet, because most WC chameleons carry intestinal helmenths (worms) and other parasites. While you are there, ask the doctor if they have any extra IV bags (make sure that it was previously used only as Lactated Ringers and has no added KCL). Just wash the bag with hot water. These IV bags are a great way to dispense water as a dripping system and are cheap (and in my opinion more effective) then a "big- dripper" or any other dripping system. Because your little fella is WC, he will probably have more success drinking off foliage in his cage, so make sure that you are spraying his leaves and that your drip system is dripping on these leaves. I noticed that you said you had some artificial foliage. This is fine and well, but don't be afraid to introduce some real foliage! As long as it is something that is not toxic. I recommend a ficus or hibiscus tree. Remember that your chameleon is a wild beast and anything that simulates his natural environment is going to make him feel "at home" and therefore stimulate good health. Aside from this, i would just be regurgitating the same great advice that everyone else has given you so far, so just relax and give him your best efforts. Unlike you, my first chameleon was a Veiled, which everyone acclaims as being the "starter" of the hobby. However, i feel that the term "difficulty" is misleading. As a whole, chameleons are not easy reptiles to keep, so don't feel like you are predisposed to failure. Never forget that chance favors the prepared mind! I think that there is a great chance that your new friend will flourish, as long as you dedicate yourself and continue asking for advice! Good luck to you both!
-Cala-

 

[stevereecy]

I have read the hibiscus were more difficult to keep indoors. I am not familiar with pothos. I will have to look it up. I think that's a type of ivy.? Is it alright to use the English ivy or hibiscus? Thanks! As far as being addictive I'm sure they can be but this impulse of my hubby's has me worked up. I just get nervous with thyese exotics. He bought home 2 5yr old Macaws about 18 mos ago. I could have divorced him over that!!! No joke either!!! Look who winds up researching and fretting over the proper care!!! UGH!!! Today is valentines. Guess what HE'S getting! Plants, LOL!!!

Hibiscus! It thrives under the full spectrum bulbs and the chams eat it. And it flowers too. Just be sure and wash it off when you get it to rinse off any potential poisons.

As for deworming, thats a tough call. An acclimated cham can live with parasites. An unacclimated one can not. Deworming really taxes the body. I've had better luck waiting until the cham acclimated, and then deworming it because I've felt that acclimation and deworming are too much all at once. But then again, I feel like I might be proving a negative, because if the cham lives through the acclimation, maybe the parasites aren't that bad to begin with. So for me personally, unless I can get one that has already been dewormed I try to wait until it can stablize. But I've had a lot die too. Tough decision.

Don't get P.O.ed at the hubby. He meant well, and many of us here started on an impulse. Chams can be cool pets that require surprisingly little attention once you get them set up right.

Steve