Is my cham gravid? What do i do?

[marxous]

Hey guys, just wondering if my cham is gravid... she's been showing some darker colors, and i've been letting her stay in house trees that we have, and when i come back shes been pacing around the windows, or i've been finding her in odd places. See the photos attached and please tell me what you think. Last night she stayed in the living room house plants, and this morning i found her dark and on the couch?! Strange... What could this be? She;s been gaining weight as well... perhaps i am feeding her too much? Her beard has become much more 'flabby' and so has the area between her rear legs.

 

[marxous]

a picture of the house plants she likes... above is where i found her accross the room on the couch, also i have been finding her pacing that large window to the right.?! Are the above colors gravid colors?

Thanks again all for your help!

 

[marxous]

one other thing that you may notice in these photos is the minor burn on her back. I had left her with my mom for a week because somthing urgent came up with work, and there was a possibility that i would not be able to look after Antonia for a week, this is when she was burnt... so i really dont know how it happened, but should this dissapear with a few sheds, or is it permanant?

 

[Doodleh]

She deffinately looks gravid to me.. My cham has just laid her first batch of eggs, so I'm not an expert, but she looks that same.
My female only ever went that dark colour when she caught sight of my male while she was out, while gravid.. otherwise she just stayed green with the brown patches.

 

[Cherron]

You chameleon may be darker because she is not getting high enough temperatures and she may be stressed out.

Do you have a cage for her? You showed her out loose in the house. Chameleons need temperature gradients to increase or decrease their body temperatures when they feel the need. Letting her run loose in your house, she is only being exposed to room temperature. A cage also helps them feel secure in their own territory and allows them to get out of site when they are feeling stressed by your presence. She definitely needs a basking spot. Humidity is also a concern when letting your chams run loose like this. They need a certain humidity level to keep them hydrated and healthy and it is hard enough to provide this in a screened enclosure, let alone in a whole house.

Another main concern is her lack of UVB exposure. Without an enclosure to keep her in, she is getting no UVB in the house. UVB doesn't pass through windows and taking her outside occasionally really isn't going to give her the UVB that she needs to help with calcium absorption which is EXTREMELY important for your chameleon's health, especially when they are gravid (which she does look do be, though i am by no means an expert).

How are you keeping her hydrated? Do you mist her? Have a dripper?

I would recommend putting her in a screen enclosure, with a basking light, UVB light, plants and a dripper. BE SURE to add a pan with sand or pesticide/fertilizer free soil or a mixture of the two. The pan should be big enough that she has a few inches on either side of her when she is in it and at least 12 inches deep. Your chameleon will begin to dig around in this pan when she is ready to lay eggs, signaling you to put her into a proper egg laying container.

 

[Chuck G]

Why is she roaming around your house?
She will experience not only burns but a list of other unpleasant problems.
Put her in a contolled environment. Her being gravid is the least of your concerns. Please do some research.

 

[marxous]

yes, i do all of those things, however i find that when i give her more space, she exercises, and uses all 3 house trees. I have a exo terra 260gal mesh 8.0 uv strip and basking lamp.

My question is, whenever i leave her in a house plant, she always seems to end up climbing down to the floor and end up in odd places.

She gets plenty of suppliments, and i mist minimum 3x daily. My concern was that she was gravid, and what her wandering all around the house are symptoms of. This aside... she is very very healthy.

 

[marxous]

i feel like im being critisized and sterotyped as someone who is ignorant, and allows their cham to roam around free throughout my entire house. This is not the case, and i never said that i do this. i posed a few very specific questions looking for specific answers. I have done my research Chuck, thank you very much, pal.

 

[Julirs]

marxous-no need to be defensive-BUT-your first post says you let her roam the house when you are not there and overnight. This is just a little weird. Her house is big enough that she would be just fine with you taking her out for occasional supervised visits. She roams because she does not feel secure.

 

[Chuck G]

Sorry if your feelings got hurt but my concern is for the chameleon,not you.

 

[marxous]

marxous-no need to be defensive-BUT-your first post says you let her roam the house when you are not there and overnight. This is just a little weird. Her house is big enough that she would be just fine with you taking her out for occasional supervised visits. She roams because she does not feel secure.

According to the research that i have done, there is supposed to be a temperature drop as one would experiance naturally in the rainforest. This is roughly 10 degrees. From those i have already asked on this site, i have been informed that turning a heat lamp off while in a moderate climate is a good way to acheive this, and is what most people do. Thus, leaving her in a larger area, in a heated room via gas fireplace, would be a secure way to acheive this. I perfectly control the temperature via the thermostat, while this is not a daily routine, Varity is the spice of life, and it is my belief that she should not be enclosed all the time. I live in Vancouver, Canada, on the coast of the Pacific Ocean. It is very common for the humidity in the air to be around 40% making it quite easy to attain a high humidity, regardless i mist her minimum 3 times a day, and feed her silk worms, butter worms, king worms, crickets, and pheonix worms - so she is very well taken care of. Yes, i have a dripper, and also a waterfall that i clean once every 4 days. If those of you who are critics would spend more time assisting me, instead of saying everything wrong, and giving no additional encouragement or assistance, what good are you doing?

***

Cherron, your post was the most helpful, thank you very much! You mentioned that i should have a basin filled 12inches deep with soil, this is exactly what i needed to know. Thank you again, if you have any further information on how to maintain a gravid cham, it would be most appreciated. I know these eggs are not fertalized, so there is no worry of these eggs being alive. Thank you once again.

 

[Ren]

I use a empty gallon sized container of ice cream,, filled with moist sand... easy for her to dig and easy to dig up the eggs without harm, now my enclosure is larger Im going to upgrade to a 10 gallon aquarium with sand, and just leave it in there........The only problem in here, (and not really a problem) is that there are a lot of knowledgeable people in here, some more than others, and each one of these people also have a "opinion" and everyone knows what these are like........
however there are many ways of saying the same thing some people are more straight forward and some folks are a bit more harsh I only think everyone meant well and did not mean to "attack " you or be little you in any way...as for research on you hobby and pet, we all need to keep this practice up..... hope i didnt ramble and make you feel a bit better....

 

[Julirs]

marxous-I am truly sorry that you took offense, but my concern would be what she could end up eating that could be bad for her, what she could be getting hurt on like climbing up a lamp onto a lightbulb, and how she finds a spot in the high 90's to bask in to help her digest her food. There are many much more experienced people here than I, but these seem like common sense items. Her roaming the floor could certainly be her looking for a place to lay. One more question-if she is out roaming, are you finding cham poop in strange spots-that is not a healthy thing for you.