Is this gray tone normal?

[GrilledCheese]

Hi! I might just be new parent stressing but I need someone to correct me or ease my mind

This is day 2 with this lil guy, think he’s supposed to a 2 month-old veiled chameleon. He’s only eaten 1 cricket so far but I kinda expected that, and hasn’t drank water yet but I’ve misted him.

I’m a lil worried that he woke up a little gray today and when I turned on his basking light he’s stayed there the whole time. Pretty sure he went darker gray while under it. He went around under the light moving slowly but stayed in that area most the day. He was exploring the top part of the enclosure before lights were on so he wasn’t moving that slow the whole day.
And now he’s back to green. (It’s 1 hour difference between images but he’s been under the light most of the day) Is this normal?

His basking light is right on top of the cage but I have a stand if it needs to be adjusted. It’s a 75W lightbulb.

 

[MissSkittles]

Aww…little cutie! Yes, it’s a normal coloring for a veiled. Usually, when they are bright, they are fired up or asleep. Their normal relaxed colors can be a bit on the greyer side, especially for boys. I have to ask - are you positive you have a boy? Do you see some prominent nubs (tarsal spurs) on his back feet?
I also have to comment on his temp. 85F is much too hot for a little one. He would do best with daytime basing temps of high 70’s and no higher than 80F. Depending on your ambient house temps, he may not even need a basking light just yet.
Of course, I’m worse than a mother hen and since you’re here with your cutie patootie, I’d like to make sure you have everything right for him. Would you mind posting some pics of his entire enclosure?

 

[GrilledCheese]

Aww…little cutie! Yes, it’s a normal coloring for a veiled. Usually, when they are bright, they are fired up or asleep. Their normal relaxed colors can be a bit on the greyer side, especially for boys. I have to ask - are you positive you have a boy? Do you see some prominent nubs (tarsal spurs) on his back feet?
I also have to comment on his temp. 85F is much too hot for a little one. He would do best with daytime basing temps of high 70’s and no higher than 80F. Depending on your ambient house temps, he may not even need a basking light just yet.
Of course, I’m worse than a mother hen and since you’re here with your cutie patootie, I’d like to make sure you have everything right for him. Would you mind posting some pics of his entire enclosure?

Okay I’ll be sure to fix the basking light on the stand for tomorrow! Was wondering if he was cold since he wouldn’t move from there.

I didn’t think to see if he is or not a boy Think I see a little spur but could be wrong.

This is how the enclosure looks right now, it looks a little bare bc I had to take out the huge hibiscus plant I had for him bc it had bugs eating the leaves (thankfully it doesn’t look like they left the plant they came in) Right now he’s got a young money tree and a few pothos plants and one fake plant (the one under the basking light side bc I didn’t want a real one to burn under it) while we wait for a new hibiscus.

 

[MissSkittles]

I do see a little spur, so I believe you do have a cute little boy. I do see some needed changes in his enclosure. The first is to move the uvb light to above his basking branch. It does have a relatively narrow band where it’s at peak levels and then drops off very quickly. Provided your uvb is a T5 and you’ve got either an Arcadia 6% or ReptiSun 5.0, you want a distance of 8-9” between basking branch and your lights. Since little ones like to screen walk upside down on the top, they are at high risk for burns. To help prevent burns, you want to elevate your lights above the screen by a few inches. It’s only until he’s too heavy to walk upside down, so things like wire baskets from the dollar store are perfect to rest lights on.
While it’s difficult to truly determine size, it does appear that you have a smaller enclosure. While it may be suitable now while he’s itty bitty, he is going to be a big guy before you know it and be needing much more space. The minimum size for adults is 2x2x4’ (like a ReptiBreeze XL). To get on my soap box for a minute, if you can go even bigger than that, do so. I’m very fortunate to be able to give each of my chams a double wide and it’s wonderful seeing them use the space. Pic below of the size difference between the XL and Cham kit ReptiBreeze (I think is 16x30”). Yes, that was when I was starting out, learning and making changes. The black cross pieces are Dragon Ledges, which help immensely in hanging branches and plants. https://dragonstrand.com/dragon-ledges/ I’ve lately been using garden trellis and it works almost as good. The whole idea is to use the frame of the enclosure to bear the weight.
I’m also adding a couple of pics of how I set up (for a panther) well after having learned the basics. One is a single wide with Dragon Ledges. I used a small stack of empty plant pots flipped over to elevate some plants sitting on the floor. I like natural branches best and my neighbors are getting used to me scavenging there oak tree trimmings. The other was the start of setting up the framework for branches using trellis.
With our veiled friends, we want to use only safe clean plants as they can and will nibble them. Pothos is your new bff. I hang my fake plants on the outside of the door to give my chams a bit of privacy from me. The mossy vine is also a hazard. Hibiscus is well loved by veileds and most plant eating reptiles, but it does have the tendency to bring in bugs (usually ants, but also nasty pests). Plus, they do need a very strong plant light. Of course a plant light is great for all plants, but common houseplants are ok without one.
General advice - you want to give your guy lots of branches and vines to travel on and of varied diameters to fully exercise those little mitten muscles. Plenty of plant cover to take shade and hide in and drink from. Give a variety of properly sized and well cared for feeders. Right now, being so young he should be getting as much as he can eat in a 15-20 minute period, twice a day. When he’s about 3+ months old, drop to once a day. Around 4+ months, start counting feeders and give about 15-20 daily. Every month reduce a bit so by the time he’s around a year old, he’s getting 3-4 feeders, every other day, or even 3 days a week. For supplements, lightly dust every feeding with a phosphorus free calcium without D3. At one feeding every other week, you want to instead use a combo multivitamin/D3 - Repashy calcium Plus LoD or ReptiVite with D3 are recommended.
Do ask whatever questions you may have…is a great way to learn.
I’m just curious what part of Florida you’re in. I’m in Brevard.

 

[GrilledCheese]

I do see a little spur, so I believe you do have a cute little boy. I do see some needed changes in his enclosure. The first is to move the uvb light to above his basking branch. It does have a relatively narrow band where it’s at peak levels and then drops off very quickly. Provided your uvb is a T5 and you’ve got either an Arcadia 6% or ReptiSun 5.0, you want a distance of 8-9” between basking branch and your lights. Since little ones like to screen walk upside down on the top, they are at high risk for burns. To help prevent burns, you want to elevate your lights above the screen by a few inches. It’s only until he’s too heavy to walk upside down, so things like wire baskets from the dollar store are perfect to rest lights on.
While it’s difficult to truly determine size, it does appear that you have a smaller enclosure. While it may be suitable now while he’s itty bitty, he is going to be a big guy before you know it and be needing much more space. The minimum size for adults is 2x2x4’ (like a ReptiBreeze XL). To get on my soap box for a minute, if you can go even bigger than that, do so. I’m very fortunate to be able to give each of my chams a double wide and it’s wonderful seeing them use the space. Pic below of the size difference between the XL and Cham kit ReptiBreeze (I think is 16x30”). Yes, that was when I was starting out, learning and making changes. The black cross pieces are Dragon Ledges, which help immensely in hanging branches and plants. https://dragonstrand.com/dragon-ledges/ I’ve lately been using garden trellis and it works almost as good. The whole idea is to use the frame of the enclosure to bear the weight.
I’m also adding a couple of pics of how I set up (for a panther) well after having learned the basics. One is a single wide with Dragon Ledges. I used a small stack of empty plant pots flipped over to elevate some plants sitting on the floor. I like natural branches best and my neighbors are getting used to me scavenging there oak tree trimmings. The other was the start of setting up the framework for branches using trellis.
With our veiled friends, we want to use only safe clean plants as they can and will nibble them. Pothos is your new bff. I hang my fake plants on the outside of the door to give my chams a bit of privacy from me. The mossy vine is also a hazard. Hibiscus is well loved by veileds and most plant eating reptiles, but it does have the tendency to bring in bugs (usually ants, but also nasty pests). Plus, they do need a very strong plant light. Of course a plant light is great for all plants, but common houseplants are ok without one.
General advice - you want to give your guy lots of branches and vines to travel on and of varied diameters to fully exercise those little mitten muscles. Plenty of plant cover to take shade and hide in and drink from. Give a variety of properly sized and well cared for feeders. Right now, being so young he should be getting as much as he can eat in a 15-20 minute period, twice a day. When he’s about 3+ months old, drop to once a day. Around 4+ months, start counting feeders and give about 15-20 daily. Every month reduce a bit so by the time he’s around a year old, he’s getting 3-4 feeders, every other day, or even 3 days a week. For supplements, lightly dust every feeding with a phosphorus free calcium without D3. At one feeding every other week, you want to instead use a combo multivitamin/D3 - Repashy calcium Plus LoD or ReptiVite with D3 are recommended.
Do ask whatever questions you may have…is a great way to learn.
I’m just curious what part of Florida you’re in. I’m in Brevard.
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I’ve seen those dragon ledges cages, was thinking of switching him to one of those when he gets heavier. Would it be best to get their actual cages with ledges or buy the ledges separately? Like, are theirs spacier than the ReptiBreeze?

He’s in a large repribreeze cage right now. The image is the older one with the hibiscus plant (haven’t taken an inside image of the current one yet ) but there is a vine that’s towards the back under the UVB light with two real branches connecting it to the basking light. I’m getting more branches since it become very apparent he’s tinier than I expected he’d be . Both basking and UVB light are 8 inches from the highest point (but I’ll be moving the basking higher after ur previous advice about the temperature). Do you have any suggestions on what to switch the vines with? Anything that wraps around? Or are branches the absolute must? (Also, I love how yours look!)

 

[MissSkittles]

I’ve always liked going more natural with real branches. You can use any from trees that don’t have strong odor or thick sap, like pines, eucalyptus and others. My only tree died years ago, so I go out when my neighbors trim their live oaks. I know they don’t spray with anything so the branches and leaves are safe. I do wash with Dawn and rinse very well. It’s mainly poops and general dirt I need to remove…plus bugs. For man made, I like Fluker’s vines. I have at least one in each enclosure.
Dragon Strand enclosures are really nice and I believe they do come in a larger size. If it’s in your budget, go for it. There are also drainage trays along with the ledges. My budget dictates ReptiBreeze or DIY (a small step above) https://www.diycages.com/collection...umbo-vertical-screen-cage?variant=35995105933 and that’s fine. My chameleons don’t care either way.