Live Birth Bearers

[Nicholasdeaan]

For t.j. xantholophus, is there any particular set up best or plants that's suited for them when they have they're young? I know since they lay them out on branches and leaves I just want to make sure I have something appropriate for her to do so when the time comes.

 

[JGuinan007]

nope nothing special

 

[brownie64]

Yah the typical plant will do, I would be more worried about keeping them alive after they get here if it were me. I wish you all the luck

 

[Nicholasdeaan]

Yah the typical plant will do, I would be more worried about keeping them alive after they get here if it were me. I wish you all the luck

Well obviously I will worry about that when the time comes. Lol Just didn't know if I needed anything in particular. Thanks though.

 

[Dave Bolamperti]

Hey Nicholasdeaan,
I've had a few Jackson live births, they are always a complete surprise. Once on Christmas and the other on Easter one was13 the other was 15. All you need is a baby cage ready and order pinheads when you find them. They will consume their birth sac for a few days. Just get them away from mom asap I've heard sometimes a female will eat her young. Give her lots of good things to eat, and give her calcium daily for an expecting mom
Good luck
Dave

 

[jpowell86]

I just like for there to be many branches and many plants. When Calypso was giving birth, it freaked me out how she would just drop them. But, I soon realized how calculated it was. Every one hit a branch on the way down where it got stuck and emerged. Very cool thing to see!

 

[Nicholasdeaan]

Hey Nicholasdeaan,
I've had a few Jackson live births, they are always a complete surprise. Once on Christmas and the other on Easter one was13 the other was 15. All you need is a baby cage ready and order pinheads when you find them. They will consume their birth sac for a few days. Just get them away from mom asap I've heard sometimes a female will eat her young. Give her lots of good things to eat, and give her calcium daily for an expecting mom
Good luck
Dave

Thank you Dave. I'll keep that in mind. That's interesting that they consume their birthsack. I didn't know that. Do I wait until they are completely out of the sack to remove them from the cage or as soon as their dropped?

 

[Nicholasdeaan]

I just like for there to be many branches and many plants. When Calypso was giving birth, it freaked me out how she would just drop them. But, I soon realized how calculated it was. Every one hit a branch on the way down where it got stuck and emerged. Very cool thing to see!

Oh wow, that's definitely going to make me nervous! But, I suppose they know what they're doing. I'll be sure to include many small branches and lots of plants. This is definitely going to be a fun experience. How long do they average on being gravid before giving birth?

 

[jpowell86]

Oh wow, that's definitely going to make me nervous! But, I suppose they know what they're doing. I'll be sure to include many small branches and lots of plants. This is definitely going to be a fun experience. How long do they average on being gravid before giving birth?

I know right!!

The first gestation period can be longer. I think it ranges somewhere in the 9 month range on average. I know after that, they can give birth more frequently. Meaning every 3 months or so afterwards. They are amazing little chameleons. When I initially bought my pair I had a successful breeding. Unfortunately, the male died soon after for reasons I don't know..I still kick myself for not doing a necropsy. Anyways....it was about ten months later, I walked in the room and found 21 babies in her enclosure. She didn't even appear to be gravid...at all. They can retain sperm for such a lengthy time. You never know how many you are going to get!

 

[Dave Bolamperti]

Horned babies are the cutest. Their bodies are full of nutrients at birth so often they won't eat for a couple days is what I was referring to consuming. Babies need plenty of water and a good basking area and you'll do fine

 

[MeruJack]

Horned babies are the cutest. Their bodies are full of nutrients at birth so often they won't eat for a couple days is what I was referring to consuming. Babies need plenty of water and a good basking area and you'll do fine

Actually, they don't necessarily need a basking light for the first 3 months or so. Babies are often unable to regulate their temps and may park themselves under the heat and stay there even though they are overheating (which can lead to them dying). If you want to use a heat lamp try a 25 watt bulb at most. I currently have six 13-day-old Mt. Meru Jackson's chameleons. They are in a planted 12x12x18 inch glass terrarium. For heat, I am using a 25 watt bulb that turns on at 6:30 am and off at 12:00 noon. I also have a pair of Meru siblings that were born in my care 15 months ago and they didn't have a heat source for the first 3 months. They were also in a warmer room than my current babies wake up in. It's just something to think about. Good luck!

 

[Nicholasdeaan]

I know right!!

The first gestation period can be longer. I think it ranges somewhere in the 9 month range on average. I know after that, they can give birth more frequently. Meaning every 3 months or so afterwards. They are amazing little chameleons. When I initially bought my pair I had a successful breeding. Unfortunately, the male died soon after for reasons I don't know..I still kick myself for not doing a necropsy. Anyways....it was about ten months later, I walked in the room and found 21 babies in her enclosure. She didn't even appear to be gravid...at all. They can retain sperm for such a lengthy time. You never know how many you are going to get!

Well she'll be a WC so it's hard saying as to if she's had any babies before or not. Can they have somethings similar to retained clutches where she'll have 10 babies and a then a few months later have more, is that what you're referring to?

 

[Nicholasdeaan]

Horned babies are the cutest. Their bodies are full of nutrients at birth so often they won't eat for a couple days is what I was referring to consuming. Babies need plenty of water and a good basking area and you'll do fine

I see what you're saying now. Thanks Dave!

 

[Nicholasdeaan]

Actually, they don't necessarily need a basking light for the first 3 months or so. Babies are often unable to regulate their temps and may park themselves under the heat and stay there even though they are overheating (which can lead to them dying). If you want to use a heat lamp try a 25 watt bulb at most. I currently have six 13-day-old Mt. Meru Jackson's chameleons. They are in a planted 12x12x18 inch glass terrarium. For heat, I am using a 25 watt bulb that turns on at 6:30 am and off at 12:00 noon. I also have a pair of Meru siblings that were born in my care 15 months ago and they didn't have a heat source for the first 3 months. They were also in a warmer room than my current babies wake up in. It's just something to think about. Good luck!

I was wondering the same thing. All I'm planning on is a low watt household bulb with 5.0 UVB Bulb. I know they're very suseptable to over heating and dehydration. So I figured that would be good enough. Especially since their bloodline is out of Hawaii and it's cooler over there.