My Baby Turquoise Veiled Wont Eat

[ufcmalone10]

Hi,

I have owned a few Veiled Chameleons and they all ate great with no problems. This one I just got about a week and a half ago doesn't seem to be eating.

Type: Turquoise Male Veiled Chameleon
Age: Approx. 2-3 months maybe (real tiny)
Food: Small Crickets dusted with calcium w/out D3, haven't gave the calcium with D3 or Vitamins yet.
Cage: Med. ReptiBreeze, Zoo Med dual light with 60 watt heat and zoo med 10.0 UVB vines fake plants
Watering - I have the blue water conditioner to use in water and I spray cage 2-3 times daily
Fecal Matter : He has tiny little black fecal with a little white at end of it
Feeding: I have 10 wax worms in a cup, 10 super worms in cup, 10 crickets in cup and 15 crickets free range.

He doesn't eat out of cups cause I count them. The ones that free range i'm allways picking up dead ones and all the others are at top corner of cage. He just walks away from his food and wont eat it. Does anyone know any tricks to get him to eat. Hes going to have great colors and I don't want him to die. Any suggestions would help thank you in advance.

 

[KingJulian]

Welcome to the forum. Sorry your little guy isn't eating...From what I see in the info you filled out, I'm pretty sure the 10.0 uvb bulb is too much...Usually chams only need the 5.0. Also do you leave the crickets in the cage all the time? They can bite him if you leave them in there over night and for long periods of time. Hope we can help get your little guy feeling better He also may just be stressed since you mentioned that you just got him.

 

[Lovereps]

Welcome to the forum!

Sorry to hear that your baby cham is not eating much.
He must be eating something in order to be producing some little black poops.

The first thing to do is to ensure that conditions are close to the ideals.
Here is the forum caresheet for Veiled chams:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/veiled/

Can you find out from the breeder or seller what he was eating before and find out when he was hatched?
Does he have enough foliage to feel secure?
Is he too small to be able to find his prey?
Perhaps you can make a shallow platform for the other feeders, since he seems unwilling to eat out of a cup.
What are the basking and ambient temps?
The ambient temp should be in the 70s and the basking temp should be about 85 for a veiled younger than 9 months.
Humidity? It should range between 40% and 70% .
Is he being misted long enough to stimulate him to drink?
Some chams need to be sprayed for several minutes before it "clicks" and they start to drink.
Adding a dripper may also benefit him, in general.
One thing that may be a problem is the use of a 10.0 UVB light.
Some chams don't seem to do well with the higher UVB of a 10.0.
A 5.0 UVB is the usual recommendation.


Are you sure that the feeders are small enough for him to eat?

He may need pinhead size crickets, Phoenix worms in the smallest size,
newly hatched silkworms and flightless fruitflies.

One source is:
http://www.mulberryfarms.com/
and there are other forum sponsors who sell feeders here:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/index.php?page=sponsors

You mention having blue water conditioner to use in water.
He doesn't have a water dish or waterfall, does he?

 

[ufcmalone10]

No water bowl or waterfall. Just mister. I mist usually 3 times daily. The crickets are smaller than his eyes are apart. He has enough foliage and temps are around what you said they should be at. I bought him from theveiledchameleon.com. I actually ordered a female and they sent a male and wont fix the issue and they wont reply back to me. I know they fed him small crickets. But I don't know exactly how old he is. He is real tiny. And I will change the uvb light here shortly I will go buy a diff one.

 

[Lovereps]

Since Veiled chams are owned by many forum members, if you can post his snout to vent measurement, someone may be able to tell you an approximate age.

Humidity can be a factor, too, so you would be wise to get an inexpensive digital humidity gauge.
This one below is pretty cheap and I use several of them.
The ones I own are accurate:
http://www.amazon.com/Acu-Rite-Indo...=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B0013BKDO8

As KingJulian mentioned, if the crickets are in there 24/7 they may be upsetting him--and could actually be biting him.
Crickets will definitely chomp on chams if they do not have their own food to eat.

A shallow platform for the other feeders, even just the lid from a small container may help , since he is unwilling to eat out of a cup.

Phoenix worms are very active and wiggly and often entice reluctant eaters.

 

[ufcmalone10]

Okay, great thank you. Ill try this stuff and see if any thing changes.

 

[Lovereps]

I hope he turns around quickly for you and that you'll let us know how he is.

 

[ufcmalone10]

I will let you guys know. Thank you for the help.