new 5 mo old upside-down female ambilobe ???

[triumphfreak]

Hi everyone I'm new to the forum and have found it a wealth of information ( thanks all) I just got my ambilobe female panther yesterday 3-1-08 (I know she needs time to acclimate) but I just wanted to make sure it's normal she's 5 mo old and came from Kammerflage Kreations via a local herp store (Chicago reptile house) who buys from them I talked to Liddy and she confirmed this, so anyway my cham spends allot of time on the top of the cage screen upside-down and spending allot of time on the screen cage and not plants or vines she is very active and constantly moving around in the daytime

cage info 24x24x48 all screen with green plastic bottom

lights 18 in repti sun 5.0
60 watt incandescent house bulb
lights on from 8-8 no heat lamp at night stays 75 all night in room

plants ficus, and phothos , lots of vines

humidity 40 - 55 %

basking areas & temps top vine 9 in from light and 88 deg F
lower vine 15 in away from light and 80 deg F

food avail 3/4 in meal worms 3/4 in crickets
1 in horn worms
via cup feeding

room is a constant 75 deg F

I hand mist 3 to 4 times daily I've seen her drink twice
and she has not eaten anything yet
anything I'm doing wrong????

how long before I worry about the not eating?? it will be 24 hours at 3:30 today
let me know thanks JEFF

 

[SuperRad]

your cham is still getting situated, it can be a couple of days sometimes. That's why he/she is not eating. Both my chams hung upside down when they were babies constantly. Just make sure they are not getting to close to your heat lamp as it can burn them. Especially there tiny toes.

 

[Dankmeleon]

u prolly need some more humidity

and I'd rearrange my plants a little to see if the layout suits him better, as well as moving some vines arounds so he is comfortable perching up high and crawling to the lower part of the cage

also try the next size smaller crickets and see if it goes for those

 

[Canopy Chameleons]

u prolly need some more humidity

and I'd rearrange my plants a little to see if the layout suits him better, as well as moving some vines arounds so he is comfortable perching up high and crawling to the lower part of the cage

also try the next size smaller crickets and see if it goes for those

That's just going to cause more stress.....

Leave the little one be to settle in. Sometimes it just takes a bit for a new arrival to calm down and start to chill out in their new enclosures.

 

[triumphfreak]

update :: she had a nice poop and then 2 crickets are gone form the cup I did not see her eat them but their gone I'm collecting this poop to check for parasites does anyone know how fresh the poop sample needs to send in for parasites it will be sent in tomorrow morning?? as to the humidity i was wrong i had the gage on the bottom when i moved it up and connected it to the top of the ficus pot it said 60% (the ficus is on a 10 in plant stand) so i'm good right??
thanks jeff

 

[triumphfreak]

bump bump

 

[Dave Weldon]

Howdy,

It does sound like she's just settling-in. How high-up is the top of the enclosure relative to your room floor? Chameleons are usually happier when they are looking down at you rather than the other way around .

 

[triumphfreak]

hi the bottom of the cage is 21 inches of the floor for now (it's on a small table)but the setup i'm building will bring it up at least another 12 inches for a final 33 in. to include a mist system and drainage should it be higher??
jeff

 

[Cally95]

You should be able to put the poop in a slightly wet/ moist paper towel and put that in a zip lock bag and stick it in the fridge. It will be fine to tomorrow.

Dell

 

[triumphfreak]

hey thanks for the info I'll do that
jeff

 

[summoner12]

Sounds like you have everything just right. I would keep an eye on her if she sits under the heat lamp too much. the screen can get pretty warm.

Check out this Thread for some info about keeping her toes all there as she gets older. Screen cages can pull out their nails. So be very careful if you need to remove her from the cage while she is on the screen.

Some people might say the 18" lamp is large enough. I would use a 24" from Home Depot. You want as much light as possible for your cham and the plants.

The crickets do seem a bit large. Make sure you dust your food with calcium powder (w/o phosphorus) dusting your feeders two or three times a week and that you also have calcium with D3 that you use once a week.

And about the climbing... My two boys climbed every inch of their new cages when I moved them (they now have the same cages you have)

 

[nightcrawler]

yay for illinois.
but anyways, my guy has been climbing the walls like crazy laitly.
and im worried about his toenails so i just put plants on the outside
and then ziptied a bunch of sticks togeather to make a ladder.
maybe put a vine or stick closer to where she hangs upside down
and she will sit on it instead of the screen.

 

[jack frost]

congrats on the new cham!!

 

[triumphfreak]

i wanted the 24 in lights but couldint find them at home depot so i went with the 18 bulbs and then added a parabolic reflector to the units (which i use on salt water tanks) to give off optimum lighting i have herpivite, reptical and mineralall how oftn do you guys use them??
jeff

 

[dodolah]

use it like what kammers recommended to do and you'll be fine.
MTh Herptivite
TF Repcal D3
WSat MinerAll 0
Sun Nothing

check my link, you'll find most of the basic care covered.

 

[triumphfreak]

update ::wow this is awsome!!! she ate 6 loose crickets and ate 1 from my hand woooooooooooooweeeeeeeeeeeeeee
i love this
thanks all for all your help!!