NEW BABY, NEED HELP

Jd3nn21

Member
HI, I just got a new baby veiled chameleon, named Pastel. After doing 5 months of constant research, and lots of planning, I finally made the paradise for my baby cham. However, I seem to be stressing myself out too much. I have had my chameleon for a little over a week, and he isn't eating as much as he should be eating. I am feeding him the correct amount, however he doesn't want to eat. I have tried the wax worms trick, it worked for the first day, but after that it didn't do anything. Pastel is not a feisty cham.... yet.... hopefully never..... and i have gotten him to willingly climb on my hand, while he was still in the cage, this miraculous event only lasted a few seconds, but it was progress. so if anyone has any tips, i would love to hear
 

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Hi and welcome to the forums! New chameleons get stressed out from moving from their previous home, and being in a new enclosure. It's very common for your chameleon to not eat for a bit until he starts to feel more comfortable in his new enclosure and with you. Don't hesitate to ask about any other questions you have! :)
 
HI, I just got a new baby veiled chameleon, named Pastel. After doing 5 months of constant research, and lots of planning, I finally made the paradise for my baby cham. However, I seem to be stressing myself out too much. I have had my chameleon for a little over a week, and he isn't eating as much as he should be eating. I am feeding him the correct amount, however he doesn't want to eat. I have tried the wax worms trick, it worked for the first day, but after that it didn't do anything. Pastel is not a feisty cham.... yet.... hopefully never..... and i have gotten him to willingly climb on my hand, while he was still in the cage, this miraculous event only lasted a few seconds, but it was progress. so if anyone has any tips, i would love to hear
Can you please post a picture of the entire cage including the lighting on top?
 
I resent it in a different oneon
So good news... You really have a pretty cage going on with height... Bad news. You have a veiled and this little brat is going to eat everything including stuff like the moss which baby should not eat. So this would be a risk with a Veiled. Also your plants are mostly lower so baby will not feel very safe. If you can put in a tall Money tree or umbrella tree to fill out the cage and offer the baby more cover it will settle a bit more.

Do you have a feeder Run of any kind? Or how are you feeding?

Let me know if you would like me to post the form for a husbandry review. This way we look at everything.
 
So good news... You really have a pretty cage going on with height... Bad news. You have a veiled and this little brat is going to eat everything including stuff like the moss which baby should not eat. So this would be a risk with a Veiled. Also your plants are mostly lower so baby will not feel very safe. If you can put in a tall Money tree or umbrella tree to fill out the cage and offer the baby more cover it will settle a bit more.

Do you have a feeder Run of any kind? Or how are you feeding?

Let me know if you would like me to post the form for a husbandry review. This way we look at everything.
yes could you please post that :)
 
yes could you please post that :)
Copy and paste it into your reply and then fill it out with detail. :)

Here is some recommended information to include when asking for help in the health clinic forum. By providing this information you will receive more accurate and beneficial responses. It might not be necessary to answer all these questions, but the more you provide the better. Please remember that even the most knowledgeable person can only guess at what your problem may be. Only an experienced reptile veterinarian who can directly examine your animal can give a true diagnosis of your chameleon's health.


Chameleon Info:
  • Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
  • Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
  • Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
  • Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
  • Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
  • Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
  • History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:
  • Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
  • Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
  • Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
  • Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
  • Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
  • Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
  • Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

--------------

Please Note:
  1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
  2. Photos can be very helpful.
 
Copy and paste it into your reply and then fill it out with detail. :)

Here is some recommended information to include when asking for help in the health clinic forum. By providing this information you will receive more accurate and beneficial responses. It might not be necessary to answer all these questions, but the more you provide the better. Please remember that even the most knowledgeable person can only guess at what your problem may be. Only an experienced reptile veterinarian who can directly examine your animal can give a true diagnosis of your chameleon's health.


Chameleon Info:
  • Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
  • Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
  • Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
  • Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
  • Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
  • Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
  • History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:
  • Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
  • Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
  • Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
  • Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
  • Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
  • Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
  • Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

--------------

Please Note:
  1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
  2. Photos can be very helpful.
  • Your Chameleon Male veiled chameleon, about 4 months old, I have had it for about 3 weeks now.
  • Handling Never have even touched him. Let him crawl into his cage by himself when I got him.
  • Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders? I feed him a variety of butter worms (he doesn’t have an allergic reaction to them) super worms, crickets, wax worms, calcium worms.
  • Supplements I use repti vitamins, and the zilla calcium spray, I tend to alternate on and off throughout the week, I give it to him about every day (tend to coat one bug per day, and make sure he eats it.)
  • Watering -I use the Zoomed 10L mister, I do a 3 minute misting every morning, and then set the timer to go off for 20 seconds every other hour, and then I try to do another 3 minute misting at night. Every time I spray I see him drink.
  • Fecal Description - Usually his poop is a dark brown to a black, and is oval shaped, it looks like it contains a bit of moister in it. He has never been tested (I don’t even know how I would get him out of his cage, im scared id lose the tiniest bit of trust that I have with him.)
  • History - Bought him from FL Chams, He doesn’t really get mad at me ever, even if my hand is close to him, he only hissed once at me, and that was just the other day, but that’s because I didn’t see him there and I was trying to adjust something in his cage. I got upset that he did that, but it’s ok im sure he will be ok. Other than that, He usually just runs, or stays still when I get close to him. He has started to learn to hide behind a limb whenever he hears the cage open. :)

Cage Info:

  • Cage Type - I have a screen 2 by 2 by four feet enclosure. It’s a repti-breeze cage, not the set.
  • Lighting - I have a 75 watt heat bulb, and a zoo-med 2 feet long t-5 high output bulb, it is not the coiled kind. I have them set on a timer, it comes on at 6 30 in the morning and goes off at 7 30
  • Temperature -The temperature mostly stays at a good 80 at the basking spot, and lower in the cage is about a 70. I have a thermometer in the cage.
  • Humidity - The humidity fluctuates at around 60-70 percent throughout the day. I have a thermometer in the cage that measures heat and humidity. I maintain the humidity with the mister that goes off every other hour for about 20 seconds to keep up the humidity since the cage is mesh.
  • Plants -I have a variety of live plants that include: golden pothos, spider plant, bromeliad, prayer plants, hawaiin ti plants, ferns, An umbrella plant, and wandering Jew. These have all been properly cleaned, and the whole cage iis bioactive.
  • Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor? The cage Is in my bedroom next to the window, it is not by any fans or air vents, and the bedroom is in the back of the house where there is literally no traffick besides myself. And family members when they care enough to come and check on him. The cage is elevated about 3 feet off the floor and almost goes to the ceiling.
  • Location - I live in northern Mississippi.
 
@Jd3nn21 See my feedback and questions in bold.

  • Your Chameleon Male veiled chameleon, about 4 months old, I have had it for about 3 weeks now. Does the baby have tarsal spurs?
  • Handling Never have even touched him. Let him crawl into his cage by himself when I got him.
  • Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders? I feed him a variety of butter worms (he doesn’t have an allergic reaction to them) super worms, crickets, wax worms, calcium worms. Butter worms should not be fed at all... This is one of those things where they may not get a reaction and then they suddenly do. It is really not a good thing to tempt and the reaction is a black color change which can take time to go away. Better not to risk it at all. How many feeders are you giving him, when are you feeding him, and how are you gutloading the feeders?
  • Supplements I use repti vitamins, and the zilla calcium spray, I tend to alternate on and off throughout the week, I give it to him about every day (tend to coat one bug per day, and make sure he eats it.) Spray calcium is not recommended for chams. What are the repti vitamins? Too much of the wrong supplement can cause issues. We use supplements to balance out the phos to calcium ratio of the feeders and to supplement vitamins they do not get. So when you do this you are lightly dusting ALL feeders and then immediately feeding the cham. You need a calcium without D3 and this would be used every day. You also need a multivitamin with D3 either repashy calcium plus LOD or reptivite with D3. Buy one of these and only use it 2 times a month say the 1st and the 15th then all other feedings would be the calcium without D3.
  • Watering -I use the Zoomed 10L mister, I do a 3 minute misting every morning, and then set the timer to go off for 20 seconds every other hour, and then I try to do another 3 minute misting at night. Every time I spray I see him drink. So you should be misting morning and evening for 2-4 minutes. You should not be misting during the day. The cage should dry out during the day. You can add a dripper for daytime drinking access. A plastic solo cup with tiny pin holes in the top set on top of the cage over plants below it.
  • Fecal Description - Usually his poop is a dark brown to a black, and is oval shaped, it looks like it contains a bit of moister in it. He has never been tested (I don’t even know how I would get him out of his cage, im scared id lose the tiniest bit of trust that I have with him.) You should get a vet to run a fecal test to make sure he does not have parasites.
  • History - Bought him from FL Chams, He doesn’t really get mad at me ever, even if my hand is close to him, he only hissed once at me, and that was just the other day, but that’s because I didn’t see him there and I was trying to adjust something in his cage. I got upset that he did that, but it’s ok im sure he will be ok. Other than that, He usually just runs, or stays still when I get close to him. He has started to learn to hide behind a limb whenever he hears the cage open. :)

Cage Info:

  • Cage Type - I have a screen 2 by 2 by four feet enclosure. It’s a repti-breeze cage, not the set. Great.
  • Lighting - I have a 75 watt heat bulb, and a zoo-med 2 feet long t-5 high output bulb, it is not the coiled kind. I have them set on a timer, it comes on at 6 30 in the morning and goes off at 7 30 Good can you tell me what the bulb strength is for the UVB bulb and what your distance to the branch below the fixture is? Really want a 12 hour on and 12 hours off cycle.
  • Temperature -The temperature mostly stays at a good 80 at the basking spot, and lower in the cage is about a 70. I have a thermometer in the cage. Good
  • Humidity - The humidity fluctuates at around 60-70 percent throughout the day. I have a thermometer in the cage that measures heat and humidity. I maintain the humidity with the mister that goes off every other hour for about 20 seconds to keep up the humidity since the cage is mesh. Humidity is much too high for daytime. You want 30-50% max. Not running the mister during the day will help.
  • Plants -I have a variety of live plants that include: golden pothos, spider plant, bromeliad, prayer plants, hawaiin ti plants, ferns, An umbrella plant, and wandering Jew. These have all been properly cleaned, and the whole cage iis bioactive. Good. Veileds do eat their plants so be cautious what you use in the cage with him.
  • Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor? The cage Is in my bedroom next to the window, it is not by any fans or air vents, and the bedroom is in the back of the house where there is literally no traffick besides myself. And family members when they care enough to come and check on him. The cage is elevated about 3 feet off the floor and almost goes to the ceiling. Great.
  • Location - I live in northern Mississippi.
All moss should be removed from the cage this is a major impaction risk with Veileds.

This site will help you learn more. https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-husbandry-program-getting-started-with-chameleons/


chameleon-gutload.jpg
chameleon-food(1).jpg
 
@Jd3nn21 See my feedback and questions in bold.

  • Your Chameleon Male veiled chameleon, about 4 months old, I have had it for about 3 weeks now. Does the baby have tarsal spurs?
  • Handling Never have even touched him. Let him crawl into his cage by himself when I got him.
  • Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders? I feed him a variety of butter worms (he doesn’t have an allergic reaction to them) super worms, crickets, wax worms, calcium worms. Butter worms should not be fed at all... This is one of those things where they may not get a reaction and then they suddenly do. It is really not a good thing to tempt and the reaction is a black color change which can take time to go away. Better not to risk it at all. How many feeders are you giving him, when are you feeding him, and how are you gutloading the feeders?
  • Supplements I use repti vitamins, and the zilla calcium spray, I tend to alternate on and off throughout the week, I give it to him about every day (tend to coat one bug per day, and make sure he eats it.) Spray calcium is not recommended for chams. What are the repti vitamins? Too much of the wrong supplement can cause issues. We use supplements to balance out the phos to calcium ratio of the feeders and to supplement vitamins they do not get. So when you do this you are lightly dusting ALL feeders and then immediately feeding the cham. You need a calcium without D3 and this would be used every day. You also need a multivitamin with D3 either repashy calcium plus LOD or reptivite with D3. Buy one of these and only use it 2 times a month say the 1st and the 15th then all other feedings would be the calcium without D3.
  • Watering -I use the Zoomed 10L mister, I do a 3 minute misting every morning, and then set the timer to go off for 20 seconds every other hour, and then I try to do another 3 minute misting at night. Every time I spray I see him drink. So you should be misting morning and evening for 2-4 minutes. You should not be misting during the day. The cage should dry out during the day. You can add a dripper for daytime drinking access. A plastic solo cup with tiny pin holes in the top set on top of the cage over plants below it.
  • Fecal Description - Usually his poop is a dark brown to a black, and is oval shaped, it looks like it contains a bit of moister in it. He has never been tested (I don’t even know how I would get him out of his cage, im scared id lose the tiniest bit of trust that I have with him.) You should get a vet to run a fecal test to make sure he does not have parasites.
  • History - Bought him from FL Chams, He doesn’t really get mad at me ever, even if my hand is close to him, he only hissed once at me, and that was just the other day, but that’s because I didn’t see him there and I was trying to adjust something in his cage. I got upset that he did that, but it’s ok im sure he will be ok. Other than that, He usually just runs, or stays still when I get close to him. He has started to learn to hide behind a limb whenever he hears the cage open. :)

Cage Info:

  • Cage Type - I have a screen 2 by 2 by four feet enclosure. It’s a repti-breeze cage, not the set. Great.
  • Lighting - I have a 75 watt heat bulb, and a zoo-med 2 feet long t-5 high output bulb, it is not the coiled kind. I have them set on a timer, it comes on at 6 30 in the morning and goes off at 7 30 Good can you tell me what the bulb strength is for the UVB bulb and what your distance to the branch below the fixture is? Really want a 12 hour on and 12 hours off cycle.
  • Temperature -The temperature mostly stays at a good 80 at the basking spot, and lower in the cage is about a 70. I have a thermometer in the cage. Good
  • Humidity - The humidity fluctuates at around 60-70 percent throughout the day. I have a thermometer in the cage that measures heat and humidity. I maintain the humidity with the mister that goes off every other hour for about 20 seconds to keep up the humidity since the cage is mesh. Humidity is much too high for daytime. You want 30-50% max. Not running the mister during the day will help.
  • Plants -I have a variety of live plants that include: golden pothos, spider plant, bromeliad, prayer plants, hawaiin ti plants, ferns, An umbrella plant, and wandering Jew. These have all been properly cleaned, and the whole cage iis bioactive. Good. Veileds do eat their plants so be cautious what you use in the cage with him.
  • Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor? The cage Is in my bedroom next to the window, it is not by any fans or air vents, and the bedroom is in the back of the house where there is literally no traffick besides myself. And family members when they care enough to come and check on him. The cage is elevated about 3 feet off the floor and almost goes to the ceiling. Great.
  • Location - I live in northern Mississippi.
All moss should be removed from the cage this is a major impaction risk with Veileds.

This site will help you learn more. https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-husbandry-program-getting-started-with-chameleons/


View attachment 310007View attachment 310008
Thanks so muchhhhhhhhh i am going to answer a few of the questions you asked real fast
 
Sooooo will baby climb on you if you put one hand in front of it and one hand behind it to coax it up on you?

As long as you can watch the plant while your working on the cage. If not you want to put baby in a box with a stick pushed through the bottom about 2 inches up from the bottom. Baby will sleep while it is in the box. This will give you time to remove what is needed.

While your in there I need to know the UVB bulb strength and what the measured distance is from the screen where it sits to the branch below it.
 
Sooooo will baby climb on you if you put one hand in front of it and one hand behind it to coax it up on you?

As long as you can watch the plant while your working on the cage. If not you want to put baby in a box with a stick pushed through the bottom about 2 inches up from the bottom. Baby will sleep while it is in the box. This will give you time to remove what is needed.

While your in there I need to know the UVB bulb strength and what the measured distance is from the screen where it sits to the branch below it.
Ok, I will be there in an hour so I'll update u then
 
Ok, I will be there in an hour so I'll update u then
Sooooo will baby climb on you if you put one hand in front of it and one hand behind it to coax it up on you?

As long as you can watch the plant while your working on the cage. If not you want to put baby in a box with a stick pushed through the bottom about 2 inches up from the bottom. Baby will sleep while it is in the box. This will give you time to remove what is needed.

While your in there I need to know the UVB bulb strength and what the measured distance is from the screen where it sits to the branch below it.
 

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