New Cham parents questions and concerns

Nl337

New Member
Hello everyone, my boyfriend and I just got a new edition to our family.His name is Leo short for Leonardo and he is a Panther Chameleon, the place we got him from didn’t know what kind for panther chameleon he was but from what I can tell we think he’s a Ambilobe or ambanja, about a year old? I’ll put a picture below.please let use know what type you think he is!! We did a lot of research before we got him but everything online says one thing and then I talked to others that were knowledgeable about chameleons (reptile center employees, that breed chams) say another
-first question
Humidity-I know juvenile panthers are 50-70%, so we were trying to keep the humidity up, putting shower curtains on the side and misting but then they told me to not go by humidity that it would be impossible to MAINTAIN that, which it was and to take off the shower curtain because he needs a good air flow and could develop a respiratory infection if we left them on, so I’ve been so stressed about this and trying to make the best possible decision we took them off and are just going by temp, this was hard because I know that humidity is a important thing so we upped his listings to 4 times a day for about 1 min
-Second question
He changes colors a lot and it hard to know why I know when he’s dark he is upset or not happy but is that because he is new to his new home and just adapting or because we need to fix something? -(sidenote) he also will curl his tail about 30min-1hr before going to bed, most people say that’s a sing of getting ready for bed, relaxing but others say it could be a sign of aggression I’m hoping that not the case
-third question
Because he’s new to his cage he has been exploring it which is good and we did put some horn worms(only 2, because they are considered a treat) in his cage just to offer them ( I know they don’t eat well the first couple days of adapting), but he ate them right up and we noticed he likes to hunt them, because we also put some doobie roaches in a cup in his cage and he had no interest, we were thinking about getting some crickets because he is used to those?? Should we be concerned?
Other comments
-we aren’t handling him until after two weeks of him being with us because I know we have to build trust with him
-are these guys sensitive to sound?
-when feeding him crickets do I put them in the cup? Wont the just bounce out is that what I want
 

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Hello everyone, my boyfriend and I just got a new edition to our family.His name is Leo short for Leonardo and he is a Panther Chameleon, the place we got him from didn’t know what kind for panther chameleon he was but from what I can tell we think he’s a Ambilobe or ambanja, about a year old? I’ll put a picture below.please let use know what type you think he is!! We did a lot of research before we got him but everything online says one thing and then I talked to others that were knowledgeable about chameleons (reptile center employees, that breed chams) say another
-first question
Humidity-I know juvenile panthers are 50-70%, so we were trying to keep the humidity up, putting shower curtains on the side and misting but then they told me to not go by humidity that it would be impossible to MAINTAIN that, which it was and to take off the shower curtain because he needs a good air flow and could develop a respiratory infection if we left them on, so I’ve been so stressed about this and trying to make the best possible decision we took them off and are just going by temp, this was hard because I know that humidity is a important thing so we upped his listings to 4 times a day for about 1 min
-Second question
He changes colors a lot and it hard to know why I know when he’s dark he is upset or not happy but is that because he is new to his new home and just adapting or because we need to fix something? -(sidenote) he also will curl his tail about 30min-1hr before going to bed, most people say that’s a sing of getting ready for bed, relaxing but others say it could be a sign of aggression I’m hoping that not the case
-third question
Because he’s new to his cage he has been exploring it which is good and we did put some horn worms(only 2, because they are considered a treat) in his cage just to offer them ( I know they don’t eat well the first couple days of adapting), but he ate them right up and we noticed he likes to hunt them, because we also put some doobie roaches in a cup in his cage and he had no interest, we were thinking about getting some crickets because he is used to those?? Should we be concerned?
Other comments
-we aren’t handling him until after two weeks of him being with us because I know we have to build trust with him
-are these guys sensitive to sound?
-when feeding him crickets do I put them in the cup? Wont the just bounce out is that what I want
In the meantime...
  1. IME, 50% avg. daytime humidity can be maintained between having LOTS of live plants ( Live plants help increase and maintain humidity ), more frequent and longer misting periods (I mist for 2 min, 6X per day) and—if necessary—do the shower curtain thing.
  2. He should be over relocation stress within a few days to a week. Whether or not something needs fixing will depend on your answers to the questionnaire.
  3. "Doobie roaches".... :ROFLMAO: I don't see any need to be concerned that he doesn't like dubias—like kids & vegetables, some just don't like them. Crickets are fine as part of a varied diet. See: Food & Nutrition
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  4. Chameleons don't have ears, so they're more sensitive to vibration than sound per se.
  5. Putting crix in a cup is fine, but yes, some may jump out. Since he's exploring the enclosure, he may hunt them down (or not).



Water & Humidity
 
There are several definitions for what an ear is...so I guess it depends on which definition you look at whether chameleons have ears or not. It's definite that they don't have the outer formation of an ear seen on mammals...but they seem to be able to "hear" things in some way.

Different species of chameleons have different setups from what I've read...but I don't know all of them by any means. I posted links yesterday about a couple of them though in the tread about hearing.
 
There are several definitions for what an ear is...so I guess it depends on which definition you look at whether chameleons have ears or not.
When I said,
Chameleons don't have ears, so they're more sensitive to vibration than sound per se.
I meant in the sense of other reptiles who DO have ears, e.g. beardies, anoles, western fence lizard.
Everything I've read on this forum suggests chameleons sense lower frequency vibrations rather than hearing broad-spectrum sounds as other animals do.
 
When I said,

I meant in the sense of other reptiles who DO have ears, e.g. beardies, anoles, western fence lizard.
Everything I've read on this forum suggests chameleons sense lower frequency vibrations rather than hearing broad-spectrum sounds as other animals do.
I knew that's what you meant.

You're right ....they do sense vibrations too, but at least some chameleons are said to also have a limited range of hearing (that I'm not sure still isn't vibrations they are sensing) ....I only go by what I read in studies on their hearing/ears/ vibration sensing. I haven't ever tried to see if I could tell if they were hearing/sensing things.
 
Hi Nl337, Welcome to the forum.

Please take a few minutes and copy/paste this form into a post in this thread along with a pic of your enclosure from lighting (top) to drainage (bottom). This will be the time-honored method to get you the best/most help quicker. ;)

Also, please avail yourself of the information in the Resources section (top green menu bar), and on https://chameleonacademy.com/

I tried to post it again but it was another thread? V confused my apologies but here is his enclosure 6% arcadia 100w basking bulb and a dropper with the mist king
 

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I tried to post it again but it was another thread? V confused my apologies but here is his enclosure 6% arcadia 100w basking bulb and a dropper with the mist king
Ahhh, I knew the other thread of your’s sounded familiar! I posted the form in that thread, so you can fill it out there or here.
 
Also, you need a digital thermometer with a probe to measure basking, possibly an infrared temp gun to spot check stuff, and a digital thermometer-hygrometer combo to check ambient temps and humidity levels. I’d replace the Exo Terra vines as well, they can cause health issues. Get rid of the tape, too, it's dangerous!
 
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