New Cham wont eat do not see him drinking HELP

[violentj34]

Hi as you can tell by my first post I am a newbie to chameleon's I got this guy from my local reptile store which is a good one about a week or so ago. I was told he was caught in the wild and imported.

Well he has not really ate to date just 1 super worm I put the monsoon in his cage which sprays the leaves 3 times a day for about 25 seconds but I have not caught him drinking.

I have tried crickets and super worms with out much luck. I finally tonight got a dropper and made him drink and also force feed him 4 worms.

Am I doing the right thing? I do not want him to die I bought all his cage stuff new so he would not get a infection or anything.

Can some one give me some tips to get this guy eating?

Including some pictures so it might help thanks a lot !!

Nathan

 

[Elizadolots]

Hi! Handsome chameleon.

It can take them a week to adjust to a new environment. I wouldn't worry about the eating so much right now. I certainly wouldn't be force feeding him.

He does look a little dehydrated. If he were mine I would get a plastic eye dropper or plastic needless syringe and drip water right on his nose. Do this when he's sitting on a branch, not when you are holding him. Also, now that you've got the dripper going: leave the room. Sometimes they won't drink in front of you so giving him some privacy is a good idea.

Many people never see their chameleon's drink. I have one I've had for 15 months and I've only seen him drink twice.

I keep track of whether he's drinking by monitoring his poop. There should be a whitish small piece attached. That's called the urate and if it's creamy or white, then your chameleon is drinking. If it's yellow or worse, orange, he's not drinking enough.

 

[violentj34]

Oh thanks for the reply!! Makes me feel better!! I have the monsoon mister set at 3 times a day for 25 seconds each is that good enough for that cage? also should I be getting a dripper on top of that?

I want him to be spoiled we love him very much its my first cham only had bearded dragons before.

 

[thePopeJP]

A few suggestions.

Get a live plant quick. That will be the most quick way to get him hydrated. If you need help with what types, you can look that up on the forums. To get you started, a pothos from lowes/home depot will be fine. You will need to repot it in organic soil, but once again just search the site for chameleon plants and you'll find all that information. Veileds tend to be plant eaters so you want to make sure the plant you use is on the safe list/non toxic. Hibiscus is a plant chams love, and will eat the flowers, but they're advanced care plants and hard to keep alive under standard indoor cage conditions.

There's definitely a lack of foliage and climbing areas in your cage so you may want a very full plant as well as some "jungle vines" or sterile branches. That will make him feel safer and more likely to eat/drink.

Misting 3 times a day for 25 seconds is most likely NOT enough. It really depends on the humidity in your house, so if you dot have a hygrometer get one, and then you need to keep his humidity at 50-80% where the humidity spikes to the top for periods of the day following mists, and then never drops below 50. Time the mists to be on long enough for drops to form on the leaves. And then time how long it takes for the cage to dry out, and make that time the space between mists. You want the cage to dry out between mists to avoid mold and UR Infections.

The substrate on the bottom is unnecessary. It will make cleaning harder, harbor bacteria, and could lead to impaction if your Cham eats too much or misses a feeder when shooting. Just cover the bottom with paper towels and swap them out regularly.

Also, what size is the cage?

Hope we can get this guy hydrated! Thanks for coming here and letting us help!

Also, what lights do you have in there?

 

[carol5208]

A few suggestions.

Get a live plant quick. That will be the most quick way to get him hydrated. If you need help with what types, you can look that up on the forums. To get you started, a pothos from lowes/home depot will be fine. You will need to repot it in organic soil, but once again just search the site for chameleon plants and you'll find all that information. Veileds tend to be plant eaters so you want to make sure the plant you use is on the safe list/non toxic. Hibiscus is a plant chams love, and will eat the flowers, but they're advanced care plants and hard to keep alive under standard indoor cage conditions.

There's definitely a lack of foliage and climbing areas in your cage so you may want a very full plant as well as some "jungle vines" or sterile branches. That will make him feel safer and more likely to eat/drink.

Misting 3 times a day for 25 seconds is most likely NOT enough. It really depends on the humidity in your house, so if you dot have a hygrometer get one, and then you need to keep his humidity at 50-80% where the humidity spikes to the top for periods of the day following mists, and then never drops below 50. Time the mists to be on long enough for drops to form on the leaves. And then time how long it takes for the cage to dry out, and make that time the space between mists. You want the cage to dry out between mists to avoid mold and UR Infections.

The substrate on the bottom is unnecessary. It will make cleaning harder, harbor bacteria, and could lead to impaction if your Cham eats too much or misses a feeder when shooting. Just cover the bottom with paper towels and swap them out regularly.

Also, what size is the cage?

Hope we can get this guy hydrated! Thanks for coming here and letting us help!

Also, what lights do you have in there?

how does a live plant keep him hydrated? Just curious??? to the new member, I notice you have a tube light in the cage? What kind of light of is it? You need both a uvb light and a uva(basking bulb) in there for him. He must have a basking light to digest his food. I agree with Eliza and there is no need to force feed him. Let him settle in. Hydration is more important than him eating at the moment. Do you know about supplements and gutloading your feeders? You should have three types of supplements to dust your feeders with. Calcium with no d3, every feeding, calcium with d3 a couple of times a month and also a multivitamin to be used twice a month. Be sure and feed your feeders a wide variety of fresh fruits and vegetables. Dark leafy greens are good along with carrots, apples, sweet potatoes, sweet peppers, etc things like that.

 

[Elizadolots]

Violentj, you're welcome. As long as you also have a dripper going, I think that setting for the mister is enough.

Carol, I don't think the light is in the cage, I think the wire mesh is reflecting the light that's on top.

I do think a live plant or two would be good, but it's more for humidity (which is important) than hydration. The only way it could help hydration is if the chameleon eats the leaves (which both mine do).

I'm a huge fan of Pothos. They are inexpensive, readily available and provide VINES as well as all the other benefits of live plants.

 

[violentj34]

Pope Thanks so much!! Man I really feel mislead from the store where I got him!! I asked them what I all needed anything I need to do and of course they tell me none of this!!

The cage is 30" wide 30" Tall and 18" deep

I will run to a home depot and get him some real plants first thing in the AM and re soil them as well. Wow I feel so bad for this poor guy.

Is it ok to leave the fake plants in there or just I just chuck them?

I will also get the meter and make sure the humidity is right!!

 

[violentj34]

Also yes the light on top is a reptiglo 20 watt 30% UVA and 5% UVB

Using a purple 150 watt heat lamp stays on all day should I switch that out for a basking lamp during the day? and Use the purple at night???

 

[carol5208]

Violentj, you're welcome. As long as you also have a dripper going, I think that setting for the mister is enough.

Carol, I don't think the light is in the cage, I think the wire mesh is reflecting the light that's on top.

I do think a live plant or two would be good, but it's more for humidity (which is important) than hydration. The only way it could help hydration is if the chameleon eats the leaves (which both mine do).

I'm a huge fan of Pothos. They are inexpensive, readily available and provide VINES as well as all the other benefits of live plants.

I didn't mean, in the cage, I just worded it wrong!!! I think he needed to specify how a live plant could aid in hydration. That was a statement that needed a little explanation for someone just starting out. yes they could provide some hydration Iguess, but that is only if the chamleon eats them!!!! So saying the quickest way to hydrate a chameleon is with live plants could be a totally false statement. jmo

 

[carol5208]

Also yes the light on top is a reptiglo 20 watt 30% UVA and 5% UVB

Using a purple 150 watt heat lamp stays on all day should I switch that out for a basking lamp during the day? and Use the purple at night???

you need to measure your basking temps. 150 watt may be to extreme. There is much debate over basking temps on here, just yesterday as a matter of fact. So I would go between 90-95. No light at nightl No heat at night unless your temps are gonna get below 50 or so. You could use a ceramic heater then. basking and uvb on 12 hours off 12 hours.

 

[Elizadolots]

Yeah, what Carol said. Lighting is really key and too much light or too much heat is as bad as not enough.

Most of us have been led astray by pet store advice at some point, don't worry overly about that.

 

[violentj34]

I got a pothos plant seems to fill it in a little better and I something to tell me the humidity and right now its at around 55. I set my moonsoon to water more and little longer trying to get it wetter in there.

I also got a basking lamp.

I am going to try and get me another plant to make it even better.

 

[Elizadolots]

That all sounds good. I'm sure you'll find your chameleon appreciates the higher humidity and the vines.

 

[thePopeJP]

The reason I believe that plants aid in hydration, is through a recent experience. I had a dying plant that was sucking all of the moisture out of the air, it was plenty misted, with drops all over the leaves, and I witnessed Leo drinking everyday. However, he had an orange urate one day, and his skin got very wrinkly as if it was drying up. The next morning I rushed to home depot, bought a new plant, put it in and within a day he was back to perfect white urate and hydrated skin. He really didn't change his drinking habits at all the whole time, at least visibly (and remember that I often see him drink, even shoot drops out of the air with his tongue[which is really cool!]). This leads me to think that their hydration is not only linked to what they consume, but also what they breath and what is absorbed by their body/skin from their environment. So, as plants hold water which can be consumed when eaten, they also release water into the air and increase humidity, as the Cham breathes and their skin is moistened by the environment I believe that affects their hydration.

Also, real plants hold water longer then fake ones. When you combine a drastic increase in foliage, with a drastic increase in that foliage's ability to hold humidity, it increases the likelihood of a Cham drinking.

Hope that makes sense?

 

[thePopeJP]

Pope Thanks so much!! Man I really feel mislead from the store where I got him!! I asked them what I all needed anything I need to do and of course they tell me none of this!!

The cage is 30" wide 30" Tall and 18" deep

I will run to a home depot and get him some real plants first thing in the AM and re soil them as well. Wow I feel so bad for this poor guy.

Is it ok to leave the fake plants in there or just I just chuck them?

I will also get the meter and make sure the humidity is right!!

No problem, just trying to give back as everyone has given to me! Your Cham is on his way to a healthy life. He seems like a big guy?! Very tall body and good coloration.

 

[Elizadolots]

That's sort of more a humidity issue...but yes, humidity affects hydration ultimately...

The truth is, real plants are best for a lot of reasons.

 

[kinyonga]

Veiled chameleons can sometimes hold their eyes in a little, but I think this is a little too much. Although this can happen from dehydration it also happens when a chameleon is sick. Has he been tested for parasites?