New Chameleon Help

CamiLeon

New Member
Chameleon 1 Info (Name: Rango):
Your Chameleon - Male. I would say he's around 2 months old, not 100% sure. It looks around 3" or 4" head to tail. I got him last Thursday (3/13).
Handling - Once or twice a day, but I'm now cutting back majorly. I am now starting to handle him only every couple of days.
Feeding - I put a few pinheads in the cage, as well as around 5 mealworms in a small food dish. I do not have a feeding schedule. I am not gut-loading my feeders, however I will start doing that shortly.
Supplements - I periodically dust some of the mealworms with Reptivite, I made sure it has D3 in it before purchasing. I do not have a set schedule for dusting.
Watering - I mist the plants in the cage around 3-4 times per day for about a minute, just with a standard spray bottle. He licks the water off of the leaves.
Fecal Description - It looks pretty normal. He has never been tested for parasites.
History - He likes to climb the wire mesh a lot, he also seems to like to hang out in some of the live plants in the cage. He looks very active and loves misting.

Chameleon 2 Info (Name: Gecko):
Your Chameleon - Female. I would say she's around 2 months old, not 100% sure. It looks around 3" or 4" head to tail. I got her last Thursday (3/13).
Handling - Once or twice a day, but I'm now cutting back majorly. I am now starting to handle her only every couple of days.
Feeding - I put a few pinheads in the cage, as well as around 5 mealworms in a small food dish. I do not have a feeding schedule. I am not gut-loading my feeders, however I will start doing that shortly.
Supplements - I periodically dust some of the mealworms with Reptivite, I made sure it has D3 in it before purchasing. I do not have a set schedule for dusting.
Watering - I mist the plants in the cage around 3-4 times per day for about a minute, just with a standard spray bottle. She licks the water off of the leaves.
Fecal Description - It looks pretty normal. She has never been tested for parasites.
History - She likes to climb the wire mesh a lot, she also seems to like to hang out in some of the live plants in the cage. She looks very active and also loves misting.


Cage Info:
Cage Type - Homemade wire-mesh cage. Dimensions are 2' x 2' x 4'
Lighting - I'm using a 100 watt "intense" basking bulb. Anywhere from 10-12 hours on, and 10-12 hours off.
Temperature - Floor is about 68-70F, the basking spot is around 75-80F. Last night, the thermometer showed a low of 59F, which I'm not sure if it's correct. It did get cold last night, so I'm going to invest in an infrared night heat bulb.
Humidity - The humidity levels range between around 38% to 50-ish%. These are created when misting. I use an Accu-rite thermometer and humidity gauge I bought a Walmart (digital, non-analog).
Plants - I have two live plants that the chameleons seem to love, both are safe according to the safe plant list. The plants are an umbrella plant and a parlor palm.
Placement - The cage is not located near any fans, it is located a couple feet away from an air vent, no cold air passes through the vent. The top of the cage is 4 feet above the room floor.
Location - Anchorage, Alaska


Current Problems:

I ordered my first chameleons a couple days ago, a pair of veiled chameleons from LLLReptiles and they arrived very healthy and active last Thursday. I built a 2' x 2' x 4' screen enclosure both of them, I am currently working on a second one to separate them. I have a couple of questions and concerns about them.

I haven't seen them eat at all, it's been roughly 3 days now. I put some meal worms and crickets in their cage and the meal worms disappear when I'm not looking, not sure if they're just crawling out of the food dish or the chams are eating them. I'm concerned they aren't eating at all, possibly due to stress. Are there any feeding tips?

I bought a 100 watt "intense" basking bulb for their cage, however the thermometer in the middle of the cage is showing only 72F, is that too cool for them? Also, their humidity level is only at around 50%, is this bad? Are there any other methods for heating up their cage?

Also, how long can I keep the two chameleons together before they start getting aggressive towards each other? I would guess they are around a month or two old, they are around 3" long.

What's the best UVB bulb? I heard compact florescent aren't as good for the chameleons as linear florescent. I was thinking about getting an 18" 10.0 linear florescent for the cage. What do you guys use?

Thanks for any help! :)
 
You should separate them as soon as possible to keep them from hurting each other or stealing the other's food. That cage might be a little too big for them to hunt food efficiently and some are cautious about cup feeding. That temp seems fine but you need to measure the basking area temp. It should be between 85-90 for that age. Linear bulbs are said to be better. That is what I have always used so I'm a little biased. A 75 watt incandescent bulb is usually fine for basking depending on height from basking are. Pictures of your setup would be useful. If you want further help then please fill out the how to ask for help form from the health clinic forum.
 
Pic of my current setup:
The cage is 2' x 2' x 4'

2rzf59s.jpg


Pic of the temperature humidity gauge, located at the middle of the cage, just above the door. It's reading 38% humidity (pretty low, was showing 50% earlier. I mist around 3 times a day).

2hxxu.jpg
 
You need to get rid of the substrate. It can be ingested and impact their bowels. You also need more foliage up top and in the middle. The sticks are ok but you also need more vines for them to be able to climb and get exercise. You need calcium without d3. You need to dust with that at every feeding except twice a month when you should use calcium with d3 along with the reptivite. Get UVB as soon as possible also.
 
You need to get rid of the substrate. It can be ingested and impact their bowels. You also need more foliage up top and in the middle. The sticks are ok but you also need more vines for them to be able to climb and get exercise. You need calcium without d3. You need to dust with that at every feeding except twice a month when you should use calcium with d3 along with the reptivite. Get UVB as soon as possible also.

What should I use instead of the substrate for the floor then?
 
No substrate at all, just the bare floor is best for that type of enclosure. Trust me its way easier to clean also :) Looks like some live plants will do ya some good (keeps up the RH) and you could use plastic on 3 of the 4 sides to assist in temps and RH. Hope that helps!
 
Is it true that substrate is bad for veiled chams digestive system? Has anyone else had previous issues with their cham and substrate before?
 
yes, substrate can impact a chameleon very easily. Even though people think "My chameleon isn't going to eat the dirt/rocks/cocoa bark ect." what happens is that the chameleon goes to aim for food and misses and BAM... a mouth full of substrate... It can most definitely kill your chameleons.
 
yes, substrate can impact a chameleon very easily. Even though people think "My chameleon isn't going to eat the dirt/rocks/cocoa bark ect." what happens is that the chameleon goes to aim for food and misses and BAM... a mouth full of substrate... It can most definitely kill your chameleons.

Very good point! Thanks for explaining a bit more in depth for me. I think I'll replace the substrate with some tiles or something. Is that a good idea?
 
Tiles will be fine or paper towels. Also don't bother investing in any kind of light emitting lamp for night. Not needed. If you think temps are low at night you can use a space room heater or ceramic heat bulb. They need a drop in temp at night and complete darkness to sleep well. Chams can see all lights.
More foliage and live plants will help and some horizontal pathways too.
Kath.
 
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