New Chameleon Owner!!!!!

KirbyTheCham

KirbyTheCham

Member
Hi Fellow Chameleon Lovers-

I have a new Jackson's Chameleon "Kirby". I bought it on Sunday, and I've been worried about Kirby all the time because I'm not sure what typical Chameleon behavior is! First of all I'm curious is Kirby a male or female? It's body is about 3.5-4" long....there are no horns but I don't know at what age the horns grow for males?

A question I have is Kirby despises being misted, anytime I go to mist the environment Kirby gets pissed....should I just do it anyways or what? When Kirby was at the store I saw it drink from the dish! I have a waterfall in the cage thinking that the moving water will entice Kirby. I haven't seen Kirby drink from any source so far but it looks hydrated to me. Kirby has a very good appetite and literally will eat the crickets and mealworms as soon as I place them on the leaves or simply out of my fingers so I know Kirby is eating.

The first picture is of Kirby chilling near the basking spot. The second one was this morning, I took her up to the sundeck in the morning to get a little natural sunlight.

Any thoughts or advice would be much apprecaited.
 

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first, kirby is a girl! she looks like poppy, my cham. males grow horns at a very young age, so she is definitely a female. i think she is a jacksonii xanth.
and second, it is ok that she does not like to be misted. poppy does not like it ether, she runs away! all you have to do is make a dripper and she should drink it. just poke a hole in the bottom of a cup and set it on top of her cage and let it drip.
 
animaltycoon said:
first, kirby is a girl! she looks like poppy, my cham. males grow horns at a very young age, so she is definitely a female. i think she is a jacksonii xanth.
and second, it is ok that she does not like to be misted. poppy does not like it ether, she runs away! all you have to do is make a dripper and she should drink it. just poke a hole in the bottom of a cup and set it on top of her cage and let it drip.
Click to expand...

lol yes kirby is for sure a girl! but they are awesome, my best friend has a female Jackson and she is full of personality, and I think they are one of the cuter looking of the chameleon family. But anyway either the cup or what i did was get a fake butter tub, poked holes in the bottom of it, very small holes, and that works very well for me. But find what works best for yourself! Awesome chameleon!
 
If you don't mind filling out the "how to ask for help" form here so we can get a feel for your husbandry that would be great! :) Welcome!


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?
 
Thanks for the advice so far! I guess my little Kirby is a female after all.... :)

As for the form here it goes! Now take it easy on me, I'm a newbie.

If you don't mind filling out the "how to ask for help" form here so we can get a feel for your husbandry that would be great! Welcome!


Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?

Jackson's Chameleon, Female, Not sure of age...any ideas? She's about 3.5-4" body length. I've only had her since Sunday.

Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?

So far twice

Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?

Crickets, about 5 a day and today she had 2 mealworms. Gut Loading them by giving them apple, romaine lettuce and potato as well as the flukers all in one orange cubes.

Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?

Dusted the first day before I read about D3, It's Flukers calcium with D3 and no Phosphorous. What should I supplement her diet with? Do I continue dusting? This part has me nervous.

Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?

She has a waterfall, I do a drip in the morning over the plastic plant onto the waterfall, I mist 3 times a day briefly because as soon as I do she changes colors and runs away, I think she hates it! I haven't seen her drink. When I was at the pet store she drank from the water dish.

Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings.

Brown/dark well shaped poop with white, was pretty solid.

Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?

Not that I know of

History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

You guys are going to hate me but I "Rescued" (actually bought) her from Petsmart... I wasn't planning on buying a Chameleon yet (Although I've always wanted one) but when I saw her in her TINY compartment at the store and her dismal sad look I just knew I couldn't leave her. She was a dark color just latched onto the water bowl looking sad. I don't know how old she is or much about her. I do know that she's a pretty good eater.

Cage Info:

Currently has a waterfall, a ton of branches and vines, I'm looking into buying real plants, but I have to make sure that they're chameleon safe...any recommendations of commonly found plants that I can get from Home Depot?

Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?

18"x18"x24" Vivarium
The cage is a combo with glass doors that open from the front, I guess after reading this isn't the ideal cage, I've been keeping the front open for increased ventilation while I'm home.

Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?

12 Hour cycle, I bought a Solar Glo by Exo Terra sun stimulating lamp, it says it has the optimal levels of UVB, UVA but I'm not sure. It's 125 watt but I have it hanging on a pole that is adjustable and it's about 10" from the basking spot.

Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?

Basking is about 80-83 degrees, bottom of the cage is about 65 degrees, night temp is probably around 60 degrees. Measured by two thermometers one near the basking and one at the floor.

Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?

Between 60-70% There is a waterfall in the corner as well as misting 2-3 times daily. Also place a drip onto the plastic plant in the morning. (She HATES being misted so I don't do it for a long time)

Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?

Just using Plastic until I can figure out the proper plants to buy.

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?

I live alone and my place is pretty quiet, she's in the living room. The vent is on the opposite side of the room. The cage is about 5' at the top from the floor.

Location - Where are you geographically located?

Chicago right off the lake on the 21st floor facing East, South, and West....I get TONS of sun, My windows are OLD so I'm not sure that they block out the UVB....can I have her bask in this natural light?? Will it be just as good as her being outside? I took her to the roof deck today but she didn't really enjoy the trip. I'm trying to minimize her stress while doing the best things for her! I need help.

Thanks!
 
Here is a snapshot of Kirby's cage on the first day I set it up. I've since added additional "bend a vine" She typically stays near the basking spot or the left side of the cage above the waterfall. I read that I shouldn't have substrate so I will change that this weekend and line it with paper towel....I guess I also don't have an ideal cage for her :mad:. Do you guys think that this setup is ok?

She also sleeps around 6-7PM, I turn the basking light on around 6:30am....Is she just in a routine or cycle or is something wrong with her for sleeping that early?

Sorry for all the questions.
 

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Your supplement schedule should be:

Phosphorous free calcium without d3 at every feeding
Phosphorous free calcium with d3 twice a month
Multi vitamin twice a month

I would suggest getting rid of the waterfall. Unless you are cleaning it daily, it will grow bacteria. It could also be a drowning risk for your cham.

Check member sandrachameleons blogs on gutloading. The items you are using are not sufficient to give your cham the nutrients and vitamins it needs.

I don't think the solar glo produces the required levels of UVB. Most recommend the replti glo 5.0 or repti sun 5.0.

You should up the mistings and provide a dripper all day. You should be misting the plants and vines in the enclosure so she can drink off of them, you don't need to mist her directly if she doesn't like it.
 
KirbyTheCham said:
Here is a snapshot of Kirby's cage on the first day I set it up. I've since added additional "bend a vine" She typically stays near the basking spot or the left side of the cage above the waterfall. I read that I shouldn't have substrate so I will change that this weekend and line it with paper towel....I guess I also don't have an ideal cage for her :mad:. Do you guys think that this setup is ok?

She also sleeps around 6-7PM, I turn the basking light on around 6:30am....Is she just in a routine or cycle or is something wrong with her for sleeping that early?

Sorry for all the questions.
Click to expand...
I would remove the substrate and waterfall and add more vines and foliage. They love lots of walkways and need place to hide to make them feel more secure.
 
talkto miss lily and xanthoman, they are jackson owners and know a lot about the species. I do know jacksons prefer it cooler than panthers and veileds, and they can easily overdose on supplements so you have to be careful not to over supplement.
 
Thanks for the advice so far! I will return the waterfall and the solar glo light and buy the one recommended. I'll also remove the substrate.

Any idea how old Kirby may be?
 
I agree about removing the waterfall, etc.. I heard they like to defecate in running water, so you will definitely be cleaning it alot, and they seem to like to drink water as it drips from leaves and such.

Is only the top portion of your cage screened?
 
Yes only the top is screened, I will see if they have other cages and I can clean this one out and return It. I still have all the packages and receipts. It's recommended that they have an all screen cage right?
 
KirbyTheCham said:
Thanks PbVeiled, I'm on Amazon right now. I might as well get the extra large...the price difference is minimal. :D
Click to expand...

I have a Repti-Breeze 18x18x36 and like it pretty well. My one complaint is that when I got it from Amazon, the packaging was all jacked up, the stickers for the sides were all out of order, and it was missing a few of the predrilled holes for the screws.

All in all, it was nothing that a Dremel tool and some time with Zoo-Med's customer service couldn't fix.

Included is an out of date pic. I will post a more current pic in my albums soon.
 

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Once again thanks for all the help to make Kirby's life better. I ended up ordering the Extra Large Repti Breeze which is 24x24x48" which should be plenty for Kirby. It's scheduled to be delivered Saturday. Can you guys suggest a few plants? Slug what kind of plant is that in your cage?
 
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