New Chameleon parents, wanting advice and feedback

Daferal

New Member
Hello all!

We are the new owners of a ~3ish month male juvenile veiled chameleon and are looking for tips + tricks, plus any advice on the setup.

Pics:

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The setup is as follows so far:

Zoo Med Reptibreeze 24”L x 18”D x 36”H cage
24 inch UVB light bar
Exo Terra 50W basking light
Bits of cork bark
Drift wood
Five 6 foot benda-branches/vines of varying sizes
Automatic misting machine
Dripper bottle
Live umbrella plant
Humidity/temp sensor
Food/water cup ledge

He seems to be doing good so far, this is only the 2nd day of him being home. We have the 4 foot tall Zoo Med enclosure on standby for when he grows up and requires a larger cage. The current cage has 2 sides covered in a clear shower curtain to maintain humidity as we live in a dryer state, as well as keep the mister water from spraying the wall. I placed some more mesh on the sides that have the curtain so he can still climb on the sides. I also added some wood planks to the sides to facilitate any future drift wood up near the top.

Day time temps ambient in the house are around 70°, inside the enclosure around 75° and humidity around 75%-80% (depends on misting). Night time, we allow the temps to drop down to 60°- 65° and turn off all his lights for 12 hours. Basking temp is around 85° and he seems to love sitting on the leaf stem and soak up the warmth we wish was outside. We hand mist occasionally, and also allow the auto misters to run for 2-3 mins around 3-4 times a day (we’re still working out the best schedule/times).

He loves to sit on his branch and lick the water droplets from the leaves or directly from the dripper hose at times. We haven’t observed him yet use the water bowl, but have it there as an option. We keep dubia roaches and superworms in the feed cup, but also have some crickets we let roam around the top during the day. All of the feeders are pre-loaded with the NatureZone Total Bites green cube things.

I think that basically covers everything I can think of at the moment. Please let us know your thoughts and any potential improvements.

Thanks!
 
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Hi and welcome. :) Before I get into giving you feedback, I need to know what supplements you’re using and what the schedule for them is. Also, does he keep his eye(s) closed when lights are on?
 
Hi and welcome. :) Before I get into giving you feedback, I need to know what supplements you’re using and what the schedule for them is. Also, does he keep his eye(s) closed when lights are on?
Hello!

We use calcium powder for the feeders, and will be getting the d3 and looking at multi vitamins as well. The feeders get the calcium everyday, and we’ll follow the rules of the other supplements that we’ve found from research on here.

We haven’t seen him keep his eyes closed during the day/when his lights are on. He’s always looking around.
 
Ok, so let me start with your enclosure.
Before you know it, your little guy will be a big guy - veileds grow very fast. I would say to start setting up the larger enclosure from now. One of the primary concerns with putting small chameleons in full sized enclosures is that they will be able to find their food. Setting up a feeding station is the best way to fix that. I suggest using one that is hard for the feeders to escape from. There are a few different styles out there from this one https://www.fullthrottlefeeders.com/ to this one https://www.rainbowmealworms.net/shooting-gallery-chameleon-feeder-1/ and more. Even just a tall plastic deli container works, although the clear plastic can confuse chameleons and they shoot at the sides rather than go to the top to access the yummies.
You’ll want to have lots of plant coverage and vines. Pothos is your new bff. Here’s a great resource about plants. https://chameleonacademy.com/plants/ Do keep in mind that many plants will require a special light. You’re definitely on the right track with how to hang things on a screen enclosure, however you want the metal frame to handle the weight and not the screen. You can buy https://dragonstrand.com/dragon-ledges/ or diy your own system. Some use garden trellis. If you want to hang plants though, the dragon ledges are best. The vines that you have are known to shed off micro particles that (of course) tend to get in cham eyes. The better vines are Fluker’s foam ones. https://www.amazon.com/Fluker-Labs-...7386318&sprefix=fluker's+vines,aps,694&sr=8-2 Of course, you can use real branches - avoid pine and others that have sap or strong odors. Wash with dish soap, rinse very well and sun dry. No need to bake or remove bark or any of that. I even keep the lichen that doesn’t scrub off on mine. You’ll want lots of little roads for him to travel as he performs his regular patrols. There are a few enclosure build threads all over the forum that are sure to give you ideas and inspiration.
What uvb are you using? Is that a T5 or T8? Easy way to tell is T8 bulbs are 1” thick. And what strength uvb bulb do you have? These are very important and placement of the basking area depends on it. You’ll need to elevate your lights at least a few inches above the screen. Little chams love to place themselves at risk for burns by walking upside down along the screen top. This will also help to bring down your basking temp. Ideal for little ones and ladies is no higher than 80. Adult males can go as high as 85. Outdated guidelines had us baking our poor chameleons. At night, it’s ideal if you can achieve a temp drop into the 60’s. Not all of us can reach that low, but we do what we can.
The shower curtain is great for maintaining humidity and protecting your walls and such from water overspray. However, it’s best to attach it to the outside of the enclosure. If you want a more streamlined look, you can even attach shrink to fit insulating window film to the outside sides and/or back. Let’s talk humidity now. Ideal daytime range is between 30-50% for veileds. That’s actually pretty dry and at the same level that we are comfortable at. High heat + high humidity = increased risk for respiratory infection. If you are able to get your night temps to or below at least 68, you can boost humidity all the way with a fogger for naturalistic hydration. It simulates the hydration chams get in the wild thru fog. Never use a fogger during the day. During the day - before lights go on/off you’ll want to mist for at least 2 minutes. At mid day it’s optional to mist again for about a minute or use a dripper for about 15 minutes. It’s pretty normal to never see your chameleon drink, so don’t go by that. We look to the urates to determine hydration. That’s the hopefully white part of the poo. Some orange or yellow is fine, but most of it should be white.
I notice you have something on the floor…moss maybe? A bare floor is best and most hygienic. Moss, fake plants and such like that pose risks for bowel impaction/obstruction if your cham eats any. Veileds do like to nibble their plants, so that is always a risk when using those items.
This is getting long, so let me break it up. To be continued….
 
I should have warned you that I talk a lot. 😂
Now for food and supplements. You’ll want to feed a good variety of staples and treats. At 3-4 months old, you should pretty much be giving him at least 20+ feeders daily in the morning. Make sure the size is right. Anything larger than the space between the eyes is too big. You’ll want to make sure to keep your feeder bugs as healthy and well fed as possible so that they will be more nutritious. I’m not familiar with the product you’ve been using, but it looks similar to Fluker’s orange cubes…and those aren’t good for more than just barely keeping the bugs alive. Attaching graphics for you. I feed my bugs a variety of fresh produce - low oxalates greens like dandelion, mustard, collard, turnip, arugula, etc (not kale), various squashes, sweet pepper, sweet potato and a little fruit (usually berries or as a treat, banana). I also give a little bit of Repashy Bug Burger to which I add a bit of bee pollen and spirulina. There are some feeder vendors who sell variety packs, which are great. Check out the forum sponsors. I think it’s Rainbow Mealworms and Dubia.com who have them. If you feed crickets and there’s any chance that your cham didn’t eat them all, do make sure to put a small piece of food on the enclosure floor for the cricket to eat. At night, the cricket will get hungry and may bite your cham. The green cubes would be good for this. :)
Now supplements. You’ll want to lightly dust every feeding with a phosphorus-free calcium without D3, except the feedings you use your other supplement(s). The easiest regimen is to use a combination multivitamin/D3 such as Repashy calcium Plus LoD or ReptiVite with D3 for one feeding every other week. Both of these are excellent and contain preformed vitamin A for healthy eyes.
I asked about your chams eyes being closed, because in that one pic, his eye is closed and doesn’t look so great. He’s also got some uneven shedding, which is most likely due to humidity. Chameleons are dry shedders (unlike most reptiles) and if humidity is too high or they sit under the mister, they won‘t shed evenly.
Other bits to help - you’ll want to work on building trust. Here’s a great blog on that. https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/building-trust-with-your-chameleon.2396/
Are you certain you have a little boy? Males have prominent nubs (tarsal spurs) on the heels of their back feet. As they get around 4 months old, they start to show male vertical bar patterns. Pic below of my guy when he was around 4 months old and arrow showing his tarsal spurs.
There is a ton of old/outdated and just wrong info out there on keeping chameleons and it’s hard to know what is correct. The most current and correct info is here. https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-husbandry-program-getting-started-with-chameleons/ There’s a ton of great info there and do check out the podcasts. Of course, the forum is the best place for asking questions, sharing pics, stories, etc and just being a part of this awesome community of the chameleon obsessed. ;) I’m very glad that you found your way here.

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I should have warned you that I talk a lot. 😂
Now for food and supplements. You’ll want to feed a good variety of staples and treats. At 3-4 months old, you should pretty much be giving him at least 20+ feeders daily in the morning. Make sure the size is right. Anything larger than the space between the eyes is too big. You’ll want to make sure to keep your feeder bugs as healthy and well fed as possible so that they will be more nutritious. I’m not familiar with the product you’ve been using, but it looks similar to Fluker’s orange cubes…and those aren’t good for more than just barely keeping the bugs alive. Attaching graphics for you. I feed my bugs a variety of fresh produce - low oxalates greens like dandelion, mustard, collard, turnip, arugula, etc (not kale), various squashes, sweet pepper, sweet potato and a little fruit (usually berries or as a treat, banana). I also give a little bit of Repashy Bug Burger to which I add a bit of bee pollen and spirulina. There are some feeder vendors who sell variety packs, which are great. Check out the forum sponsors. I think it’s Rainbow Mealworms and Dubia.com who have them. If you feed crickets and there’s any chance that your cham didn’t eat them all, do make sure to put a small piece of food on the enclosure floor for the cricket to eat. At night, the cricket will get hungry and may bite your cham. The green cubes would be good for this. :)
Now supplements. You’ll want to lightly dust every feeding with a phosphorus-free calcium without D3, except the feedings you use your other supplement(s). The easiest regimen is to use a combination multivitamin/D3 such as Repashy calcium Plus LoD or ReptiVite with D3 for one feeding every other week. Both of these are excellent and contain preformed vitamin A for healthy eyes.
I asked about your chams eyes being closed, because in that one pic, his eye is closed and doesn’t look so great. He’s also got some uneven shedding, which is most likely due to humidity. Chameleons are dry shedders (unlike most reptiles) and if humidity is too high or they sit under the mister, they won‘t shed evenly.
Other bits to help - you’ll want to work on building trust. Here’s a great blog on that. https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/building-trust-with-your-chameleon.2396/
Are you certain you have a little boy? Males have prominent nubs (tarsal spurs) on the heels of their back feet. As they get around 4 months old, they start to show male vertical bar patterns. Pic below of my guy when he was around 4 months old and arrow showing his tarsal spurs.
There is a ton of old/outdated and just wrong info out there on keeping chameleons and it’s hard to know what is correct. The most current and correct info is here. https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-husbandry-program-getting-started-with-chameleons/ There’s a ton of great info there and do check out the podcasts. Of course, the forum is the best place for asking questions, sharing pics, stories, etc and just being a part of this awesome community of the chameleon obsessed. ;) I’m very glad that you found your way here.

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it that Hammlet?
 
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