New Female Veiled Chameleon Owner Here

[GlennFrog]

Hello all, I'm new to the forums and looking for some help. I recently bought a female veiled chameleon from a pet store (not the best, I know) and I've been reading about laying bins and females becoming egg bound (scary stuff). She isn't fully grown yet, so it's not something I'm concerned with at the moment, but it is on my mind for the future. Around when should I begin to provide a laying bin for her? Can you even put one in too early? She can't be more than a few months old, but again I'm just worried for her health and safety, and I want to provide the most ideal conditions for her that I can. I'm in Southern California if the environment dictates any special requirements. Thanks for reading/helping me out.

 

[Dez]

Hello and Welcome

Female Veileds are awesome!

They usually start making eggs at around 10 months old. But they can also make eggs as early as 5 or 6 months old. There is usually a hint of a female turning mature colors before this happens. If you can post a pic of your girl we can estimate age

You can put a laying bin in early if you would like, there is no such thing as too early

Here is a video I made on how to set up a bin for a girl

https://www.chameleonforums.com/laying-bin-set-up-educational-video-77225/

 

[jannb]

Welcome to the forums! Female veileds are awesome. I have one myself.

Dez, has provided you with some excellent info above and I would like to add a few more links for general care, female care and egg laying.

Would love to see a picture of your girl when you get the chance.

https://www.chameleonforums.com/blo...ng-veiled-panther-chameleons.html#comment1721
http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/2007/12/keeping-female-veiled.html
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/jannb/345-egg-laying-laying-bin.html#comment2073

 

[GlennFrog]

Thanks for the replies. I watched your video Dez, and I checked your links jannb, and I feel like I definitely learned a lot. Here's a picture for reference. Sorry for cell phone quality and the uncooperative pose; she really doesn't like being handled (which doesn't bother me; I know that they are susceptible to excess stress if handled too frequently). Also, sorry I couldn't find a ruler or something for scale. Hopefully this picture will serve our purposes. If not, I can try again. She is normally a light green color, but her body got significantly darker when I picked her up, and she's slowly fading back to her resting coloration. Here she is on my hand.

 

[Dez]

She doesn't look that big.. I am thinking 4 months old....maybe even 3

 

[GlennFrog]

That's along the lines of what I was thinking too. I'm just a worrywart I guess. I'll keep an eye out for any color changes or restlessness in the coming months and make sure that I'm ready for egg laying. Thanks again for the help guys. Also, one of the posts above suggests that females shouldn't have a basking bulb. Should I remove mine until temperatures cool down, or should I wait until maturity to adjust this? It's pretty temperate in my area, so I'm thinking the heat of the extra bulb may be unnecessary, if not harmful.

 

[jannb]

How are you checking the temps? A good temp gun is a must have for a chameleon. I would keep her temps in the lows 80's. 82 or 83 should be perfect.

 

[GlennFrog]

I just installed a combo temp/humidity gauge under the basking light. When I saw it was at 90F I shut it off. I just have the UVB light going now. Low 80s F is actually really good because it's about that temp here during the day, now that we're in the in between seasons time. You want to keep them cooler than males so they produce less eggs, right? Which should extend their lifespan? She seemed to like it hot because she often sat under the basking light. I can pick up a temp gun this weekend if it's that helpful. Like I said, it's pretty temperate here right now so I shouldn't need any extra heating until the middle of winter.