New Jackson chameleon died looking for advice.

[Gloriousone]

I use umbrella tree for a main plant, then pothos mostly, dracena (i think it’s called).

Thank you I looked up the dracana or Dragon Tree or whatever the many names, and it says it induces vomiting if the leaves are digested. Lol it's so difficult to find things with so much difference of opinion on what's safe and what's not. But everything recommends pathos, that's the main reason I got that but it's going to take it awhile to grow. How long have you kept that plant in your enclosures and you never had any issues? Thank you

 

[elizaann2]

Hello and warmest welcomes! I am so sorry to hear about your Jackson's baby. My heart goes out to you. Give me a little bit to go through your post and I will see what supports and advice I can offer you.

 

[MissSkittles]

REPTI ZOO Large Reptile Terrarium, Vertical Reptile Tank, Wide & Tall Chameleon Cage with Top Screen Ventilation (36" W X 18" D X 36" H (Glass)) https://a.co/d/hSzwXZN

That's the exact terrarium that I have. The top is a screen cover for ventilation. Below the doors at the bottom there's a water line area where it holds water, above that there is small openings where the glass connects which also could be ventilating, but the Tank's not completely enclosed without any type of ventilation. As far as drainage all I have in there is the jungle mix bedding and the Moss that was recommended to hold the moisture. Like I said I'm a novice and I'm trying to learn. I don't see how this enclosure wouldn't work and I appreciate any help in getting it functioning better. I don't want tree frogs, I want a chameleon thanks

Ok. That is a nice terrarium, but it is lacking in ventilation at a lower level. I just grabbed any tank pic to illustrate. Do you see the holes below the doors - circled in red? Those are for ventilation to provide the chimney effect. Air gets sucked in those lower holes and then goes up and out thru the top.

 

[MissSkittles]

I know you want a chameleon, and I just want you to have success and happiness with one…not more heartbreak. I see elizaann2 just came on. She is wonderful and will help you. I don’t know if she does bioactive, but many of us do and can help you get that set up properly. It’s a lot of learning between the two but if you’re up for it, so are we.

 

[Gloriousone]

Hello and warmest welcomes! I am so sorry to hear about your Jackson's baby. My heart goes out to you. Give me a little bit to go through your post and I will see what supports and advice I can offer you.

Thank you, everybody's been mentioning you and your helpfulness. Hopefully you can educate me!

 

[Gloriousone]

Ok. That is a nice terrarium, but it is lacking in ventilation at a lower level. I just grabbed any tank pic to illustrate. Do you see the holes below the doors - circled in red? Those are for ventilation to provide the chimney effect. Air gets sucked in those lower holes and then goes up and out thru the top. View attachment 346248

I see. Is there something I can do or is this terrarium no good?

 

[MissSkittles]

I see. Is there something I can do or is this terrarium no good?

Many who have glass enclosures use small pc fans to suck air out, but they do have the lower ventilation. The only thing I could think is to see if a glass professional could drill some tiny holes below the door frame or in the doors.

 

[MissSkittles]

https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/intro-to-bio-activity.2429/ For setting up bioactively, this is an excellent guide.

 

[Gloriousone]

https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/intro-to-bio-activity.2429/ For setting up bioactively, this is an excellent guide.

I read the guide and I had already added everything but the drainage level, I never added lava rocks or separation, but I do have the jungle mix soil and Moss and the other mixtures as well as the leaf litter and the isopods and springtails. So I will change it all out and put lava rocks on the bottom and then the separation cover, now it says to add a small PVC pipe that goes above all the layers of course, what do you guys use to suction the water out of the PVC pipe?

As far as the ventilation like I said the base of this was a single piece by itself and has all the glass connecting to it there is air that escapes, you can only fill it up with water to a certain point before it will flow out the sides, there's definitely no place to hook up a fan however. There's two doors and then there's a lock mechanism on the bottom, if you take the lock mechanism off there is a hole right there. Otherwise I guess I'd have to have somebody drill some holes if there's no other way. I'm not sure why they would make a glass terrarium specifically for chameleons and not add something that is needed like these holes that you're talking about, it's most unfortunate at that price. Thanks

 

[MissSkittles]

You would use a siphon like this to remove excess water. https://www.amazon.com/Tetra-Cleane...699418861&sprefix=Fish+tank+si,aps,209&sr=8-1 Having a very good drainage layer is essential or your plants will get root rot and everything will become a muddy stagnant mess.

 

[elizaann2]

Sorry that took so long I had to get my little one to bed. See my response below in bold:

Hello guys I recently purchased a male rainbow Jackson chameleon from underground reptile in Florida. I'm located in Pennsylvania got the little guy overnighted 3 days ago. Unfortunately today he seems to have passed away. He was moving around fine this morning from Branch to branch and a few hours later I seen him laying on the bottom of the terrarium stiff as a board but still brightly colored, I currently have him in a bowl of warm water in front of his basking light, but I don't see him coming back. This is the second company that I purchased one from this last week the other one came from California and was DOA. Again, I am so sorry to hear this has been your experience, Jackson's are such special creatures and I truly hope you can find a good CB to raise up. I am currently looking for a female Jacksons so if I come across a good breeder I will be sure to let you know. Its hard to find good breeders for these guys as they have more specific temp requirements and people generally are unwilling to pay $200-$300 for one from a good breeder when they can occasionally find them in a big box pet store for $50.

I done my research and purchased all the needed accessories , but I'm not sure if I did something wrong or if it was just too stressed from the travel and new environment or was in poor health . But I do want to try again with another chameleon Maybe a different type I used to have a veiled years ago that lived for years but wanted a Jackson . Its possible, however if baby passed so quickly my guess is something was going on with him before you got him. I suspect parasites based on the description of his poops....

I attached photos of my terrarium setup and of the chameleon. I know you just purchased this beautiful enclosure, but for a Jackson's I would actually suggest a hybrid enclosure. Glass traps heat in which is bad for our Jackson's and they hold in humidity a little too well.... I currently am using a ReptiBreeze that has three sides wrapped with corrugated plastic. The door I have covered MOSTLY (1/2 inch not covered) with the Frost King Shrink Window Kit. I have the service door on the bottom left unaltered and the top of the enclosure screen as well to create the chimney effect for good airflow. For me, this is a perfect combination to hold in the humidity levels I need at night, but allow enough airflow during the day so I can get humidity levels to 40-50%.

I got a glass terrarium 36x18x36 it has the two glass swing doors in the front and a ventilated lid. See above

I used a Reptisun hood T5 HO with a 5.0 UVA UVB light and a 75 watt heat bulb with UVA as well for his basking lamp. This is perfect, I can't remember what my watt is for my heat light but its relatively low, I also have it raised above my enclosure 3 inches so my boys basking branch gets no hotter than 80 degrees. I don't know how long you had your basking light on, but mine is only on for 45 minutes in the morning. If my day temps get a little lower due to the changing season I may turn my basking light on again for no more than 10 minutes to help heat he enclosure up a little. In my earlier days with my boy I did notice him getting too warm with the basking light on for any longer than what I previously mentioned.

I also have a automatic mister I have it set to go off for 5 minutes every 6 hours . I have a thermometer hydrometer and it's digital the temperature is usually mid 80s during the day and high 70s at night , the humidity stays around 75 to 80 and goes up at night around 85. Thats quite a bit of water going through your system. Most of us mist for 1-2 minutes in the morning before lights come on, and then again once lights turn off at night. Do you have a fog machine or are you open to fogging at night? Chameleons get their hydration in the wild by the fog banks that roll in in the early morning so this might be something for you to consider adding. You'll use less water too . Your humidity is pretty high as well. You want 40-50% humidity during the day and 80-100% at night. High humidity and high temperatures will cause a respiratory infection.

As far as what's inside the enclosure I have jungle mix bedding with Galapagos green moss and a few live plants pathos and a fern I also have isopods in there. I used some tree branches for climbing. Lovely . I do love the bioactive enclosures. I do not have any of my chameleons in a bioactive set up, but my crested gecko is in one and its so fun to watch the whole system work together. With how much water a chameleon needs, you will need to have a good drainage system set up. There is a great podcast on a drainage system for a bioactive enclosure for chameleons in the Chameleon Academy Podcast called "Bioactive Naturalistic Vivariums" aired on Thursday, August 25th, 2022. Check it out and see what you can add for your next cham. As @MissSkittles mentioned in a previous post, I would get rid of all the branches, probably the top layer of soil and not use those plants for another animal. Really really honestly though, you don't know what this little guy had and if I am being completely honest, if I was in your situation, I would get rid of everything apart from the enclosure and start over. Organic materials are very porous and if your baby Jackjack had a really terrible parasite like coccidia your next cham will surely get that parasite and you are dealing with another nightmare.

I only had this guy for 3 days but I gave him some gut loaded crickets and I seen him eat a few of them the first day. I put about three crickets in there and he ate them and then two days later I put three more in there and he tried to capture a few of them but couldn't so they've been alive in the enclosure for about a day now. I fed the Crickets Castaway Organics insect load and also fluckers Cricket quencher but I also misted their enclosure as well just for the extra water. I also put some apple and banana in with the crickets. Do you know how old he was? Just to give you an idea on food intake, my boy will be 8 months old on Oct 16th. He is currently eating 10 crickets daily and 5-10 bsfl every other day on top of the crickets...plus treats. I gut load my crickets with fresh fruits and veggies found on the attached document, I'm including another one with other good feeders besides crickets too

I did see him urinate the white substance a couple times the first and second day and his fecal matter was a brownish sludge. Brownish sludge is a bad sign, I would suspect parasites personally. His poops should be a firm almost oval shape but not 'dry firm' more like 'hydrated soft firm'.

So my question is now what do I need to do to better my enclosure and if you guys have any advice where to purchase. I would prefer something shipped to my home as it's easier though some may be against that. Neither one of the places I ordered from even with the Dead on Arrival will not refund me so I don't want to go through that again either as I'm already out quite a bit of money due to the unfortunate loss of two chameleons. Thanks guys.

I've also included a list of chameleon safe plants for you to review as well as a photo of my Jackson's enclosure.

Some things to note with the enclosure:
- Lots of plant coverage - you basically want the top branches where your baby gets UVB and heat to be 'out in the open' the rest of the enclosure should be so thick with plants that your sweetie can get away from heat, UVB, and our prying eyes when they are feeling shy.
- Branches - you want your basking branch again to be no more than 80 degrees, test it with your hand on the branch for several minutes to ensure its a gentle heat so your cham won't get any thermal burns. Your UVB branch you want to be about 6-9 inches away from the light and to be running parallel with the light/hood.
- Temp gages - because Jackson's are so sensitive to heat I would strongly recommend getting these Govee hygrometers. You can set them to send you an alarm for if your temps get too high. I have a temp probe on my basking branch right under my basking light and then two Govee sensors at the top of my enclosure and another on the bottom. My sensors are set to send me an alarm if my boy's enclosure gets above 77 degrees. This gives me time to start cooling things down. Jackson's temps should be 68-76 degrees during the day (no hotter, that is important because they are susceptible to getting temporal gland infections and other illnesses if kept at high temps and they are a montane species, they will pass away if they get too hot). Night time temps are the trickiest for us keepers, they need 65 degrees or preferably colder. Most people have to buy AC units for the room their Jackson's is in to get to these temps.

Lastly, I also follow the care sheet provided by the Chameleon Academy

JK now lastly, I've attached a photo of my Jackson's enclosure for ideas for set up. Let me know what questions you have!

 

[Sonny13]

Hi. Above @MissSkittles and @elizaann2 covered everything and I would strongly suggest adding a pc fan to the enclosure for better circulation. Also would I take out one glass door and replace it with plastic, this way you could add a fan in it that blows are in. Are use i.e. screen or sort like.
Here's is an idea for the drainage inside a glass enclosure, this setup was for a Boehmei which comes from the same area as a Jackson and has the same husbandry needs.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/project-royal-penthouse-suite-ranjo.183628/

 

[Gloriousone]

All right guys thank you for your help @elizaann2 I appreciate all the information you supplied and look forward to more advice. I'm going to try to stick with this enclosure. I contacted the company that manufactures it on their website they mentioned custom jobs I'm asking them if perhaps they can do a ventilated door for me or something similar that I can just replace the door with. If I can't figure that out I might just hire someone who drills glass and see how that goes.

As far as the company that I got the chameleon from they were no help at all I asked them all the right questions and about my enclosure and they said everything was perfect and I also asked him the age and all they could say is no older than 6 months.

And I did most of my research via websites and online Googling about Heating and everything else before I purchased. Several of the ones that I read said to keep the Basking lamp on all day with the normal light and turn off at night and that's what I was doing, so a big difference from 45 minutes in the morning like you suggested and then off the rest of the day.

I will definitely try to find where I can order different insects all I have are gut loaded crickets and superworms.

I did remove everything from the tank and set up a drainage and layered it with lava rocks like suggested from the post and then a cover that allows water through and then I layered the soil as well. Added Galapagos green moss on top of the soil, put new branches in there as well and a large Ficus in the center like someone else suggested. I now have a lighter side and dark side of the tank for a cooling area. Right now all I have is one pathos and the ficus I plan on putting one or two more Pathos in there. I ordered some new isopods and springtails. I'll attach a picture of what's going on so for. It's about 3:00 p.m. here today and as of this writing the temperature is 76° with 50 humidity in the setup.

 

[MissSkittles]

Wonderful changes! @elizaann2 is just an awesome person and teacher. I’m so very glad that you found your way here. There’s so much wrong and old info all over about keeping chameleons and it’s hard to know what and who to believe. Keep exploring Chameleon Academy…there’s wonderful videos and podcasts to check out too. Another fantastic source is Neptune the chameleon, although not so much specific info for Jax. For variety of feeders, check out some of the forum’s sponsors. https://www.chameleonforums.com/sponsors/?tag=food Rainbow mealworms, Dubia roaches and the Critter Depot all sell a variety of feeders. Keep working on getting your ventilation improved and hopefully by the time you get that resolved, a beautiful little Jackson’s will be ready and waiting for you.

 

[Sonny13]

All right guys thank you for your help @elizaann2 I appreciate all the information you supplied and look forward to more advice. I'm going to try to stick with this enclosure. I contacted the company that manufactures it on their website they mentioned custom jobs I'm asking them if perhaps they can do a ventilated door for me or something similar that I can just replace the door with. If I can't figure that out I might just hire someone who drills glass and see how that goes.

As far as the company that I got the chameleon from they were no help at all I asked them all the right questions and about my enclosure and they said everything was perfect and I also asked him the age and all they could say is no older than 6 months.

And I did most of my research via websites and online Googling about Heating and everything else before I purchased. Several of the ones that I read said to keep the Basking lamp on all day with the normal light and turn off at night and that's what I was doing, so a big difference from 45 minutes in the morning like you suggested and then off the rest of the day.

I will definitely try to find where I can order different insects all I have are gut loaded crickets and superworms.

I did remove everything from the tank and set up a drainage and layered it with lava rocks like suggested from the post and then a cover that allows water through and then I layered the soil as well. Added Galapagos green moss on top of the soil, put new branches in there as well and a large Ficus in the center like someone else suggested. I now have a lighter side and dark side of the tank for a cooling area. Right now all I have is one pathos and the ficus I plan on putting one or two more Pathos in there. I ordered some new isopods and springtails. I'll attach a picture of what's going on so for. It's about 3:00 p.m. here today and as of this writing the temperature is 76° with 50 humidity in the setup.View attachment 346274View attachment 346275View attachment 346276View attachment 346277

Great!!

Due temps they’re key for Jackson’s, the temp know is perfect and if you leave the basking light on all day or just a few hours depends on the temps in the enclosure. My Jackson sits free range and only has 4 hours of a basking light. But, more importantly are the night temps they should be no higher then 65 and can go down to 50. Any higher will lead in long term to health problems, because they don’t get a proper sleep due the higher temps, this will affect their immune system, just like us humans when we don’t get our sleep for a long period.

 

[Gloriousone]

Wonderful changes! @elizaann2 is just an awesome person and teacher. I’m so very glad that you found your way here. There’s so much wrong and old info all over about keeping chameleons and it’s hard to know what and who to believe. Keep exploring Chameleon Academy…there’s wonderful videos and podcasts to check out too. Another fantastic source is Neptune the chameleon, although not so much specific info for Jax. For variety of feeders, check out some of the forum’s sponsors. https://www.chameleonforums.com/sponsors/?tag=food Rainbow mealworms, Dubia roaches and the Critter Depot all sell a variety of feeders. Keep working on getting your ventilation improved and hopefully by the time you get that resolved, a beautiful little Jackson’s will be ready and waiting for you.

Thank you! I'm glad there are some good improvements. I will definitely check out the other sources and the sponsors for the different food. Hopefully I hear back from the manufacturer and it'll be easy for the ventilation if not I'll make a plan b.

 

[Gloriousone]

Great!!

Due temps they’re key for Jackson’s, the temp know is perfect and if you leave the basking light on all day or just a few hours depends on the temps in the enclosure. My Jackson sits free range and only has 4 hours of a basking light. But, more importantly are the night temps they should be no higher then 65 and can go down to 50. Any higher will lead in long term to health problems, because they don’t get a proper sleep due the higher temps, this will affect their immune system, just like us humans when we don’t get our sleep for a long period.

 

[Gloriousone]

Thank you for the advice! I'll definitely pay attention to the temperature changes and increase or decrease the time the Basking light is on.

 

[elizaann2]

All right guys thank you for your help @elizaann2 I appreciate all the information you supplied and look forward to more advice. I'm going to try to stick with this enclosure. I contacted the company that manufactures it on their website they mentioned custom jobs I'm asking them if perhaps they can do a ventilated door for me or something similar that I can just replace the door with. If I can't figure that out I might just hire someone who drills glass and see how that goes. You are very welcome! I am happy to offer support any time you need it . I totally get it with the enclosure, they are quite expensive and if you can make adjustments like you mentioned to make your current enclosure work then that is great. I especially love the idea that @Sonny13 had with replacing a door with a screen door. Brilliant.

As far as the company that I got the chameleon from they were no help at all I asked them all the right questions and about my enclosure and they said everything was perfect and I also asked him the age and all they could say is no older than 6 months. Ugh I am so sorry to hear this. If he was no more than 6 months then he should be eating about what my boy is eating or even a little more than that to be honest.

And I did most of my research via websites and online Googling about Heating and everything else before I purchased. Several of the ones that I read said to keep the Basking lamp on all day with the normal light and turn off at night and that's what I was doing, so a big difference from 45 minutes in the morning like you suggested and then off the rest of the day. There is a LOT of incorrect husbandry information out there. I would suggest finding a mentor that you trust to teach husbandry and sticking with them. A lot of websites will copy and paste information and not all of it is accurate or up to date. Neptune the Chameleon and the Chameleon Academy are great resources that I have personally used myself.

I will definitely try to find where I can order different insects all I have are gut loaded crickets and superworms. You've got a good start for bugs. I get my BSFL, supers, wax worms and dubia from Dubia.com. I get my silk worms from Costal Silks and FramsChams. I've also heard great things about Rainbow Mealworms so they might also be someone to check out. @SauceGandhi sells grasshoppers, which are an excellent staple as we find that a good chunk of chameleon diets in the wild consist of grasshoppers. I haven't tried these yet but the next time I order bugs I'm getting some

I did remove everything from the tank and set up a drainage and layered it with lava rocks like suggested from the post and then a cover that allows water through and then I layered the soil as well. Added Galapagos green moss on top of the soil, put new branches in there as well and a large Ficus in the center like someone else suggested. I now have a lighter side and dark side of the tank for a cooling area. Right now all I have is one pathos and the ficus I plan on putting one or two more Pathos in there. I ordered some new isopods and springtails. I'll attach a picture of what's going on so for. It's about 3:00 p.m. here today and as of this writing the temperature is 76° with 50 humidity in the setup. Beautiful! This looks much better! I love the ficus, keep adding plants! Remember that empty space in an enclosure is wasted space . Temp and humidity is great! As you continue to prep your enclosure keep an eye on the temps and humidity. If you are struggling with anything let us know and we can help you problem solve.

 

[elizaann2]

Great!!

Due temps they’re key for Jackson’s, the temp know is perfect and if you leave the basking light on all day or just a few hours depends on the temps in the enclosure. My Jackson sits free range and only has 4 hours of a basking light. But, more importantly are the night temps they should be no higher then 65 and can go down to 50. Any higher will lead in long term to health problems, because they don’t get a proper sleep due the higher temps, this will affect their immune system, just like us humans when we don’t get our sleep for a long period.

Precisely! A lot of us have to buy an AC unit for the room our Jackson's is in to get temps that low in our house. I got this one for my room and quite like it