dani_and_gamora
New Member
Hi Everyone!
I am new to owning a chameleon, and have tried to/ still am researching everything from enclosure set up to normal behavior so that I don't stress her out. However, actually having her in front of me I am still not sure exactly what is just chameleon behavior and what is a problem that needs fixing.
When I got Gamora home from the store, I started to notice that she was super active but very clumsy and kind of reaching out into empty spaces like she couldn't see. I realized that she had not opened her eyes for a day and a half and immediately brought her to the vet. Thankfully the vet identified she was Vitamin A deficient and laid out all the steps to getting her healthy again.
When administering eye drops, I needed to handle her. Every morning I would place my hand in front of her and she'd crawl right on. She never puffed up, gaped, or anything that showed stress. She would also eat from a syringe and then crawl right back into her cage with no problem.
Now her eyes are open and bright - YAY! - And she eats with her tongue finally! So she is pretty much back to being what I think looks like a happy and healthy active chameleon.
But - Now that her eyes are open and she's feeling better, I noticed she puffs her chin out very far and will gape for 1-2 seconds randomly with seemingly no need for stress. She hasn't easily come out of the cage in the morning onto my hands in a few days, and I have not forced her in any way. She just either starts to lower her neck or back up so I back off. She is still very active in her cage though, and once she calms down she goes back to exploring her plants.
I noticed this morning that she turns a darker color with a few spots/stripes and starts to puff out right when her lights get turned on.
Are her lights startling her? Is there a way for me to make this transition between very soft lighting (from my windows in the morning/my bedroom light) to her bright UVB and basking light?
Chameleon Info:
Cage Info:
Current Problem - Seems really stressed out in the morning right when her lights come on. Is this normal/is there a way to make her more comfortable? Or is she just puffed out and slightly gapey because I'm doing something wrong?
Thank you! I'm glad to be a part of the chameleon community!
I am new to owning a chameleon, and have tried to/ still am researching everything from enclosure set up to normal behavior so that I don't stress her out. However, actually having her in front of me I am still not sure exactly what is just chameleon behavior and what is a problem that needs fixing.
When I got Gamora home from the store, I started to notice that she was super active but very clumsy and kind of reaching out into empty spaces like she couldn't see. I realized that she had not opened her eyes for a day and a half and immediately brought her to the vet. Thankfully the vet identified she was Vitamin A deficient and laid out all the steps to getting her healthy again.
When administering eye drops, I needed to handle her. Every morning I would place my hand in front of her and she'd crawl right on. She never puffed up, gaped, or anything that showed stress. She would also eat from a syringe and then crawl right back into her cage with no problem.
Now her eyes are open and bright - YAY! - And she eats with her tongue finally! So she is pretty much back to being what I think looks like a happy and healthy active chameleon.
But - Now that her eyes are open and she's feeling better, I noticed she puffs her chin out very far and will gape for 1-2 seconds randomly with seemingly no need for stress. She hasn't easily come out of the cage in the morning onto my hands in a few days, and I have not forced her in any way. She just either starts to lower her neck or back up so I back off. She is still very active in her cage though, and once she calms down she goes back to exploring her plants.
I noticed this morning that she turns a darker color with a few spots/stripes and starts to puff out right when her lights get turned on.
Are her lights startling her? Is there a way for me to make this transition between very soft lighting (from my windows in the morning/my bedroom light) to her bright UVB and basking light?
Chameleon Info:
- Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
- Gamora is a female Veiled chameleon. They told me she was about 3 months old. I have had her for about 3 weeks.
- Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
- I had to handle her every morning for about 5 minutes to administer eye drops and a syringe of food prescribed by a vet.
- Now I try not to handle her unless she comes to my hand.
- Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
- While she was sick she would not eat, so she was eating the dosage prescribed of food mix. Now she eats meal worms, wax worms, and crickets.
- She only eats about 5-6 of any combination of these three every morning. Sometimes into the afternoon.
- Have not gutloaded feeders yet since she is fairly new, but plan to. I dust her worms with Reptivite every other day.
- Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
- Reptivite with D3 every other day.
- Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
- I have the little dripper set up on top of her cage dripping down some leaves from the ceiling of the cage.
- Mist 2-3 times a day for about a minute each
- I have seen her drinking, sometimes drinking a lot. I do not visibly see her drinking every day though.
- Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
- She has never been tested for parasites.
- The first time I saw her droppings it was a medium brown with a slightly orange/white urate.
- Now I haven't been able to find her droppings, but don't see any signs of dehydration.
- History - Not sure where she was originally from, but I purchased her at a Pet Supplies Plus.
Cage Info:
- Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
- Screen cage
- 24x24x48
- Lots of vines/leafy plants throughout
- Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
- Not sure of brands/models offhand, but she has a UVB fluorescent tube light at the top back of her cage and a basking bulb that is currently 150 watt. I also have a heat "light" for nighttime because her temps drop a lot, but it does not give off any actual light. Just emits heat.
- 12-14 hours with the lights on, then darkness in the whole room afterwards. This schedule has teetered because I don't have a timer set up yet, but it will be 12 hours on / off soon.
- Usually lights go on around 6:50-7:00am, off around 8:00-8:30pm.
- Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
- Right now I have a system that has a thermometer on one wire hidden near her basking spot (usually anywhere between 85-95 degrees F) and another wire that is hidden within the leaves of her cage to read the humidity (anywhere between 55-85% from when I am at work during the day and when I'm home to mist her cage).
- Lower in the cage is in the mid 70s usually
- At night, around 75-79 degrees
- Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
- Included above ^
- Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
- Yes; A large hibiscus plant, a small pothos in the bottom, and two other types of leaves that I cannot recall the name of at the moment, but they were on several accepted plant lists.
- 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?
- In my bedroom, up against the wall directly below my air vent. Air flow seems not to hit her cage since the vent is at the very top of my ceiling, so there is a large area between the top of the cage and the vent much higher.
- My ceiling fan is a few feet away, but is only on for brief periods of time and not very often.
- Not a ton of foot traffic through my room, except for myself and my parents occasionally helping with her.
- Top of cage is 48" from the floor
- Location - Where are you geographically located?
- New Jersey
Current Problem - Seems really stressed out in the morning right when her lights come on. Is this normal/is there a way to make her more comfortable? Or is she just puffed out and slightly gapey because I'm doing something wrong?
Thank you! I'm glad to be a part of the chameleon community!