new to chameleons need some advise

[Vidaro]

I just received a Chamaeleo calyptratus and i have some questions conserning its health.
I handled it with ease but it was walking on me with its eyes shut...does that mean anything? Is it possible that its in hybernation since its wild caught? Its preety cold to the touch unlike our other reptiles and seems to be asleep and really not alert or bothered when we are around it or touching it (no signs of stress)
Also it has a small wound on its tail (see picture) any advise on what to do about that?

Im currently keeping it in a big plastic IKEA box with sticks of a tree i usually find them on. and bars from a bird cage so it can climb on + a heat mat on the sides like i do with my spiders.
No real basking spot so tomorow im moving the container closer to the window
or if we r lucky maybe moving to a terrarium with a lamp.

the wound

 

[lanceman]

raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com This is a good place for you to start. As far as eyes closed its probably just stressed out or it could be sick probably both.
First things you should work on proper basking spot with UVB, uvb dosnt go through glass incase you didnt know.
You will need to get a better cage in the next few days.
They require lots of water compared to most lizards they much prefer to drink from a mist on leaves or a drip system, do a search on these options there are tons of ideas for em.
The heat mat is no good for the chams they need an overhead heat source house bulb and lamp work really good

 

[Julirs]

Where are you from? And yes that wound needs to be cleaned and treated.

 

[Vidaro]

im from Greece. This speciement was found in an open dry area with no vegitation other than some dry weat. The guy who found it said at first he thought it was run over by a car but then saw he was in one piece... except for the wound. How can i clean the wound?
Can i use vetadin?
About the caging it will pprolly be re housed on monday when we can go shop for some lamps and so.. thnx for the tip a bout glass and uvb, ill find some kind of mesh lid and put him outside during the day.
Should i move the heat mat to the bottom instead of the side? I gave te tank a good mist so that theres enough droplet on the leafs for it to drink from.. should i throw in a cricket too or should i wait a bit? ( im guessing it can stress him now right?)

 

[kinyonga]

It bothers me that its eyes are shut. It could have been too cold for it so its now well. If the wound happened a few days ago, it could have given it an infection. I think its important to warm it up to the mid to high 80's as soon as possible. I wouldn't feed it too much until its warm enough. You can use a regular household incandescent bulb for heat for now...just be sure it can't climb on the bulb.

How warm is it in Greece where it was found this time of year?
How warm is its "cage" right now?

I don't know what vetadin is...do you mean vetadine (containing iodine)? You can use diluted betadine (like iodine). If the tail allowed infection in then the chameleon will need an antibiotic.

 

[Vidaro]

I hope up this morning to find her doing all good.
She opened her eyes and her skin felt warmer than yesterday.And amazingly she ate 3 out of 5 crickets so far i put in the enclosure.
@kinyoga temps here are 25-30 during the day if its not cloudy like today.

here is the temporary enclosure


she will stay there for a couple of days untill shops open so i can buy material for a new place.probobly gonna house it outside since its wild caught (at least for the summer)

and yes i ment vetadine but no vets here deal with reptiles so i dunno about the antibiotic

 

[summoner12]

Good luck and welcome

I hope up this morning to find her doing all good.
She opened her eyes and her skin felt warmer than yesterday.And amazingly she ate 3 out of 5 crickets so far i put in the enclosure.
@kinyoga temps here are 25-30 during the day if its not cloudy like today.

here is the temporary enclosure


she will stay there for a couple of days until shops open so i can buy material for a new place.probobly gonna house it outside since its wild caught (at least for the summer)

and yes i ment vetadine but no vets here deal with reptiles so i dunno about the antibiotic

The enclosure you have should only be used for a couple of days.... even that is kind of a bad idea. Chameleons need ventilation and air flow. As for the wound, you can use a triple ointment on it. Silvadene is a good idea if you can get it.

Read Brad's Ramsey's site.

Also read the UV guide website to give you and idea of the chams' UV needs. If you house him/her outside be sure to give it good cover so he/she can hide from the sun. Chams don't need a ton of UVB. They bask in direct sun in the morning and later afternoon, not mid day.

This is my Panther's cage. This kind of cage setup is what your veiled will need.

This is the cage for my Melleri, same thing will work for your veiled as well.

 

[Vidaro]

Thnx for the tips summoner12
Making the enclosure wont be much trouble and taking care of the uv and temps wont be much of a problem either, since my cousin who is helpinng me with this project is an experienced reptile keeper (snakes monitors turtles tree frogs...) wot we are more interested in is the behaviour of the chameleon in general (stuff like the higher they are the safer they feel, or like i just noticed she hate to be misted ) so any sites like the
Brad's Ramsey's site u gave me would be real nice


Since we are making an out door cage will we need some kind of soil? do they burrow in case of cold or hybernation? Do they ever leave the trees for any other reason than finding a new tree or mating?

 

[summoner12]

Thnx for the tips summoner12
Making the enclosure wont be much trouble and taking care of the uv and temps wont be much of a problem either, since my cousin who is helpinng me with this project is an experienced reptile keeper (snakes monitors turtles tree frogs...) wot we are more interested in is the behaviour of the chameleon in general (stuff like the higher they are the safer they feel, or like i just noticed she hate to be misted ) so any sites like the
Brad's Ramsey's site u gave me would be real nice


Since we are making an out door cage will we need some kind of soil? do they burrow in case of cold or hybernation? Do they ever leave the trees for any other reason than finding a new tree or mating?

If you have a female she will need to lay eggs. They lay eggs regardless of being bred with a male or not. If you put her cage outside and build it off the ground, she'll head down and dig like she would in the wild. that would be the most natural for her. If you plan to put the cage on your deck or patio, you can provide a laying bin for her when the time comes to lay. If you put a large pot for the plant you plan to use into the enclosure with room for her to dig, she will try to dig. If you find her digging remove her from the cage and place her in a 5 gallon bucket with a mixture of peet moss and play sand. It should be about a 50/50 mix (I like 40/60 sand/peet). Get the mixture wet enough so that you can make holes in the dirt and it won't cave in... but not super wet.

You will find her wandering around the entire cage. climbing on the screen and walking on the ground at times. This is normal. If you find her on the ground a lot she might need to lay eggs... see above.

Edit: and about the misting. are you using a hand spray bottle? If so, fill it with HOT water. it'll make the mist 'warm'. She still might not like it very much but mister her for a good 3-5 minutes. If you don't see her drink, keep misting. You can also set up a dripper.

 

[kinyonga]

If its a female, then you need to provide a place for it to dig to lay eggs. They can produce eggs even when not mated.

If you have a piece of screen you could cut away most of the lid of the cage and screen over the hole you make in the lid. It would give better ventilation. It shouldn't be completely closed in with no way for the air to get in.

They all seem to hate to be misted...but its still necessary. Don't spray water into her mouth...it might end up in her lungs. You can set up a dripper so that it will drip onto something in the cage so she will drink from that. Just don't leave water standing in the bottom of the cage.

You need supplements to dust the insects with also. If you are using insects from outside, then be careful they didn't come from an area where insecticides were sprayed.

If you have any more questions, just ask!

Here are some more sites that you might like to read...
http://adcham.com/
http://chameleonnews.com/
http://web.archive.org/web/20060502...als.com/vet/index.php?show=8.Gout.Basics.html

 

[Vidaro]

2 more questions left,
as i said she is a wild caught female if she lays eggs how can i tell if theyr fertile or not?
Smashing them open would be one way (only joking)
And i have some trouble with the water supply.. i keep misting the leaves but they dry in approx 5 mins.
I dont know what a dripper is and im preety sure i cant get one from the local petshops here.... but perhaps the fluid bag they use at the hospitals (usually connected to a needle) after a surgery or an accident might be usefull? sorry but dont know wot theyr called in english:/
Thnx for ur relpies guys saves alot of time for me

 

[summoner12]

2 more questions left,
as i said she is a wild caught female if she lays eggs how can i tell if theyr fertile or not?
Smashing them open would be one way (only joking)
And i have some trouble with the water supply.. i keep misting the leaves but they dry in approx 5 mins.
I dont know what a dripper is and im preety sure i cant get one from the local petshops here.... but perhaps the fluid bag they use at the hospitals (usually connected to a needle) after a surgery or an accident might be usefull? sorry but dont know wot theyr called in english:/
Thnx for ur relpies guys saves alot of time for me

with the eggs... dig them up after she lays and place them in an egg bin. Do some searching on the forum for that... pretty simple. the basics of that are vermiculite and water and an incubator. let them 'bake' for a couple of weeks. if they are no good they will mold over. if they are good they will swell.

As for the dripper you can take a deli cup or plastic cup or bottle and poke a small hole in the bottom, fill with water and your good to go. Don't use the dripper in that rubbermaid you have there... it'll collect the water and it'll be bad. Just mist her often enough and for long enough that you see her drink a couple of times a day.