New Veiled Cham Owner

[Chrissy123456]

We just brought home our first chameleon and we love her. I think she's a HER based on what I've already read but I want whatever advice i can get so lay it on me experts!!

I'm not sure how old she is, we got her from a pet store, but she's small (fits on my finger easily) very bright green and friendly so far. I've handled her alot and she doesnt seem stressed by it, she's eaten 6-7 crickets today with ease and seems to enjoy her enclosure. I've read all about the temps and seem to have that down I think... all I need is proper temps and UVA and UVB light right??
and about feeding.... seem to be on the right track there too but I have read conflicting things about handling....

Should we handle her often if we want her to be friendly and open to being held as she gets bigger?

And also read some worrisome news about females and them laying eggs regardless of male interaction and that it can potentially kill her?? How do I make sure that doesnt happen?

Thanks!

 

[KarmaChameleon1337]

For the egg laying, have a bucket/container in her enclosure pretty deep with damp play sand, when it's time for her to lay don't disturb her, don't even let her see you and she'll lay, if you do disturb/let her see you she'll abandon the hole and become eggbound.

 

[jannb]

Hello and welcome to the chameleon forums. This is a great place to learn about chameleons. I keep veileds and they are a pleasure to work with. I have a blog for new keepers and one for egg laying and the laying bin that I'll attach for you below. They will answer allot of your questions.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blo...-keepers-young-veiled-panther-chameleons.html
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/jannb/345-egg-laying-laying-bin.html#comment824

 

[Mitchbob]

Congrats on the new chameleon!

Handling any reptile can be a stressful situation for them but they each have their own unique personalities to them. My jackson chameleons all loved to be handled by almost any one, and almost anyone could hand feed them. I have had a female veild now for a few months and she is not as friendly as the jackson's but she has warmed up to me over time.

Usually any time i open her cage i am greeted with a hiss and the puffy neck but she calms down when she sees i have food, The thing that has always worked well for me was to hand feed them, It took some time with my veild but she associates me with food now so shes usually pretty easy to handle.

UVA/UVB bulbs are a must for any reptile, but nothing will replace natural sunlight, I have a indoor enclosure for night/winter and a out door for the day/summer. Try to give them as much sunlight as possible,

 

[Chrissy123456]

thanks for all the info. my girl is pretty small still and we have her in a 'for now' terrarium, about 24" tall. i know as she gets bigger we will need something 48" tall but should we do an outside one for her as well? We live in Houston where is nice and humid but HOT this summer.

She doesnt get huffy puffy with me when I get her out but she does change color and get a little darker but nothing like when i take her outside... i'm assuming its because she sees all the tall trees and stuff but when i take her out she turns crazy shades of dark green and a deep deep purplish. Once shes back inside she calms down almost immediately.
Should i be concerned if she is in her cage and not bright neon green at all times or is it completely okay if shes a shade or so darker? She's eating fine and exploring her home... she loves to watch me while i'm in the room and seems content.

Also I read those blogs (thank you for all that info) and I'm hoping if i follow the advice closely she wont have any eggs... is that unrealistic?

 

[kinyonga]

Welcome to the forum and the world of chameleons!

You said..."And also read some worrisome news about females and them laying eggs regardless of male interaction and that it can potentially kill her?? How do I make sure that doesnt happen?"...If the husbandry is good and she has no physical deformities, and if you provide a proper place for her to lay the eggs, there should be no issues with her laying the eggs.

You said..."She doesnt get huffy puffy with me when I get her out but she does change color and get a little darker but nothing like when i take her outside"...the color changes are a form of language for the most part...when you take her outside you put her "on guard" for predators. When you take her out of her cage you also take her out of her territory and she is on guard for predators.

Here's some information I hope will help concerning gutloading, supplements, etc.....
Appropriate cage temperatures aid in digestion and thus play a part indirectly in nutrient absorption.

Exposure to UVB from either direct sunlight or a proper UVB light allows the chameleon to produce D3 so that it can use the calcium in its system to make/keep the bones strong and be used in other systems in the chameleon as well. The UVB should not pass through glass or plastic no matter whether its from the sun or the UVB light. The most often recommended UVB light is the long linear fluorescent Repti-sun 5.0 tube light. Some of the compacts, spirals and tube lights have caused health issues, but so far there have been no bad reports against this one.

A wide variety of insects that have been well fed and gutloaded should be fed to it.

Since many of the feeder insects we use in captivity have a poor ratio of calcium to phosphorus in them, its important to dust the insects just before you feed them to the chameleon at most feedings with a phos.-free calcium powder to help make up for it. (I use Rep-cal phosphorus-free calcium). Not sure how to tell you to dust WC insects if that is what you will be doing.

If you also dust twice a month with a phos.-free calcium/D3 powder it will ensure that your chameleon gets some D3 without overdoing it. It leaves the chameleon to produce the rest of what it needs through its exposure to the UVB light. D3 from supplements can build up in the system but D3 produced from exposure to UVB shouldn't as long as the chameleon can move in and out of it. (I use Rep-cal phos.-free calcium/D3).

Dusting twice a month as well with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene (prOformed) source of vitamin A will ensure that the chameleon gets some vitamins without the danger of overdosing the vitamin A. PrEformed sources of vitamin A can build up in the system and may prevent the D3 from doing its job and push the chameleon towards MBD. However, there is controversy as to whether all/any chameleons can convert the beta carotene and so some people give some prEformed vitamin A once in a while. (I use herptivite which has beta carotene.)

Gutloading/feeding the insects well helps to provide what the chameleon needs. I gutload crickets, roaches, locusts, superworms, etc. with an assortment of greens (dandelions, kale, collards, endive, escarole, mustard greens, etc.) and veggies (carrots, squash, sweet potato, sweet red pepper, zucchini, etc.)

Calcium, phos., D3 and vitamin A are important players in bone health and other systems in the chameleon (muscles, etc.) and they need to be in balance. When trying to balance them, you need to look at the supplements, what you feed the insects and what you feed the chameleon.

Here's a link to keeping veiled females...
http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleo...le-veiled.html

Here are some good sites for you to read too...
http://chameleonnews.com/07FebWheelock.html
http://web.archive.org/web/200605020...Vitamin.A.html
http://web.archive.org/web/200406080...d.Calcium.html
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/
http://web.archive.org/web/200601140...ww.adcham.com/
If you can't access the sites above that have the word "archive" in you can do it through the WayBackMachine.

 

[Chrissy123456]

so what is the best way to house veiled chameleon? I want her home to be as happy for her as possible... I've read a lot of other posts and seen examples but which is the best way to do it??

Also, will there ever be a time that she enjoys or wants to come out for visits? Right now she is really reluctant to come out and seems uneasy while held... i desperately want her to be happy when intereacting with us and dont want it to be stressful to her... as she gets older will it get better?