On the ground for a week now?

[wodesorel]

Jane's been spending more and more time on the ground. Last night she slept there. (Earlier in the week I was moving her back up in the evenings, but I figure she's doing what she wants and am now staying hands off.) I know she can get around the tank fine because she comes up when food is put in her feeding cup, but for whatever reason she keeps wedging herself between the pots, or between the screen and the pots.

Being female, I know there is a chance it's eggs, but I've felt her stomach and there's no sign of any. She doesn't look anything like the gravid female veils I've seen posted here recently. She has to climb through her laying bin to get to where she's been staying, too.

Any ideas? She's perky, not dehydrated, eating normally. Just chooses to get herself into tiny spaces... Nothing has changed in that room or in her cage in over a month.

I only go in to that room twice a day, and even then I'm trying not to bother her. (Once when I get up to check food and water on everything, and then I try to peek in right before lights out to make sure everything will be good until morning.)

 

[alphakenc]

Maybe she has PMS...Pre medItate. Syndrome.....
I would suggest let her come out her cage often freerange her bit,maybe that will help

 

[brownie64]

Well this seems Odd Given that she is arboreal, but if she is only doing it at night while she is sleeping, and seems fine otherwise I would lean towards her being ok.
Maybe that's just where she wants to sleep do to it being more cool. How old is she?

 

[JaxyGirl]

What are you using for a basking bulb and how many Watts is it?
What is the temp of her basking spot? It might be to hot for her.
Can you post a pic of her entire enclosure and some pics of your Cham?

 

[alphakenc]

Well if she is down there meditate,she might be getting eggs developed anyday soon,especially when that egg bury bucket is right next to her.

 

[alphakenc]

Eggs are like a box of white chocolates,u never know when they will be arrive after a PMS..Pre medItate. Syndrome

 

[wodesorel]

She's doing it all day long.

We think she's going to be two sometime this summer? Previous owner was sketchy with the details. She's the one that we got at supposedly a year and a half of age and that weighed 80 grams, with MBD to where she couldn't use her tongue properly. She's up to 150 grams, a grip so strong she pokes holes in my fingers, and she never misses an insect.

No basking bulb - the room is warm enough without it. It's 85 at the top under the UVB and 80 at the bottom, measured with a temp gun.

Cage (taken a few weeks back, but there's been no changes)


Last full pic I have of her, taken a week ago:



And this was taken just a moment ago:



I could open the flap, slide her out with a lot of fussing on her part, and get her back up top - but she never wants to stay up there so I don't see the point in bothering her?

 

[alphakenc]

On the second thought,due to her sexy huggable weight ,it might be too hard to support her body mass,so she chooses to be down below,the big beautiful veiled lady club spa

 

[alphakenc]

I know that is a beautiful setup you got....have u try to rearrange the set up inside that cage,maybe it can help her to explore once again on her new bedroom setting,if that dont help,then I will highly recommend to get a check up with the chameleon specialist vet,just to be sure,everything is ok with her,what are u feeding her n how many feeders,vegetables,cause she is not a young veiled anymore,she might need more vegetarian diet

 

[alphakenc]

I also rephrase on my thread #8,cause the words didnt come out correctly on ur beautiful lovely chamy,she is sooo huggable

 

[brownie64]

80 at the bottom seems a little hot I think she just might be trying to find a cool spot. I don't think this is the issue because you said she is still strong and eating, but when the time comes and their life is over that is what they will start to do stay on the bottom, but nothing you described other than staying on the bottom points to that. I hope I didn't scare you just want to tell you all my theories.

 

[alphakenc]

Me too,I didnt meant to say ur cham are big.... but I rather give you my honest opinion then tell u a lie....I think she is feeding very well by you,maybe she just happen to be a bigger bone structure side of a female veiled,personally I like it big,more huggable but in a health situation like this , i will take that as a cautionary sign to be taking care off.
I dated a big lady before,more huggable n squeezeable,the only thing I care about at that time is being afraid she eat all my food thats all n I can eat a whole chicken myself

 

[brownie64]

After studying the pictures more I think alphakenc is on to something here. When is the last time she laid eggs she can have them as early as every three months from what I understand. Mine never had them that close together, but they say it's possible. She looks like she could be gravid to me in the middle pic on thread #7. Or maybe you are just feeding her too much. What, and how much do you feed her?

 

[alphakenc]

I think alphakenc is on to something here.

Yes I love all woman size they all created equal,petites or large it all looks beautiful to me,I guess im just a womanizer cause they all equally beautiful n sexy

 

[alphakenc]

@brownie64 thank u for ur kindness explanation bucket of chicken on me tonight

 

[wodesorel]

The previous owner wouldn't/couldn't tell me. All I know is that she's had two clutches in her life and they were huge ones at around 50 eggs. (If what she said could be believed - know that she was starved, dehydrated and without any heat source or UVB for both!) I'm assuming she's due, but so far her fatness seems to be all hot air. When she's sleeping or the few times I've had her out, there isn't much on her.

I just started to cut back on the food since she cut back on eating so much. She was so skinny I was giving her two meals a day there at the start. Within the last couple of weeks we've gone down to 4 superworms or 8 small crickets every day to every other day. There are calciworms and flies mixed in here and there, too. She refuses food now as well when she's full. She is eating while on the ground.

I could cool her off more, but her cage would need to be moved to the floor. Right now the bottom is 4 feet off the ground.

 

[jajeanpierre]

I'm going to add my 2 cents. She might be going to the ground because she is too hot--80 at the bottom seem like it must be really hot up top. Do you have a basking light? If so, turn it off and see if that changes her behavior.

The other issue is that she might be wanting to lay her eggs and for whatever reason, the laying bin you have isn't acceptable for her. My laying bins cover the whole floor of the enclosure.

To me, she looks on the fat side. I think she might be full of eggs, too. One other thing, sometimes you are surprised at just how many eggs there are. You look at the female and the mass of eggs and you just can't believe there were that many in there. Good luck.

 

[alphakenc]

I think she is a big bone structure veiled Mama,very huggable n beautiful
"Because u know I'm al about that bass bout that bass no treble,
I'm al about that bass bout that bass no treble
Yeah its pretty clear,I ain't no size 2,but I can shake it,shake it,like I'm suppose to do,
Cause I got that boom boom that all the boys chase and all the right junk in all the right places......
Yeah ,my mama she told me don't worry about ur size,
She says boys like a little more booty to hold at night..
You know I wont be no stick figure silicone Barbie doll
So ,it thats what you're into then go ahead move along"....
The next big thing...big "huggable sexy veiled thing"

 

[oneillchameleons]

I agree with jajeanpierre. You mention that you don't have a basking bulb because the room is 85 degrees without it, but the chameleon needs a gradient in order to regulate it's body heat. It should be 85 degrees under the basking bulb and about 72 at the bottom of the cage. This gives them levels of heat that they can choose as they need. I suspect she's trying to get to the coolest area of the enclosure. I would try to cool down the room or relocate the cage, add a basking bulb and see if that helps.

 

[wodesorel]

Why does the caresheet for Veileds here say 75-80 ambient for females, then? It is 85 under the UVB light, exactly as the caresheet advises.

Everything I've read said to never have the entire bottom covered in loose substrate, due to drainage and bacterial and impaction issues??? She has a 12x12x12 lay bin as I had been told to do.

Why has no one said otherwise before this? I am not going to stress her out and change things right now...

After watching her more closely, I think she's on the bottom because her joints are bad from the MBD and she can't get her belly off the branches enough to get comfortable. I'd hit her up with metacam, but it seems like in chameleons it can cause kidney damage easily? She's ballooned in the last couple of days, so it is looking like eggs after all. Just gotta wait it out.