out of town for a week

[unknown91]

so, i'm going out of time for a week and it's my first time leaving for more than 1 day since i had her.
she's (I THINK) 6 months old.
first, i'll post some pictures of her to tell me if she's looking fine or not, and next, i'm gonna need some advices on how to not mess this week up.
i mention that i leave with my sister and gf, but since i'm leaving with my gf, my sister will be the only one around, but the main problem is that she's very busy, leaving before my cham wakes up, arrives after she falls asleep.
so
1. is it ok if i feed her many superwoms (i know they are not a good staple meal, but my dubias are still very small) before i leave ? my sister is afraid of the bugs and worms so ...
or i can put some in little containers and tell her when to feed the cham ..
2. 2 mistings a day is enough ? she's around just 2 times/day at home and i don't wanna make a homemad misting system. she drinks every time i mist her and i didn't have any problems with dehydration.
3. is it ok if she mists her before the light turns on ?
her program is from 10 AM to 10 PM (both UVB and UVA lights), but i see her sometimes waking up before the lights turn on (i guess the sun form outside wakes her up), but she's still a bit ... unfriendly

 

[unknown91]

pics before her shed (1 week ago)
here she seems ok with her weigth, but in the next pictures you can see she looks a bit fat (i checked the best i know, and i did not feel any eggs inside, no marbles to feel )

 

[unknown91]

pictures before her shed (today)
here she look with a big belly (maybe because she just had her lunch ?!)
when she was a little bit younger she was fatter cuz i was feeding her every day, but know i feed her every other day and she lost weigth.
i'm feeding 3-4 superworms and 2-3 small/medium dubias every other day. is it ok for a 5-6-7 month girl ?

 

[unknown91]

oh, and what do your chams do the whole day ? mine, most of the time stays like that (first 2 pics) and just moves when eats and moves under the light ... is that a problem ?

 

[jannb]

Welcome to the forums. Do you have a laying bin for your girl? In the last set of pictures she looks round. Female do lay eggs without a male even being around and if they are not provided with a laying bin they can become egg bound and die. I'm attaching a few links for you about females, egg laying and the laying bin.

Now to answer your questions.

1. It would be better to leave the food in a container and let your sister give her a couple (2) everyday. Super worms are ok every now and then but not a good staple feeder and fatty. A variety of feeders is best.

2. Two mistings a day is fine.

3. I don't recommend misting at night. I do my last misting a few hours before lights out. You want to give your enclosure time to dry out before sleep time. I'd recommend setting up a dripped.

https://www.chameleonforums.com/blo...-keepers-young-veiled-panther-chameleons.html
http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/2007/12/keeping-female-veiled.html
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/jannb/345-egg-laying-laying-bin.html#comment2073
https://www.chameleonforums.com/laying-bin-set-up-educational-video-77225/

 

[unknown91]

thanks for the response, i'm not new on this forum, just new on 'leaving her alone kinda stuff'.
i know how to set up a laying bin but it wasn't the case cuz she just reached maturity (she's 6 months tops), and i don't feel anything in her belly, i think she's just fat because last month i gave her superworms + dubias (majority of superworms), but i will try to find a big bucket before i leave, just to be sure.
i also know i should not mist her before she sleeps. i usually mist her at 8PM (lights turn off at 10PM), but i also mist her like 4-5 times a day (the 'cage' dries of kinda fast)
so if she mists her 2 times a day it's good (especially if she drinks every time) + the feed it won't be a problem i guess.
it's ok if i move the 'waking up' and 'sleeping' time according to my sister's schedule ? maybe 7AM to 7PM ? 3 hours delay is too much or they don't know this stuff ?

 

[laurie]

Changing to 7AM til 7PM is fine. most of us have lights on 12 hours a day. I don't usually mist at night but if there is no choice, misting at night is better than no misting. Putting the feeders in cups it the best idea. I would also put some food in with them. Maybe carrots or something that won't get mold before you return. Otherwise it should be fine. A dripper is wonderful for your cham drinking, if you are able to use one. Best of luck and let us know how it goes.

 

[unknown91]

i mist at night (couple of hours before the sleeping time) cuz i have college and i can't mist in the morning, i always mist after 4PM (4PM, 6PM and 8PM, that's the schedule most of the time).
i feed her every other day (bugs and worms), and the days i don't feed her i put her little pieces of apple, she likes it and eats 3-4 little cubes every day, carrots i tried once and she didn't eat it, i will try again

 

[jannb]

thanks for the response, i'm not new on this forum, just new on 'leaving her alone kinda stuff'.
i know how to set up a laying bin but it wasn't the case cuz she just reached maturity (she's 6 months tops), and i don't feel anything in her belly, i think she's just fat because last month i gave her superworms + dubias (majority of superworms), but i will try to find a big bucket before i leave, just to be sure.
i also know i should not mist her before she sleeps. i usually mist her at 8PM (lights turn off at 10PM), but i also mist her like 4-5 times a day (the 'cage' dries of kinda fast)
so if she mists her 2 times a day it's good (especially if she drinks every time) + the feed it won't be a problem i guess.
it's ok if i move the 'waking up' and 'sleeping' time according to my sister's schedule ? maybe 7AM to 7PM ? 3 hours delay is too much or they don't know this stuff ?

My apologies I thought you jointed the forums only a few months ago.

I would highly recommend setting up a laying bin. They can lay eggs as early as 4 months old. I have read on here of them laying and dying at 5 to 5 and 1/2 months old. I am experienced with raising veileds and have had a good many females over the years and have never been able to feel eggs in their tummy before they lay. Once my very experienced chameleon vet say one of my females didn't have eggs because he could't feel any and she laid the very next after he was here.

 

[unknown91]

well ... that's not very encouraging.
so ... any other signs before they lay eggs ? i heard they stop eating before they lay, is that true ? mine is eating as a lion every time ...
and i don't get that 'joint only a few month ago' ... hope i didn't offend you. i'm not as experienced as you are but i'm not 'welcome to the forums' new, that's why i said ...

 

[jannb]

I have several signs of laying in my blog and a new one that I need to add is I have noticed their front nails get longer and shaper for digging. Some cut back on their food before laying but I've had veiled girls eat like they were staring right up until they lay.

 

[unknown91]

i will try to make time to read your post to find those signs, i just hope she won't need to lay exactly this week. i planned to put a laying bin after i came back, but now you scared me ... )
also : i keep her temperature low (80-85 basking spot) and as i said i cut back on her food a month ago ... so maybe it will be fine
when she's bending over a branch her tummy is flat, or when she's reaching over for a branch she looks skinny, only when she stand like that has a belly, could be from the superworms ?

 

[jannb]

I recommend keeping a laying bin in the enclosure at all times after they reach 4 to 4 1/2 months old. If she were mine, I would defiantly get a laying bin in there before going out of town.

 

[unknown91]

the problem is that i leave in a few hours ...
i didn't think about that cuz she's not restless, she's not wandering at the bottom of the cage, she's eating, etc ... did not see any sign that she could be gravid.
now i don't have time to get a bin and some dirt, can i put some flower dirt in a 30cm tall kitchen bowl ? is that ok for a week ?

 

[jannb]

the problem is that i leave in a few hours ...
i didn't think about that cuz she's not restless, she's not wandering at the bottom of the cage, she's eating, etc ... did not see any sign that she could be gravid.
now i don't have time to get a bin and some dirt, can i put some flower dirt in a 30cm tall kitchen bowl ? is that ok for a week ?

It's better than nothing.