Pathos chomping Veileds.
- Thread starter ZEROPILOT
- Start date
CasqueAbove
Chameleon Enthusiast
My trick is to have so many plants they can't eat them all. My female has learned to harvest. She lets some branches and plants sprout fresh shoots, then eats them all. I have a bare branch on my umbrella plant from this.
TwiceVeiled
Avid Member
Indie 500 driver
They look tasty
Nom nom nom nom
They look tasty
Nom nom nom nom
Persnickety Parson's
Chameleon Enthusiast
If I recall correctly they use the leaves as roughage to help clear out their internal plumbing.
https://www.chameleonbreeder.com/podcast/92-veiled-chameleon-feeding/
MissSkittles
Chameleon Enthusiast
Wow! These guys are eating right down the the nub! Maybe try getting several massive Pothos and rotate them in/out of the enclosures.
TwiceVeiled
Avid Member
Yes! Our veiled loves to eat them! We keep the good parts of the plants in her enclosure and in her free range area the stubs. For some strange reason she seems to like the stems as well even when there are leaves available!
absolutbill
Chameleon Enthusiast
Only my female veiled that I currently have, out of all the chameleons I've owned, eats her pothos. Thankfully I've got some back-up plants to rotate in and out of her cage. I even own her brother and he doesn't do it 
Thatwizard420
Chameleon Enthusiast
Make sure they're grown responsibly...
Most likely they're not... They use systemic pesticides in most nurseries....
Pothos are really easy to propagate..
get a cutting, put it in water in about 1-3 days you'll have a root..
Plant it and in about 2 weeks you'll have a nice pothos.
No rooting hormone required
Most likely they're not... They use systemic pesticides in most nurseries....
Pothos are really easy to propagate..
get a cutting, put it in water in about 1-3 days you'll have a root..
Plant it and in about 2 weeks you'll have a nice pothos.
No rooting hormone required
jamest0o0
Chameleon Enthusiast
I didn't listen to this, I don't have the time ATM... do they explain why they think this for veileds, but other species do not? I mean it would make sense, most animals consume some kind of fiber. Wonder why not all chams consume leaves if this is the case.
Persnickety Parson's
Chameleon Enthusiast
They touch on it, yes but they only focus on veileds in that episode
Veiled females seem to strip the pothos bare. I've never had a male veiled that would do that so @ZEROPILOT youre the first.
Although it's possible that the veileds in the wild use the leaves for roughage....animals also use leaves to get rid of parasites and settle upset stomachs and maybe even use the for other reasons....like missing nutrients in their diet?
@ZEROPILOT what do you feed/gutload the insects with, what supplements do you use and what insects do you feed to the chameleons?
I, like @jamest0o0 said though...why would only veileds use them as roughage?
Although it's possible that the veileds in the wild use the leaves for roughage....animals also use leaves to get rid of parasites and settle upset stomachs and maybe even use the for other reasons....like missing nutrients in their diet?
@ZEROPILOT what do you feed/gutload the insects with, what supplements do you use and what insects do you feed to the chameleons?
I, like @jamest0o0 said though...why would only veileds use them as roughage?
CasqueAbove
Chameleon Enthusiast
Is this primarily a Veiled thing, or does it exist commonly throughout the species, though maybe at varying levels?
Persnickety Parson's
Chameleon Enthusiast
Maybe due to the environment they have to eat more insects that have a very hard to digest exoskeleton and need help to pass the chunks? And the instinct carried over to captivity?
Or maybe due to their shortened natural lifespan in the wild they need to keep their pipes clear so they can eat and grow faster.
I think Petr said it was because they are softer insects sometimes and needed roughage to help it pass through the digestive system...I'm not sure... @cyberlocc might remember.
Persnickety Parson's
Chameleon Enthusiast
That makes sense too, caterpillars are everywhere in the desert.
cyberlocc
Chameleon Enthusiast
Ya I believe that is what he said as well.
cyberlocc
Chameleon Enthusiast
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I personally work with the assumption that is correct.
No matter which species or location, I would guess that the species of Insects consumed are the same.
Petr did not think so, when we had discussed this with Jacks studies.
The true pain of the matter, is that the studies we have available are things like the ones Jacksjill posted. Where the interest was never truly about the Chameleon and their diet. But rather, the introduced species (in those studies case, Jacksons in Hawaii) effects on the local insect populations to see, what level if any ecological damage the introduced species will do.
Seeing as we don't have any in depth studies, to that extent on Jacksons in Kenya, we really don't know.
I personally work with the assumption that is correct.
No matter which species or location, I would guess that the species of Insects consumed are the same.
Petr did not think so, when we had discussed this with Jacks studies.
The true pain of the matter, is that the studies we have available are things like the ones Jacksjill posted. Where the interest was never truly about the Chameleon and their diet. But rather, the introduced species (in those studies case, Jacksons in Hawaii) effects on the local insect populations to see, what level if any ecological damage the introduced species will do.
Seeing as we don't have any in depth studies, to that extent on Jacksons in Kenya, we really don't know.
