We just purchased a cameleon for my son almost a week ago. He is about a year old. He pooped once the day after we purchased him but has not pooped since. Is he stressed or are we doing something wrong. We had a hour drive home i8n the car. We have him in a 35 gallon aquarium with lots of plastic plants and branches. We feed him crickets everyday dustd with powder. The dirst day he ate about 18, now he eats about 6 to 10 a day. We have put fresh berries and romain lettuce in a bowl in his cage but he won't eat it. We mist him and his cage twice a day with a bottle of water. He is a little dark in colour right now but when we take him out he turns a nice bright green, he seems to love being out.
poop problem
- Thread starter Jewel
- Start date
Brad Ramsey
Retired Moderator
What kind of chameleon?
Heika
New Member
Hi Jewel,
It is possible that there is a problem with him not pooing, especially considering the amount of insects he is eating. How about answering some questions about your husbandry first? Also, do you have any pictures of the enclosure and the chameleon?
Heika
Cage Info:
It is possible that there is a problem with him not pooing, especially considering the amount of insects he is eating. How about answering some questions about your husbandry first? Also, do you have any pictures of the enclosure and the chameleon?
Heika
Cage Info:
- Cage Type - What kind of cage are you using? What is the size?
- Lighting - What kind of lighting are you using? How long do you keep the lights on during the day?
- Temperature - What temperature range have you created? Basking spot temp? What is the temperature at night?
- Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels?
- Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
- Location - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas?
- Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon.
- Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What kind of schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
- Supplements - What are you dusting your feeders with and what kind of schedule do you use?
- Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
- Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings.
- History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.
- Current Problem - The current problem that you are concerned about.
Cage Info:
Chameleon Info:
- Cage Type - What kind of cage are you using? What is the size?
35 gallon glass aquarium - Lighting - What kind of lighting are you using? How long do you keep the lights on during the day?
a 15w 5.0 uvb bulb and it is on from about 7 in the morning till about 11 at night - Temperature - What temperature range have you created? Basking spot temp? What is the temperature at night?
I am unsure of the temp. We have a 75w sun glo neodymium daylight lamp in the day and a 75w infrared heat bulb for at night from 11 at night till 7 in the morning. - Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels?
I am unsure of the humidity levels. We are using a spray bottle to spray him down plus we soak down the plastic plants, wood and sides of the glass. We do this twice a day. - Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
no live plants as of yet - Location - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas?
Chameleon Info:
- Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon.
It is a male, we are unsure of the age as the guy we purchased it off of said 2 yars old but we took him to our local pet store and they said about a year old. - Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What kind of schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
We have only had him a week so we are still learning and I don't know what gut-loading is but I intend to research it now. The first day he ate all 18 large crickets we put in his cage within a hour of giving them to him. We we told by the pet store that they only eat about 4-6 a day so we have only been putting in about 6 day and he eats them all. We have put in blueberries but he never ate them, we have put in small pieces romain lettuce but he only eats about 2 or 3 pieces, I just put in grate4d cabbage and carrots but he hasn;t ate it yet. - Supplements - What are you dusting your feeders with and what kind of schedule do you use?
we dust his crickets and food with rep-cal phosphorus-free calcium with vit.D3 - Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
we just mist down everything twice a day. The first couple days we seen him drink a few times but we haven't noticed since. I just placed a small dish in the bottom of his cage but nothing yet. - Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings.
He only pooped once the day after we got him and it was black with white and orange I think - History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.
We purchased him from a guy who had a room full of assorted reptiles but didn't seem to know exactly what he was talking about. We had a hour drive home but I had the heat on full blast in the car - Current Problem - The current problem that you are concerned about.
He has not pooped since friday (4 days ago)
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Brad Ramsey
Retired Moderator
I see several problems which may or may not have to do with his pooping problem.
The glass enclosure is going to stress him out. Either from seeing his reflection or not getting proper air circulation. Probably both.
He doesn't need heat at night.
More misting and a drip system would be a good idea.
I think he may be impacted from the stress of moving and then eating such a huge meal.
However, I am pretty new to this myself so I could be completely offbase.
Others will probably have better advice....I think he may need to go to the vet if he doesn't poop in the next day or two.
Try to make sure he has plenty of access to water (mist often!) The water dish is doing him no good...that can be removed.
Start building or shopping for a screen enclosure ( 2-3 feet deep and wide by 3-4 feet tall).
Total darkness and a drop in temp is what he needs at night.
Good luck. I'm sure he will poop soon.
-Brad
The glass enclosure is going to stress him out. Either from seeing his reflection or not getting proper air circulation. Probably both.
He doesn't need heat at night.
More misting and a drip system would be a good idea.
I think he may be impacted from the stress of moving and then eating such a huge meal.
However, I am pretty new to this myself so I could be completely offbase.
Others will probably have better advice....I think he may need to go to the vet if he doesn't poop in the next day or two.
Try to make sure he has plenty of access to water (mist often!) The water dish is doing him no good...that can be removed.
Start building or shopping for a screen enclosure ( 2-3 feet deep and wide by 3-4 feet tall).
Total darkness and a drop in temp is what he needs at night.
Good luck. I'm sure he will poop soon.
-Brad
scooter4n
Established Member
Let's bring him back to 10-12 hour days, 10-12 hour of day and then night.
You don't need heat at night if your room temps are above 60-65 at night.
For the basking spot you need to get of the thermometer, something like this with probe, so you can place sensor at your hottest spot, and same time measure your humidity, this is a good one>> http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=21243-1308-00887GT&lpage=none
You need to measure he's basking spot as about 90-95C
Your humidity should be in about 50-60% no more no less, anything out of that range will create problem.
at about year old he should eat 4-6 large crickets every other day, you can mix that with super worms or wax worms. It is normal to put them on no food for few days at older age. They can go without food for weeks.
Here is a good read about gotload for you>> http://www.veiled-chameleon.com/weblog/archives/000258.html
They don't drink from standing water, they only pick drops from the plants, so it is very important to mist them good, and have water dripping system.
Poop should me dark and white, anything other then white (orange or yellow) is dehydration
It is very not healthy to keep cham in the all glass enclosure, first because after all the misting you can't ventilate enclosure and all that moister will turn in to bacteria/mold and this will kill your chameleon, plus they are very territorial, and any reflection will cause him to stress and they can do crazy stuff they they are stress, dark colors and lost of appetite.
Let us know if this helps, please ask more questions we are here to help
You don't need heat at night if your room temps are above 60-65 at night.
For the basking spot you need to get of the thermometer, something like this with probe, so you can place sensor at your hottest spot, and same time measure your humidity, this is a good one>> http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=21243-1308-00887GT&lpage=none
You need to measure he's basking spot as about 90-95C
Your humidity should be in about 50-60% no more no less, anything out of that range will create problem.
at about year old he should eat 4-6 large crickets every other day, you can mix that with super worms or wax worms. It is normal to put them on no food for few days at older age. They can go without food for weeks.
Here is a good read about gotload for you>> http://www.veiled-chameleon.com/weblog/archives/000258.html
They don't drink from standing water, they only pick drops from the plants, so it is very important to mist them good, and have water dripping system.
Poop should me dark and white, anything other then white (orange or yellow) is dehydration
It is very not healthy to keep cham in the all glass enclosure, first because after all the misting you can't ventilate enclosure and all that moister will turn in to bacteria/mold and this will kill your chameleon, plus they are very territorial, and any reflection will cause him to stress and they can do crazy stuff they they are stress, dark colors and lost of appetite.
Let us know if this helps, please ask more questions we are here to help
Brad Ramsey
Retired Moderator
Listen to the people here!
The guy at the petstore was wrong about the enclosure and the red light.
The guy at the petstore was wrong about the enclosure and the red light.
scooter4n
Established Member
Go www.google.com and do search (I did that for months before I got my chameleon) search for >> chameleon care
read up what thousands of ppl had to say, do your search then you know what to do.
read up what thousands of ppl had to say, do your search then you know what to do.
Thank you for all the help. I will get my son to make him a large mesh cage., Is it ok if he is left in the aquarium for a couple of weeks till we get one build?
I will adjust the time for the lights being on.
I will get rid of the red light.
I will feed him less crickets and not everyday as I am doing.
Thank you all for all the information and help,.
I will adjust the time for the lights being on.
I will get rid of the red light.
I will feed him less crickets and not everyday as I am doing.
Thank you all for all the information and help,.
Last edited:
ChameleonsTree
New Member
No a couple of weeks is not ok...chameleons decompensate quickly. The cage for a full size veiled should be at least 3 feet high and 18x18 in width...this is a minimum size. He needs crickets everyday but because hes an adult he will usually need less than 10 if they are full size.
scooter4n
Established Member
You can get something like this>> http://cgi.ebay.com/Chameleon-Lizar...oryZ1285QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
not bad cage
not bad cage
Heika
New Member
An aquarium is not an ideal habitat for all of the reasons mentioned, but right now, the size is the biggest concern. That is not a lot of room for a year old veiled chameleon. Another problem with aquariums being used for housing is that they are hard to create a gradient of temperatures in. They hold heat in like.. well.. like a glass box. Your chameleon will self regulate his temperature by moving closer or further from the lights as needed. With only a small aquarium, he won't be able to get out of the heat. It sounds like you are addressing that, but the sooner you can get him into a larger enclosure the better. It sounds like he may be used to living in an aquarium if he is licking water off the glass. The fact that he is drinking is great. How do his eyes look? Are they nice and rounded out, or are they sunk in around the edges? If they are sunk in, he may be dehydrated.
A lot of chameleons don't poo on a daily basis. My male panther chameleon goes once every 5 or 6 days, but my female goes almost daily. It is possible that he just doesn't need to go yet, but with as much as he has been eating, he should have to go soon and you need to watch for signs of impaction. What size crickets are you feeding him? I feed my adult male panther 5 or 6 insects every other day. You should be falling in about that same range, but he may be making up for missed meals. It would be great if you could post some pictures... 18 crickets is a lot for any chameleon, especially if they are adult crickets. Do the crickets you are feeding him chirp?
You can upload pictures to www.photobucket.com for free and then just cut and paste the forum code it provides for you to your message window.
Heika
A lot of chameleons don't poo on a daily basis. My male panther chameleon goes once every 5 or 6 days, but my female goes almost daily. It is possible that he just doesn't need to go yet, but with as much as he has been eating, he should have to go soon and you need to watch for signs of impaction. What size crickets are you feeding him? I feed my adult male panther 5 or 6 insects every other day. You should be falling in about that same range, but he may be making up for missed meals. It would be great if you could post some pictures... 18 crickets is a lot for any chameleon, especially if they are adult crickets. Do the crickets you are feeding him chirp?
You can upload pictures to www.photobucket.com for free and then just cut and paste the forum code it provides for you to your message window.
Heika
I wish I had a larger cage right now but I just can't afford to buy the stuff to make one at the moment.
The guy we bought him from had him in a aquarium so he is use to drinking from the sides. I have soaked him down about 4 times today in hope that this will help. I think his eyes are ok but I am not to sure what I am looking at.
Thanks for the information on the photos, I am downloading some right now and will post when they are done.
What are the signs of impaction?
They only have small and large crickets at the pet store and they said to buy the large ones. I really do thing he was not well looked after before we got him.
I have not heard any chirping from the crickets as of yet.
Thank you so much.
The guy we bought him from had him in a aquarium so he is use to drinking from the sides. I have soaked him down about 4 times today in hope that this will help. I think his eyes are ok but I am not to sure what I am looking at.
Thanks for the information on the photos, I am downloading some right now and will post when they are done.
What are the signs of impaction?
They only have small and large crickets at the pet store and they said to buy the large ones. I really do thing he was not well looked after before we got him.
I have not heard any chirping from the crickets as of yet.
Thank you so much.
this is a picture of his aquarium
Right now we are using a reptile sand in the bottom of it. We also have terra fibre coconut fiber and bed-a-beast. We are confused as what to put in the bottom. Everyone tells us something different.
This is how he lookes in the day time
and this is the colour he goes when he is sleeping
Right now we are using a reptile sand in the bottom of it. We also have terra fibre coconut fiber and bed-a-beast. We are confused as what to put in the bottom. Everyone tells us something different.
This is how he lookes in the day time
and this is the colour he goes when he is sleeping
scooter4n
Established Member
YOu can remove that drinking cup from the tank, he won't need that 
Sand can be a problem.
When he shots his toniq at the cricks, it's it sticky at the end, and if he get some sand in to him, that can souse some stomach clogging or even infection
looking at the colors he looks stressed. its ether temperature, humidity, reflections,or even climbing problems, they live in verticals world, and climb up and down all the time, so not having that can cause him to stress.
How about traffic in the room? Lots of ppl walking back and forth?
How high is the cage located (on the floor or table?)
Don't worry we can try to help your little guy.
Sand can be a problem.
When he shots his toniq at the cricks, it's it sticky at the end, and if he get some sand in to him, that can souse some stomach clogging or even infection
looking at the colors he looks stressed. its ether temperature, humidity, reflections,or even climbing problems, they live in verticals world, and climb up and down all the time, so not having that can cause him to stress.
How about traffic in the room? Lots of ppl walking back and forth?
How high is the cage located (on the floor or table?)
Don't worry we can try to help your little guy.
scooter4n
Established Member
Chameleons don't walk the ground, they are tree climbing creatures. so they don't really care about whats on the ground, It's more for your benefit. Something easy to clean.
Look at the other people setups, after years of having cnams they got the system down.
You can look at my cage setup here>> https://www.chameleonforums.com/new-cage-works-1930/
You want something easy to clean, something that collects water, and easy to remove before its molds.
You really need to get some thermometer/hydrometer, to see what's going on in the cage.
Chameleons change color depending on the temperature too. Dark colors if they need more heat, and lighter if they get to much, so if he seats at the basking spot and all dark, that can be that he is not getting enough heat.
Happy to help you.
Look at the other people setups, after years of having cnams they got the system down.
You can look at my cage setup here>> https://www.chameleonforums.com/new-cage-works-1930/
You want something easy to clean, something that collects water, and easy to remove before its molds.
You really need to get some thermometer/hydrometer, to see what's going on in the cage.
Chameleons change color depending on the temperature too. Dark colors if they need more heat, and lighter if they get to much, so if he seats at the basking spot and all dark, that can be that he is not getting enough heat.
Happy to help you.
