Rate my cage!

Trace1603

New Member
Hey guys, my female veiled has been acting strange since we got her. I’m a first time owner as well which I know is bad but I got a ton of help and doing as much as I can to make her happy and comfortable. I’m starting to think however she doesn’t like her cage? She always goes down to the one bottom corner where outside the cage it’s open and like looks like she’s trying to rip out of the cage. She’s pregnant right now as well but I haven’t seen her digging, it honestly seems like she tries to avoid touching the ground as much as possible cause she clings to the side just above the bottom as she does this. I know they aren’t super social, but she always seems to want out. Now at the reptile show i got her she was walking around all over the table and over people and such. And she does seem happy when she’s out, she turns from her gravid colors to a more green with gravid. I’m just worried the cage isn’t enough or whatever else could be causing it.
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So here’s her when she’s out and about so I’m gonna think that she’s somewhat normal and happy.
image.jpg

Here’s her cage where she’s like on the door cause I came up and I think she wants out now. But does it look ok? I think I have plenty of cover for her. The temperature sits at 70-75 normally and humidity is 35-50 if I leave the fogger off but I believe that’s ok. I adjust it at night time of course. Any help would be great
 
Hi there, sorry I was offline yesterday. If you could please fill out the form below by copy pasting it into your reply then fill out with detail. This will give us the additional info to help you. The enclosure will need some changes to make it correct for her but we will get into those when the form is filled out.


Chameleon Info:
  • Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
  • Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
  • Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
  • Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
  • Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
  • Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
  • History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

Cage Info:
  • Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
  • Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
  • Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
  • Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
  • Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
  • Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
  • Location - Where are you geographically located?

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.
 
Hi there, sorry I was offline yesterday. If you could please fill out the form below by copy pasting it into your reply then fill out with detail. This will give us the additional info to help you. The enclosure will need some changes to make it correct for her but we will get into those when the form is filled out.


Chameleon Info:
  • Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
She’s a female veiled at I believe 8 months. I’ve had her for about 2, 3 weeks now.
  • Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
I mean semi often cause she always seems to like climb on the door of the cage when I come in my room and like sprints out onto my hand. But she’s made it clear before when she doesn’t want me to touch her.
  • Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
I’m feeding her medium sized dubia roaches dusted without d3 every day except Fridays where I alternate between with d3 and multivitamins. Of those I try to feed her about 6-8, lately though she’s only been eating 2-4 and then acts uninterested. I’m just throwing in a baby carrot every day for the roaches and then taking the old one out.
  • Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
The dust and such is all zoo med. the schedule is right above.
  • Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
I mist the cage for a minute every 8 hours and she seems to stay hydrated. I’m thinking of turning it on sooner though but so far, like I said I’m seeing white urates and keeping an eye out constantly for them. There was one where I couldn’t really tell if there was anything but I’m keeping a close eye on them.
  • Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
It’s hard to see the actual poop sometimes but the couple I’ve seen they seemed pretty ok. And I’m not sure about the parasites.
  • History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.
I have no previous history about her, I got her from a reptile show and at that she was moving all around the table and seemed very people friendly.
Cage Info:
  • Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
It’s a reptibreeze screen one. I can’t remember the exact dimensions but it’s the large. I think 18x18x32 or 36?
  • Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
Zoomed brand again for lights. A 75watt for now, about 7-8 inches from here her back would be at the basking spot. Thinking of upgrading to a 100 watt cause I think the cage may be a bit cold. Any advice on that and how high to put that bulb would be greatly appreciated.
The uvb light is a t5 12”.
  • Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
Basking spot is about 80-85, I have I think a zoo med digital that I just tied around the basking spot and set the stick thing right on top. The temp/humidity gauge sits at the back of the cage somewhat near the top, about 3/4 of the way up and it sits at like 70-75 but I can move it to the ground below the basking around like 1/3 up? The lowest it would get overnight is 65 which I heard it could possibly go lower so I believe it’s ok.
  • Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
Humidity id like to get higher and I plan to get shower curtains on two of the sides to help with that. But it used to sit at about 40-50 now the lowest it goes is 35 so I need that higher. I’ll even turn on my fogger at max and it doesn’t get higher than 60 so I definitely need to increase it I think. I do try and spike it at night.
  • Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
Yea there’s four at the bottom, I can’t remember the one name but there’s a Swiss cheese plant, pothos, I forget the name of the other but I know it’s safe for sure cause we looked it up when we bought it.
I have some fake vines and stuff throughout the top to provide cover for her but I’d like to get a live pothos in the corner to get that cover.
  • Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
It’s in my room on my desk. There’s no fans or vents and sometimes I move around in my room as need be but I try to move slow and steady as to not freak her out. If I’m doing stuff late at night I cover her cage with a towel. And I cannot tell you the exact from the exact but like 5-5.5 feet?
  • Location - Where are you geographically located?
I’m in southern Pennsylvania.
Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.
I’m sure there’s something wrong with the cage as she’s either spending her time at the basking spot constantly or at the one bottom corner looking like she’s trying to break out. I will say, that corner is the only corner with an open space outside of it, and seeing how she was at the show could she just be explorative? She’s also pregnant right now and I’ve been keeping a close eye on that progress but so far I can’t really see profound evidence of eggs in her and no real signs of digging despite in the corner where she looks like she’s escaping. However when I see her doing it she normally looks like she’s avoiding ground contact. She just clings to the side of the cage.
 
See my feedback in bold. Please let me know if you have any questions. This will be a lot of info.

Chameleon Info:

Your Chameleon
- The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?

She’s a female veiled at I believe 8 months. I’ve had her for about 2, 3 weeks now. How long has she been showing gravid coloring? The dark black.

Handling
- How often do you handle your chameleon?

I mean semi often cause she always seems to like climb on the door of the cage when I come in my room and like sprints out onto my hand. But she’s made it clear before when she doesn’t want me to touch her. You will want to try not to handle her. She is wanting out because she is not content with the enclosure and is looking for some place better to go. With her being gravid she needs to be in the cage to focus on laying her eggs.

Feeding
- What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?

I’m feeding her medium sized dubia roaches dusted without d3 every day except Fridays where I alternate between with d3 and multivitamins. Of those I try to feed her about 6-8, lately though she’s only been eating 2-4 and then acts uninterested. I’m just throwing in a baby carrot every day for the roaches and then taking the old one out. She may be getting close to laying. They will go off food prior to laying. Now for the feeders time to cut her back on how much she is getting food and temps directly impact how large a clutch of eggs will be. Now I would wait to reduce or change food intake until a few days after she lays her eggs. But here is the info for what you want to do. By about 6-7 months she should be getting about 5-8 small feeders each day. At about 7-8 months you want to slowly reduce by cutting down feeder amounts so that she is on a feeding schedule of 3 days a week with 3 feeders. You want them to be on this schedule by the time they are 9-10 months old. See image for gutload for insects. You want more than just a carrot.


Supplements
- What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?

The dust and such is all zoo med. the schedule is right above. What multivitamin are you using? Can you please take a pic of your three supplements so I can see the labels?

Watering
- What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?

I mist the cage for a minute every 8 hours and she seems to stay hydrated. I’m thinking of turning it on sooner though but so far, like I said I’m seeing white urates and keeping an eye out constantly for them. There was one where I couldn’t really tell if there was anything but I’m keeping a close eye on them. Just make sure she is able to fully drink. Not getting enough water can cause issues later in life for them. 1 minute is not very long to trigger a drinking response.

Fecal Description
- Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?

It’s hard to see the actual poop sometimes but the couple I’ve seen they seemed pretty ok. And I’m not sure about the parasites. Parasites are very possible since she was purchased from a reptile expo... You can not see them they are microscopic. Some are fairly harmless in low numbers and others can cause extreme health issues. Getting a fecal sample tested is the only way to know for sure.

History
- Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

I have no previous history about her, I got her from a reptile show and at that she was moving all around the table and seemed very people friendly.

Cage Info:

Cage Type
- Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?

It’s a reptibreeze screen one. I can’t remember the exact dimensions but it’s the large. I think 18x18x32 or 36? So this will need to be upgraded. It is too small for her. A female should really have the same cage size as a male. They need the room to move around. 24x24x48 is recommended.

Lighting
- What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?

Zoomed brand again for lights. A 75watt for now, about 7-8 inches from here her back would be at the basking spot. Thinking of upgrading to a 100 watt cause I think the cage may be a bit cold. Any advice on that and how high to put that bulb would be greatly appreciated.
The uvb light is a t5 12”. What UVB bulb strength are you using? Really want the fixture to be as wide as the cage to give proper coverage. I would get a 24 inch when you upgrade the cage size. I would not use 100 watt bulb. Not only can this increase thermal burn risk but it will create much too hot of temps for a female.
Temperature
- What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?

Basking spot is about 80-85, I have I think a zoo med digital that I just tied around the basking spot and set the stick thing right on top. The temp/humidity gauge sits at the back of the cage somewhat near the top, about 3/4 of the way up and it sits at like 70-75 but I can move it to the ground below the basking around like 1/3 up? The lowest it would get overnight is 65 which I heard it could possibly go lower so I believe it’s ok. So basking is actually too hot for a female You will not ever want basking to be over 78-80 for her. Very important for females because as she ages she needs this temp no higher at basking to help control the amount of eggs she produces. It also reduces her metabolism for the reduced feeder intake.

Humidity
- What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?

Humidity id like to get higher and I plan to get shower curtains on two of the sides to help with that. But it used to sit at about 40-50 now the lowest it goes is 35 so I need that higher. I’ll even turn on my fogger at max and it doesn’t get higher than 60 so I definitely need to increase it I think. I do try and spike it at night. Make sure you are not running the fogger during the day. This can cause them to develop a respiratory infection due to the heat from the lights. 35% is still within limits for a veiled. Their range is 40-50% daytime.

Plants
- Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?

Yea there’s four at the bottom, I can’t remember the one name but there’s a Swiss cheese plant, pothos, I forget the name of the other but I know it’s safe for sure cause we looked it up when we bought it.
I have some fake vines and stuff throughout the top to provide cover for her but I’d like to get a live pothos in the corner to get that cover. I would get some tall live plants. See the veiled tested ones on the image below. Pull all fake vines out. You can attach them to the outside of the cage to provide cover. But these are very dangerous to have in a veiled cage. Very high impaction risk due to them trying to eat them.

Is the bottom of the cage 100% bioactive? Drainage layer and clean up bugs? or is it only soil? If only soil you will need to either convert to 100% bioactive with sand in the soil so it can hold a tunnel or remove everything and have bare bottom and a permanent lay bin.
Placement
- Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?

It’s in my room on my desk. There’s no fans or vents and sometimes I move around in my room as need be but I try to move slow and steady as to not freak her out. If I’m doing stuff late at night I cover her cage with a towel. Make sure you are not covering the top of her cage. You want airflow. And I cannot tell you the exact from the exact but like 5-5.5 feet?

Location - Where are you geographically located?

I’m in southern Pennsylvania.

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.

I’m sure there’s something wrong with the cage as she’s either spending her time at the basking spot constantly or at the one bottom corner looking like she’s trying to break out. I will say, that corner is the only corner with an open space outside of it, and seeing how she was at the show could she just be explorative? She’s also pregnant right now and I’ve been keeping a close eye on that progress but so far I can’t really see profound evidence of eggs in her and no real signs of digging despite in the corner where she looks like she’s escaping. However when I see her doing it she normally looks like she’s avoiding ground contact. She just clings to the side of the cage.



@MissSkittles can give you specific info for what to look for with egg laying.



Screen Shot 2022-06-27 at 11.41.38 AM.png
chameleon-gutload.jpg
chameleon-food(1).jpg
laybin graphic.jpg
 
See my feedback in bold. Please let me know if you have any questions. This will be a lot of info.

Chameleon Info:

Your Chameleon
- The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?

She’s a female veiled at I believe 8 months. I’ve had her for about 2, 3 weeks now. How long has she been showing gravid coloring? The dark black.
Since we got her so no idea.
Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?

I mean semi often cause she always seems to like climb on the door of the cage when I come in my room and like sprints out onto my hand. But she’s made it clear before when she doesn’t want me to touch her. You will want to try not to handle her. She is wanting out because she is not content with the enclosure and is looking for some place better to go. With her being gravid she needs to be in the cage to focus on laying her eggs.

Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?

I’m feeding her medium sized dubia roaches dusted without d3 every day except Fridays where I alternate between with d3 and multivitamins. Of those I try to feed her about 6-8, lately though she’s only been eating 2-4 and then acts uninterested. I’m just throwing in a baby carrot every day for the roaches and then taking the old one out. She may be getting close to laying. They will go off food prior to laying. Now for the feeders time to cut her back on how much she is getting food and temps directly impact how large a clutch of eggs will be. Now I would wait to reduce or change food intake until a few days after she lays her eggs. But here is the info for what you want to do. By about 6-7 months she should be getting about 5-8 small feeders each day. At about 7-8 months you want to slowly reduce by cutting down feeder amounts so that she is on a feeding schedule of 3 days a week with 3 feeders. You want them to be on this schedule by the time they are 9-10 months old. See image for gutload for insects. You want more than just a carrot.


Supplements
- What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?

The dust and such is all zoo med. the schedule is right above. What multivitamin are you using? Can you please take a pic of your three supplements so I can see the labels?

Watering
- What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?

I mist the cage for a minute every 8 hours and she seems to stay hydrated. I’m thinking of turning it on sooner though but so far, like I said I’m seeing white urates and keeping an eye out constantly for them. There was one where I couldn’t really tell if there was anything but I’m keeping a close eye on them. Just make sure she is able to fully drink. Not getting enough water can cause issues later in life for them. 1 minute is not very long to trigger a drinking response.
The one I have only has increments of 15,30,45, and 60 for the duration and 1,3,8,12, and 24 hours on how much it goes off so how much would you recommend?
Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?

It’s hard to see the actual poop sometimes but the couple I’ve seen they seemed pretty ok. And I’m not sure about the parasites. Parasites are very possible since she was purchased from a reptile expo... You can not see them they are microscopic. Some are fairly harmless in low numbers and others can cause extreme health issues. Getting a fecal sample tested is the only way to know for sure.

History
- Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.

I have no previous history about her, I got her from a reptile show and at that she was moving all around the table and seemed very people friendly.

Cage Info:

Cage Type
- Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?

It’s a reptibreeze screen one. I can’t remember the exact dimensions but it’s the large. I think 18x18x32 or 36? So this will need to be upgraded. It is too small for her. A female should really have the same cage size as a male. They need the room to move around. 24x24x48 is recommended.
Now the one guy at the show, we didn’t get her from him but he told me that he has 6 and their all fine and has cared for more and that’s what he recommended.
Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?

Zoomed brand again for lights. A 75watt for now, about 7-8 inches from here her back would be at the basking spot. Thinking of upgrading to a 100 watt cause I think the cage may be a bit cold. Any advice on that and how high to put that bulb would be greatly appreciated.
The uvb light is a t5 12”. What UVB bulb strength are you using? Really want the fixture to be as wide as the cage to give proper coverage. I would get a 24 inch when you upgrade the cage size. I would not use 100 watt bulb. Not only can this increase thermal burn risk but it will create much too hot of temps for a female.
It’s the t5 high output which the guy recommended as well and it does cover the whole top. Right now it’s diagonal with some space at the corners where I have the mister nozzles poking through the top.
Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?

Basking spot is about 80-85, I have I think a zoo med digital that I just tied around the basking spot and set the stick thing right on top. The temp/humidity gauge sits at the back of the cage somewhat near the top, about 3/4 of the way up and it sits at like 70-75 but I can move it to the ground below the basking around like 1/3 up? The lowest it would get overnight is 65 which I heard it could possibly go lower so I believe it’s ok. So basking is actually too hot for a female You will not ever want basking to be over 78-80 for her. Very important for females because as she ages she needs this temp no higher at basking to help control the amount of eggs she produces. It also reduces her metabolism for the reduced feeder intake.
How much should the ambient temp be?
Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?

Yea there’s four at the bottom, I can’t remember the one name but there’s a Swiss cheese plant, pothos, I forget the name of the other but I know it’s safe for sure cause we looked it up when we bought it.
I have some fake vines and stuff throughout the top to provide cover for her but I’d like to get a live pothos in the corner to get that cover. I would get some tall live plants. See the veiled tested ones on the image below. Pull all fake vines out. You can attach them to the outside of the cage to provide cover. But these are very dangerous to have in a veiled cage. Very high impaction risk due to them trying to eat them.

Is the bottom of the cage 100% bioactive? Drainage layer and clean up bugs? or is it only soil? If only soil you will need to either convert to 100% bioactive with sand in the soil so it can hold a tunnel or remove everything and have bare bottom and a permanent lay bin.
Yea the bottom is just reptisoil but it has isopods in there. No drainage cause I was told by the guy that the pothos will suck all that in and it be ok. I’ve read a few sources that say reptisoil is fine for lay bins and they can still use it?
Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?

It’s in my room on my desk. There’s no fans or vents and sometimes I move around in my room as need be but I try to move slow and steady as to not freak her out. If I’m doing stuff late at night I cover her cage with a towel. Make sure you are not covering the top of her cage. You want airflow. And I cannot tell you the exact from the exact but like 5-5.5 feet?
And yea don’t worry I do it so it wraps around the side with the lights on top kind of holding it in place with a small gap at the bottom cause it doesn’t cover it all
 
On top of all that, I have an empty room beside mine. Should I just put her in there so it’s a little better? I’m just worried that it could be colder in the room since there’s literally nothing in the room
 
The one I have only has increments of 15,30,45, and 60 for the duration and 1,3,8,12, and 24 hours on how much it goes off so how much would you recommend?
Yeah so the option for this is going to be to add a dripper during the day. You can simply place ice cubes on the top screen or get a plastic solo cup and poke tiny pin holes in it then place it on the top screen with ice cubes in it for a slow drip onto leaves below.
Now the one guy at the show, we didn’t get her from him but he told me that he has 6 and their all fine and has cared for more and that’s what he recommended.
The 18x18x36 cage is tiny for them we use these for babies and juveniles. It is up to you in the end but we recommend adults go into a 24x24x48 to allow for plenty of room. It makes them less restless as well when they actually have a cage that is double the length of their body.
It’s the t5 high output which the guy recommended as well and it does cover the whole top. Right now it’s diagonal with some space at the corners where I have the mister nozzles poking through the top.
T5HO fixture is correct but what is the bulb strength you got? 5.0 or 10.0 these each require different distances. If it is a 12 inch fixture and covers most of the top then you may have a smaller cage more than likely the 16x16x30 which is far too small for an adult. When we look at fixture length we account for the fact that the bulb is 2 inches shorter. So we do full length of the cage because of this. This gives them a much wider area of UVB to bask in.
How much should the ambient temp be?
low to mid 70's for ambient and then night time drop in temp.
Yea the bottom is just reptisoil but it has isopods in there. No drainage cause I was told by the guy that the pothos will suck all that in and it be ok. I’ve read a few sources that say reptisoil is fine for lay bins and they can still use it?
So without a drainage layer you will have issues with water build up in the soil. It will also provide growth for excess bacteria. Reptisoil does not hold a full tunnel. If a tunnel collapses on a female while she is digging they most often can not get back out and pass away. We recommend a 50/50 mixture with playsand and soil if your doing soil. Otherwise a laybin with all moist play sand. This will help you for the bioactive part. This is how you would want to set it up https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/intro-to-bio-activity.2429/
 
On top of all that, I have an empty room beside mine. Should I just put her in there so it’s a little better? I’m just worried that it could be colder in the room since there’s literally nothing in the room
Are you in your room all the time? What are the temps in the extra room that concerns you?
 
Yeah so the option for this is going to be to add a dripper during the day. You can simply place ice cubes on the top screen or get a plastic solo cup and poke tiny pin holes in it then place it on the top screen with ice cubes in it for a slow drip onto leaves below.
Alright I know there’s some commercial ones so I’m honestly probably gonna get one of those.
The 18x18x36 cage is tiny for them we use these for babies and juveniles. It is up to you in the end but we recommend adults go into a 24x24x48 to allow for plenty of room. It makes them less restless as well when they actually have a cage that is double the length of their body.
I don’t really have the money or space for this right now so I may hold off on it and see how she does.
T5HO fixture is correct but what is the bulb strength you got? 5.0 or 10.0 these each require different distances. If it is a 12 inch fixture and covers most of the top then you may have a smaller cage more than likely the 16x16x30 which is far too small for an adult. When we look at fixture length we account for the fact that the bulb is 2 inches shorter. So we do full length of the cage because of this. This gives them a much wider area of UVB to bask in.
It’s a 14” one and it’s 5.0 I believe I have it set to the right height.
low to mid 70's for ambient and then night time drop in temp.

So without a drainage layer you will have issues with water build up in the soil. It will also provide growth for excess bacteria. Reptisoil does not hold a full tunnel. If a tunnel collapses on a female while she is digging they most often can not get back out and pass away. We recommend a 50/50 mixture with playsand and soil if your doing soil. Otherwise a laybin with all moist play sand. This will help you for the bioactive part. This is how you would want to set it up https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/intro-to-bio-activity.2429/
 
Are you in your room all the time? What are the temps in the extra room that concerns you?
I mean I work through the week so she has alone time till about 4 and her lights go out at 7. Weekends it may be a bit different but I’m just laying in bed and not really moving.
I have no idea what the temps are I’m just worried that it may be too cold in there since there’s nothing.
 
I mean I work through the week so she has alone time till about 4 and her lights go out at 7. Weekends it may be a bit different but I’m just laying in bed and not really moving.
I have no idea what the temps are I’m just worried that it may be too cold in there since there’s nothing.
I do not see any reason to move the cage... It is more about how the cage is now. And they get more restless when they are approaching laying their clutch.

Feel that soil see how wet it is.. It may be too soggy to her. then take a spoon and dig a tunnel about 2x2 inches see if it holds its shape or starts collapsing.
 
If she isn’t satisfied with her options for where she can lay her eggs, she will be restless and keep trying to look for a better place. This may be her looking like she’s trying to escape…she is. Again, I’ll suggest putting a bin of play sand in the enclosure for her. It’s a lot easier to redo plants and branches and such than ‘fix’ and egg bound chameleon. She may not yet be ready to lay or she may be in the last days of feeling the urge…no sure fire way to tell. Err on the side of caution. Put the bin of sand in and cover the bottom half of her enclosure and keep it like that until she is ready and lays her eggs.
 
If she isn’t satisfied with her options for where she can lay her eggs, she will be restless and keep trying to look for a better place. This may be her looking like she’s trying to escape…she is. Again, I’ll suggest putting a bin of play sand in the enclosure for her. It’s a lot easier to redo plants and branches and such than ‘fix’ and egg bound chameleon. She may not yet be ready to lay or she may be in the last days of feeling the urge…no sure fire way to tell. Err on the side of caution. Put the bin of sand in and cover the bottom half of her enclosure and keep it like that until she is ready and lays her eggs.
Wouldn’t I be able to see the eggs in her? So far she looks just like she did when we got her
 
Not necessarily. Here’s one of my girls less than a week before she laid 44 eggs, which is a lot. View attachment 331882
Here’s my other girl 3 days before she laid 34 eggs.
View attachment 331885
What’s the minimum of size for the bin for the playsand? Could I get away with a decently sized Tupperware container and kind of bury it in the back?
Also what’s that coloration on the bottom one? It looks somewhat like the stressed one but not fully, and were they showing gravid colors before?
 
This is exactly the bin that I’ve been using for my girls. I’ve tried smaller and shorter and they rejected them. This is what they want, so this is what I give them (even though they are in fully bioactive enclosures with approx 6” of good soil).
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Each of my girls has their own colors/patterns and changes. The top girl displays those same colors and patterns since her first receptive period and the only difference when gravid is the subtle darkening of her dots. The bottom girl also shows the same all the time, but when gravid she darkens up as shown. Here she is on a normal non-receptive and non-gravid day.
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