rate my Cham’s habitat

maileybills

maileybills

New Member
Hi I’d like someone to maybe help me out with my Chams habitat maybe with some suggestions or tips for it.
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Welcome to the forum!


Do you have a red light on the lid for basking?
The most often recommended lights are a reptisun 5.0 long linear tube light for uvb and a regular incandescent household bulb for basking.

You're lights are not set up properly for food airflow. It's not recommended to use an aquarium for chameleons...they require proper set up and can be used for very young ones sometimes.

How old is your chameleon and what species?

What's the substrate?
 
Welcome to the forums! :)

There is definitely some issues with your setup.

When you get the chance, fill out this form for me so then I can review your husbandry! Be sure not to miss any questions, and be detailed. Make sure to include lots of up-close pictures of your chameleon.

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.

--------------

Please Note:
  1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
  2. Photos can be very helpful.
 
kinyonga said:
Welcome to the forum!


Do you have a red light on the lid for basking?
The most often recommended lights are a reptisun 5.0 long linear tube light for uvb and a regular incandescent household bulb for basking.

You're lights are not set up properly for food airflow. It's not recommended to use an aquarium for chameleons...they require proper set up and can be used for very young ones sometimes.

How old is your chameleon and what species?

What's the substrate?
Click to expand...
Rango is about a year old id say. He is a veiled. we have a red light for night time that we turn on and turn off the other 2 light which are a UV light running along the back and then a regular bulb for basking. He has slept fine ever since we have had him and just seems like now for the last few days he’s not climbing and is just staying low in the aquarium. I had a feeling we needed a taller cage with screening which would be better. And what are u referring to by substrate?
 
Please answer the questions in the post by Ares05 above so we can help you better.

So you haven't changed any of the lights or the cage set up is inch you got the chameleon? It's a male for sure?

There should be no lights on spat night. They should cool off and can take temperatures easily into the low 60's F.
 
Ares05 said:
Welcome to the forums! :)

There is definitely some issues with your setup.

When you get the chance, fill out this form for me so then I can review your husbandry! Be sure not to miss any questions, and be detailed. Make sure to include lots of up-close pictures of your chameleon.

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.

--------------

Please Note:
  1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
  2. Photos can be very helpful.
Click to expand...
Rango is is a veiled chameleon. We are not sure of his age but we’ve had him for about a year and we got him when he was very little at a store.
We have not handled him at all as whenever we reach in to offer somewhere to climb or something else he starts to hiss and gets upset.
We feed him everyday about 4 feeder/meal worms.
We don’t dust the worms as much as we should but how many times should we? There are white dust that we put on the worms and then there are droplets.
For watering we must him with bottled water as much as we can and we Spray him for about a minute or two and if we see him drinking a lot we will spray longer.
The colors from his droppings are white and brown/black. Never tested for parasites.
Cage Info:
The cage he is in is we think is a 40 gallon aquarium with glass all around and a screen as the top. We have a small cut in the top that we put the worms into. It is wider than it is taller which iM pretty sure is wrong.
For lighting we have a UV light along the back, red light, and also a regular home bulbfor basking. We turn on theUV light and the regular bulbduring the day. Then at night we turn those off and turn the red one on.
During the day the average temp is around 87 from the thermometer in the aquarium, not sure how hot it is at the bottom. At night not sure of the temp but we know it never gets below 70. We try to keep the humidity around 80%. We increase humidity by this mister device that puts fog into the aquarium on a schedule everyday.
The plants were usingare all fake plants. There is a few branches that he climbs on and one in the back that he likes to bask on and also sleep on at night most of the time.
His cage is in a room that we use as an office with a computer in it. There is a fan in there but it is rarely ever on. The aquarium is atop a cabinet/dresser thing that holds all the things needed to stake care of our cham. I’d say it’s about 5 or 6 feet off the ground.
I am located in Indiana, USA.
 
Ares05 said:
Welcome to the forums! :)

There is definitely some issues with your setup.

When you get the chance, fill out this form for me so then I can review your husbandry! Be sure not to miss any questions, and be detailed. Make sure to include lots of up-close pictures of your chameleon.

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.

--------------

Please Note:
  1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
  2. Photos can be very helpful.
Click to expand...
Rango is is a veiled chameleon. We are not sure of his age but we’ve had him for about a year and we got him when he was very little at a store.
We have not handled him at all as whenever we reach in to offer somewhere to climb or something else he starts to hiss and gets upset.
We feed him everyday about 4 feeder/meal worms.
We don’t dust the worms as much as we should but how many times should we? There are white dust that we put on the worms and then there are droplets.
For watering we must him with bottled water as much as we can and we Spray him for about a minute or two and if we see him drinking a lot we will spray longer.
The colors from his droppings are white and brown/black. Never tested for parasites.
Cage Info:
The cage he is in is we think is a 40 gallon aquarium with glass all around and a screen as the top. We have a small cut in the top that we put the worms into. It is wider than it is taller which iM pretty sure is wrong.
For lighting we have a UV light along the back, red light, and also a regular home bulbfor basking. We turn on theUV light and the regular bulbduring the day. Then at night we turn those off and turn the red one on.
During the day the average temp is around 87 from the thermometer in the aquarium, not sure how hot it is at the bottom. At night not sure of the temp but we know it never gets below 70. We try to keep the humidity around 80%. We increase humidity by this mister device that puts fog into the aquarium on a schedule everyday.
The plants were usingare all fake plants. There is a few branches that he climbs on and one in the back that he likes to bask on and also sleep on at night most of the time.
His cage is in a room that we use as an office with a computer in it. There is a fan in there but it is rarely ever on. The aquarium is atop a cabinet/dresser thing that holds all the things needed to stake care of our cham. I’d say it’s about 5 or 6 feet off the ground.
I am located in Indiana, USA.

The current problem we are concerned with is that Rango has seemed to be on the floor more than usual and is not climbing around like he usually does. We also have seen and suspected that there may be lots of improvements we need to make to go his habitat. We’d also like to handle Rango but he seems so upset with us everytime we offer to handle him. We know that chams are not usually meant to be touched or like to be handled but we’ve seen that they can be handled and would like to try.
 
In addition to what I told you already...
You said..."We don’t dust the worms as much as we should but how many times should we? There are white dust that we put on the worms and then there are droplets"...Since this is not enough information...no brand or type...we'll do it this way...
It's recommended that you dust the insects at all but 4feedings a month with a phos free calcium powder lightly. Twice a month one day of every second week dust with a phos free calcium/D3 powder and on the opposite weeks one day every second week dust lightly with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene source of vitamin A. In addition to this it's recommended that the insects be fed/gutloaded with greens such as dandelions, kale, collards, endive, escarole, mustard greens, and veggies such as carrots, sweet red pepper, sweet potato, squash, zucchini, and a very little bit of berries, melon, apples, pears, mango, papaya, etc.

I would recommend you get a proper cage...in the meantime remove the colored heat light and move the remaining light to the end of the lid where the branches come up the highest to create a chimney effect.

If there's a substrate I'd remove it so your chameleon won't ingest it and I'd replace the fake plants with real non toxic well washed both sides of the leaves because veiled chameleons eat vegetation and it's not good for them to eat fake plants.
 
kinyonga said:
In addition to what I told you already...
You said..."We don’t dust the worms as much as we should but how many times should we? There are white dust that we put on the worms and then there are droplets"...Since this is not enough information...no brand or type...we'll do it this way...
It's recommended that you dust the insects at all but 4feedings a month with a phos free calcium powder lightly. Twice a month one day of every second week dust with a phos free calcium/D3 powder and on the opposite weeks one day every second week dust lightly with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene source of vitamin A. In addition to this it's recommended that the insects be fed/gutloaded with greens such as dandelions, kale, collards, endive, escarole, mustard greens, and veggies such as carrots, sweet red pepper, sweet potato, squash, zucchini, and a very little bit of berries, melon, apples, pears, mango, papaya, etc.

I would recommend you get a proper cage...in the meantime remove the colored heat light and move the remaining light to the end of the lid where the branches come up the highest to create a chimney effect.

If there's a substrate I'd remove it so your chameleon won't ingest it and I'd replace the fake plants with real non toxic well washed both sides of the leaves because veiled chameleons eat vegetation and it's not good for them to eat fake plants.
Click to expand...
Okay so no red light on at all and at night no lights on at all? Also I need to be giving him greens other than just the meal worms?
 
You said..."
Okay so no red light on at all and at night no lights on at all? Also I need to be giving him greens other than just the meal worms?"...
There should be the basking light that I described already and the UVB during the day...nothing at night.
You feed all the greens and veggies to the insects.....not the chameleon.
 
Ill just add that I think you should use a real plant in there too so you can drip the little dripper over something that will not simple collect water on the bottom. That can lead to poopy water that your cham may very well choose to take a dip in, which will lead to random infections that can definitely lead to an early grave. Also the ventilation will be a big problem with that... If you use a all glass terrarium like you are, unfortunately you must get fans to create artificial air flow. I have one all glass terrarium and I have fans, here they are on Amazon if you wanna keep your glass terrarium.

https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-...e+usb+fan&qid=1585883191&s=electronics&sr=1-2
 
kinyonga said:
You said..."
Okay so no red light on at all and at night no lights on at all? Also I need to be giving him greens other than just the meal worms?"...
There should be the basking light that I described already and the UVB during the day...nothing at night.
You feed all the greens and veggies to the insects.....not the chameleon.
Click to expand...

Yes please listen to people like Kinyonga, he's being very nice taking time to give you some good info. Maybe also watch a lot of videos on the basics? There seems to be a good bit of chameleon 101 info you will want to know if you get another chameleon or want your veiled chameleon to live a long life. Here's my YouTube page that you can you to learn some Chameleon stuff but I just realized how useful to have simple basic video on things like enclosure setup. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5j1yphuLVROWKLB5Gp0mxQ

Oh ya and the ultimate source of easily digested chameleon info. The Chameleon breeder podcast! Check. It. Out! https://www.chameleonbreeder.com/
 
@Gingero has some amazing videos to watch on basically everything! She goes by Neptune the Chameleon and she’s amazing when learning about chameleons in a visual way. I would also suggest doing some research across the forums.
It’s great that you’re seeking help in order to create a better life for your chameleon. Remember, no one is attacking you. Everyone here is just trying to help you and especially your chameleon. Take every advice seriously, but please make sure to research or get a second opinion before going straight to it. Not everyone will offer the correct information. @kinyonga will point you in the right direction. She knows her stuff without a doubt!

Also, welcome to the forum! ((( :
 
Glad you asked for help...numerous issues here.

immediate changes:

1) No lights at night.​
2) Get rid of the mealworms. They're junk. Feed her crickets that have been pre-fed some dark green leafy veggies i.e collard greens, etc which is known as 'gut-loading'.​
3) Dust the crickets lightly with plain calcium.​
​

While you're dealing with the MBD and eggbounding issues noted in your other thread, deal with the cage issues. They are animals that live outdoors, so they need ventilation. An all glass aquarium is not good.

Link and Read below:

General chameleon care

Veiled Chameleons

Good Healthy Food for Your Chameleon

Recommended Cage Type

Good luck to you
 
Last edited:
Bush baby said:
Glad you asked for help...numerous issues here.

immediate changes:

1) No lights at night.​
2) Get rid of the mealworms. They're junk. Feed her crickets that have been pre-fed some dark green leafy veggies i.e collard greens, etc which is known as 'gut-loading'.​
3) Dust the crickets lightly with plain calcium.​
​

While you're dealing with the MBD and eggbounding issues noted in your other thread, deal with the cage issues. They are animals that live outdoors, so they need ventilation. An all glass aquarium is not good.

Link and Read below:

General chameleon care

Veiled Chameleons

Good Healthy Food for Your Chameleon

Recommended Cage Type

Good luck to you
Click to expand...
Thanks so much, so what should I do immediately about the eggs and the MBD?
 
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