Some advice and help please

[DenTony11235]

Ive got a baby chameleon. I dont know how old but my best guess would be about 1.5 months old, ive had him for 4 weeks. Got him from theveiledchameleon.

So, I just want to make sure im taking care of him properly, and something worries me.

So i Have Repcal herptivite and Repcal calcium with D3, I thought that that was all i needed but im tired of people telling me different things about the calcium with D3 so i just ordered a seperate bucker with calcium.

Ill give him the D3 once a week, and the calcium ill give him every other day right? Dust a few crickets in it.

So hes been having these white spots, i guess its flaking skin. Last time he shed was about 4 weeks ago, ever since then though he has little patches of shedding skin here and there they dont seem to go away. And today he went from a couple patches to a fully bloomed flower of shedding skin in about 2 hours it was weird, pics of before and after are included.
Last time he shed he did it a bit differently, the shedding came from several different places and progressed slowly, this time he just shed his whole skin off within a few hours. Thoughts?

Hes fed:
Mealworms- 3 a week.
Crickets- Most always.
Flightless fruit flys- I bought the little container of them, i didnt know how to feed them to him so first i put like 20 in there with him, the next day i just put the whole container in there for him, they were gone the next day. Guess he ate them, but theyre so tiny does he really chase every one of them?
Vegetables- I diced up tomatoes and pickles into tiny bits and put the mealworms in there, he picked out the mealworms and ignored the vegetables. Should he be eating vegetables? How do i feed them to him?

Lastly, winters coming and its getting colder, I live in NYC so it gets pretty darn cold, how do i keep the screen enclosure warm for him and humid?

I have dirt and moss on the bottom of the container.

BASICALLY--SUMMARIZED
He has flaking skin most always, and irregular shedding, thoughts?
Should he be eating vegetables? What and how? Is his diet ok now?
How do i prepare his enclosure for the winter? Links to good products if you can.

Sorry for the long post and thanks to everyone for taking their time to help me!

PICS-
Pic 1: Before shedding today, white spots worried me
Pic 2: Another pic before shedding
Pic 3: Started shedding his skin off today, weird?
Pic 4: His enclosure.

 

[camimom]

Congrats on the new baby. now a few things.
Supplements- calcium without d3 every feeding. calcium with d3 2x a month. multivitamin 2x a month. Got it?
Next, dont worry about shedding, babies shed frequently and super fast. they will also start in different places on their body each time. My baby started on his spine the first time, then his head the next.
As for temps during the winter, you can do a few things. you can get a warmer basking bulb. if this doesnt work, wrap 2 or 3 sides of your cage with a shower curtain, this keeps temps up an dhumidity.

lastyl, remove that dirt, now!
chams can ingest it and become impacted. the floor should be bare.
if you have live potted plants, cover the dirt with river rocks large enough he cant acidently eat them.

 

[DenTony11235]

Chameleon Info:

* Your Chameleon - Veiled, male, 1.5 months.

* Handling - Once every 2 or 3 days.

* Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
Crickets gutloaded with cricket gutload food from Petland Discounts.

* Supplements - Repcal calcium with vit D3, and Repcal Herptivite. So i should but another bucket of calcium dust?

* 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 four times daily, about every 3 hours. Last time i cleaned the enclosure, the ground was all wet, is this a reason to worry?

* Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
Never tested for parasites. Droppings are white and brown, seem normal.

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


Cage Info:
I bought the setup kit from screameleons.com, link: http://www.screameleons.com/setup_kit_video.htm

* Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
Zilla screen habitat 18"x12"x20"
http://www.google.com/products/catal...ed=0CDAQ8wIwAQ

* Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
Reptisun 5.0 Bulb. And a daylight heat bulb.

* Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
Im not sure about the temperatures, but i guess its a bit warmer than the current weather temperature so about 75 degrees.

* Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
Habba misting system...
http://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Med-Habba-.../dp/B0043XEN8A
This is one thing id need advice with. I have a device that measures humidity, but idk how to keep humidity levels constant. Advice please. In the summer it gets very humid in NY, in the winter it gets very cold and dry. I will ofcourse maintain as close to room temperature as possible and keep the chameleon warm, but what to do about humidity?

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

* 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?
The bottom of the enclosure starts at about 6 feet. The enclosure is by a window.

* Location - Where are you geographically located?
Brooklyn, Ny


Current Problem - See above, also crickets gutloaded with petland discounts gutload food, which looks like just oatmeal and seeds. Is that ok?

 

[camimom]

Chams are insectivores, so they dont eat veggies regularly. some chams love them, others couldnt care less. so no worries on that.
if he seems to have some problems with shedding, up his mistings more, just dont peel it off.

 

[camimom]

most of what you just posted seems ok. i would add some taller plants in your cage though, they like to hide it makes them feel better.
and yes buy a plain calicum, no phosphorus, no d3 in it.
and i already answered ojn how to deal with humidity during winter.
side note- you could get a humidifier for him if you wanted

For cricket gutloading- I use- potoatoes, apples, oranges, carrots, a tiny bit of kale (not often though) mustard greens and dandiliion leaves.

 

[DenTony11235]

Congrats on the new baby. now a few things.
Supplements- calcium without d3 every feeding. calcium with d3 2x a month. multivitamin 2x a month. Got it?
Next, dont worry about shedding, babies shed frequently and super fast. they will also start in different places on their body each time. My baby started on his spine the first time, then his head the next.
As for temps during the winter, you can do a few things. you can get a warmer basking bulb. if this doesnt work, wrap 2 or 3 sides of your cage with a shower curtain, this keeps temps up an dhumidity.

lastyl, remove that dirt, now!
chams can ingest it and become impacted. the floor should be bare.
if you have live potted plants, cover the dirt with river rocks large enough he cant acidently eat them.

Thanks for the awesome advice! Im getting rid of the ground now happily, its the worst and messiest part about cleaning the enclosure. Should i leave the moss?

And would a heat mat with heat tape wrapped around the enclosure be better than the shower curtain and better heat bulb in ur opinion?
Should i get a live plant in there? I want my chameleon to be vip, im a bit of a worry wart.

 

[DenTony11235]

The enclosure has 3 branches with fake leaves, he can chill at any altitude he please too and he hides so well i have trouble finding him.

Thanks so much for your help.

 

[camimom]

Thanks for the awesome advice! Im getting rid of the ground now happily, its the worst and messiest part about cleaning the enclosure. Should i leave the moss?

And would a heat mat with heat tape wrapped around the enclosure be better than the shower curtain and better heat bulb in ur opinion?
Should i get a live plant in there? I want my chameleon to be vip, im a bit of a worry wart.

I would remove the moss too. just leave a bare floor, or you can put paper towels down for easier cleaning. the moss can just be something else to eat, and crickets will love to hide in it.
and no to the heat mat, if your cham gets near it, he could get burned.
i use a regular house bulb for a basking light.
live plants will help with humidity, i use pothos and scheffelara.

and dont worry, we are all worry worts with the first cham.

 

[DenTony11235]

Are there any other accessories you think would be worth researching?

 

[DavidBuchan]

Thanks for the awesome advice! Im getting rid of the ground now happily, its the worst and messiest part about cleaning the enclosure. Should i leave the moss?

And would a heat mat with heat tape wrapped around the enclosure be better than the shower curtain and better heat bulb in ur opinion?
Should i get a live plant in there? I want my chameleon to be vip, im a bit of a worry wart.

Hello -
Take the moss out too, it's very unlikely that he'll eat any dirt or moss, but it's possible.....live plants look better and help keep humidity up. How you heat is up to you really, as long as you keep a close eye on the temps. Other useful stuff for gutloading includes Butternut Squash (lots of calcium), bee pollen (lots of vits), dandelion, - all looks nice though, congrats on your little guy

 

[DenTony11235]

Hello -
Take the moss out too, it's very unlikely that he'll eat any dirt or moss, but it's possible.....live plants look better and help keep humidity up. How you heat is up to you really, as long as you keep a close eye on the temps. Other useful stuff for gutloading includes Butternut Squash (lots of calcium), bee pollen (lots of vits), dandelion, - all looks nice though, congrats on your little guy

Thanks man.

Ill definitely get some live plants in there now. Any suggestions on the best plants to keep the humidity at a good level?

And Ive heard of some spray that you can spray on the chameleons so that their colors are alot more vibrant. Is this healthy? And is he old enough for that? Opinions? Your chameleon is gorgeous.

 

[DavidBuchan]

There are loads of often recommended plants. Pothos being the most - it has nice broad leaves for drinking off, it is viney and goes anywhere, it is easy to keep alive. scheffleras are also easy to keep alive in a viv. There is a safe plant list in the resources section.......
I don't know about any spray, I just use water, only for hydration.....I never heard anyone else mention it either......