Targeting issue...still

Kaizen

Chameleon Enthusiast
  • Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
  • Female veiled, approx 1.5 years; been in my care for a year
  • Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
  • This one bites, always. Handled her once, and had to have antibiotics
  • Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
  • Feeding dubias, surinams, runners and Crix as staples (ish); she gets silkies twice a week, and gets a limited amount of butters, waxies, supers, hornies and darkling beetles. She gets fed three times/week now (summer’s a bit of a sh$t show because she’s outside in a huge enclosure screened in 1/2” hardware cloth, so it’s a feeding frenzy). We gutload with collards, dandelion, beet greens, mustard greens, rosemary, basil, butternut squash, sweet potato, carrots, washed pitted olives, apples, oranges, bananas, prickly pear, grapefruit, papaya, repashy superload and repashy bug burger—all blended into a goo, frozen in ice cube trays, and fed daily.
  • Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
  • Earthpro a mixed with earthpro calmag at a 4:1 ratio every feeding
  • Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
  • Mistking. Two 15 minute mistings: one just before lights on, one just after lights out. Dripper during the day. Occasionally see her drink.
  • Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
  • Poop looks good: firm, not greasy, urates 75% bone white, 25% orangish. Tested positive for pinworms, treated with the panacur fender bender. Will test again next week
  • 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?
  • Custom screened enclosure; 3x4x5 (ish)
  • Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
  • Two 4’ Arcadia uvbs. First is a 6%, is located on the east side of the enclosure (4” from basking) comes on at 730 am and off at 5 pm. The second is an Arcadia 12%, is located on the west side of the enclosure (6” from basking) comes on at noon, and off at 730 pm. My uvi’s range from 2.5-3 in the am, and up to 6 during the afternoon hours.
  • Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
  • The way these cages are set up, they do not require basking bulbs. Basking temps at basking areas vary between 79 and 85 during the day. Mid cage a steady 72 day-time, bottom cage, 68 day time. This is achieved by programming the greenhouse thermostat to heat up to 75 at 7 am, 80 at 9 am, and 85 at noon - 4 pm, at which point it ramps down slowly until 10pm, at which point it is 65. Night time temps drop by 10 degrees respectively. Her usual sleeping area stands around 65 at night. Heat is constantly monitored by probes strategically placed, and confirmed by double dot heat gun.
  • Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
  • Daytime humidity is at 99% at 7 am, and slowly drops to 50% by around 1pm. It stays there until about 4 pm, at which point it slowly increases with the gradual temp drop, until it hits about 85% by 10pm and 98% by 7 am. Oh yeah, this is all achieved as a result of keeping our chams in a heated greenhouse.
  • Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
  • We use all live plants. Croton, hibiscus, ficus, bromeliads, pothos, and creeping ficus. Plants are arranged to create a dense foliage area mid cage; foliage thins a bit near top of cage, and ground level is sparse
  • 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?
  • Cages sit approx 6” above the ground, but top out at 6’ (they’re irregularly shaped to conform to the walls of the greenhouse) We use a duct fan that draws air down through the bottom of the cage (gently) to circulate air.
  • Location - Where are you geographically located?
  • Located in London, Ontario, Canada. Usda

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about.
Our girl, Rose, is still having targeting problems. 100% of the time she hits too high, merely brushing the head of the bug, and hitting solidly just above.
 
Nothing jumped out on me, and I'm not familiar enough with the Arcadia supplements and their usage to comment. My Lily also has this issue, even well before she started declining.

I'm interested to hear feedback, but have none of my own to give - sorry!
 
Nothing jumped out on me, and I'm not familiar enough with the Arcadia supplements and their usage to comment. My Lily also has this issue, even well before she started declining.

I'm interested to hear feedback, but have none of my own to give - sorry!
Thanks! I don’t know what the deal is with her, but I thought I’d throw it out there. Appreciate the reply!
 
This is a thing that just happens with some chameleons from my experience. My panther, that @snitz427 now owns, has the same issue. I am a supplement/gutload maniac and have tried every crazy remedy I could think of. I'm sure @snitz427 has too. I've read of several other people that have had chameleons like this living otherwise normal and full lives.
 
I just found your other thread on it. I hope you can figure it out. Way out of my league
I doubt it’s out of your league; if it is, then it’s out of mine too. This hobby just is groping in the dark.
 
This is a thing that just happens with some chameleons from my experience. My panther, that @snitz427 now owns, has the same issue. I am a supplement/gutload maniac and have tried every crazy remedy I could think of. I'm sure @snitz427 has too. I've read of several other people that have had chameleons like this living otherwise normal and full lives.
Don’t get me wrong, my wife and I will happily hand feed Rose—but I want her to be able to hunt, stalk and feed. If she ends up being just one of those genetic anomalies that—were it not for us—would likely fail in the wild, then I’m not sure I should carry her clutch to term. Not that veileds—or well-bred veileds (is there such a thing?)—need my clutch of 30 babies. I won’t breed veileds again, but i needed to get some experience here. I just don’t want to contribute to an already sh&tty gene pool.
 
Ive been owning different reptiles for 5 years, chameleons a month and a half. Im hardly qualified to help in the chameleon arena with anything above husbandry issues and basics.

I suppose my only input would be to hand feed her (so she doesn't starve) and maybe keep putting a few bugs in her feeder cup/enclosure just to see if her aim improves somehow?
 
Don’t get me wrong, my wife and I will happily hand feed Rose—but I want her to be able to hunt, stalk and feed. If she ends up being just one of those genetic anomalies that—were it not for us—would likely fail in the wild, then I’m not sure I should carry her clutch to term. Not that veileds—or well-bred veileds (is there such a thing?)—need my clutch of 30 babies. I won’t breed veileds again, but i needed to get some experience here. I just don’t want to contribute to an already sh&tty gene pool.

Im fairly certain mine is due to injury. He still shoots enthusiastically, and accurately, just with limited range. I do hand and cup feed him for certain bugs, others I free range and he makes do. If he misses, he gets discouraged and often walks away... but eventually tries again. I have a full throttle run that worked well for him, but the bottom screen tends to come loose and so i stopped using it for roaches. Instead I slide a deli cup in the opening which tilts towards him a little so they gather in the front of the cup. Its pinned against a branch to keep it from falling over... gonna make a custom one for him one of these days.

He has learned that he needs to be within a certain range, and so he stalks and creeps in close for the kill shot. Sometimes he shoots so hard his little feet come off the branch :ROFLMAO: . I think they are surprisingly adaptive with a little help.
 
@Kaizen - honestly couldn't tell you if it's genetic, a prior injury, or what. It's a tough call. I wouldn't necessarily cull the clutch, but if it is genetic it's certainly an undesirable trait. Not a big deal in a pet, but... :unsure:
 
Im fairly certain mine is due to injury. He still shoots enthusiastically, and accurately, just with limited range. I do hand and cup feed him for certain bugs, others I free range and he makes do. If he misses, he gets discouraged and often walks away... but eventually tries again. I have a full throttle run that worked well for him, but the bottom screen tends to come loose and so i stopped using it for roaches. Instead I slide a deli cup in the opening which tilts towards him a little so they gather in the front of the cup. Its pinned against a branch to keep it from falling over... gonna make a custom one for him one of these days.

He has learned that he needs to be within a certain range, and so he stalks and creeps in close for the kill shot. Sometimes he shoots so hard his little feet come off the branch :ROFLMAO: . I think they are surprisingly adaptive with a little help.

I actually disagree about the injury theory. From the day I took him out of the cup of kammerflage he had some suspect shots. Then he would shoot fine again. He would catch flies and stuff, then would start missing again, and so on, until it got to where it is today.

Normally I'd think injury as well, but with how sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn't injury wouldn't make sense.
 
I actually disagree about the injury theory. From the day I took him out of the cup of kammerflage he had some suspect shots. Then he would shoot fine again. He would catch flies and stuff, then would start missing again, and so on, until it got to where it is today.

Normally I'd think injury as well, but with how sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn't injury wouldn't make sense.

Ahh. I knew he had the issue for a long time but didnt realize it was “forever.” I guess that blows my theory out of the water. Back to the lab!
 
I have the same problem with Drake. He shoots high on everything and misses his target. He is a year old now and this was not a problem until about a month or so ago. He gets frustrated and stops trying on crickets so been cup and hand feeding hoping things will improve. He even misses in cup and hand so I'm overloading on feeders in cup to make sure he gets something. No problem snatching things from a clip where he doesn't need to shoot. Otherwise everything seems fine
 
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