Thin 3 month old Veiled

[RFD]

Hello,

3 month old Male Veiled. Appears a little thin-- slightly shows rib cage at times-- curious and searches around habitat.

What can I do to fatten up== looks healthy had shed last week?


Feeding 10-12 sm./med crickets a day-- eats all within an hour or so. Just introduced wax worms.


Supplement

Crickets gut loaded with Fluker cricket feed,

Dust -- Calcium 3 days without Vit D, 3 day w/ Vit D and one day Reti Viti.

Handling -- once a week to clean cage-- twice to adapt over past month

Stats

• 18x12x20 Breeze cage
• 12 hour cycle - 40W basking 5.0/13 watt UVB bulb 4 month old
• Mist -- one-twice a day
• Fog three times 20 minute each cycle Bottom of cage is 95% dry by end of lighting cycle
• temp - 79-82 Ambient -- 90 Basking
• humidity - 60% -- spike to 80% during fogging and 90% misting
• Two live Pothos-- three having plastic -he loves to hide in plastic upper right corner when approached.
• Assume he is drinking-- Fogger and mist from top to simulate rain on leaves--Droplets remain on screened top.

please advise

 

[jajeanpierre]

Hello,

3 month old Male Veiled. Appears a little thin-- slightly shows rib cage at times-- curious and searches around habitat.

What can I do to fatten up== looks healthy had shed last week?


Feeding 10-12 sm./med crickets a day-- eats all within an hour or so. Just introduced wax worms.


Supplement

Crickets gut loaded with Fluker cricket feed,

Dust -- Calcium 3 days without Vit D, 3 day w/ Vit D and one day Reti Viti.

Handling -- once a week to clean cage-- twice to adapt over past month

Stats

• 18x12x20 Breeze cage
• 12 hour cycle - 40W basking 5.0/13 watt UVB bulb 4 month old
• Mist -- one-twice a day
• Fog three times 20 minute each cycle Bottom of cage is 95% dry by end of lighting cycle
• temp - 79-82 Ambient -- 90 Basking
• humidity - 60% -- spike to 80% during fogging and 90% misting
• Two live Pothos-- three having plastic -he loves to hide in plastic upper right corner when approached.
• Assume he is drinking-- Fogger and mist from top to simulate rain on leaves--Droplets remain on screened top.

please advise

Do you have a few pictures of him that shows what you are calling "thin." Young growing chameleon often do look thin. His activity is a good sign, but could also mean he is hungry. I suspect you are not feeding him enough. I don't think a growing chameleon can fit all the food he needs into his stomach in one feeding. Natural feeding of a chameleon is throughout the day, not 10 crickets at once.

Your cage seems very small and your temperatures seem very high for a baby veiled.

Your nutrition needs a little work. They need a variety of feeder insects that have been raised on healthy food, not just gut loaded. Wax worms don't have much nutrition. Your growing chameleon needs good nutrition, not just calories.

Flukers is not the brand I would be looking at for any sort of gutloading or feeding of crickets. If you are looking for a commercial cricket food, look for something like Cricket Crack. There are others, but Cricket Crack is what I use. I think Repashy makes something of quality.

You want to dust with phosphorus-free calcium daily, phosphorus-free calcium WITH Vitamin D about once or twice a month, and a good Vitamin once or twice a month.

What brand of light do you have? Most bulbs except the Arcadia bulbs are made in China and their UVB output drops to nothing very soon after purchase. Arcadia lights are the exception, producing good UVB for a year or more. A growing chameleon needs good UVB lighting, and unless you stick a light meter under it, you have no idea how good it is. Think about replacing the bulb and make sure it is a good brand.

 

[SocialNumb]

Get rid of the Fluker feed. (That name, I always want to say something else) go with Cricket Crack or Bug Burger, or even your own mix of different veggies and fruits. Checkout the blogs on the forum for ideas as to what to use and what not to use. Right next to the "User CP" link, over the navigation box/post reply.

Most people here do Calcium without Vit D everyday, With D3 1 time every two weeks, same with the multi-vit.

I don't think it will hurt to up the amount feeders if he will eat them. Just don't let crickets hang out in the cage all night if you can help it.

Mist at least twice a day making sure the cage drys between misting. You don't want it wet all the time.

Fog, well I guess you do you. Not needed.

Basking should come down to 85 give or take as per the care sheet on this forum. https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/veiled/

More information in the above link.

Good Luck!

 

[jannb]

A picture would be helpful. The first thing you should do is get a fecal to check for parasites. Parasites can keep them from growing especially cociddia. Make sure to get the supplements corrected or you will have bigger problems down the road. Gut loading and feeding a large variety of feeders is very important. My guys all put on weight when I feed silkworms and hornworms. Here's my blog for new keepers. You might find it helpful.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blo...-keepers-young-veiled-panther-chameleons.html

 

[RFD]

I will try and find the other worms and yes I do feed him 10-12 in one shot. I will change the cricket gutload to bug burger.

Here is a pic-- he is mobile and curious and does go down the braches to bask. I might change the UVB.

As far a supplements

I have Phos- free cal--

So I should not do Cal with D3 three times a week and Reptivit once a week?

i could spread out the feeding -- 10 crickets in the morning a few worms at night.

The cage is always dry by bedtime ( his bedtime) and I clean out the bottom of the cage weekly and the entire cage monthly

 

[RFD]

Jann I just read your blog-- I did by the Dripper but am having a problem regulating the drip-- i went through a gallon in 5 hours.

I am also using a coil UVB but do have a strip light with a 5.0 UVB-- would that be better than the coil?

I can drop the wattage on the light to 40W and that should keep the temp arounf 78 throughout the cage.

 

[RFD]

Just remembered another issue.

I leave for work at 5 am- my lights com on a 8 is-- can I mist while the cage is still dark?

I also planned on feeding at five am, I will now feed at 5 am and 4 pm when I get home is that an issue?

I fog to keep water droplets on the top of the cage which slowly drip in the leaves. I assume that is when he drinks. i have never watched him drink.

Can I cut back the fog to twice a day, with mist at 5 am and 4 pm?

 

[SocialNumb]

Calcium without D3 everyday
Calcium with D3 once every two weeks
Muti-vit once every two weeks.

I like to mist after feeding so the crickets won't drown/get wet or use a cup and or other feeders.

Ideally mist, let dry out completely and mist again, bare minimum.

Tube/strip light lighting is better than coil, no debate.

It's best not to feed late. They need time to digest. Get that in early enough where he still has time to bask and digest.

 

[RFD]

So is it OK to Mist before lights come on and feed? i have to be at work at 5 am--

I can also mist when I get home around 4 and feed right before I mist this why he will have about 3-4 hours to digest and the cage to dry out.

Should I continue to fog twice a day for 15 minutes to keep a fresh supply of water for him to drink-- i also just started using reptisafe in the water to clean out chemicals

 

[RFD]

So i am looking up hornworms and silk worms-- how many worms do you give a juvenile or 3 month old veiled per feeding?

 

[MamatoElvis]

Your juvenile might only eat one silk or hornworm at a time. When I first got them I assumed my Cham would eat as many as crickets. He's 7 months an unless the worms are tiny he still eats one at a time. Hornworms will grow very fast. If kept at room temp they will be too large to fed in a week. I order the smallest worm and I keep the container in a cooler( not the fridge) with an ice pack.make sure the ice pack is not touching the worm container.. Change the ice pack before bed and in the morning. I can get my hornworms to last several weeks that way. A 3 month old should be fed as much as they will eat a few times per day. Given your work schedule I'd try to get him to cup feed. Then he could eat at his own pace. Hornworms and silkworms you can place on the screen and let him hunt them. Those two worms will also help to keep him hydrated. You could also try blue bottle flies. You release them and he hunts at his work pace. Phoenix worms would also be something you could try in a feeding cup.

As for the dripper. Take a deli cup and poke a tiny hole with a very thin sewing needle. I used a thumb tack but I just pressed the tip in. If you punch the whole tack trough the bottom the hole will be too big.

Misting before he wakes up doesn't do a lot of good because he's not awake to drink. Again given your work schedule I'd look into a mister. I got a Climist from Coastal Silkworms for 99$. It's the same setup as a Mistking. The fogged may look like it's putting out enough to make him drink but it's not. Most chameleons need it to rain on them for quite a while for them to be prompted to drink.