Veiled Chameleon 1 year old, not eating for 2 weeks

lalosaurio

New Member
I'm a concerned Chameleon Dad than needs good advise (PLEASE help):
My 14 month old Veiled Chameleon, "Taco", stopped eating two weeks ago. He always had a great appetite, lately we was eating ~ 5-7 super worms every other day (he stopped caring about crickets 6 months ago)
Doesn't look skinny or loosing weight at all, still very active and loves his afternoon sunbaths climbing up and down his Ficus plant outside of his enclosure.
Please comment
THANKS in advance for sharing your expertise
 
Welcome on here! Filling out this form in as much detail as possible, including pics of Taco, his full enclosure (lights to bottom), and his lights will be super helpful! Also, superworms aren't good staples, they should be used as treats. What do you mean by sunbaths?

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.

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Please Note:
  1. The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
  2. Photos can be very helpful.
 
Kinyonga and Erkle Rose:
THANKS FOR YOUR HELP ! here's the information:


  • Your Chameleon - Male Veiled , 15 months old, has been under my care for 13 months "Taco"
  • Handling - I handle my chameleon at least 5 times per week, I transport him from his enclosure to a plant in the afternoons mainly using a bamboo stick, not my hand
  • Feeding - Eats every other day, mainly mornings, he eats about 7-10 worms: a combination of MEAL and GIANT worms ( I said before Super worms but I made a mistake) he stopped eating crickets about 6 months ago, crickets would stay on his enclosure for days and actually climb on his head sometimes, that's when I started gave him only worms
  • Supplements - I've only used "Zoo MEd Repti Calcium Reptile supplement to dust his food
  • Watering - I use a hand spray, I mist his enclosure at least 3 times per day and train to maintain a 65-75% humidity , I see my chameleon drinking from the water drops on the screed cage
  • Fecal Description - NO recent droppings since he has not eaten in two weeks, but he used to drop very normally and healthy, dark color poop with healthy urate. my chameleon has not been tested for parasites
  • History - Remains very active, he LOVES to spend the afternoons outside of his cage on his ficus plant (see pictures) to take sun baths, climbs up and down regularly

Cage Info:
  • Cage Type - It's a SCREEN cage with plenty of Ventilation , Dimensions 16" x 16 " 30" (W x L x H) see pictures attached
  • Lighting - Taco's daily lighting schedule is from 8AM - 8PM, I use a "60W Zoo Med daylight blue" and a "Zoo Med Reptisun 5.0 UVB Compact Flourescent , 13 watt" see pictures attached
  • Temperature - Cage floor to basking spot = 70 F - 85/88 F . Lowest overnight temp = 55 F ,
  • Humidity - Cage has TWO Temp/humidity thermometers (we live in San Diego so weather is not a big issue) I try to maintain humidity between 65% - 75 %
  • Plants -I was using the plant on the picture below for his cage (see picture below) but I do not jnow the name, I removed the plant because my cham was digging on the dirt all the time and I figure he might be eating soil or something since he stopped eating two weeks ago
  • Placement - cage located at my home office next to the kitchen, near a window that I usally keep closed, no fans, no air vents near, no high traffic, on a table that is 18" hig
  • Location - We live in North County San Diego (Carlsbad, CA)


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Did you change anything around the time he stopped eating? Cage "furniture"? Lights? Have you always used a blue light? Compact UVB? Anything in the room changed?

Parasite test ever done?
You said he might have started eating dirt lately?

It's recommended that you dust twice a month with a phos free calcium/D3 powder lightly and a vitamin powder with a preformed source of vitamin A.
 
Hello, again! My feedback will be in red, and I've attached helpful links and images below!

  • Your Chameleon - Male Veiled , 15 months old, has been under my care for 13 months "Taco"
  • Handling - I handle my chameleon at least 5 times per week, I transport him from his enclosure to a plant in the afternoons mainly using a bamboo stick, not my hand While that is great enrichment, and copmes onto your hand willingly for it that much, UVB cannot pass through glass, so he is only getting UVA (visible light) and heat, along with a view. Be surehe can't see/doesn't react to his reflection in the door, too.
  • Feeding - Eats every other day, mainly mornings, he eats about 7-10 worms: a combination of MEAL and GIANT worms ( I said before Super worms but I made a mistake) he stopped eating crickets about 6 months ago, crickets would stay on his enclosure for days and actually climb on his head sometimes, that's when I started gave him only worms Mealworms shouild only be used as treats. I've attached a feeder chart to look through. Roaches, locusts, silkworms, flies, fly larvae, and more are great staples! The more variety/species of bugs, the better! What do you gutload with? The gutload chart I've attached is very helpful, make sure to follow it. Also, the more variety of gutload ingredients, the better! That way your cham gets way more and different types of nutrients! He is being overfed, he should ideally be getting fed 2-3 feeders 3 times a week at his age. You can cut him off cold turkey or start to slowly reduce the feeding amounts.
  • Supplements - I've only used "Zoo MEd Repti Calcium Reptile supplement to dust his food Which ReptiCalcium do you have (with or without D3)? He should be given a quality phosphorus-free calcium without D3 (like Zoo Med ReptiCalcium Without D3) every feeding, except for once per week. On that one day every week, you'll alternate weekly between a quality phosphorus-free calcium with D3 (like Zoo Med ReptiCalcium With D3) and a quality multivitamin without D3 but with preformed vitamin A (like Zoo Med Reptivite Without D3), so that each is used only once every two weeks.
  • Watering - I use a hand spray, I mist his enclosure at least 3 times per day and train to maintain a 65-75% humidity , I see my chameleon drinking from the water drops on the screed cage That humidity level is way too high (I'll go into more detail in the humidity section). How long do you mist him for each time?
  • Fecal Description - NO recent droppings since he has not eaten in two weeks, but he used to drop very normally and healthy, dark color poop with healthy urate. my chameleon has not been tested for parasites I would get his fecals tested just to rule parasites out. Ha he ever been to an experienced chameleon vet before?
  • History - Remains very active, he LOVES to spend the afternoons outside of his cage on his ficus plant (see pictures) to take sun baths, climbs up and down regularlycv How long is he out there for each time? Sadly, you have an incorrect UVB bulb. Add that with being away from any UVB source when on his plant, is worrisome.

Cage Info:
  • Cage Type - It's a SCREEN cage with plenty of Ventilation , Dimensions 16" x 16 " 30" (W x L x H) see pictures attached That cage is way too small for him. He needs a cage size minimum of 2'x2'x4' tall, but preferably 4'x2'x4' tall or bigger. Bigger is always better! His cage will need tons of veiled-safe live plants (live plants only- fake ones are an impaction risk and can lead to death for veileds because they'll try to eat anything), lots of branches (of multiple species and diameters, just none from toxic or sap-producing trees), and lots of vines (preferably all live, just no Exo Terra, moss, or fake vines with leaves on them).
  • Lighting - Taco's daily lighting schedule is from 8AM - 8PM, I use a "60W Zoo Med daylight blue" and a "Zoo Med Reptisun 5.0 UVB Compact Flourescent , 13 watt" see pictures attached You'll want to replace his blue heat bulb with a white light bulb. A regular white light household incandescent bulb from the hardware store is perfect! He needs a T5 High Output linear fixture (the length of the width that his biggest cage will be) with either an Arcadia 6% (replace yearly if you don't have a Solarmeter 6.5) or a Zoo Med ReptiSun 5.0 (replace every six months, some people say yearly, if you don't have a Solarmeter 6.5) T5 HO linear UVB bulb of the matching size ASAP. A Solarmeter 6.5 measures UVI levels for you, telling you where to put your basking branch (8-9" below the bulb if you don't have a Solarmeter 6.5), which will be where the top of your chameleon's back is when on his basking branch reads at a UVI level of 3, when to replace your bulb (when the UVI readings are cut in half), and will tell you if a bulb is defective, among other things. It is expensive but is literally a life saver! His heat bulb also should be 8-9" away from his basking branch to prevents burns and such, as well.
  • Temperature - Cage floor to basking spot = 70 F - 85/88 F . Lowest overnight temp = 55 F , His basking temp needs to be measured with a digital thermometer with a probe. You'll place the probe where the top of his back is when he's on his basking branch. It should be between 80-85*F there, lots of keepers do 82-83*F. All those other temps are perfect! Are your combo thermometer/h6ygrometers digital, digital with a probe(s), or analog?
  • Humidity - Cage has TWO Temp/humidity thermometers (we live in San Diego so weather is not a big issue) I try to maintain humidity between 65% - 75 % His humidity levels need to be between 30-50% during the day, preferably on the low end of that. At night, as long as there is enough airflow and the temps are at or under 65*F (you have both), his humidity levels can go up to 100%. For that, you can do short spurts of water on an automated mister and/or get a cool-mist fogger/humidifier. If you go with a fogger, make sure you thoroughly clean out the entire fogger and any tubes and other accessories used at least once per week, and if it comes with crinkly tubes, to replace them with either vinyl tubing or PVC pipe.
  • Plants -I was using the plant on the picture below for his cage (see picture below) but I do not jnow the name, I removed the plant because my cham was digging on the dirt all the time and I figure he might be eating soil or something since he stopped eating two weeks ago Veiled need live plants only that are veiled-tested and safe. Before going in his cage, they need to be properly cleaned off, repotted in organic soil, and have the soil in the pots covered with rocks too big for him to eat first. I've attached two plant charts and a plant link below.
  • Placement - cage located at my home office next to the kitchen, near a window that I usally keep closed, no fans, no air vents near, no high traffic, on a table that is 18" hig Is there good airflow/circulation through that area? And can he see his reflection in the window? Is the window energy efficient/doesn't change the temps around it?
  • Location - We live in North County San Diego (Carlsbad, CA)

Here are the links and images!
 

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