Walter won't eat!!!

[Breanna]

I have a new veiled chameleon, he is about 2 1/2 months old i have had him for a few days now and he wont eat, I got him to eat 2 crickets the first day I had him home but since then nothing, there are some crickets running around his cage but I know he is not eating any suggest or help!!!

 

[kinyonga]

We need more information...please fill out the questionaire here...
https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-ask-help-66/

 

[jannb]

I have a new veiled chameleon, he is about 2 1/2 months old i have had him for a few days now and he wont eat, I got him to eat 2 crickets the first day I had him home but since then nothing, there are some crickets running around his cage but I know he is not eating any suggest or help!!!

What size crickets are you trying to feed him? What are you keeping him in? What's he's highest temps? I have veiled babies and he should be eating you out of a house and a home......more than 12 a day.

Please fill out the form that kinyonga gave you above and post some pictures of him and his enclosure and we'll try to figure out what might be wrong.

 

[Breanna]

Sorry Here is the info

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon - Veiled, male, 2 1/2 months and I have had him since sunday
Handling - I have held him 2 times since I brought him home
Feeding - crickets (md) I try to feed him in the afternoon and at night, i gutload with carrots and fluckers cricket food
Supplements - i dust with repti cal calcium w/o d3 and w/ d3 and reptical herbivits, my schedule is m-f calcium w/o d3 sat none sunday alternate vitamins and d3 each week
Watering - i mist him 3 times a day for about 5 mins and yes I see him drink alot
Fecal Description - I saw one small poop it was dried but black with white uriate
History - i dont have much previous history I picked him up on sunday and he was one of 4 babies left

Cage Info:
Cage Type - 16x16x30 reptarium
Lighting - a 18" repti glo 5.0 and a 60w blue light for 12 hours a day
Temperature - the temp is 80-85 high and 70's low
Humidity - the humidity ranges from 25-70 I am misting his cage about 3 times a day
Plants - i have a live ficus
Placement - he is in my back room not a lot of traffic and no fan near him the cage sits in a 3' high stand
Location - Phoenix, AZ

Current Problem - having a hard time getting him to eat

 

[poker01619]

Try this

I had problems like that when I first started. He needs direct sun light. If you can let him get about 30min to an hour, then try feeding. Make sure he has a shady spot so he wont get to hot. And mist him with a spray bottle. If that doesn't work try another feeder.

 

[Dez and Delilah]

If he's 2 1/2 months, the medium sized crickets are probably a bit too big for him. There's a general rule to use feeders that are about the size as the distance from eye to eye on the cham.

He could also just be getting used to his new place and needs some time to get comfortable. Try not to handle him much right now and maybe give him a day without offering him crickets or interacting with him much.

 

[Breanna]

ok yea the crickets are too big I think, I had heard that they should be the size of his head, he has eaten a few but is defiantly having a hard time holding on to them. I will stop on my way home and get smaller ones and see if that helps, what is a good way to feed him, his cage has a lot of leaves and stuff and is sooo big I am afraid if i just let them go in there he wont find them, and I have heard of cup feeding but how do you get the crickets to stay in the cup, maybe someone has a picture of a cup that they use that may help me understand this cup feeding thing!! lol thanks for the help guys, this place is sooo great for new owners

 

[Breanna]

I had problems like that when I first started. He needs direct sun light. If you can let him get about 30min to an hour, then try feeding. Make sure he has a shady spot so he wont get to hot. And mist him with a spray bottle. If that doesn't work try another feeder.

I live in AZ and its up in the 90's right now is that too hot for him

 

[jannb]

The cage is big, he might have a hard time finding his food. How are you feeding? cup feeding? free ranging?

I would get no bigger than 1/4 inch crickets. If the crickets are to large he can't eat them. Better too small that to large.

Don't feed late in the evening or at night. They need hours under the warm light to digest their food before lights out.

You need to gutload with plenty of fruits and veggies such as collard greens, butternut squash, kale, apple, orange and a good dry gutload.

Your UVB light, is it the tube style od coil? What is the blue light? At this age he shouldn't need a basking light and for basking just use a reg. house hold bulb....25 to 40 watt....when he's older. Your temps are to hot. He should be 80 not more than 81 tops.

 

[Dez and Delilah]

You can use almost any sort of plastic container to cup feed. Make sure it's not too shallow that the crickets will jump out but also not too deep that he can't reach them. You'll have to see what you've got laying around. Clear plastic is probably your best bet so he's able to see them.

You can either attach it to a part of the cage or hold it up when it's feeding time. Try to get all your feeders in a few hours before it goes to sleep so it has time to digest.

 

[Breanna]

The cage is big, he might have a hard time finding his food. How are you feeding? cup feeding? free ranging?

I would get no bigger than 1/4 inch crickets. If the crickets are to large he can't eat them. Better too small that to large.

Don't feed late in the evening or at night. They need hours under the warm light to digest their food before lights out.

You need to gutload with plenty of fruits and veggies such as collard greens, butternut squash, kale, apple, orange and a good dry gutload.

Your UVB light, is it the tube style od coil? What is the blue light? At this age he shouldn't need a basking light and for basking just use a reg. house hold bulb....25 to 40 watt....when he's older. Your temps are to hot. He should be 80 not more than 81 tops.

I was trying to feed him by holding the cricket with a tweezer/tongs cause i was afraid the cage was too big and he would have a hard time finding them if i let the crickets loose in his cage, I was able to get him to eat 2 this way but thought I was freaking him out a little so just let the crickets loose in his cage, I dont quite get the cup feeding, how do you get the crickets to stay in the cup and where do you put the cup?? my uvb is a tube, and the blue light is the uva and warmth, I use the fluckers dry gutload is that good, along with carrots, apples and oranges

 

[jannb]

I was trying to feed him by holding the cricket with a tweezer/tongs cause i was afraid the cage was too big and he would have a hard time finding them if i let the crickets loose in his cage, I was able to get him to eat 2 this way but thought I was freaking him out a little so just let the crickets loose in his cage, I dont quite get the cup feeding, how do you get the crickets to stay in the cup and where do you put the cup?? my uvb is a tube, and the blue light is the uva and warmth, I use the fluckers dry gutload is that good, along with carrots, apples and oranges

I would not use tweezer/tongs he could hurt his tongue. I'll see if I can find you a video on cup feeding. I free range and cup feed by just holding the cup up on a slant and my guys will eat that way, too.

Here you go....how to make a feeding cup BUT this might be too deep until he's older: http://www.youtube.com/user/StefanRocks7485#p/u/19/IocvhTduOtc

 

[pantherlover]

try a feeding tub if you perfer to free range your crickets. set up a limb for hunting & thats bout it. some young ones will take to it, some wont but its worth a shot. you could also try to let one or 2 crix at a time climb up the screen if your concerned the cham wont find them. i dont like cup feeding but a tall sour cream container will do. some people like to hang it under the basking perch, some hook it on the screen...

 

[Breanna]

I would not use tweezer/tongs he could hurt his tongue. I'll see if I can find you a video on cup feeding. I free range and cup feed by just holding the cup up on a slant and my guys will eat that way, too.

Here you go....how to make a feeding cup BUT this might be too deep until he's older: http://www.youtube.com/user/StefanRocks7485#p/u/19/IocvhTduOtc

thank you sooo much!!! for some reason I just could not picture the cup thing in my head but the video totally helped, I will get some smaller crix and try the cup!!

 

[Breanna]

ok so I got some smaller crix and tried the cup, he wasnt to happy with the cup idea, but i did have success by putting him in a small bin with a fake vine and putting some crix in with him, he ate 3 this way!!! how many should he be eating a day??