weighing your chameleon

[ir0k]

just wondering how often does those who weigh their cham do so? every couple days? once a week? couple times a month?

thanks in advance.

 

[fleetwoodchams]

just wondering how often does those who weigh their cham do so? every couple days? once a week? couple times a month?

thanks in advance.

I weigh them when I get them then at about 4 mo then 6 mo. Then once more when they reach maturity.
They really grow fast during this time and I find it re-assuring to see all the weight they gain as they grow. I am sure there is some proper way to do it but that is how I do it. I also record everything in a log book along with sire/dam birth date info and any other lineage that i can come by. I include the breeder info and how much I paid for them.
If anyone can suggest more I am open to suggestions

 

[Juliaf3]

I'm curious as to what every one uses to weigh there chams

 

[jannb]

I weigh my guys once a week and I use a gram scale like you would weigh food on when you are on a diet.

 

[Trace]

I use a postal scale to weigh my chameleons once a week and note it in an Excel spreadsheet. This gives me an early warning if perhaps something is wrong and can address any medical issues before they become significant. It’s pretty cool to see the quick growth in babies from egg to juvenile to adult. I have worked with many live bearing species and it’s interesting to note how much an adult female’s weight will change over the course of a year depending on her cycle and if she is gravid or non-gravid. Because I had weights going back several years for each animal I could loosely predict when she was going to become receptive (there were other seasonal triggers as well) and compare her to previous pregnancies.

 

[Montium]

Once per month but I may start doing it twice per month.

 

[ir0k]

yea, I have a little gram/oz digital scale I will start using. i'll use it in the gram mode and go from there, maybe twice a week.
Thanks for the info guys

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

I weigh everyone (chams and chelonians) once a month and have an ongoing spreadsheet. Just use a good little digital kitchen scale that was like $20 off amazon. Weigh in grams - much more accurate than ounces.

 

[Olimpia]

I weigh my Meller's every Monday and jot it down in a binder I keep where each chameleon has their own weight page. I also use a gram scale that I think I got from Walmart that works super well.

I like weighing every week or two because sometimes big changes can take place in short periods of time. For example, two weeks ago my largest female weighed 440 grams. This last Monday, she came in at 472 grams! That's a 32 gram gain in only 7 days, with no significant change in diet. So that tells me that either she managed to eat a very large gecko or something that managed to sneak into the house or that she might be working on eggs.

 

[Juliaf3]

Cool. Next purchase shall be a gram scale I think I'll go tomorrow