What to feed baby chameleons??

[slownlow32tl]

Hello our jackson's just gave birth to some babies (7) and they havnt eaten anything that we know of yet. Have tried small ants and crickets but it seems that they just sleep all the time and only wake up when we mist. We do see them drink alot and they have a basking light and fan for ventilation. We are getting some fruit flys soon but if they dont eat those we are considering putting a glucose solution in the water or maybe trying pedialyte. any suggestions would be great. we have had chameleons before just none this young.

 

[Mr Green]

Wow. Were you expecting these? NEver hear of people using ants might be bad idea. The size of the food should be like the width of the chams head. Never had cham babies but I think people feed them fruitflies. Hopefuly others can help more. Might as well post more info on your setup like temps etc so people can help you more.

 

[slownlow32tl]

we didnt even know she was preg. and we have had her about 7 or more months

 

[Brad]

Hello slownlow,
I don't have any experience raising baby chameleons either, but I can point you to some excellent references. Was your chameleon already gravid when you bought her? You need to get those fruit flies asap. I recommend overnight shipping. The links below describe just about everything you need to know about food, caging, etc for chameleon babies under a few months old.

There are a few good articles at ChameleonNews that are worth reading. Scroll down to the 'PRENATAL and NEONATAL CARE' section. Adcham also has an excellent section on baby care .

 

[ChamFreak]

baby crickets good. Dont dust until about 1 month. They are so new they need to adjust to new chemicals in body

 

[aeris2126]

I've heard that fruit flies and aphids were good. But I'd stick to undusteed baby crickets.

 

[slownlow32tl]

Thanks for the help guys. Yeah we guess she was preg when we got her because she has had no other cham interactions and even the pet store my brother got her at didnt know. but im glad we found them because she gave birth one the top of the curtains in my brothers room (she romes free on a fake tree but adventured out to do the deed) and most of them got stuck to the cloth behind it so we couldnt even se it. But luckily one made it all the way to her tree and he saw it so we imidiately started looking for others and found 19 in all and 5 we ok and saved 2 stuck ones so we got 7 now. sadly we think most of the others died durring birth and some who were trapped in their birthsac and we were unable to help them out because we had no idea she was even preg. crazy hu.

 

[Brad]

Wow, that is crazy. I wonder how old they were before you guys even noticed them. Probably a main cause for their current weakness. Do as much reading and research as possible (I gather that you already are). Have any of them eaten? Are they drinking? Keep us updated

 

[ChamFreak]

you selling any of them? How much?

 

[Reptayls]

Jacksonii are born in an embryonic sack, just like puppies. The female jackson usually drops the sack from some height in order for it to stimulate the baby into breaking out of the sack. I have seen female jacksons aim the drop over a large leaf and manage with good accuracy. If the female doesn't have an idea spot, she may just commence delivering - thereby you will find babies who were unable to escape the sack.

Now to the neonates: Baby jacksons eat close to 5 times more in the first 24 hours of life than most other species of chameleons. These tiny eating machines will walk great lengths looking for food. If you had no small crickets or fruitflies to offer them, you are most likely in for more deaths.

Jacksons need foliage - for many reasons. Provide them with as dense as possible mini-jungle for their home. Use china doll, house ivy, small ferns, creeping fig; hoya plants and other small-leafed, smooth plants.

If you do not have a fruit-fly proof cage, you can use a tub and place fabric mesh over it. You can get this mesh at any fabric store (even Wal-Mart or Target) and it is inexpensive. Just ask them for netting, and the clerks will show you the different kinds. If you want to use 5 gallon buckets, you can purchase paint strainer bags at Home Depot - they will fit (upside down) over the bucket and form a mesh tent.

Use hydei flies (melangaster are too small to interest the jacksonii) and 1 wk crickets. Do not dust them for a few weeks - as jacksonii are sensitive to supplements. To keep the flies near the chameleons, purchase wooden skewers (in grocery store - oriental food section) and spear small wedges of orange on them. Be sure to hid pointy tip in orange. Stick those in the soil of the leafy plants that you are using - instant dinner plates.

Mist them several times per day. Use a fine mist so that it beads up on the leaves. Use warm, non-chlorinated water (be sure mist is warm). The babies need humidity.

Jacksonii usually only deliver once per year (every 9 months), so you have time to prepare for next time. The death rate for jacksonii is highest in the first few months of life.

Hope this helps some,
Morgana
Reptayls, Ltd.