Zeus: Open to suggestions!

[zeuszooter]

This is Zeus my 3 month old panther chameleon. I got his yesterday. I am handling him about once a day for about 20 minutes. He hasn't eaten since coming to the new enclosure but what i have set out for him is some super worms and small crickets dusted in calcium with out d3. im not sure what schedule to set up for him yet because he hasn’t eaten. i’m also not sure on what gut-loading food i should have him try. the supplements i have for him is the repti calcium without d3 and then some with d3. For his watering i have a dropper going all day that leads into a leaf. i also have a humidifier going that’s keeping the humidity 70-80 percent with his temperature around 70. i mist once in the morning and once before turning off the lights. he has been drinking from the leaf. i haven’t seen any droppings yet.
For his cage i have in a 18x18x36 screen, and i have plexiglass in two sides to keep humility. i have an 18 in uvb 10 watt light across the cage and a normal blue light. i have a couple of fake vines across the cage and one main live plant. i might need to change this one out because it’s not doing too well with the heat lamp. i have my cage next to my door, not near any windows or vents and the cage is about a foot off the ground. I am having a hard time maintaining humility because i’m from utah hahah. if you have ANY suggestions or advice that would be wonderful!! i love this little guy so much already and want the best for him.

 

[Gingero]

Congrats! Zeus is very cute.

Few follow up comments/questions:
- I would refrain from holding him until he has time to settle in. At least two weeks.
- What are your options for gutloading?
- You'll also want to get a multivitamin. I like Reptivite without D3. How often are you planning on using each type of supplement?
- 70-80% is high for a panther. You'll want closer to 50-60% so I'd try removing that humidifier.
- Is 70 his basking spot or ambient temp?
- How long are you misting for?
- Not sure if you're aware, but he will need a bigger enclosure when he is older. A 24x24x48 at the minimum.
- What specific kind of UVB bulb do you have? Brand and strength.

 

[kinyonga]

Welcome to the forum...this is a good place to learn.

For supplementing it's recommended that you dust lightly with a phos free calcium powder at all but 4 readings a month. This will help make up for the often poor ratio of calcium to phos found in most feeder insects. At two of the missed feedings, once every two weeks, it's recommended that you dust lightly with a phos free calcium/D3 powder. This provides some D3 but leaves the chameleon to produce the rest of its D3 from its exposure to the UVB light you are providing for it. D3 from supplements can build up in the system and lead to health issues but UVB from exposure to the UVB light shouldn't as long as the chameleon can move in and out of the light. On the other two missed days, two weeks apart it's recommended that you dust lightly with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene prOformed source of vitamin A. This leaves it up to you to decide if your chameleon needs a prEformed source of vitamin A.
Vitamin D3 and vitamin A need to be in balance and calcium, phos, and D3 also need to be in balance...and this along with proper feeding/gutloading of the insects seems to accomplish that.

For feeding/gutloading the crickets, superworms, roaches, locusts, etc I use dandelion greens, collards, kale, endive, escarole, mustard greens, squash, zucchini, sweet potato, sweet red pepper, carrots and a very small amount papaya, mango, berries, apples, pears, etc.

The most often recommended UVB light is the long linear reptisun 5.0 tube light. For basking a regular household incandescent light of a wattage that produces the proper basking temperature is all that's needed. No colored lights should be used and no lights at night.

You still have a few questions to answer for @Gingero.

 

[zeuszooter]

@Gingero @kinyonga Thank you both for your in put. I will hold off on bugging him till he settles in.
Thank you for the advice of gutloading and supplements. I lowered his humidity to about a 55%. For temp 70 is his basking spot. I am misting for about 1-2 minutes twice a day.
Haha and yes I am aware he will need a bigger cage as he grows. For his UVB it’s a 10.0 reptisun.
i’m also kind of concerned about his health. i turned on his lights this morning and he hadn’t moved for about two hours. he changed colors from his white to brown/green. i just checked on him and he moved around and looks like he’s drinking some water. yesterday he started exploring the cage some more and took that as a good sign. i’m just worried since he hasn’t eaten since gettin in the new cage (almost 3 days) he’s not getting his supplements. i don’t know when to become concerned he’s not eating at all. i asked his breeder what he was feeding him and he said half a cricket and some fruit flies. i’ve tried the crickets but with circumstances haven’t been able to get some flies. should i be concerned or is this normal??

 

[Gingero]

- I'd try to get his basking temp closer to the low 80s. 70F is very, very low for a basking temp. Try using a higher wattage bulb.
- 10.0 Reptisun is too strong for a baby cham in my opinion. Could be why he is having eye issues you mentioned here (https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/is-this-color-okay.174539/#post-1559152). I'd get him a linear T5 5.0 and consider using the 10.0 once he is an adult.
- I wouldn't be concerned about him not eating until it has been over a week. He will eat eventually. Make sure you are also giving him privacy. Also make sure the crickets aren't too big for him. No wider than the width of his eyes.

 

[zeuszooter]

ok sounds good. should i be concerned with him sleeping throughout the day?

 

[Chams=Gods]

ok sounds good. should i be concerned with him sleeping throughout the day?

Yes if he is sleeping in the day that means that he is to tired. Make sure that there is little to no light in the enclosure at night.
GREAT setup though!

 

[MissSkittles]

Yes if he is sleeping in the day that means that he is to tired. Make sure that there is little to no light in the enclosure at night.
GREAT setup though!

Uhh...no. If a cham is sleeping during the day it does not mean that he’s too tired. It is a sign that there is something wrong with the cham.

 

[zeuszooter]

@Gingero @Chams=Gods @MissSkittles @kinyonga thank you all for your help!! good news!! picked up some small crickets and he ate them right away! got a new heat bulb to see if that can warm things up!!

 

[MissSkittles]

@Gingero @Chams=Gods @MissSkittles @kinyonga thank you all for your help!! good news!! picked up some small crickets and he ate them right away! got a new heat bulb to see if that can warm things up!!

Great news!

 

[Gingero]

Yayayayyyyy

 

[kinyonga]

Good to hear that your chameleon is eating!