If anybody keeps chameleons could use some advice.

[Nick_RC]

Hey guys,

My gal and I recently adopted a young vieled chameleon (sp?) with only half a tail. she didn't want the big pretty ones-she wanted the beat up underdog and we are thrilled about having him. And whilst we are doing everything they told us to do my gal is very worried bout the little guy. She spoke to her regular vet and the vet said it would likely die as they are dificult pets to keep apparently. Is this true? It has nothing to do with him having only a partial tail but because they are dificult pets.

We have a few questions if anyone can answer with authority and personal knowledge that would be grand. We have tried researching them on the Internet but their care seems to be controversial.

We have him in a smallish glass aquariam thing that we got from petco with a metal heat resistant gauze top. We have a heat lamp that they said was a must to keep him warm sitting on the metal gauze. He is eating 4ish live crickets a day. We put in two thermometers to measure heat and huminity but neither(esp humidity) seem to be where we are supposed to be. Heat sits at about 70 and humidity 20...

We are misting him once an hour and drenching him before we go to sleep as apparently they absorb water through their skin?

Are we doing everything/anything right? Newb alert.

N

[Milamber69]

You are weird and you need help.

[platonicx]

I never owned any reptilian pet but as long as you try to follow some general advices you should be fine. Find some internet discusions on a website specifically about this kind of pets ( as a non native speaker i dont even know what those people are called Terarists maybe? w/e : ) Ask there and i am sure you will get lots of advice.

Dont worry much about what your vet said. A lot of people dont like when exotic animals are kept as pets but i see it no different to having a dog.

And of course i can imagine it can be tricky to keep an chameleon but as long as its eating and looks okish i guess its alright.

[Dulcimerist]

That's extremely dry! Find a good website about herpetology.

[Gypsy_Mouse]

I'm not a chameleon expert and I don't play one on TV. But I poked around a bit and it appears as though the veiled chameleon is one of the most common species of chameleon kept for pets.

If the vet you are using has said yours will probably die, I'd seriously consider going to a vet that specializes in reptile care. I don't think I'd take the word of only my general doctor that a mole I have is cancer. I'd go to a specialist (dermatologist) for a proper diagnosis. Same thing with an exotic animal.

If your vet doesn't know a reptile specialist to recommend, you can search the ARAV member database to look for a reptile vet. close to you.


From just the little you've related, I'd say you are not completely prepared for your new addition, in my most unknowledgeable opinion.


But I did find a couple of sites that seemed pretty good with lots of information. You may have already come across them, too.

Chameleons Online has a lot of information and a message board where you could touch base with other chameleon owners.

The Chameleon Information Network has good detailed information.


But first and foremost, if I were you, I'd locate a vet who specializes in reptiles.


Good luck with your new scaly friend, I hope he pulls through!

[NaturalHazard]

Have there been any rangers hanging about? I think that might be where his tail ended up!!!


Anyways hope the lil fella is doing ok.

[NaturalHazard]

You are weird and you need help.

How observant, thats why hes posting on here he needs help with advice on how to look after his pet.

[Ullysses]

Chameleons are one of the more difficult reptiles to keep, but not impossible.

If it's eating, that's a good sign. Loss of appetite is a sign of illness.

A few things about chameleons, the are very prone to respiratory infections if they don't get fresh air. They do better with a setup that is tall, as they like to climb. So a good Setup is a normal glass tank, with a screened enclosure on top of That to add height, and allow air circulation. Add many artificial vines and plants for it too climb on and hide in. They can become stressed if they cannot hide if they want.

Also, mist the plants and vines as well as the chameleon, chameleons won't normally drink from a water dish, but will drink droplets from leaves.

Hope this helps, pm me if you have any other questions.

[toughguyjoe]

Ugh, Crickets. I remember having to feed those to lizards

Anyway like above posters said, the fact that it is eating is excellent. I have owned several different types of reptiles in my time, only one Chameleon though.

Ullysess made most of the points I would have brought up.

One of the most important things I can tell you is to pay close attention to your reptile. Respritory problems, not getting enough heat, ect. can really take a toll on a reptile, and can usually be spotted if you keep an eye on the little guys.

[MartinusWyllt]

This looks like a good, vet written basic guide

Fluker Farms is a great place for live crickets. Raising your own is doable on the cheap but a bit maintenance intensive. I didn't have much luck over more than 2 generations as I had temperature control problems where I kept them...had to keep them completely away from the kids.

As already mentioned you'll want a vivarium with different levels (w/temperature gradient), vegetation, *minimal* small substrate (sand/small rocks/wood chips), misting at least 2x per day, fresh air flow through enclosure, a UV source (natural sunlight being the best)...crickets can be gut-loaded, feeding the crickets dog food works well and don't need to dust the crickets with vitamin powder at every feeding...once a week is probably sufficient.

So...overall if you want to keep the animal healthy you're going to need to change its environment. You don't need to run to Petsmart and buy everything there, you can build a good vivarium for much cheaper. This is the direction I'd likely go if I were going to keep a chameleon that can reach a couple of feet.

If you're not that into it (I'm not personally, I like herping but not so much into keeping animals full-time.) then look for a new home for it. Even if it keeps eating alright you won't have a happy animal.

Edit: the tank you got would work very well for a variety of snakes and can be converted into a land/water tank if you were interested in keeping frogs

[Uska]

Had friend who kept one for a few years but his cage was built with wire mesh and was about 6' by 6' by 8' height,width, lenght with a heat rock on one side and lamp in another corner with a mist area in another corner. darn thing got huge.

[Quikster]

Never kept reptiles with legs, but lots and lots of snakes. If you are in a dry area humidity is a big problem, Im in az and constantly fought it.

General vets are typically not that knowledgeable with exotic pets. Find one in your locale that specializes. Most pet store owners arent that knowledgeable either, but sometimes you get lucky and find an enthusiast, usually not at the big box stores though, likely at a local mom and pop place.

You can also go here and try to find more enthusiasts in your area to see what they may have done to be successful. Ours here has a forum and meets often so its fairly easy to meet lots of people with vast experience.

Gluck bro!

[MartinusWyllt]

Nice link for resources. If I can ever find time to get my hooks back out in the field the group local to me looks like a good place to start.

[Mister_Peace]

You need the Able Learner feat to keep your Chameleon levels. If you somehow lose the feat, your Chameleon levels will go away.

[twix]

Ive had a bit of experience with reptiles and exotic pets. While ive never owned a chameleon ive owned everything from boas to scorpions. Your first mistake was buying it from petco.They are horrible to purchase live pets from.They get them in big shipments and a lot of their employees have no idea what they are doing.

If i were you i would contact someone who specializes in reptile care.I mostly used to go through a place upstate called the zoo. They might be able to help you.Wouldnt hurt to look their number up and give em a call.They have had everything in their store from chameleons to alligators.I have even seen cobras and rattle snakes there.They were my number one source fro information or help with my reptiles.

Another thing i would suggest is going down to barnes and noble and picking up a book on chameleons and reading it cover to cover.

The thing with animals who need to be at a certain temp is that your house is also going to have to be at a certain temerature to keep the tank at that temperature.I would suggest that with winter coming if your using a mesh top on your tank to cover most of it with a blanket or something to keep the humidty and heat inside the tank more.

Also incase no one told you do NOT keep your tank to close to windows as the sun will heat the tank up too much and possible kill your pet.

Hope the little guy lives and good luck to ya nick !

[MartinusWyllt]

Your first mistake was buying it from petco.They are horrible to purchase live pets from.They get them in big shipments and a lot of their employees have no idea what they are doing.

QFE

I had no idea how terribly much I was overspending on crickets. Luckily I knew a herpetologist so I knew what accessories and "upsell" items were ****.

In other news...have you ever overwintered any of your herps? I know a couple of people that do this, especially when brooding is desired (in those non-tropical species that have a hibernation cycle). It seemed like it might be dicey.

I might want to keep some kind of local species at some point, there's an intergrade Elaphe now Pantherophis that's has a nice tan and black saddle pattern.