Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ok,I'll take things from the beginning briefly.I moved my veiled from one cage to another much bigger one.He seemed really spooked and lost completely his colours.Several members advised me to cover the cage with a sheet and give it time.One member particularly told it would take a long time until his colours recover.I also got back serious info on why that happened,very reasonable,anyway after three months his colours almost came back completely.It was when I tried to make friends with him and 'harrased' him for the first time since I moved him.I put my finger near him and I got a hiss back.He lost his colours again for a couple of weeks again.
If you were on my place what sort of feedback would you get back from his behaviour?
Thanks a lot

It seems to me that he might be feeling a little uncomfortable for whatever reason. Is the inside of this bigger cage very leafy or is this lots of open spaces? If it is too open he may feel a little voulnerable not being able to conseal himself safely in the branches. Mybe when you left him alone for a while he began to feel safe and his color returned. Then when you went in to pet him he lost that sense of security that he managed to find after so long. Still, there has to be some factor that is posing a threat in the big cage or keeping him on guard all thetime so he cannot relax. Is this bigger cage in the same location as the small one? Any windows or possibly in a high traffic area? How long has it been since the move? Is he an adult? Maybe if he is young, this change in color is just a transformation on his way to becoming adult. Bright green babies go through different phases as they grow and mature, but if he is already full grown we can rule that out. Describe the inside of the neww cage, and its location, and any obvious or subtle differences from the old one. What were the sizes of the small and large cage? Is he eating normally? Any other changes in behavior, or just the color?
If you think of anything else please write that too. We will do our best to help.
- ashley

Hi,thanks for your interest,I've been trough a lot of troubleshooting prior designing the large cage and I think conditions are optimum but I'll say a few words in case I missed something.The dimensions are 3'x2.5'x5'(feet).It is densely planted from top to bottom with few areas exposed.The cage before was 66G vertical.He is feeding very well.From the day I introduced him to his cage he seemed so frightent so I placed a sheet over the hole cage.From then he started very slowly gaining his colours back,it took months,then happened what I have told before and lost his colours again.
I wish you can identify something in this story
Thanks a lot anyway

PS:He is shedding VERY frequently

Color variation seems a little mute if he is feeding well and shedding (this means he is growing). I notice that my cham goes through a variety of colors...sometimes very, very dark and others, like when asleep or just out of the shower...very bright. They are chameleons...they are infamous for their ability to change colors to adapt to their surroundings. It could be the color of your walls behind the cage! My old cham would get huge black bars when put up to a dark surface...she was a great parlor trick!

As for my juvenille male veiled, he really does not like me yet....he hisses and "fires up" when I am around. I try my hardest not to "stress" him out, but notice color changes during misting and feeding. He does live in our living room...TV blaring, dogs barking, ferrets trying to climb his cage. All in all...he is very well adapted. Have you attached pics before? Maybe he is just darker by nature. I am not an expert on this, but all living things, even the same species, come in different colors, shapes and sizes.

Put your mind at ease! I am sure he is just typically---antisocial!

Kris
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