Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello,
I own a male Fischers Chameleon,and from every pic I see on them,he is no way near at bright as the pics!.Im worried he is depressed or something, and want to know how to make him feel better,he did just lose his mate,but he never has been as bright as he should be!, is their a way of cheering up Chameleons,he seems happy when he can perch high up on my finger!he goes green, but then back to brown!!!HELP?????

Hi-

Every chameleon will have a little different color shade, they are not all the same. Is he a little down and out not acting like he normally does? Have you tried putting him outside in the sun. Chameleons love the natural sun and it does wonders for them, give that a try! Hope this helps!
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John
1.1 Ambilobe Panthers
1.1 Nosy Be Panthers
1.1 Sambava Panthers
1.2 Rhampholeon uluguruensis

Thank you for your reply*
In response,my Chameleon used to paw, to beg to get out,he likes company!.He has not done that now since the female passed away!.
Also I do take him out in the sun, when I can, but since I live in the UK,the weather here is up & down.He does still lick me,so I suppose he is OK,and he is eating well.He has a Gold dust day gecko in his viv with him,so he has some company!.They are fine together,live in harmony*
So I should just keep putting him in the sunlight,is this what you think will give him brighter colours?,I only care my animals are happy,so it does not matter to me for him to be bright, just happy!

Hi- Well I would say he is stressed out that he has other animals living in the same cage/tank. Also is he in an all screen cage or in a glass tank with a screen top? Chameleon can not live long term in glass tanks, if you had a male and female Fischers Chameleon in the same glass tank that is allot of stress and probably the reason she died, and why the male is not looking so hot. I would read up more on the Fischers Chameleon and provide the proper home, first thing is to remove any other animals out of his tank/cage and make sure he is out of view of any other animals, get him in an all screen cage ASAP. Visit my site by clicking on the banner below, then click on the links at the bottom of the page, ADCHAM will be a good start. Hope this helps!
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John
1.1 Ambilobe Panthers
1.1 Nosy Be Panthers
1.1 Sambava Panthers
1.2 Rhampholeon uluguruensis

you should also buy a mercury vapor bulb if you don't have one. they work wonders.

The problem with MV is heat. Fischeri are not big heat lovers and dehydrate easily, so unless you are very careful about how you place a powerful light like this you could cook it. I've never used a MV, but found my fischeri did just fine under ReptiSun 5.0 bulbs.

Fischeri vary A LOT in coloration. Actually, the bright green yours shows when very active or being held is more likely his stress coloration, not "happy" coloration. The fischeri I've had all showed the brilliant green when stressed. When relaxed some were green and some were brown. He may be at his most relaxed when he's browner, or he's slightly cool and wanting a bit more light. How much light does he have? You could try adding more lights (not basking heat lights, but brighter general light) and see if he perks up. He may just be a generally brown individual. I really doubt he's missing the female. Chams are mostly solitary and don't really bond with a mate. It could be you are seeing him relax for the first time since he arrived, as there is no one else (except the gecko) in his now-familiar territory. Trying to "brighten up" a cham is dangerous, because you may end up stimulating them so much they become ill. As long as he's moving around the cage, eating and drinking, basking etc. normally he's probably fine.

I have a veiled, and I had the same problem as well. I asked the same question in a bunch of forums, and I tried every response, without success. I tried gut loading the insects with special fish food that brings out the colors in fish, I tried various vitamins that were supposed to brighten the color in reptiles, I tried feeding him various veggies that were supposed to brighten him up, I even held a small mirror in the cage (for a short time - hoping he would think it was a rival male and bighten up) and none of them worked!! I finally took the advise of a guy who said "It has to do with the bloodline of your cham, and there is nothing you can do to change that. So just love your cham the way it is, and eventually, over time, the colors will get richer

>>I have a veiled, and I had the same problem as well. I asked the same question in a bunch of forums, and I tried every response, without success. I tried gut loading the insects with special fish food that brings out the colors in fish, I tried various vitamins that were supposed to brighten the color in reptiles, I tried feeding him various veggies that were supposed to brighten him up, I even held a small mirror in the cage (for a short time - hoping he would think it was a rival male and bighten up) and none of them worked!! I finally took the advise of a guy who said "It has to do with the bloodline of your cham, and there is nothing you can do to change that. So just love your cham the way it is, and eventually, over time, the colors will get richer