I have a male flapneck cham which I adopted, approximately 4-5 months old, wc (dewormed panacur, tx with flagyl). I was wondering if anybody has experience with this species, he seems exceedingly wary/nervous/frightened. I have seen him lap up droplets after misting, but I have rarely seen hime eat the crickets, silkworms, mealworms that I have placed in the cage. I have continued to replenish the supply of feeder organisms in the cage, so I guess he is eating, but I have found no urofeces on the leaves or in the bottom of the cage. Humidity is variable between 30-50%, and the temperature in between 75-85 during the day with 95 basking area, and down to 60-65 at night. For anyone who is familiar witht he species, if you could respond and let me know if this is just the species, or what I could do differently (what you have been successful with) for optimal health.
Eric
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Flapneck cham
Replies (1)
Describe your cage further. If he is very shy (many are), adding a lot of foliage cover will help him settle down some. How was he kept before you got him? Any info on how much he ate before? Most likely he's been subjected to a lot of poor care and stress, so it will take some time before he settles down with you. You can also partially cover the cage with a sheet to block his view of other pets, house activity, etc. The humidity is a bit low...try to raise it over 50%. Dehydration is a very insidious killer. If you really want to know what he's eating, how often, and possibly preferences, you will have to feed out of a bin instead of letting the prey wander loose. Loose feeders lose their gutloads, pick up feces, bacteria, molds, and even shed parasite larvae. Rather than using a small feeder cup that often worries wc chams, try a plastic storage box nestled in the foliage. The box will allow feeders to move around and attract him, he can shoot from a perch on the rim, and you can put some gutload in the box to keep the feeders "full". Chams can go a while without eating, so drinking is critical right now. Have you read the species info on the site below? might give you more ideas for a setup.
http://www.adcham.com
