Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have been reading a lot on showering my veilds and i am not quite sure what to do but i would like to get them all clean because im sure they would love it. If anyone could tell me what to do because i have heard to just put htem in the shower not touching water and letting them soak up the humidity but i have also heard of people putitng them under water and when i directly spray them they both hate it and run so i know they wont like being put under running water. If anyone could help i woudl be very thankfull. Ryan

I copy/pasted this from another forum. Learn it ... live it!!!

-roo

I have been getting a lot of questions regarding showing chameleons. Essentially the reasoning behind this is that nearly all chameleons are not provided enough time during the day to drink. You may see him drink and think he's fine, but ultimately, not many people can simulate the 300 inches of rain a year a lot of species would have access to. Days upon days of rain isnt easily simulated. THis leads to a slow, deteriorating death due to long term dehydration. This condition is very slow and doesnt have many obvious warning symptoms like the sunken eyes of serious dehydration. Essentially, the kidneys and other organs shut down, and the animal dies.

SO, there is a very VERY easy way to combat this problem : showering. It is a tried and true method, and almost the only way to acclimate many wild caught species. This is absolutely essential for montane species such as Jacksons, and highly reccommended for lowland species like Veils and Panthers. Will your chameleon die because you didnt shower it? Probably not, but it is like giving it supplements, it will likely die due to complications eventually, ansd isnt the point of keeping an animal to keep it as healthy as possible?

Here is the protocol for showering:

Lowland species, once a week at least.
Montanes, 2x a week at least, although every other day is far better.

Take a large plant, fake, or alive, doesnt matter, put the cham on it in the shower. Turn the water lukewarm, and if you can change the water setting, make it as close to a mist as possible. Turn the water on half of the plant, or bouce it off the wall so it splashes back onto the plant, and leave the cham in there for 30 minutes or so.

Be careful not to use any water in the house, so it doesnt change the water temp in the shower...

The first time you do this you will think "This girl is crazy, my cham hated that..." and he will, but keep doing it. He will probably turn black, and go to sleep, or start running all over the bathtub, but leave him in there. THis will be pretty normal the first few times, but eventually, the cham will use this time to clean out his eyes (VERY important) and drink as well as absorbing a little water thru his skin, and aiding in shedding.

If you guys have any questions, post them... but I suggest everyone does this. The difference in the color, vitality and overall heath is amazing...

-Leah

>>I copy/pasted this from another forum. Learn it ... live it!!!
>>
>>-roo
>>
>>I have been getting a lot of questions regarding showing chameleons. Essentially the reasoning behind this is that nearly all chameleons are not provided enough time during the day to drink. You may see him drink and think he's fine, but ultimately, not many people can simulate the 300 inches of rain a year a lot of species would have access to. Days upon days of rain isnt easily simulated. THis leads to a slow, deteriorating death due to long term dehydration. This condition is very slow and doesnt have many obvious warning symptoms like the sunken eyes of serious dehydration. Essentially, the kidneys and other organs shut down, and the animal dies.
>>
>>SO, there is a very VERY easy way to combat this problem : showering. It is a tried and true method, and almost the only way to acclimate many wild caught species. This is absolutely essential for montane species such as Jacksons, and highly reccommended for lowland species like Veils and Panthers. Will your chameleon die because you didnt shower it? Probably not, but it is like giving it supplements, it will likely die due to complications eventually, ansd isnt the point of keeping an animal to keep it as healthy as possible?
>>
>>Here is the protocol for showering:
>>
>>Lowland species, once a week at least.
>>Montanes, 2x a week at least, although every other day is far better.
>>
>>Take a large plant, fake, or alive, doesnt matter, put the cham on it in the shower. Turn the water lukewarm, and if you can change the water setting, make it as close to a mist as possible. Turn the water on half of the plant, or bouce it off the wall so it splashes back onto the plant, and leave the cham in there for 30 minutes or so.
>>
>>Be careful not to use any water in the house, so it doesnt change the water temp in the shower...
>>
>>The first time you do this you will think "This girl is crazy, my cham hated that..." and he will, but keep doing it. He will probably turn black, and go to sleep, or start running all over the bathtub, but leave him in there. THis will be pretty normal the first few times, but eventually, the cham will use this time to clean out his eyes (VERY important) and drink as well as absorbing a little water thru his skin, and aiding in shedding.
>>
>>If you guys have any questions, post them... but I suggest everyone does this. The difference in the color, vitality and overall heath is amazing...
>>
>>-Leah

I don't doubt this is a good idea but does having a humidifier well basically humidify the encloser a couple times a day do the same thing? Also, as with most showers, it is a long way from the shower head to the plant and the water hitting those leaves(especially for a baby) can be pretty intense. Any thoughts?
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A truly wise man will always be humbled.