Chameleons throughout the years have served as a beautiful, unique, and outstanding pet that to many of us will become addicting as we go through are hobby. Many keepers will tell you if you aren't ready to work and be committed to such an animal, it isn't worth the price you are going to end up paying.
Chameleons can not only be a difficult animal to care for but an expensive one. It is not a cheap hobby! Just to run the math for you, here is my setup that I currently have for just one Female Juvenile Chameleon that is almost 6 months old
Enclosure: ReptiBreeze 24x24x48: $105 Shipped off of eBay
Lights: Repti-Glo 5.0 $20.00 at PetSmart
Basking Bulb: $7.00 at PetSmart
Wal-Mart Light Fixture: $7.00
Flukers DeepDome: $14.00
Hydration Items:
My set up is more advanced than a beginning keeper but just to give an idea...
MistKing: Starter Kit $120.00 with Shipping
Homemade Dripper: $2.50
Foliage:
Exo-Terra Vine: $15.00 at PetCo
Fake leaves 3x: $10.00
Fake Vine With Leaves: $9.00
GoodWill Fake Plants: $12.00
Peeled Sticks: 3 hours of time sanitizing, and peeling.
Ficus Benjamina Plant: $15.00 for a Medium sized one
Supplements:
Calcium WITHOUT D3: $5.95 for 8oz(I think 8oz)
Herptivite Multivitamin: $14.95
Flukers Calcium WITH D3: $7.95
Hydrometer/Temperature Gauges:
ZooMed Digital Temp Reader: $10.95
All Living Things Hydro. : $6.99
Chameleon:
Baby Veiled Chameleon: $95.00 at PetCo
Breeders will run you less money but by only $10.00 or so after shipping.
My setup would be a little more advanced for someone who was starting out with a smaller chameleon. But as you see it is not cheap to keep these guys. I have spent this much and if you are buying a baby like I did you will be spending money on a larger enclosure, bigger feeders, more feeders and so on. I started out with a little tiny half glass and half screen terrarium for Isabella that is the Equivalent to a 10 gallon terrarium. Very nice starter for such a small chameleon, but they grow very quickly.
So you still want a chameleon? Awesome! lets help you choose one...
Now for starters, often times the best chameleon you can choose is a Male Veiled Chameleon(also referred to as a Yemen Chameleon). They are very hardy, larger and easier to keep chameleons than most. There life span can go anywhere from 3-8 years if kept well and offer a wide array of coloration, not quite your typical panther but they offer just as much. You can choose a male by looking at the heals of the chameleon. They will have little bumps located there that are called Tarsal Spurs. Only males get them and often you can sex a Veiled chameleon from birth.
This is a Male Veiled Chameleon fully grown
http://www.google.com/imgres?q=Male...=133&start=0&ndsp=10&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0,i:102
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...JE7UJvxKYG9ygHChoHoAQ&ved=0CDIQ9QEwAg&dur=973
Here is a link that will show you a Tarsal Spur.
Males run into less complications(most times) than a female. And especially when you are a beginning chameleon keeper it is difficult to be in a situation where you have to worry about specific things like an infertile clutch(we will come back to this) or a laying bin. I personally ran into this problem when I bought Isabella not knowing whether or not she was a male or female. So now being a bit more experienced than I was a couple of months back I know the conditions I need to have to maintain a healthy female.
I said choose a male because such complications do not come up with a Male that do come up with a female. Females produce what is called an Infertile clutch. Even without copulation(breeding) they will be able to produce this. That is why in most guides you will see that females will tend to get less food and less heat than a male. Those combinations can lead to a large clutch and a premature death if produced to early.
Now to say that you have a good amount of money saved up and you have done your research, another fantastic option are Male Panther chameleons. Now with several locales being available to us it is often hard to choose which one we like best. The massive spectrum of colors that Panther Chameleons put off is outstanding! They are unique in there own right as the only chameleon that produces such colors. Many members refer to them as the "cliche" of the Chameleon world now a days. With those beautiful colors also comes a heavy price. You can purchase from local places or online breeders but you are looking to spend around $350.00 on the chameleon itself! Which if you are looking now doesn't sound that great
I don't blame you, like I said previously this is a very expensive hobby. The husbandry of a Male Panther is very similar to a Male Veiled, just a tad lower basking temperatures.
So you have seen the price of owning a chameleon and my opinion and choice of what would be a great starter for you to jump into the hobby, lets talk about feeding a young baby/juvenile chameleon, or even an adult you may purchase right from the start.
Feeders:
Now the list for feeders goes on and on and on and on of what you can feed these guys. But I will share with you the cost(Bulk and Pet store prices) as well as well as the most common feeders we all use here on the forum.
Crickets: Anywhere from .08-.14 cents per crickets at your petstore. If you order in bulk like I do to feed my long line of hungry mouths, getting 1,000 could run you from $12.00-$20.00 depending on where you order from.
Dubia Roaches: Not available in most commercial Pet stores but you sometimes can find them in some local pet places. There price in there can run anywhere from about .30-.60 cents a piece! Buying online is a lot better choice you can get a starter colony of about 150 roaches for $20.00.
Super Worms: 50ct at most pet stores runs from $3.50-$4.99. Today I just bought a 1,000 bulk count for $20.00. Not a cheap hobby
Silk& Hornworms: These guys are expensive! And you normally do not find them at a local shop unless that place is awesome! They can run anywhere from around $12.00 for a cup of 25 all the way up to $15.00. And that is only for 25 of each. Hornworms generally will be a little more expensive than Silkworms from my experience.
Mealworms: Although not a good option for smaller chameleons due to the hard chitlin in there shell, they are rather cheap. At my local pet smart I can get 100 for $2.99 and online a bulk count of 1000 for only $7.99.
Butterworms: I am not very familiar with the price of these guys, you can buy some butterworms from Wal-mart for cheap, around $5.00 for a 20 count. Online I have seen prices from around $15.00-$19.95 for 100.
Phoenix Worms: PetCo sells these for $3.00 per 50 count but they are referred to as Calci-Worms. Online you can buy 400 from Mulberry Farms for $30.00 which is a great price.
Grasshoppers: The greener the better...meaning they are free as long as you want to take the time with a butterfly net and find them in your own backyard!
There are several other feeders to choice from but those are just some very good ones that are commonly used.
Now to give you an idea if you do not have other reptiles of how much these guys eat.
A juvenile/baby Veiled Chameleon should be eating around 12-20 food items a day. Whether that be crickets or many of the other food items I listed it is very important that they eat to stimulate their growth to become large and healthy chameleons. Now the rule of thumb is for feeding any chameleon is no wider than the length of the space between their eyes. So feeding a baby 1/4 of an inch crickets would be ideal and you will need a lot of them for around a month before you can get 1/2 inch crickets. So something to think about with this is if they eat that many crickets and you are buying lets say 100 at a time, you are spending around $40.00 that month giving they last you 6-7 days.
Now for a full grown Male Veiled he should be eating around 5-10 large crickets every other day. As for the juvenile and the adult you want to mix up there diet. Variety is key to a happy and healthy chameleon so you are going to want to get around 3-4 feeders and divide them up during the week. No feeder should make up more than around 30% of the their total diet.
Still keeping up? This guide is not to misguide you but really let you get the overall idea of what you should be expecting with this hobby. This is a very rewarding hobby and is extremely enjoyable. Many people enjoy the idea of the reptile rather than really realizing the commitment it takes to maintain a healthy chameleon.
Last but not least...
Vet Bills: You should never purchase an animal that you cannot afford to take care of whether it be something minor or even all the necessary things that you will need down the road or right away. The vet can be an extremely expensive thing depending on what you are dealing with. X-Rays for my Leopard gecko just a few months ago was a $65.00 charge on my bill, so it is not cheap.
Finally I will give you some links of some great guides on husbandry and gut load from our Forum experts.
This is Jannb's guide on keeping a juvenile Veiled/Panther chameleon for a new keeper. She is fantastic, one of the best keepers on the forum and someone I look up to myself for advice. She is an amazing keeper and has a lot of experience with Veiled chameleons.
http://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/jannb/325-info-new-keepers-young-veiled-panther-chameleons.html
This is Sandra's blog to gutloading your feeders which is a vital part of maintaining a healthy chameleon. She is our expert and does a very fine job around the forum giving advice all things feeders She is also a very good keeper as well and I thank her too for helping me with all my questions.
She has many more blogs about nutrition that you can take a look at but this one is a very good one that I have used in the past.
http://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/75-feeder-nutrition-gutloading.html
Thank you for looking! I hope this really guides the way toward you joining our community and getting a chameleon of your own! Thank you!
Chameleons can not only be a difficult animal to care for but an expensive one. It is not a cheap hobby! Just to run the math for you, here is my setup that I currently have for just one Female Juvenile Chameleon that is almost 6 months old
Enclosure: ReptiBreeze 24x24x48: $105 Shipped off of eBay
Lights: Repti-Glo 5.0 $20.00 at PetSmart
Basking Bulb: $7.00 at PetSmart
Wal-Mart Light Fixture: $7.00
Flukers DeepDome: $14.00
Hydration Items:
My set up is more advanced than a beginning keeper but just to give an idea...
MistKing: Starter Kit $120.00 with Shipping
Homemade Dripper: $2.50
Foliage:
Exo-Terra Vine: $15.00 at PetCo
Fake leaves 3x: $10.00
Fake Vine With Leaves: $9.00
GoodWill Fake Plants: $12.00
Peeled Sticks: 3 hours of time sanitizing, and peeling.
Ficus Benjamina Plant: $15.00 for a Medium sized one
Supplements:
Calcium WITHOUT D3: $5.95 for 8oz(I think 8oz)
Herptivite Multivitamin: $14.95
Flukers Calcium WITH D3: $7.95
Hydrometer/Temperature Gauges:
ZooMed Digital Temp Reader: $10.95
All Living Things Hydro. : $6.99
Chameleon:
Baby Veiled Chameleon: $95.00 at PetCo
Breeders will run you less money but by only $10.00 or so after shipping.
My setup would be a little more advanced for someone who was starting out with a smaller chameleon. But as you see it is not cheap to keep these guys. I have spent this much and if you are buying a baby like I did you will be spending money on a larger enclosure, bigger feeders, more feeders and so on. I started out with a little tiny half glass and half screen terrarium for Isabella that is the Equivalent to a 10 gallon terrarium. Very nice starter for such a small chameleon, but they grow very quickly.
So you still want a chameleon? Awesome! lets help you choose one...
Now for starters, often times the best chameleon you can choose is a Male Veiled Chameleon(also referred to as a Yemen Chameleon). They are very hardy, larger and easier to keep chameleons than most. There life span can go anywhere from 3-8 years if kept well and offer a wide array of coloration, not quite your typical panther but they offer just as much. You can choose a male by looking at the heals of the chameleon. They will have little bumps located there that are called Tarsal Spurs. Only males get them and often you can sex a Veiled chameleon from birth.
This is a Male Veiled Chameleon fully grown
http://www.google.com/imgres?q=Male...=133&start=0&ndsp=10&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0,i:102
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...JE7UJvxKYG9ygHChoHoAQ&ved=0CDIQ9QEwAg&dur=973
Here is a link that will show you a Tarsal Spur.
Males run into less complications(most times) than a female. And especially when you are a beginning chameleon keeper it is difficult to be in a situation where you have to worry about specific things like an infertile clutch(we will come back to this) or a laying bin. I personally ran into this problem when I bought Isabella not knowing whether or not she was a male or female. So now being a bit more experienced than I was a couple of months back I know the conditions I need to have to maintain a healthy female.
I said choose a male because such complications do not come up with a Male that do come up with a female. Females produce what is called an Infertile clutch. Even without copulation(breeding) they will be able to produce this. That is why in most guides you will see that females will tend to get less food and less heat than a male. Those combinations can lead to a large clutch and a premature death if produced to early.
Now to say that you have a good amount of money saved up and you have done your research, another fantastic option are Male Panther chameleons. Now with several locales being available to us it is often hard to choose which one we like best. The massive spectrum of colors that Panther Chameleons put off is outstanding! They are unique in there own right as the only chameleon that produces such colors. Many members refer to them as the "cliche" of the Chameleon world now a days. With those beautiful colors also comes a heavy price. You can purchase from local places or online breeders but you are looking to spend around $350.00 on the chameleon itself! Which if you are looking now doesn't sound that great
I don't blame you, like I said previously this is a very expensive hobby. The husbandry of a Male Panther is very similar to a Male Veiled, just a tad lower basking temperatures.So you have seen the price of owning a chameleon and my opinion and choice of what would be a great starter for you to jump into the hobby, lets talk about feeding a young baby/juvenile chameleon, or even an adult you may purchase right from the start.
Feeders:
Now the list for feeders goes on and on and on and on of what you can feed these guys. But I will share with you the cost(Bulk and Pet store prices) as well as well as the most common feeders we all use here on the forum.
Crickets: Anywhere from .08-.14 cents per crickets at your petstore. If you order in bulk like I do to feed my long line of hungry mouths, getting 1,000 could run you from $12.00-$20.00 depending on where you order from.
Dubia Roaches: Not available in most commercial Pet stores but you sometimes can find them in some local pet places. There price in there can run anywhere from about .30-.60 cents a piece! Buying online is a lot better choice you can get a starter colony of about 150 roaches for $20.00.
Super Worms: 50ct at most pet stores runs from $3.50-$4.99. Today I just bought a 1,000 bulk count for $20.00. Not a cheap hobby
Silk& Hornworms: These guys are expensive! And you normally do not find them at a local shop unless that place is awesome! They can run anywhere from around $12.00 for a cup of 25 all the way up to $15.00. And that is only for 25 of each. Hornworms generally will be a little more expensive than Silkworms from my experience.
Mealworms: Although not a good option for smaller chameleons due to the hard chitlin in there shell, they are rather cheap. At my local pet smart I can get 100 for $2.99 and online a bulk count of 1000 for only $7.99.
Butterworms: I am not very familiar with the price of these guys, you can buy some butterworms from Wal-mart for cheap, around $5.00 for a 20 count. Online I have seen prices from around $15.00-$19.95 for 100.
Phoenix Worms: PetCo sells these for $3.00 per 50 count but they are referred to as Calci-Worms. Online you can buy 400 from Mulberry Farms for $30.00 which is a great price.
Grasshoppers: The greener the better...meaning they are free as long as you want to take the time with a butterfly net and find them in your own backyard!
There are several other feeders to choice from but those are just some very good ones that are commonly used.
Now to give you an idea if you do not have other reptiles of how much these guys eat.
A juvenile/baby Veiled Chameleon should be eating around 12-20 food items a day. Whether that be crickets or many of the other food items I listed it is very important that they eat to stimulate their growth to become large and healthy chameleons. Now the rule of thumb is for feeding any chameleon is no wider than the length of the space between their eyes. So feeding a baby 1/4 of an inch crickets would be ideal and you will need a lot of them for around a month before you can get 1/2 inch crickets. So something to think about with this is if they eat that many crickets and you are buying lets say 100 at a time, you are spending around $40.00 that month giving they last you 6-7 days.
Now for a full grown Male Veiled he should be eating around 5-10 large crickets every other day. As for the juvenile and the adult you want to mix up there diet. Variety is key to a happy and healthy chameleon so you are going to want to get around 3-4 feeders and divide them up during the week. No feeder should make up more than around 30% of the their total diet.
Still keeping up? This guide is not to misguide you but really let you get the overall idea of what you should be expecting with this hobby. This is a very rewarding hobby and is extremely enjoyable. Many people enjoy the idea of the reptile rather than really realizing the commitment it takes to maintain a healthy chameleon.
Last but not least...
Vet Bills: You should never purchase an animal that you cannot afford to take care of whether it be something minor or even all the necessary things that you will need down the road or right away. The vet can be an extremely expensive thing depending on what you are dealing with. X-Rays for my Leopard gecko just a few months ago was a $65.00 charge on my bill, so it is not cheap.
Finally I will give you some links of some great guides on husbandry and gut load from our Forum experts.
This is Jannb's guide on keeping a juvenile Veiled/Panther chameleon for a new keeper. She is fantastic, one of the best keepers on the forum and someone I look up to myself for advice. She is an amazing keeper and has a lot of experience with Veiled chameleons.
http://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/jannb/325-info-new-keepers-young-veiled-panther-chameleons.html
This is Sandra's blog to gutloading your feeders which is a vital part of maintaining a healthy chameleon. She is our expert and does a very fine job around the forum giving advice all things feeders
She is also a very good keeper as well and I thank her too for helping me with all my questions.She has many more blogs about nutrition that you can take a look at but this one is a very good one that I have used in the past.
http://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/75-feeder-nutrition-gutloading.html
Thank you for looking! I hope this really guides the way toward you joining our community and getting a chameleon of your own! Thank you!
