LizardLurkin
Member
First off, hello! New to the forums! Happy to be here!
Onto my question, I figured this would be one of the best places to ask about this:
Long story short, I've been nose deep in Chameleon research, and I want to make sure I know everything I can before making any big moves. I know chameleons require very specific temperature and humidity conditions but, living in a relatively cold section of the world, I have some concerns.
Winters can lead to rather short days, and not a lot of natural sunlight for...Well, as long as our winters last
It's also a relatively dry clime, too. I'm not sure how much the outside world of beyond the house walls affects keeping one of these guys around. The house itself tends to be kept warm, but I worry about having to turn things off for the night and it getting too cold regardless.
So, I wanted to know, is there a special sort of enclosure set up to go for that takes colder locations into consideration? Or is the recommended set ups (the lamps, the misting, the screen cages, etc.) able to stand up to the climate? I apologize if it's a noob question, but I couldn't really find anything conclusive.
Onto my question, I figured this would be one of the best places to ask about this:
Long story short, I've been nose deep in Chameleon research, and I want to make sure I know everything I can before making any big moves. I know chameleons require very specific temperature and humidity conditions but, living in a relatively cold section of the world, I have some concerns.
Winters can lead to rather short days, and not a lot of natural sunlight for...Well, as long as our winters last
It's also a relatively dry clime, too. I'm not sure how much the outside world of beyond the house walls affects keeping one of these guys around. The house itself tends to be kept warm, but I worry about having to turn things off for the night and it getting too cold regardless.
So, I wanted to know, is there a special sort of enclosure set up to go for that takes colder locations into consideration? Or is the recommended set ups (the lamps, the misting, the screen cages, etc.) able to stand up to the climate? I apologize if it's a noob question, but I couldn't really find anything conclusive.
I’m not sure I can provide the answers you are needing, but I’ll try. What type of chameleon are you thinking about getting? The care for each differs a bit. I would definitely suggest getting a hybrid enclosure that will help keep heat and humidity in and cold drafts out. You do want to make certain that it has adequate ventilation and air flow though. Usually having a screen front door is perfect. At the minimum, you will need ventilation input near to the bottom and then a screen top to achieve the chimney effect ventilation. Usually we say to have no heat at night, but this will depend on how cold it gets at night in your home. If it is often colder than 60-65, you will need a ceramic heat emitter for night use. You should also have a back up plan in the event that something happens that you lose power. If you don’t have a back up generator, wood stove/fireplace, how will you prevent a chameleon from freezing to death if a nasty winter storm takes out your power? You also want to take into consideration the availability of feeder insects. Many of us have to order from on line vendors to get a decent variety. Maybe your pet stores carry a wider selection though. You also need to look at if there is an exotics veterinarian in your area…just in case. There are chameleon keepers all over the world, and some just need to make some husbandry modifications to be successful. I do recall seeing people from Alaska here and there are plenty of Canadians who keep chams. If you haven’t already found it, this is a fantastic place to learn so very much. 
