First chameleon pls help make him cozy!

[Puma23]

Okay so i love reptiles and i was at a reptile expo and noticed a beautiful cham and with the help of my friends' coaxing made an impulse buy...the chameleon was the pet of a pet store (kept as a form of mascot that people would come in to see) and is no stranger to being handled and shoots across the cage for attention when i am near he is a 1.5 year old panther i have no clue what i am doing and learning everything from the internet...my roommate works at a pet store so acquiring items will not be hard i just need to know what he needs i just ordered a 29x29x48 nylon reptarium and a humidifier he is adorable and cool and i love him to death blah blah blah lol the more advice the better

ps please keep it focused on helping the cham and not yelling at me for being irresponsible

thank you for all your help!

 

[Eyal]

Keep it up!

 

[opihiman]

Why don't you start with telling us what you have....Equipment. then it may be easier to help you....then start yelling at you...LOL... Just kidding...

also pictures will help out a great deal..pics of your cham and your enclosure..

Welcome to the forums

OPI

 

[Julirs]

You absolutely need a UVB bulb-Zoomed Reptisun 5.0 linear flourescent tube (no twisty compact bulbs please) and a fixture for that bulb as well as a clamp lamp and lightbulb for a basking spot. Then you absolutely need a digital thermometer to make sure that your temps are Ohhhh-about 90 in the basking spot and room temp mid 70's in the rest of the cage. Get some live plants (Schflerra, Pothos, Ficus) wash them in soapy water, rinse well, repot in orgainic soil and add them to the cage with some vines. NO SUBSTRATE. You need then need Repcal with D3, Repal without D3, and Herptivite. Read up to put together a supplement schedule. Good luck.

 

[BocaJan]

Just what I was going to say Julirs

 

[Puma23]

Sorry for all the questions!

Should i be worried about the heat lamp and uvb tube burning through the nylon mesh and what kind of heat lamp should I be using? the exact cage is R-175 APOGEE REPTARIUM
29X29X48"
should i use a humidifier(i just bought a reptile humidifier that hooks up to a aquarium air pump), a dripper, spray his tank, or a combination?

If im spraying him with water he will just drink and drink and drink is this normal?

The enclosure is the pvc piping covered in nylon mesh i want to back it with plexi or something on the sides and front a foot or two up and on the back all the way up how is the best way to do this?

Is it normal that my cham wants to be out and walk around on people?

what are signs that he would be stressed so i know how to tell he is uncomfortable?

 

[Brad Ramsey]

Should i be worried about the heat lamp and uvb tube burning through the nylon mesh and what kind of heat lamp should I be using? the exact cage is R-175 APOGEE REPTARIUM
29X29X48"

I HATE those cages!
Can you cancel the order and get an aluminum screen enclosure?

-Brad

 

[Puma23]

I thought the aluminum ones where bad for their nails?

 

[hallenhe]

Is it normal that my cham wants to be out and walk around on people?

what are signs that he would be stressed so i know how to tell he is uncomfortable?

He's been a store pet, and has probably been acclimated to people from a young age, so wanting to be out and walking on people is probably normal. My captive bred, free range panther will clamber about on us of his own accord, as well as appearing to enjoy handling (on his terms, not ours; I hold out my hand to him and let him decide whether to climb on or not. As I'm generally warmer than he is, and treats can be involved, he more often than not opts to climb on).

Stress is often shown by color; my Jacksons would become dark and blotchy. If the panther's quite upset (i.e. trip to the vet) he'll put on display colors, inflate top to bottom and gape; they'll do the inflating and gaping if you alarm them, such as moving too quickly in their presence.

 

[Brad Ramsey]

Aluminum enclosures are preferred.

-Brad

 

[dodolah]

Should i be worried about the heat lamp and uvb tube burning through the nylon mesh and what kind of heat lamp should I be using? the exact cage is R-175 APOGEE REPTARIUM
29X29X48"

Is it normal that my cham wants to be out and walk around on people?

Brad is right. I hate those cages as well.
get aluminum cage.

as far as your cham wants to go out and walk around the people, I wouldn't immediately associate it as "friendly" or "used" to people.
Most of the time, when chams do that, check the husbandry (temp, humidity, uvb lamp, etc etc). If you find that there is something wrong or off, then that's your reason. Happy Chameleon often see his cage as his territory. When he love the cage, he will try to defend it from intruder.
Hence, the terror about how chameleons have attitudes.


Another thing to check is your chameleon's hormone.
(for egg laying cham) Is she gravid? if she is, you need to give her digging site-
for male, is he frisky? and trying to mate?
my chameleon was in a frisky mode last month and went nut for couple of weeks going up and down, bobbing at my finger, etc etc.

I thought the aluminum ones where bad for their nails?

If you provided your cham with many branches and plants throughout the cage, chances are he won't feel the need to climb the net. If you are still afraid, you can order the cage at cages.net and ask them to substitute the 1/16" to 1/8" screen openings free of charge.

For the first couple of weeks, they usually climb the screen to acclimate with the surroundings.
But, later, he will get tired of it and start to get comfortable in his cage.
I have aluminum cages and have been very happy with them.