First time reptile owner, have some questions about keeping a chameleon.

[Dynamaxion]

As you can see from my join date I've been thinking about getting a chameleon for a while, I've finally decided to commit.

I have a 24x24x48 cage. I have a two foot tall weeping fig that will cover the bottom half of the cage, and up top I am using fake vines/branches that I bought from a former chameleon owner. I noticed that when I try to screw the fake branches into the screen, it tears the wire. The branches have one screw on either end, I have no idea how to put them in the cage without wrecking the wire. I've already tried and have two small holes in my wire to attest to it. I'm going to forget the branches and just use vines with cable ties.

1. If there's a live plant taking up the bottom half of the cage and fake vines/branches on top, will the chameleon mind the clutter? There's definitely plenty of open space for crawling, but I just wonder if the bottom half of the cage will be cold because the upper branches block the heat. I'm assuming the chameleon can handle short forages to the bottom while spending most of its time up top? I'm going to be using a feeding cup situated about halfway up the cage. Also, will a live weeping fig handle itself well indoors without direct sunlight?

2. I work from extremely early in the morning to about 3 pm, I do not have time to feed my chameleon before work because I have a long commute. I was thinking of setting the lights to 12pm-12am, and feed the chameleon at 4 pm or 5 pm at the very latest. I heard they like to eat early, will being fed 4-5 hours after the lights come on bother it? Also, is it okay to have the chameleon's light schedule that different from the cycle of the actual sun? My room is not completely dark during the day although I was thinking I could get curtains to stop light flooding in through the windows.

3. If I gut load my crickets at the same time I feed the chameleon, will they be good the next day? That is, I am planning on gut-loading my crickets right when I get home from work, at the same time I feed the chameleon. Will the previous day's gut-load still be in the crickets? The problem is, if I give them the gut-load at 4 pm and wait a few hours, the chameleon will eat too late. So I'm basically wondering if gut-loading will last 24 hours, since I'll be applying the gut load and feeding the chameleon at the same time, when I get home from work.

4. I've done a ton of research, but am I taking a risk by having a panther chameleon as my first reptile? I would never forgive myself if I did something dumb and the chameleon perished. The owner who had my cage before said that his chameleon "fell off a branch and died from it". After googling, I feel like that's ********. I wonder if any of these fake branches/vines are toxic, or if he was doing something else wrong. How many unseen hazards are there?

5. Sometimes my roommates smoke tobacco in the house. It's not like the chameleon will have smoke being blown in its cage or onto its face, but will the faint presence/odor of smoke sometimes disturb/harm the chameleon? If so, I can leave my door closed and use a fan to blow smoke away from my room.

6. If I use a feeder cup for the day to day routine, but once in a while I want to feed my chameleon by holding the crickets with pliers/fingers/chop sticks, will it eat them that way? Or are they such creatures of habit that they will only eat via their normal routine method?

7. The thermometer I bought is reading 78 degrees right now, even though there's no heating in my room and according to the weather.com it's only 65 degrees in LA. Broken? The weather also says that the humidity in LA is almost 80%, this thermometer is saying it's 30% humidity.

I know this is a massive wall of text, I don't expect anyone to read it all but maybe people could just answer little bits at a time. Thanks a lot.

 

[fluxlizard]

2.- I would just set your timer for normal hours. It really doesn't matter when they eat. Some people just came up with what they thought was a logical and good idea. I've been feeding mine at somewhat random times of day for 20 something years and they do fine- even if fed less than a couple hours before lights go out. Things slow down when the lizards sleeps, but digestion doesn't stop altogether and the next day it resumes just fine. In fact when I've assist fed chameleons that needed it, I've always fed them at night so they sleep off the stress. And they do fine that way. There really is no factual basis for the idea that they need to digest several hours before sleeping.

4- you are always taking a risk when you are caring for a living thing. I agree with your opinion of the previous owner's story. Probably what happened was he was asleep at the wheel and overlooked a declining lizard until it became so far gone that it fell off the branch and died. Beware of his branches and disinfect well. If you make a small mistake a healthy panther will not drop dead. Nearly all mistakes you make will take some time to seriously harm the lizard. The important thing is to do what you say you have been doing- read a lot, learn a lot, and then carefully follow directions, and then once you have the lizard to be a good observer and watch for changes and continue to educate yourself and compare old and new information. Also for a first lizard- do yourself a favor and get one that is very well started. Buy a panther that can eat a full sized cricket and is starting to show adult coloration, but is still young without full color yet, not a tiny little panther baby. The young adults are much, much hardier and forgiving than the wee babies.

6- yes they will eat that way from time to time if that is how often you want to do it. The thing is - the more often you feed that way, the more they will associate what is happening with a meal and the more excited they will become and quick to respond to the offering. But even if you only do it occasionally or once in your life, they will respond- you just have to be more patient sometimes before they do.

 

[Carlton]

I have a 24x24x48 cage. I have a two foot tall weeping fig that will cover the bottom half of the cage, and up top I am using fake vines/branches that I bought from a former chameleon owner. I noticed that when I try to screw the fake branches into the screen, it tears the wire. The branches have one screw on either end, I have no idea how to put them in the cage without wrecking the wire. I've already tried and have two small holes in my wire to attest to it. I'm going to forget the branches and just use vines with cable ties.

Cable ties or light gauge florist's wire will work fine.

1. If there's a live plant taking up the bottom half of the cage and fake vines/branches on top, will the chameleon mind the clutter? There's definitely plenty of open space for crawling, but I just wonder if the bottom half of the cage will be cold because the upper branches block the heat. I'm assuming the chameleon can handle short forages to the bottom while spending most of its time up top?

Actually your cham will not mind the "clutter" at all. Denser foliage will provide a gradient of temp and humidity your cham can choose at different times of day. That's what you WANT.


I'm going to be using a feeding cup situated about halfway up the cage. Also, will a live weeping fig handle itself well indoors without direct sunlight?

If you have sufficient cage lighting your Ficus should be OK. It will drop leaves after you move it, but they tend to do that in response to environmental changes. If the Ficus drops lots of leaves in the more shaded areas you can help it green up by adding a strip light that shines in the lower areas of the cage. It doesn't have to be a special light, just light.

2. I work from extremely early in the morning to about 3 pm, I do not have time to feed my chameleon before work because I have a long commute. I was thinking of setting the lights to 12pm-12am, and feed the chameleon at 4 pm or 5 pm at the very latest. I heard they like to eat early, will being fed 4-5 hours after the lights come on bother it? Also, is it okay to have the chameleon's light schedule that different from the cycle of the actual sun? My room is not completely dark during the day although I was thinking I could get curtains to stop light flooding in through the windows.

3. If I gut load my crickets at the same time I feed the chameleon, will they be good the next day? That is, I am planning on gut-loading my crickets right when I get home from work, at the same time I feed the chameleon. Will the previous day's gut-load still be in the crickets? The problem is, if I give them the gut-load at 4 pm and wait a few hours, the chameleon will eat too late. So I'm basically wondering if gut-loading will last 24 hours, since I'll be applying the gut load and feeding the chameleon at the same time, when I get home from work.

If you are planning on leaving the insects in a container in the cage, put a little gutload in there with them. That way they can feed whenever they want. What they may lose over time is their dust...they tend to groom it off fairly quickly.

4. I've done a ton of research, but am I taking a risk by having a panther chameleon as my first reptile? I would never forgive myself if I did something dumb and the chameleon perished. The owner who had my cage before said that his chameleon "fell off a branch and died from it". After googling, I feel like that's ********. I wonder if any of these fake branches/vines are toxic, or if he was doing something else wrong. How many unseen hazards are there?

That cham probably died of nutritional or other problems, not a fall in a 4' cage!

5. Sometimes my roommates smoke tobacco in the house. It's not like the chameleon will have smoke being blown in its cage or onto its face, but will the faint presence/odor of smoke sometimes disturb/harm the chameleon? If so, I can leave my door closed and use a fan to blow smoke away from my room.

The odor won't be a problem, but the second hand smoke and accumulated tars pose the same type of risk they do to humans. What you don't want is smoke ash and tar depositing on the cage leaves that your cham will drink from.

6. If I use a feeder cup for the day to day routine, but once in a while I want to feed my chameleon by holding the crickets with pliers/fingers/chop sticks, will it eat them that way? Or are they such creatures of habit that they will only eat via their normal routine method?

7. The thermometer I bought is reading 78 degrees right now, even though there's no heating in my room and according to the weather.com it's only 65 degrees in LA. Broken? The weather also says that the humidity in LA is almost 80%, this thermometer is saying it's 30% humidity.

Its always good to test your meters. Sounds as if they are off. Try moving them around to areas in the house you KNOW are cooler and warmer and see if the thermometer reacts. Thermometers don't measure humidity. If this is a combo analog dial type gauge from a pet shop its probably not very accurate.

I know this is a massive wall of text, I don't expect anyone to read it all but maybe people could just answer little bits at a time. Thanks a lot.

 

[Dynamaxion]

Thanks a lot guys, I appreciate the responses and will use the advice.