free range question

[stolbert89]

I house my veiled chameleon in a smaller room...8 1/2 ft wide. His free range is set up on only one side of the room at the moment in a corner. I would like to set up a place on the other side of the room to house a mistking. My question is, when the water turns on will he see the water and go over to it if he is thirsty or is it pointless to spend the money because he most likely won't go over there? I think it could be a problem if he doesn't really like to be misted and would look at that entire area as a no no.

I really would like to have something that is automated and has a drain. Any advice on how to go about getting him water without it all getting all over the place would help as well as some input on the above idea.

 

[AlexG92]

i think you should just make a drip bottle and have it drip onto a pothos plant so it gets watered as well. how do you keep the humidity up and also how do you supply your cham with uvb? hand how do you feed it for that matter?

 

[Olimpia]

Ok, I'm going to post photos of my free range room and hopefully it'll give you some inspiration.

Here is a photo of my drainage table. The idea was that it would be big enough for two cages to sit on each table and hold up their weight while at the same time draining everything towards a hole in the center. The gray part is PVC sheet nailed into the sides and middle, creating a slope.

Here you can see the room close to the finishing stages. I hung the lights from the ceiling, and made a PVC frame with chicken fencing to hold the misting system in place. The chams do really well finding the streams of water when they're thirsty, and I mist for a total of 50 minutes thorughout the day so they have lots of time to realize the stream is running and get under one.

If I wasn't renting I would have built the frame out of wood and make it more attractive, but I needed something I wouldn't mind tearing apart in a year if I need to move. With this set-up none of the water ever gets on the floor (which is carpet!). And then to feed I just set up containers with insects in them and the chams pick them out as they want. The room is small, so with the plants and misting the humidity stays at a good level.

So in answer to your question, if you don't want to build something like my drainage tables I guarantee that your cham will figure out where the water is. They're smarter than we give them credit for, and even if it takes him a day or two, he will figure out where it is.

 

[JaxyGirl]

Olimpia, your free range is amazing!!! How many chams do you have in there?

 

[Olimpia]

Olimpia, your free range is amazing!!! How many chams do you have in there?

Thank you! I have three panthers in there all cohabiting superbly in there. They have the option of leaving the room if they want, which they do sometimes during the day, but they always come back. They're doing better now than they ever were in cages, it's amazing.

 

[JaxyGirl]

Thank you! I have three panthers in there all cohabiting superbly in there. They have the option of leaving the room if they want, which they do sometimes during the day, but they always come back. They're doing better now than they ever were in cages, it's amazing.

I free range my male Jackson's..not quite the setup you have..but he and I both love it. He has his own area in the living room..but has pretty much taken over the living room. He's all over the place. Free ranging is the way to go so much fun!!

 

[cantgetagoodsn]

that is a very impressive setup!

 

[Fool]

yea thats great I wish I could do that but good job

 

[Thompson]

Ok, I'm going to post photos of my free range room and hopefully it'll give you some inspiration.

.

I absolutely love this free range you've set up. I sooooo badly want to set something up like that for my chams!

 

[carol5208]

That free range is insane! OMG! Your chameleons must be in heaven. Probably the nicest one I have ever seen!

 

[Obama the cham]

F*** A CAGE!!!! I DINT KNOW U COULD DO THIS!!!! my cham HATES his cage! haha

 

[Olimpia]

Thank you for the kind comments! I'm lucky that I found an apartment with a small extra room, and I was able to free everyone from their cages. It was a pain to set up all by myself! lol The other two chams have their own free ranges in other corners of the house.

If you can provide the cham everything it needs to be healthy in a free range, it's a great option for keeping them. I wish I would have known about free ranging when I got my first cham.

 

[jastate09]

Gorgeous set up Olimpia! You have some very lucky chameleons.

 

[Gensen]

Right!

I know it looks like Disney Land for Chameleons!
If I die and come cack as a Cham... I am going to Olimpias! lol

 

[Olimpia]

Haha thanks guys!

 

[carol5208]

I know it looks like Disney Land for Chameleons!
If I die and come cack as a Cham... I am going to Olimpias! lol

haha! Good one!!!! I was thinking the same thing about how I want to be reincarnated!!! lol!