Glass terrarium kill cham?

[AshleyClark007]

Hello, I have a question about housing chams. Recently my cham passed and I am not sure why. But a friend of mine told me you can't put a cham in a glass terrarium is this true? The kind she was in had glass for the 3 sides and bottom but the door was screen and so was the top. She was about 1 1/2 eating well and everything. She never showed any signs of being sick. I no about the egg bins and stuff so that wasn't the case either.. But is the terrarium thing true?

 

[carol5208]

They can live in terrariums. You said 1 1/2 is that months or years? If she was 1 1/2 yrs I hope it was a very large terrarium. There could have been something else wrong in your set up. What did she die from?

 

[sharlaxle]

The argument is long and hard for/against vivariums. My location is cold often, so I keep my hatchlings in vivariums. I do think they can be kept in vivariums, it does take special considerations, but then again so do screen cages.
I am sorry to hear your loss, however without know what the chameleon died from, there really is no way of knowing if it was enclosure based or otherwise based.
If you can tell us your husbandry we might be able to tell if something was wrong, but without a necropsy then you will probably never know for sure.
I am sorry for your loss

 

[pepezkakap]

I am sorry for your loss. I will be watching the responses to learn valuable lesson myself.

 

[little leaf]

sorry for your loss

I have all my 6 baby Jacksons in a ter/viv - and all 6 are still doing great - I started them in a tote- but could not keep the humidity high enough, the only thing I have noticed, you really have to watch the heat in it - it gets hot in there if you are not careful - I only have a sliver of a bulb aimed in - and its plenty - but this is also my first time w/ babies , or this type of cage- but so far, they are doing very well in it -

 

[Boldie]

I keep my male Panther in a glass exo terra and have done for over a year without any problems to his health.

 

[sandrachameleon]

Hello, I have a question about housing chams. Recently my cham passed and I am not sure why. But a friend of mine told me you can't put a cham in a glass terrarium is this true? The kind she was in had glass for the 3 sides and bottom but the door was screen and so was the top. She was about 1 1/2 eating well and everything. She never showed any signs of being sick. I no about the egg bins and stuff so that wasn't the case either.. But is the terrarium thing true?

No. Having a glass and screen combo cage will not kill a chameleon. What matters is the environment created within the cage/enclosure, and all other aspects of husbandry. Temp, Humidity, UVB, properly gutloaded prey, proper use of supplements, parasite treatments as needed, sufficient space, etc.

 

[szpond]

In my opinion, with the proper husbandry otherwise and VERY regular cleaning - it can be done successfully (with the proper dimensions). With a lesser airflow going through it (even though it does have its ventilation points), the easier for the air to become stagnant and bacteria to build up.

Nowadays I prefer screen, though with a terrarium I was using up a LOT of paper towel rolls!

It sounds like your set-up was a bit different from my terrarium. Yours had an all-screen front? That sounds really nice, pretty much what my winter screen cage is. I have plastic covering 3 sides of the enclosure to help keep the humidity in. It was most likely not the enclosure that ended the cham.

 

[Lathelia]

No. Having a glass and screen combo cage will not kill a chameleon. What matters is the environment created within the cage/enclosure, and all other aspects of husbandry. Temp, Humidity, UVB, properly gutloaded prey, proper use of supplements, parasite treatments as needed, sufficient space, etc.

Exactly. This kind of cage (screen on top and one side) are quite popular in my country. Terrarium itself will not kill a chameleon, but husbandry has to be adjusted to the cage. You cannot use the same heating bulb in screen and glass (assuming you are aiming for the same temerature) or have the same misting schedule. Glass terrarium keeps high temps and humidity longer.

 

[laurie]

No. Having a glass and screen combo cage will not kill a chameleon. What matters is the environment created within the cage/enclosure, and all other aspects of husbandry. Temp, Humidity, UVB, properly gutloaded prey, proper use of supplements, parasite treatments as needed, sufficient space, etc.

This is a lady with advice I am always comfortable following. She has kept chams for years, they are very healthy and her gutloads and feeding are models for all of us. So Sandra is correct, they can be kept in a terrarium, you just need to meet their needs.

 

[zachanderson]

I'm very sorry for your loss! Glass terrariums aren't necessarily good for a chameleon to live in because chameleons need fresh air in their habitat. Screens are always better because air can flow in and out of those cages unlike the glass ones.

 

[sandrachameleon]

I'm very sorry for your loss! Glass terrariums aren't necessarily good for a chameleon to live in because chameleons need fresh air in their habitat. Screens are always better because air can flow in and out of those cages unlike the glass ones.

so long as there are vents near the bottom somewhere, there will be air exchange. The basking bulb heat ensures that - hot air rising draws in fresh cooler air from below.
glass can actually be BETTER than screen in some circumstances. glass retains stable humidity and temp well / better than screen (which is good if your home environment isnt exactly what chams need). With glass there is no risk of toenails being ripped out from climbing screen.