HELP! Are these Rudis Chameleons???

sidesweep

sidesweep

New Member
I recently bought two "rudis" chameleons from a dealer near where i live.

However the problem is that i have now been looking at pictures of rudis chameleons on the internet and they look nothing like mine!! :confused:

The rudis chameleons i see on the internet all have "bumpy" skin but mine are nothing like this.

The bloke i bought them from had three different species in the same enclosure and i am worried that they have mixed them up! :mad:]

Thanks!
 

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Here is a picture of their enclosure.

They appear to be doing well in their enclosure. I have a 4ft high enclosure with a mixture of plastic and real plants, including some real bamboo for them to climb on.

I am also using a flourecant low heat balb but i only put it on for around 6 hours a day as i do not want to over heat them and the room is fairly sunny anyways. I have also been keeping the temperature at around 74F.
 

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You have a flapneck chameleon.

http://adcham.com/html/taxonomy/species/chdilepis.html

You need to go out and get a 2ft light fixture and a ReptiSun 5.0 uvb bulb (non compact, you want the straight bulb) They need the uvb for them to stimulate their natural sunlight. Then you need to get a normal light bulb / heat lamp thing to simulate a basking spot. The basking spot should be around 90 and the rest of the cage should be in the 70's


Still a very cool looking chameleon :)
 
Thanks Rocky! Will need to buy a bigger enclosure then?

i mean i thought they were fully grown already. They are about 8 inches i think...am not at home at the moment. But if they are going to grow more then will i have to upgrade later?
 
Plus i heard Chamaeleo dilepis are agressive to each other but i keep two in a cage and they seem perfectly fine!?!
 
Even if it is a boy and girl? This is really bad for me, i think i might go back to the shop and complain.
 
You can, but this is something probably reserved for experienced keepers and breeders.

Unless you know what stress signs you are looking for, and can monitor your chameleons directly for most of your time. While providing adequate coverage and seperate basking areas. Honestly, this should be reserved to people with experience, even then people usually keep their chameleons separate. Chameleons are solitary by nature and prefer to be alone. Plus are you prepared for female egglaying and breeding in general? Breeding is a big financial step to take, and something you shouldn't take on with the responsibility of researching for your first chameleon.

Chameleons are senstitive to stress, supplementation, lighting, etc. Taking the time to research now from a reliable resource will save you vet bills later on.

A few tips:
-Pet stores/shops offer horrible advice. They set you up with the wrong equipment, give you useless if not dangerous crap like waterfalls, and wrong lighting.

-Most of their animals are wild caught. They are more succeptable to problems and should be checked for parasites. But then again, any chameleon you get should be checked for parasites.

-That or the animals are from backyard breeders around town, and are usually sick from the breeder or the store to begin with, leaving you with the costs and repercussions.

- A veiled or panther chameleon is much better to start off with. A healthy animal is pretty much guaranteed if you take the time to find a breeder. There are plenty on this site.

I am not saying this to discourage you, but I just want you to have a good first time experience with chameleons.

http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/
This is a good resource to start with, I don't have any for flapnecks, but I am sure someone will.
 
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Hear to the tips of chambabysitter. It's impossible to keep the species from this complex (gracilis, dilepis, roperi, quilensis, senegalensis....) togehter, those are an perfect example for interracial aggressions.
Seperate them as soon as possible.

To the "rudis": Those aren't available at the moment, the animals sold with this name are sternfeldis, a montane species with special needs, which is normally not good for beginners
 
I would take them back and complain. Either try to return one for what you paid and keep one or maybe exchange them both for a different type (panther / veiled / whatever else). Might as well get an animal that can live in the cage you have. You just need to get a UVB bulb and a basking lamp.

-Also, that cage is to small to house 2 even if you watched them and had seperate everything.

- The cage would be perfect for just one, but eventually one will start to go down hill.
 
Its a shame because looks like the Rudis would have been an easier specie to keep. But think i am going to keep them both now anyway as i have gotten quite attached to the little beauties :D

Thanks @ Rocky and everyone else for your sound advice, which i am definitely going to follow. Sorting out the lighting, enclosure, etc right now. :cool:
 
you also need to take out the money tree and lucky bamboo and replace the them with ficus, pothos, schlefferia (umbrella plant) or hibiscus.
 
eisentrauti said:
To the "rudis": Those aren't available at the moment, the animals sold with this name are sternfeldis,
Click to expand...

:DThis is your pet peeve isn't it? I've seen you make the correction at least ten different times, now I'm interested to see an actual rudis. Mine are sterfeldis also and I've never seen the other.
 
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