Humidity Tips?

[Toezie]

I seem to be having some difficulty keeping my cham's humidity up. He's in a Zilla all screen enclosure (the medium one for now as he's a juvenile - what's a good adult panther home?) The temperatures in his home have the bottom about 72 and his basking spot in the top corner at 92. He never hangs at the bottom, but not always in his basking spot, so I think he's content with the temperatures.

We have a dripper for him to drink and he loves it. And we mist him with a spray bottle - if anything too often because we've had to prop his home up over a tub so the water can drain out (so tips on drainage set ups are welcome too!). But the humidity doesn't seem to stay constant. So we went and got a humidifier, it worked a bit but not enough so we got a second one. We're piping the steam into the cham's home with PVC as I saw pictures on here of folks doing that and it seemed like a good idea. And we have live plants in his home (pothos and hibiscus) too.

I took him to the vet Wednesday for a wellness exam and other than the parasite he seemed to come with (which the vet said is pretty common and easy to fix with meds - she gave us Pancur), he's healthy and happy. I'd just like him to stay healthy and happy.

Any tips would be greatly appreciated, thanks!

 

[Tygerr]

But the humidity doesn't seem to stay constant.

You never mentioned what humidity levels you are attaining. For Panthers, you should be aiming for about 50%-70% RH. However, those levels do not have to remain constant. It is quite acceptable for the humidity levels to spike up after misting sessions, then slowly fall down again as the cage dries out. What you're trying to attain is an average humidity within that range. It doesn't matter if the humidity spikes outside of the range or falls below the range for short periods of time.

Also, remember that you want to have a humidity gradient within the cage. There should be places where it is more humid, and places in the cage where it is drier. That allows your chameleon to select the optimum humidity level within the range. Usually it will be more humid lower down in the cage where the moisture is retained in the soil of the live plants, and drier up at the top of the cage near the basking lights. This is exactly the same as in the wild, where it is humid and moist on the forest floor, but drier and well ventilated up in the tree canopy.

If it's really dry, and the humidity is well below the acceptable range, you could always try closing up a side or two of the cage using corrugated PVC. With adequate misting and enough live plants, I don't think there is a need for a humidifier in most cases.

 

[beeze]

Are you using live plants? They help to keep the humidity up.

 

[Toezie]

Yes, I have live plants - pothos and hibiscus.

Humidity, after misting, gets up into the 60s. Normally it is 20-40 (ex: right now it is 21%) at his basking spot and about 10 higher down lower. I spray lots to get it to stay around 50 at least, but that doesn't allow for much drying out. I know he gets plenty to drink, I see him drink regularly from his dripper. And he's eating fine.

I just didn't know if closing up a side of the screen was ok and what would be the best way to do it. I did experiment and draped a towel over one side one day and the humidity jumped to the 90s. So is it possible the digital reader thingy isn't getting a correct reading or is it just that all the humidity is escaping?

 

[ayiaskepi]

Is this a captive bred cham or a wild caught. No captive bred reptile I ever purchased "came" with a parasite, though it is obviously possible. I am simply curious.

 

[Amanda S]

I have been struggling with the humidity issue with my all screen cage too.

I went to the dollar store and bought a shower curtain, cut it up, and lined three sides of the cage. I then mist several times a day and have a habba mist/$hit. I have 3 live plants and a laying area that is kept relatively moist. I maintain an average humidity of 60% with the sides covered. That made a huge difference for me. I bought a humidifier too but I want to get a new filter for it before I use it. Good luck!

 

[JoshCrane1]

i noticed in my live plant cages that the humidity is always significantly higher near the base of the plant and soil.

 

[Toezie]

Is this a captive bred cham or a wild caught. No captive bred reptile I ever purchased "came" with a parasite, though it is obviously possible. I am simply curious.

He is captive bred. I just got him and got him to the vet before having him for a week just in case there were any issues. Other than that, he got the all clear.

I'm just paranoid about the humidity issues. I can spray him lots to keep it in the good range, but that doesn't allow much for drying out. I didn't know if there were other tips I hadn't read yet.

I will go to the store in the morning to get stuff to cover one side of his cage. Is there something that is more recommended?

Eventually, when I finish fixing my new home, I plan on giving him his own room where I can close - or at least nearly close - the A/C vent, so that will help with the humidity then. I just wanted to make sure he's getting what he needs in the mean time.

I'm not worried when I take him outside as it is disgustingly humid outside, I just don't want to make him unhappy either.

 

[Toezie]

I have been struggling with the humidity issue with my all screen cage too.

I went to the dollar store and bought a shower curtain, cut it up, and lined three sides of the cage. I then mist several times a day and have a habba mist/$hit. I have 3 live plants and a laying area that is kept relatively moist. I maintain an average humidity of 60% with the sides covered. That made a huge difference for me. I bought a humidifier too but I want to get a new filter for it before I use it. Good luck!

Oh, that sounds like an easy fix. Thanks for the tip!

 

[Amanda S]

I thought about that too...a better cover...you could use plexiglass...but I found it was expensive and you'd have to size it/cut it. A shower curtain was cheap, it holds moisture on it through the day, and easy to replace periodically. Plus I found a cool shade of green. My cham is pretty sure she is wild still