I finally got one!! ...HELP!

Mundanechamlady

Mundanechamlady

New Member
I was planning on patiently waiting until I did further research, had time to let the plants settle in, etc etc etc.

Well, randomly browsing CL 2 nights ago, I stumbled upon a post of someone selling their panther cham, with all supplies pretty much, for FIFTY DOLLARS.

I just couldn't resist.

So, here I am, an official owner of one of the most coolest little creatures on earth and a hundred million questions for all of you ❤

He's in a 16x16x36 cage. I don't know the wattage of the bulbs he has right now.

I have already purchased the 24x24x48 cage, a tray for the bottom and the mist king.

FYI, petco is having a sale, $40 off 100 or more. They price match, so they price matched Amazon's $80 AND gave me the $40 off of the $110 it regularly cost. Aka, I got a brand new mist king for $40. If y'all are in the market, go while the sale is still on!

Questions! I have many.

Cricket size? How many a day?

He's 1.5 years old. Im seeing variables from 9 per day to 9 every other day.

Lighting?

24x24x48 cage, what's the best wattage, size, etc. i'm already blowing loads of cash because this happened so unexpectedly, so zoomed/reptibreeze is likely what ill stick to. Something on the less expensive but worth it please! I'll upgrade once my bonus comes through, but for the time being, need him comfortable (Amazon links are like xmas presents to me)

How far down should lighting go for basking and how far down for cooling off? Or, rephrased, how far down should the basking branches be and how far down should cooling off branches be?

How long should the lights be turned on for?

Misting! What type of schedule should I keep with the automatic mister?

Any specific brands for vitamins/ cricket dust I should go for? I have cricket gut loader coming in the mail and I plan on feeding them fresh fruit and veg. But there's so many dusters on ther market, which would you all say is the best?

How do I go about having him want to come on my hand? I have held him once, he was totally fine with it but I want him to come on my hand willingly. Is there a trick to it? Last thing I want is to have a stressed little cham completely unbeknownst by my delirious happiness.

Plants:

I bought:

1 money tree
1 Pothos
2 tropical looking ones in 2" pots
1 6" palm neanthebella
1 6" Coffee plant
1 6" plant that was in the tropical section which I can't recall the name but do recall reading it was safe.
1 6" umbrella


I got the money tree, pothos, both 2" and the umbrella tree in there. Am I overcrowding? Is there such thing as overcrowding when it comes to plants? I have about 30 plants, so I know i'm the wrong person to answer this.

Any and all links would be appreciated. I have so much to buy still for his new cage. Also, I will be making an interior structure out of cpvc pipe will be happy to share exact dimensions used and pics along the way if anyone is interested!

Ps... anyone know where I can buy good cheap live moss? Does the dehydrated stuff come back to life if you do the good ol buttermilk slurry?

Sorry for the overwhelming post, I'm feeling the crunch time like he really needs a bigger cage and better lighting and I really really wanna make him the happiest little guy!
 

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Brodybreaux25 said:
That’s a steal, you already know that. So you should have plenty of money to fix his viv, it’s way too small.

That a T5 UVB on the let top?

Let’s start here: https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/panther/
Click to expand...

He said he already purchased a 24 x 24 x 48 cage but hasn't set it up yet. The current enclosure I presume is the one he came with from the original owner. You're going to want a 24 inch T5 HO fixture for UVB and either Zoomed Reptisun T5HO 5% or Arcadia T5HO 6% 24 inch bulbs.

Since you said you prefer to stick to Zoomed here is a good fixture:

Zoo Med Reptisun T5-HO Terrarium Hood 24"

The 2 bulbs I mentioned:

Zoo Med ReptiSun 5.0 UVB T5 HO Lamp 22"
Arcadia D3 6% UVB T5 Bulb - 22"

I'd try to answer more questions but gotta head out now. Others will fill you in I'm sure.
 
Mundanechamlady said:
I was planning on patiently waiting until I did further research, had time to let the plants settle in, etc etc etc.

Well, randomly browsing CL 2 nights ago, I stumbled upon a post of someone selling their panther cham, with all supplies pretty much, for FIFTY DOLLARS.

I just couldn't resist.

So, here I am, an official owner of one of the most coolest little creatures on earth and a hundred million questions for all of you ❤

He's in a 16x16x36 cage. I don't know the wattage of the bulbs he has right now.

I have already purchased the 24x24x48 cage, a tray for the bottom and the mist king.

FYI, petco is having a sale, $40 off 100 or more. They price match, so they price matched Amazon's $80 AND gave me the $40 off of the $110 it regularly cost. Aka, I got a brand new mist king for $40. If y'all are in the market, go while the sale is still on!

Questions! I have many.

Cricket size? How many a day?

He's 1.5 years old. Im seeing variables from 9 per day to 9 every other day.

Lighting?

24x24x48 cage, what's the best wattage, size, etc. i'm already blowing loads of cash because this happened so unexpectedly, so zoomed/reptibreeze is likely what ill stick to. Something on the less expensive but worth it please! I'll upgrade once my bonus comes through, but for the time being, need him comfortable (Amazon links are like xmas presents to me)

How far down should lighting go for basking and how far down for cooling off? Or, rephrased, how far down should the basking branches be and how far down should cooling off branches be?

How long should the lights be turned on for?

Misting! What type of schedule should I keep with the automatic mister?

Any specific brands for vitamins/ cricket dust I should go for? I have cricket gut loader coming in the mail and I plan on feeding them fresh fruit and veg. But there's so many dusters on ther market, which would you all say is the best?

How do I go about having him want to come on my hand? I have held him once, he was totally fine with it but I want him to come on my hand willingly. Is there a trick to it? Last thing I want is to have a stressed little cham completely unbeknownst by my delirious happiness.

Plants:

I bought:

1 money tree
1 Pothos
2 tropical looking ones in 2" pots
1 6" palm neanthebella
1 6" Coffee plant
1 6" plant that was in the tropical section which I can't recall the name but do recall reading it was safe.
1 6" umbrella


I got the money tree, pothos, both 2" and the umbrella tree in there. Am I overcrowding? Is there such thing as overcrowding when it comes to plants? I have about 30 plants, so I know i'm the wrong person to answer this.

Any and all links would be appreciated. I have so much to buy still for his new cage. Also, I will be making an interior structure out of cpvc pipe will be happy to share exact dimensions used and pics along the way if anyone is interested!

Ps... anyone know where I can buy good cheap live moss? Does the dehydrated stuff come back to life if you do the good ol buttermilk slurry?

Sorry for the overwhelming post, I'm feeling the crunch time like he really needs a bigger cage and better lighting and I really really wanna make him the happiest little guy!
Click to expand...
A giant congratulations on your new buddy, and welcome to the forums!
 
Mundanechamlady said:
I was planning on patiently waiting until I did further research, had time to let the plants settle in, etc etc etc.

Well, randomly browsing CL 2 nights ago, I stumbled upon a post of someone selling their panther cham, with all supplies pretty much, for FIFTY DOLLARS.

I just couldn't resist.

So, here I am, an official owner of one of the most coolest little creatures on earth and a hundred million questions for all of you ❤

He's in a 16x16x36 cage. I don't know the wattage of the bulbs he has right now.

I have already purchased the 24x24x48 cage, a tray for the bottom and the mist king.

FYI, petco is having a sale, $40 off 100 or more. They price match, so they price matched Amazon's $80 AND gave me the $40 off of the $110 it regularly cost. Aka, I got a brand new mist king for $40. If y'all are in the market, go while the sale is still on!

Questions! I have many.

Cricket size? How many a day?You can feed every other day at this age. As he is full grown, he can take any size of cricket, but I recommend medium sized: they will live longer than large ones, and seem to gutload/eat better than full grown adults. Consider a variety of feeders, including crickets, roaches, bsfl, silkworms, hornworms, and occasionally super worms. He can have anywhere from 5-10 food items every other day, depending on the size of the prey.

He's 1.5 years old. Im seeing variables from 9 per day to 9 every other day.

Lighting?

24x24x48 cage, what's the best wattage, size, etc. i'm already blowing loads of cash because this happened so unexpectedly, so zoomed/reptibreeze is likely what ill stick to. Something on the less expensive but worth it please! I'll upgrade once my bonus comes through, but for the time being, need him comfortable (Amazon links are like xmas presents to me) The general consensus is that a t5 high out put linear fluorescent uvb bulb is a must. It’s hard to give easy answers about intensity here because a lot will depend on your cage setup, but many go with the zoomed 5.0, or Arcadia 6%. I personally prefer the 10.0 or 12%, but but either will work. The bulb should be in a reflected fixture.
How far down should lighting go for basking and how far down for cooling off? Or, rephrased, how far down should the basking branches be and how far down should cooling off branches be?
This depends on temp. You want your highest basking branch placed such that a) the temp ~2” above the branch reaches no higher than the mid to high 80s; and b) it is between 5 and 6 inches from your uvb source. Your next highest branch can be an inch or two lower, and so on. When you can, pick up a solar meter 6.5.
How long should the lights be turned on for?
uvb should be 12 hours on/12 hours off. Basking can be the same with a screen cage
Misting! What type of schedule should I keep with the automatic mister?
You ask deep questions! There are several prevailing views/methods here, and I won’t try to sway you either way. Method 1) DAYTIME MISTING: This is basically orthodoxy, mist anywhere between 3 and 5 times/day. Twice for longer periods (5+ minutes), once for shorter. As I understand it, this method has worked for decades with great results. Method 2) NATURAL HYDRATION: My guess is that some people have been doing this for a long time, but it Seems to have recently become more popular. The idea here is that in nature, after the temp drops and it gets dark, the humidity climbs steadily throughout the night, culminating in a dense fog/mist and foliage covered in water droplets by the time morning rolls around. Then the humidity steadily decreases as the day becomes hotter, so that by late afternoon things are hot and dry. Then night rolls around...and so on. How people achieve this is by misting after lights out for a few minutes, maybe once overnight, and then once before lights on. People who are really invested in this method often only mist twice a night (just after lights out/just before lights on) and use a fogger overnight. Both methods seem adequate to meet the hydration requirements of the commonly kept species, so the question is this: “what else are you trying to achieve with your water system”. Answer that and you’ll be able to choose between the two.

Any specific brands for vitamins/ cricket dust I should go for? I have cricket gut loader coming in the mail and I plan on feeding them fresh fruit and veg. But there's so many dusters on ther market, which would you all say is the best?

I’m for sure going to run out of space here, so I might need to break this up. Again, there a several methods of supplementing that have been very successful. Also, the question of supplementation is tied closely to other areas of husbandry such as uvb exposure, whether you’re free ranging bugs or cup feeding, how your gut loafing, etc.

The short answer is this: for panther chameleons, broadly two supplementation regimes are commonly used:

METHOD 1)

1) dust at every feeding with plain calcium WITH NO D3. (I doubt brand make a difference here—just make sure NO d3)
2) once every two weeks, switch one feeding to calcium WITH D3. (Brand might be significant here, but I’m not entirely sure since I don’t know the various brands’ D3 levels. @kinyonga will probably know off by heart)
3) Once every two weeks, switch one feeding to a multivitamin (Again, no opinion here: @kinyonga?).
2) and 3) are on alternating weeks.

METHOD 2)
1) Use an all-in-one such as repashy calcium plus LoD at every feeding. I’ll continue posting on a new reply.

How do I go about having him want to come on my hand? I have held him once, he was totally fine with it but I want him to come on my hand willingly. Is there a trick to it? Last thing I want is to have a stressed little cham completely unbeknownst by my delirious happiness.

Plants:

I bought:

1 money tree
1 Pothos
2 tropical looking ones in 2" pots
1 6" palm neanthebella
1 6" Coffee plant
1 6" plant that was in the tropical section which I can't recall the name but do recall reading it was safe.
1 6" umbrella


I got the money tree, pothos, both 2" and the umbrella tree in there. Am I overcrowding? Is there such thing as overcrowding when it comes to plants? I have about 30 plants, so I know i'm the wrong person to answer this.

Any and all links would be appreciated. I have so much to buy still for his new cage. Also, I will be making an interior structure out of cpvc pipe will be happy to share exact dimensions used and pics along the way if anyone is interested!

Ps... anyone know where I can buy good cheap live moss? Does the dehydrated stuff come back to life if you do the good ol buttermilk slurry?

Sorry for the overwhelming post, I'm feeling the crunch time like he really needs a bigger cage and better lighting and I really really wanna make him the happiest little guy!
Click to expand...
 
Mundanechamlady said:
I was planning on patiently waiting until I did further research, had time to let the plants settle in, etc etc etc.

Well, randomly browsing CL 2 nights ago, I stumbled upon a post of someone selling their panther cham, with all supplies pretty much, for FIFTY DOLLARS.

I just couldn't resist.

So, here I am, an official owner of one of the most coolest little creatures on earth and a hundred million questions for all of you ❤

He's in a 16x16x36 cage. I don't know the wattage of the bulbs he has right now.

I have already purchased the 24x24x48 cage, a tray for the bottom and the mist king.

FYI, petco is having a sale, $40 off 100 or more. They price match, so they price matched Amazon's $80 AND gave me the $40 off of the $110 it regularly cost. Aka, I got a brand new mist king for $40. If y'all are in the market, go while the sale is still on!

Questions! I have many.

Cricket size? How many a day?

He's 1.5 years old. Im seeing variables from 9 per day to 9 every other day.

Lighting?

24x24x48 cage, what's the best wattage, size, etc. i'm already blowing loads of cash because this happened so unexpectedly, so zoomed/reptibreeze is likely what ill stick to. Something on the less expensive but worth it please! I'll upgrade once my bonus comes through, but for the time being, need him comfortable (Amazon links are like xmas presents to me)

How far down should lighting go for basking and how far down for cooling off? Or, rephrased, how far down should the basking branches be and how far down should cooling off branches be?

How long should the lights be turned on for?

Misting! What type of schedule should I keep with the automatic mister?

Any specific brands for vitamins/ cricket dust I should go for? I have cricket gut loader coming in the mail and I plan on feeding them fresh fruit and veg. But there's so many dusters on ther market, which would you all say is the best?

How do I go about having him want to come on my hand? I have held him once, he was totally fine with it but I want him to come on my hand willingly. Is there a trick to it? Last thing I want is to have a stressed little cham completely unbeknownst by my delirious happiness.I can’t help you here.

Plants:

I bought:

1 money tree
1 Pothos
2 tropical looking ones in 2" pots
1 6" palm neanthebella
1 6" Coffee plant
1 6" plant that was in the tropical section which I can't recall the name but do recall reading it was safe.
1 6" umbrella


I got the money tree, pothos, both 2" and the umbrella tree in there. Am I overcrowding? Is there such thing as overcrowding when it comes to plants? I have about 30 plants, so I know i'm the wrong person to answer this.
Deep questions again, the amount and placement of foliage should be determined by how successful you are at creating pockets of high, low and moderate uvb exposure, heat, humidity, and privacy.
Any and all links would be appreciated. I have so much to buy still for his new cage. Also, I will be making an interior structure out of cpvc pipe will be happy to share exact dimensions used and pics along the way if anyone is interested!

Ps... anyone know where I can buy good cheap live moss? Does the dehydrated stuff come back to life if you do the good ol buttermilk slurry?

Sorry for the overwhelming post, I'm feeling the crunch time like he really needs a bigger cage and better lighting and I really really wanna make him the happiest little guy!
Click to expand...
 
First off, welcome to the Cham world! It looks like you're on the right path.

Mundanechamlady said:
FYI, petco is having a sale, $40 off 100 or more. They price match, so they price matched Amazon's $80 AND gave me the $40 off of the $110 it regularly cost. Aka, I got a brand new mist king for $40. If y'all are in the market, go while the sale is still on!
Click to expand...

I have to ask, do you mean Monsoon or MistKing? I ask because the Monsoon is about that price, but I've not seen a MK setup going for that, let alone being sold through Petco. If it is a Monsoon you picked up, you might want to look into an external timer as they are known to have issues. I currently have the one I use for my babies setup on an external timer and it works great, though I wish it performed like my MistKing I have on my adults.
 
For lights

I would look into a dual if not quad bulb fixture for your 2*2*4 enclosure it'll keep your plants happy.

The quad I'm gonna get...
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01714XD1K/ref=psdc_2975458011_t2_B01714RE7O

Use 3 6500 bulbs and one uvb bulb

The same fixture is available from a site sponsor with all the bulbs ready to plug in they also have dual bulb fixture lightyourreptiles.com

For the new enclosure before you set it up consider dragon ledges or something to this effect it makes for a perfect frame work to support larger potted plants (also check out the podcast if you haven't chameleonbreeder podcast ) you can do a lot with these to maximize your plants and cage
. https://dragonstrand.com/dragon-ledges/
 
skoram said:
He said he already purchased a 24 x 24 x 48 cage but hasn't set it up yet. The current enclosure I presume is the one he came with from the original owner. You're going to want a 24 inch T5 HO fixture for UVB and either Zoomed Reptisun T5HO 5% or Arcadia T5HO 6% 24 inch bulbs.

Since you said you prefer to stick to Zoomed here is a good fixture:

Zoo Med Reptisun T5-HO Terrarium Hood 24"

The 2 bulbs I mentioned:

Zoo Med ReptiSun 5.0 UVB T5 HO Lamp 22"
Arcadia D3 6% UVB T5 Bulb - 22"

I'd try to answer more questions but gotta head out now. Others will fill you in I'm sure.
Click to expand...

Amazon links! You're amazing, thank you!!

I only threw reptibreeze/zoo med out there because i'm assuming they're probably the cheapest, and i'm sure there's way better, more expensive professional grade bulbs, I just can't allow myself to buy them yet. Is...zoo med/repti cheap? Is there a cheaper trusted brand? I only need them to work for like 3 months before I can go buy some nice ones!
 

Kaizen

This is amazing, I'm, no joke, considering laminating your response.

That's a whole lot of info I need to wrap my head around, especially the vitamin schedule and misting. I just now only had time to finally sit down and reply to all you wonderful people, but I am for sure going to have to reread this at least 20 times to soak it all in! Thank you for all the info, this will definitely jump start my journey keeping chameleons!
 
Last edited:
JackRipper said:
The more plants the merrier. He looks great! when you transfer him to the bigger cage try to make it look exactly the same with plenty of greenery. Congrats on the deal of a lifetime
Click to expand...


I only have the money tree, pothos, umbrella and a couple of fillers in there now because I literally had to more room to stuff them in lol.

When his new cage comes, it will be just as lush :)
 
Last edited:
Tihshho said:
First off, welcome to the Cham world! It looks like you're on the right path.



I have to ask, do you mean Monsoon or MistKing? I ask because the Monsoon is about that price, but I've not seen a MK setup going for that, let alone being sold through Petco. If it is a Monsoon you picked up, you might want to look into an external timer as they are known to have issues. I currently have the one I use for my babies setup on an external timer and it works great, though I wish it performed like my MistKing I have on my adults.
Click to expand...


You're totally right, I'm sorry! It is the Monsoon. I screwed up

I kept going between the 2 and then with the sale at petco, I went straight for it!
 
Mundanechamlady said:
Amazon links! You're amazing, thank you!!

I only threw reptibreeze/zoo med out there because i'm assuming they're probably the cheapest, and i'm sure there's way better, more expensive professional grade bulbs, I just can't allow myself to buy them yet. Is...zoo med/repti cheap? Is there a cheaper trusted brand? I only need them to work for like 3 months before I can go buy some nice ones!
Click to expand...
Reptisun is probably the more affordable of T5 ho lights and this one does come with a 5.0 bulb.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AQU8F2O/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
It’s what I use and is fine. The bulbs need to be changed every six months as they decrease in uvb output. When it’s time to change my bulbs I’ll be upgrading just the bulbs to Arcadia 6%, which last a year. I’m sure if you want to spend a lot on a T5HO fixture, you can, but the Reptisun is a pretty good value imho. Eventually I may upgrade further to a dual or quad fixture so I can add plant bulb(s).
 
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