I think I'm ready...

[knwilliams]

Hi there everyone. My name is Kristi, I am 25 and I have been interested in buying a chameleon for a while. I started doing more and more research about them. In the area I live in, they are very hard to find. I've done research about enclosures, feeding, watering, etc.. I wanted to know though, the local store has 2 baby chameleons coming in.. I am a first time reptile (potential) owner.. Is buying a baby chameleon a bad idea? I think they are veiled, but I forgot to ask this question on the phone.

is an enclosure like this appropriate?

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3355600

and will a drip system work okay for watering? Or do you think misting with a spray bottle works okay?

I have alot more research to do on feeding. I am not going into this blind, or impulsively, and will purchase the necessary habitat, feeding, and watering items that I need, and set them up before I bring a chameleon home.. I just wanted to know 1.) baby? Good idea or bad? and 2.) is that habitat okay? After I first read about chameleon care, I got overwhelmed and took a break.. I started looking at other reptiles/lizards.. Looked at the leopard gecko because of how easy they are to care for, but they arent a chameleon.. something about chameleons for me, it is what I truly want. I also know, before you say it, that chameleons cannot be handled.. mine will be treated as a fish, look but don't touch sortof thing.

any other tips or pointers for me? I'd greatly appreciate it!

 

[gwilliams]

Good morning and welcome to the forums! You will find a TON of great information here and some great senior members can give you the "in's and outs" of all that is needed.

I use the same screen enclosure you attached, but much larger (for a baby, that would work great)... Depending on the area you're in and heat/humidity etc.

I remembered when I bought my first veiled (that's all I ever wanted) we're now up to 4 and lots of eggs... Be prepared for the pull of the chamelons!

Glenna

 

[camimom]

Welcome!
My only warning is chameleons are addictive.

that cage you showed is fine, but nto for an adult. adults need a 24x24x48.

and babies are ok, you just need to know how to take care of them.
most of us use auto misters, or hand sprayers, and drippers.


you also need supplements. calcium with d3, calcum without d3, and a multivitamin.

any other questions. just psto them here!

good luck!

 

[knwilliams]

Welcome!
My only warning is chameleons are addictive.

that cage you showed is fine, but nto for an adult. adults need a 24x24x48.

and babies are ok, you just need to know how to take care of them.
most of us use auto misters, or hand sprayers, and drippers.


you also need supplements. calcium with d3, calcum without d3, and a multivitamin.

any other questions. just psto them here!

good luck!

can you buy an enclosure that big or are most of them hand-made? How long would a small enclosure work for?

 

[knwilliams]

oh nevermind i googled it, and found the same enclosure i posted, but those dimensions..so i want the xlarge pen lol

 

[drcrossfire]

Where are you located?

 

[camimom]

can you buy an enclosure that big or are most of them hand-made? How long would a small enclosure work for?

yes you can.
petco and petsmart carry them online.
as do several of our site sponsors.

and that size would work for one cham until about 6ish months old.

oh and you cant house chams together.

as little babies, under 3 months its ok, but after that.. it can cause stress and they can even fight.
and if you have a female, she can lay eggs as early as 6 months old.

 

[knwilliams]

I live in upstate NY. I think if I buy an enclosure I want to buy it the right size the first time lol

 

[camimom]

I live in upstate NY. I think if I buy an enclosure I want to buy it the right size the first time lol

smart move.

some will say you cant put a baby in an adult enclosure.

you can, you just have to adjust things.

you teach the cham to cup feed. or you place a bucket or something in the cage to place a plant on, so that there is less cage space as a baby, so he can reach his basking spot.


you also need a UVB bulb. 5.0 reptiglo or reptisun, tube or cfl (coil) is fine. though some dont like the coil, i use them and have had no problems.

you probably wotn be able to find the calcium without d3 in a store, and will have to order online.

or you can get repashy all in one calcium plus (from repashy a site sponsor) and that is used on every feeding every time.. no other powders required.

next question!

 

[drcrossfire]

Someone on the forums might be breeding near you if you're lucky!

 

[brandon1]

Hi Kristi I think it is a great idea that you want to buy a chameleon. If they are Veiled you should get one because they are one of the hardier chameleons to keep. Also when you go to the store you need to check them to see if they are male and female. To do this look at their back feet where their heels would be; males have what are called spurs that look like little white bumps and females do not. If you want a female that cage will suffice for her whole life. If you want a male I would recommend getting the next size up at 24" x 24" x 48" and that would last him his whole life. And instead of PetSmart, search PetSolutions, right now they have a sale on the same cage you posted for $70 and the bigger cage you would need for a male at $90, and they have free shipping on orders over $50. A drip system will work for watering, but I use Monsoon Misting System from Exo Terra just so my dude gets showered every now and then. A misting system is well more expensive than a spray bottle but you can set timers for them whereas you would have to manually spray him a few times a day with a spray bottle. Lol about being overwhelmed, try breaking your research into groups; do feeder research one day plant research the next and so on. As far as handeling, everybody has a different opinion on this subject. Some chams seem to like it while others despise it. Some actually appear to seek attention out. The best way I can describe chameleon handeling in general is that they tolerate it. My veiled will go to where the door opens sometimes when he wants out and will sometimes act like he wants to be handled and be completely chill about it, but when I go to put him back in his cage he all but leaps out of my hand to get off of me lol. But with veileds most of them seem to be naturally more tempermental than other chams so if you get one and he/she wants to be handled you should feel very fortunate, but it is not too uncommon after you have had one for a while. One important note on feeders: instead of crickets I would recommend roaches(dubia preferably but discoids if you live in Florida like me) and instead of meal/super worms go with silkworms. Hornworms are also a great choice to have too because they offer lots of hydration and they can become an enormous feeder. But for now pinhead crickets(babies about 1/8" long) and fruit flies are probably the best for a young veiled at a few months of age). Hope all this helps and good luck.

 

[Graanto]

Please do not but the repti-breeze i bought one a few months ago and im pretty disappointed with it. you are probably better off purchasing a cage from lll reptiles or DYI cages.

I just built the 2x2x4 enclosure from LLL reptiles for my second cham and its much better than the reptibreeze and from what you posted cheaper. LLL is a sponsor of this forum, and you can buy everything your going to need from them.