Keeping my little guy outside for the summer. Bad idea?

[Giovanni]

Hi guys, I have a 3 year old Veiled Chameleon. I live in Dallas TX and my patio faces a lake full of fish, ducks, turtles etc... The weather here is between high 80's to 100 for the summer. Would he be ok if I put his cage outside? He would be in the shade and would not get direct sunlight. I have an automatic misting system, fogger and lighting.

The temp seems to be perfect for him outside during the summer.
Because of my setup and the fact that I am facing a lake the humidity is never below 40.
My concern, because he is outside and its summer the temp at night is low to mid 80's is this bad for him?
If he is in the shade should I run a UVB light? or is he getting enough "sun" if his cage is about 3-5 feet away from where the sun actually hits?

Thanks guys!

 

[bobcochran]

Sounds like a great opportunity! He can take much colder temperatures at night than what you are experiencing (50F. no problem). You might consider letting him get some morning direct sun, he would benefit. Also uv light reflects, so he would get some if he's close to direct sun.

 

[Giovanni]

Sounds like a great opportunity! He can take much colder temperatures at night than what you are experiencing (50F. no problem). You might consider letting him get some morning direct sun, he would benefit. Also uv light reflects, so he would get some if he's close to direct sun.

Thanks for the help! It makes me feel much better. I just realized I didn't ask the right question... Is the temp supposed to be lower at night time? Naturally it will always be less hot that a TX day but from my research his house is suppose to have 3 levels of temps. 95ish at the top (basking temp) 80's in the middle and 70's at the bottom. Is it bad that he will not have much of this outside?

Thanks in advance for all the help!

 

[etclement]

It's more like 80s for basking and 70s for ambient. A natural temp drop is what they're used to but not super needed.

 

[OrangeJuice]

I leave Yoyo outside all summer. I live in Oregon, and the weather changes constantly, so just watch for that. I put my guy in half sun half shade, so he can choose which he likes. Just make sure your guy isn't getting too hot, Yoyo seems to get pretty warm in the sun.

 

[Remkon]

You don't have to keep em at a certain temperature all the time.
In nature they will have colder days, wet days, days with no sun, days with to much sun etc...
A healthy chameleon is capable of dealing with these things very well as they are very good at regulating their temperatures as long as he gets a place to warm up and a place to cool down.
As long as nighttime temps don't fall below 50F there's not much reason to worry if he gets to warm up in the morning sun the next day.

In fact a drop in temperature at night is very beneficial it makes them sleep deeper and rest better and it also helps their digestive system.

 

[werecat]

It can be great for your chameleon to live outside when conditions are right. To make it work well be sure you are using a very large/tall cage (2'x2'x4' for example). The larger space gives the animal more places to go to escape to if they wish to get out of or go into the warmer areas.

Lots of live plants will help provide areas of deep shade that will naturally be cooler.

Additionally placing the cage on top of a bed of soil such as a planter box will help create a temperature gradient as ground is naturally cooler.

Be sure you research this topic and are always monitoring the temps and amount of direct sunlight hitting the cage. The sun changes position throughout the year so it may not hit the cage now but that could change even on a covered patio.

I keep my Bradypodian thamnobate outside year round in Southern California and he seems to really benefit. Good luck!

 

[ConnorsChams]

As long as it doesn't drop below 50F you should be good.

 

[BabyChamCham]

I too live in that area, its just a couple days ago , the heat jumped to over 109! Still are in the 70s and 80s at night though, i think its a good idea too. Natural uvb is good for them!
Just make sure he dosent get too hot.

 

[trickedoutbiker]

You'll wanna make sure you predator-proof your entire chameleon cage if you put it outside. Wouldn't want any raccoons, snakes, or other dangerous critters to get curious of your chameleon and go to investigate him. He'd make for any easy meal. Lots of threads here on how to keep other animals out of your outdoor cage effectively.

 

[Brodybreaux25]

I live in southeast Louisiana and my veileds go outside dusk to dawn but I bring them in at night. I bring them in at night for two reasons, both of which are because of mosquitos. First reason is that the mosquitos will see your Cham as a food source. But you can deal with this by getting a mosquito net for pretty cheap. The bigger reason I don't keep them outside at night is because during summertime here we have a truck that drives around right after dark spraying some type of airborne mosquito repellant.

 

[JacksJill]

If you are going to use your lights outside in an area that gets rain be aware of possible shock hazards for you and your cham.
Otherwise just keep an eye out for extreme weather changes and varmints.

 

[Franquixote]

I thought about this too, but what about a torrential downpour? In NJ it's not unheard of to get an inch of water in a half hour thunderstorm with almost zero notice... could be bright and sunny 10 miles away... do you guys get that in TX?

 

[Nursemaia]

I'm in Delaware and if we have a storm roll through, they get rained on. I keep mine out 24/7 right now.