Lizzie The Chameleon
Avid Member
Mine costed about $1,000 that day, not counting the cham 
Looking to Purchase Chameleon
- Thread starter Tigger92
- Start date
Theveiled
Avid Member
Thats how much I have spent too!Mine costed about $1,000 that day, not counting the cham
Tigger92
New Member
Yes, I am for sure planning on giving them lots of bugs! I read that they also eat vegetation. I was mainly asking about the veggies because I didn't know how people fed that; on the floor or in a small bowl but some say in a small bowl. Bugs are harder to keep in a bowl lol. Thank you so much. I've been taking lots of notes. The only thing that is confusing me are the lights. Which ones work the best? Some of the answers don't really make sense to me.
Not dimmable that I know of. Mine just go on one at a time. There are some systems on the market that coordinate everything like that but they are a lot of money
BryanP
Avid Member
Best lights for USB are either zoo med reptisun 5.0 t8 or t5HO or the Acadia 6% that you can get from light your reptiles.
Best basking bulb will be whatever works to keep your temp right. the one that comes with the cage should be fine. you will have to fine tune the distance, or buy a plug in dimmer switch that you can adjust the intensity that way.
Everything else about lights after that is personal preference really. even the first part about the zoomed or Acadia bulbs could be considered personal preference but I think those 2 are the agreed a
upon standard for uvb
BryanP
Avid Member
Here is a link to the care sheet under the resource tab here on the forums.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/veiled/
From the looks of it the humidity should be between 40%-70% and the Basking temp ranges from 80-90 depending on age.
You ways want a gradient so they can pick what temp they want.
microracer24
Member
Do yourself a favor and research EVERYTHING. After you have completely figured out everything you need and need to know then start building your habitat. Do not buy a cham unless you already have it's home completely up and running and are willing to spend the money necessary. Chams are not a cheap hobby. Plan to spend up to $1k to get started. If you can't afford that and still have money for possible vet visits then hold off and save up. Buy a little bit at a time and buy the cham last. These guys are very fragile especially when young and if their environment isn't right there is a good chance it will either die or have health issues that potentially become costly. I bought a chameleon from one of the big box stores not realizing it wasn't healthy. After several vet visits my little guy ended up dying. Look at pictures so you can differentiate between a healthy and unhealthy cham and only buy one from a reputable breeder. You will pay more now but less in the long run.
Lizzie The Chameleon
Avid Member
Perfectly stated my friend
rminnis
Established Member
Some people arent good at researching why dont you so called experts just give her a straight forward answer wow. My opinion just straight up google your questions rather than listen to all the "expert" answers. Obviously shes not going to go out and buy 1,000 worth of reptile lighting and other supplies like you guys so why dont you try to help her find somethin more economical.
Theveiled
Avid Member
Well I have tried to find a more economical way but chameleons are just expensive animals. They have needs that need to be met in order to be happy and healthy.
Theveiled
Avid Member
Cages can be expensive. I got my 2'2'4' for about $70. Then there are the vines (I buy them in sale at petco) and folliage (I find some at yardsales and clean it) The uvb lights are expensive too and you replace them about every 6 months (for reptisun). If you are not home all day a misting system should be considered. A cheap one is about $100, but a better working one is about $150 (mistking starter). Then you have to add in the cost of a basking bulb (a few bucks) and feeders. A stand for the cage should also be considered too if you dont have a place to put it. I payed about $18 for mine at a thrift shop. I also buy distilled water since which is 50 cents a gallon.
BryanP
Avid Member
Would love to see the list of your setup with pricing to get a good idea on what you have spent.
I like to think I go through life with "Budget Quality" in mind.
Here is the running list of prices and items that I have bought. Adds up to over $800
Chameleon $329
Reptibreeze XL $100
Zilla T8 Fixture $40
Mistking $150
Deep dome Light $14
Rapashy Gut Load $16
Rapashy Calcium Plus $8
Basking Bulb $8
Live Plants $75
Temp/Humidity Gauge $16
Power Stip $4
Zoomed LED +UVB $100
PAR38 Light $8
Zilla water pillows $6
With a veild Chameleon you can save almost $300 on that aspect alone!
Tigger92
New Member
I read somewhere online that you can place ice cubes on top of the lid and let the ice melt that way? Thank you all so much for your help. As with any exotic animal all the info is rather confusing but it will get sorted out. I may not be able to dish out that much money all at once. I may have to start out slowly and with the cheap stuff and work my way up. But I will 100% buy the chameleon last! I know I stated I have sugar gliders. They are pretty expensive too and high maintenance and what I always tell new owners is to work your way up and to not let the price of everything ruin your hopes of getting some. My cage is 6ft tall, the bigger the cage the better but I started off with a 2x2x4 cage and went a little bigger and finally got what I needed and my gliders were healthy and happy during all of it. My point is, I will do everything I can to make the chameleons life the best but it may not start with the best if that makes sense.
Just for clarification, advising someone to do a bunch of planning so you don't waste money and have to purchase things multiple times is not good advice for someone new to chameleons? I find this to be excellent advice.
As for my suggestions, I use MistKing for my Misting system, and Arcadia T5 HO for lighting. I have a quad setup for lights, but you could do dual. I have two basking domes, but you only need one. For the enclosure, I would start with the full sized for an 11 month old (I think you had mentioned that age) Honestly, I'd use a full sized enclosure any time after 4 to 5 months. Vines plants and assorted other things, and I'd expect your total to be at least $700.00 US. As for the answer that @rminnis gave, it doesn't make sense to just Google a question like this. There are plenty bad sources around and at least here you get a consensus from actual chameleon owners. Also, I would like to know what results you get when you check Google.
Tigger92
New Member
Thank you. I get where she was coming from in regards to people throwing large numbers at me and all the info. Different sites say different things. I get the gist of it all. The info has been very helpful. I'm not planning on getting a cham for at least a month or so. Money is a little tight at the moment and I want everything to be researched and ready. I do have vets lined up so that isn't an issue.
Sethcarson110
New Member
I use a spray water bottle it works just fine
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