My room is so hot!!!!

[xephyr17]

Alright... I'm not new to reptiles, but I've recently taken on a Veiled chameleon and I know they're pretty touchy creatures. I just want to make sure that I do the best for him!!!

So he's a little guy, 8 or 9 months old. Has been acting healthy, I feed him well to my knowledge, etc.

My question is this: My room is extremely hot during the summer (like it is right now). It can easily get up to about 95 degrees in here (it's 82 outside) without having any lights on, with fans blowing and window open. I know it's supposed to be about 90F in his basking spot and like 65-80 throughout the rest of the cage. Should I keep my heat lamp on anyway? I don't want him to get too hot... Sometimes it gets up to 100 degrees in there.

Should I keep my UV light on if I turn off my heat light?

Whenever I turn off his light, he goes down to the bottom of the cage and gets super dark... and when the light's on, he does the "open mouth" routine and people have said that means they're too hot, too...

What do I do??

Thanks,
Dillon

 

[carol5208]

Definitely turn off his heat lamp if your room is that hot. Leave the uvb light on. They do not really give off any heat like a basking bulb. Is there anyway you can safely have the cage outside during the day, or atleast maybe during the hottest part of the day? That would be cooler than having him in the room . You can also mist him directly to cool him down while he is indoors or outdoors also.

 

[Lpsouth1978]

The simple answer is, yes, you want to keep the UVB bulb on. If the room is plenty light you will not need the heat lamp on warm days. If you need additional light, you will need to find a light source that does not create a lot of heat, or raise the light way above the cage. Of course, the ideal thing would be to cool the room down. The ambient temp in the room should stay below 80 so that the basking spot can be raised to about 90. This will give your cham somewhere to go to cool off. It is important that a temperature gradient is present for your little guy to stay healthy.

 

[Mike Fisher]

No heat bulb, keep him misted during the hottest part of the day. UV bulb is fine because they do need light during the day.

 

[xephyr17]

There aren't any places I could put him outside to cool him off, unfortunately...

I may just go buy an A/C unit. That'd be good for both of us, anyway!

Could I put one of my little fans on his cage to cool at least his space down to help keep him cool? Or is that too much?

Thanks,
Dillon

 

[Djturna4thakidz]

Chams hate wind, so I would not aim the fan at the cage. 95-100 is much too hot in my opinion even for a veiled. I think you are going to have health issues if you do not buy a portable AC unit. I had a similar problem in my house. I live in southern California and I use my AC pretty much all summer. My house stays cool except my cham room which has lots of windows. The temp was getting up to 85 everyday and I could tell it was stressing out my chams. In order to keep them healthy I made the decision and got a portable unit. It will provide peace of mind. The one I got can be programmed to only go on when it starts getting hot.

 

[xephyr17]

Alright, I get it.

I'll get an A/C unit ASAP!

Thanks!!!

 

[Mike Fisher]

Alright, I get it.

I'll get an A/C unit ASAP!

Thanks!!!

I breed montane chameleons just 50 miles south of you....no A/C....I use a basement.

 

[shmeenakoz]

I breed montane chameleons just 50 miles south of you....no A/C....I use a basement.

Sorry a bit off subject but just wanted to say I am very jealous of you both. I want to move to Oregon SOOOOOO bad!!! Ok back to the issue…I am also in a constant struggle keeping things cool for my cham on a daily basis. Its exhausting, I guess basements are good for something when they aren't flooding here

 

[xephyr17]

Sorry a bit off subject but just wanted to say I am very jealous of you both. I want to move to Oregon SOOOOOO bad!!! Ok back to the issue…I am also in a constant struggle keeping things cool for my cham on a daily basis. Its exhausting, I guess basements are good for something when they aren't flooding here

Haha! Go Oregonians!! You should totally come join us.

But yes. It's hot here during the summer. No basement in my home I'll be getting an AC unit shortly...

 

[Mike Fisher]

Sorry a bit off subject but just wanted to say I am very jealous of you both. I want to move to Oregon SOOOOOO bad!!!

I want to move out of Oregon sooo bad!! I'm thinking Hawaii in about five years.

 

[xephyr17]

Never been there. But that would be great as well!

 

[chameleonlover101]

That Hot!

Your chameleon should have the heat lamp off when the humid air comes through to prevent you chameleon from overheating. You should only give your chameleon the right amount of heat it needs instead of over heating it.