Sorry for the long...
So, I've had my new guy (adult male panther) for a few days now. I've been keeping him in his outdoor cage because it's easier to provide lots of water outside. The issue I'm having is whether or not he's getting enough basking time.
The outdoor cage is 6ftx5ftx3ft. My yard is pretty much a jungle, so the cage stays in the shade for a large part of the day. It gets dappled sun in the morning, some steady sun along the front part during the middle of the day (for about 2 hours), then more dappled sun in the afternoon. The rest of the time, it's mostly shaded, though there are occasional sunny spots. The temps in the shade are around 80F, in the sun it's about 100F.
I'm just not sure if he's getting enough of an opportunity to bask - the sunny spots are small and they move around a lot, so the poor guy would have to be constantly in motion to get sun. His behavior looks fine: he's been cruising pretty much non-stop around the cage, eats everything that's offered, and is fast when he wants to get somewhere quickly. When I do see him bask, he doesn't maintain the 'basking pose' for very long before moving out of the sun, however this could just be because the sun doesn't stay in one place.
I have the option of moving him inside, where I have a cage set up with a basking lamp, etc. But I'd really like to keep him out if possible. However, I definitely don't want to put him at risk. There's really no place to move the outdoor cage that gets more sun. I even chopped down a tree to let more light through.
Any thoughts?
So, I've had my new guy (adult male panther) for a few days now. I've been keeping him in his outdoor cage because it's easier to provide lots of water outside. The issue I'm having is whether or not he's getting enough basking time.
The outdoor cage is 6ftx5ftx3ft. My yard is pretty much a jungle, so the cage stays in the shade for a large part of the day. It gets dappled sun in the morning, some steady sun along the front part during the middle of the day (for about 2 hours), then more dappled sun in the afternoon. The rest of the time, it's mostly shaded, though there are occasional sunny spots. The temps in the shade are around 80F, in the sun it's about 100F.
I'm just not sure if he's getting enough of an opportunity to bask - the sunny spots are small and they move around a lot, so the poor guy would have to be constantly in motion to get sun. His behavior looks fine: he's been cruising pretty much non-stop around the cage, eats everything that's offered, and is fast when he wants to get somewhere quickly. When I do see him bask, he doesn't maintain the 'basking pose' for very long before moving out of the sun, however this could just be because the sun doesn't stay in one place.
I have the option of moving him inside, where I have a cage set up with a basking lamp, etc. But I'd really like to keep him out if possible. However, I definitely don't want to put him at risk. There's really no place to move the outdoor cage that gets more sun. I even chopped down a tree to let more light through.
Any thoughts?
