need sum advice, did the mortal sin...

[jalli]

lemme begin with the sin... I bought a oustalet cham without doing my do diligence in background leg work

new to the forums and been out of the hobby for abt 6 yrs. also new to chameleons. previously had a bearded dragon, green basilisk, red eyed tree frogs and iguanas.

having sum trouble with finding care specifically for my cham. not fond of th "just use the panther/veiled cham info" I've been finding, but if that's what I have to use

2nd I see that the oustalet gets pretty large, and was wandering if the reptibreeze xl, 24x24x48 would be big enuff for an adult female, she's just a juvenile atm.

3rd can sumone recommend a good insect vender online ? I can't for the life of me remember where I used to get mine from. just that they had a really nice reptile calcium gutload.

 

[DarinD]

I've never kept an Oustalet's before, so I won't hazard a guess at your first few questions. I just know they need lots of water and lots of space! As for feeders, I usually buy from Rainbow Mealworms. They are close by for me, but also ship fast anywhere in the US.

 

[Andee]

Panther chameleon care for the most part but I think they need higher heat a bit. I am not 100% certain on this. I don't remember who has out ousties on the forum but will do some poking around online to see what I can learn myself. She will need likely twice the size of the normal 24x24x48 minimum when she's an adult. Be prepared to make an egg laying bin. She will start soon. Do you know her age?

 

[kinyonga]

This might help...
http://www.reptilesmagazine.com/Oustalets-Chameleon-Care-and-Breeding/

 

[jalli]

thank you both for the replies. yeah that's sum of the info I found kin... and why I got concerned on the cage size.

no I do not know her age. I shall take a picture tonite. she's about the length of my hand body wise. 6-7 in. thought I'd have a lil more time till eggs were a concern :-/

guess I'll be getting another bulb, I was just ok for a panther with my current one, and my smallish enclosure, 18x18x24. I'll need more heat for the larger enclosure. also does anyone like the solar glo merc vapor bulbs ? got a 125 watt as I had only 1 good fixture left when I went digging thru my gear.

 

[GwynT]

Use linear UVB bulbs. 10% is good. Also, Petco has large screen cages for $70 shipped. If you really want to amp up space, you can buy two and connect them.

Also, old bulbs are probably bad. You want a new one, and then replace it once every 6-8 months. Even if the light works, the UVB can still be bad.

 

[jalli]

Use linear UVB bulbs. 10% is good. Also, Petco has large screen cages for $70 shipped. If you really want to amp up space, you can buy two and connect them.

Also, old bulbs are probably bad. You want a new one, and then replace it once every 6-8 months. Even if the light works, the UVB can still be bad.

fixture was old, bulb is new I had just never used the solar glo before.

 

[ColorificChameleons]

I've had great luck with Rainbow mealworms, as others have said. Welcome back to the hobby

 

[jalli]

ty for the recommendation, I'm on the east coast tho, n found one in state ima try.

and u think I'm gonna get a reptibreeze xl for now, then later get another and link them together. thanx for the idea gwyn.

 

[kinyonga]

This is why they say to keep them similarly to panther chameleons...
"F. oustaleti occupies many of the same areas as F. pardalis"...
http://www.adcham.com/html/taxonomy/species/foustaleti.html

BTW...females are quite a bit smaller than males in that (oustalets) species.

 

[jalli]

ahhhh ok ic ic then I'll just go with the panther care, tyvm kin. and that size difference is definitely worth knowing.

 

[jalli]

starting to think she may be gravid, not over weight. is there anyway to really tell ?

 

[kinyonga]

Try showing her a mirror...it might work...might not...watch her reactions...and tell us.
That would certainly be a bonus if she gets through the egglaying ok.


Regarding size....
http://www.madcham.de/en/furcifer-oustaleti/

 

[nightanole]

I could not shoe horn my male oust into a 24x24x48 for long. Remember they hold the record for longest cham, and are in the top 3 for weight. Its like a poor mans parsons that is the color of bark.

Odds are a female will top out at 250-300g. My male was a runt at around 400g, and some can get 550g or more.

 

[jalli]

Try showing her a mirror...it might work...might not...watch her reactions...and tell us.
That would certainly be a bonus if she gets through the egglaying ok.


Regarding size....
http://www.madcham.de/en/furcifer-oustaleti/

I may try that, I kinda wanna wait a few days till she acclimates to the new surroundings, tho.

 

[kinyonga]

There's a weight chart in the link i posted above but it doesn't have too many specimens in it.

 

[jalli]

ahhhhhhhh ok, lol whoopsie. I see measure and compare weights. guess I'll be getting a scale. that is very helpful kin ty again.