new Jackson's, very active

[artemispeg]

Hi, I am new here, just adopted a male Jackson's whose owners had to reluctantly give it up to move to Alaska. He is approximately 6 months old, they said, is about 7 inches long. They got him when he was only 2 inches, and he has done very well. They brought the whole lighting system and enclosure over with him, including temp/humidity gauge. He has UV light, a heat lamp, and a red night light which they used but I only use sometimes during the day, as I heard they do not need a night heat source. (68 degrees in my house at night).
He has vines/plastic leaves and I put a live pothos (with organic soil) in there also.
He has been eating and drinking well, and is shedding a bit lately. The last two days he has been agitated, trying to climb up the walls of his glass cage.
He is in a 12x12x18, which I know is too small considering his current growth. So I ordered an 18x18x36 screen cage, which I am waiting on.
My question is this: is his agitation because he is in too small of a cage? I surrounded his enclosure with live plants on the outside to provide shelter, but he seems to be trying to climb through the glass on them. Should I move them, or just wait for the new cage? I have dogs so I thought the plants would shield him/them from sight.
Is this agitation a normal shedding behavior, or is he just needing a bigger enclosure?
Thanks in advance for any help. His name is ZeeZee and he likes to be handled, they have been handling him daily since they got him, and he definitely likes to be out of the cage and on my head. Is this ok?

 

[Lathis]

First off, welcome! I have a Jax, and in my humble opinion, they are the coolest chams.

My male is very active, too. The current size is way too small, so it's good you have ordered a big one. It's been my experience that my Jax needs a ton of space and very much enjoys free ranging. Time to roam about and explore seems to make him much happier. I recommend safe free range time several days a week, even after you get your bigger cage. Mine is 3ft by 2ft by 6ft tall, and Ferdinand still loves free range time.

Your little guy is probably chafing at his space restrictions and can't understand why he can't access all those great plants he can see. Put the dogs up for a few hours or move the cham into a separate room and let him out. We have a couple of fake vines that we move around the living room for Ferdinand when he's in an exploring mood, plus a few plants he can get into.

Jax are tricksters and are fast when you're not looking, so keep an eye on him. You won't regret it - they are great fun to watch.

 

[artemispeg]

Thanks for the info, it is what I suspected, he just wants more room. I will certainly let him out whenever possible. And he is great fun to watch, it is hard to take my eyes off him! He is always "reviewing the situation" and it is very amusing.
ZeeZee is very smart, he is already coming up to my bottle sprayer to drink right from the nozzle. What a good boy!