Newbie looking for advice

[Hanman6]

I got this guy about two months ago from fl chams, and I have been addicted ever since.
He eats and drinks great, seems to be healthy and happy. I dust with calcium no d3 daily and multivitamins and d3 twice a month. Gut loaded rickets are his main diet but I will throw in a super worm or horn worm once in a while. I have a 100 watt zoo med power sun mvb. I mist two to three times a day along with a dripper. Humidity is always between 60-80%. I have the basking spot 85. When I'm home with him I have a fake tree I let him hangout on to get him out of his enclosure.
The local reptile shop got me started on getting a chameleon by selling me a exo terra 36"x24"x24" told me I had to have this for humidity and heat levels. After some research I found out this was a lie and was stuck with a $250 enclosure. Here is how i have it set up now what do you think? I know the glass is not ideal but as I said I am addicted now and am working on a custom enclosure for summer.[/ATTACH]

 

[Hanman6]

Here he is

here is my little guy

 

[SaintJimmy]

I think that the glass will be fine for now.

Just make sure your temps are ok, and that your humidity isn't ALWAYS that high. They need humidity SPIKES not constant humidity, which is achieved by misting and letting the area dry for a while.

Your diet is fine, the temp seems ok, just make sure not to use substrate. Your cage is awesome.

When you do upgrade, the minimum size and type is a screen enclosure, 24 inches deep, 24 inches wide, and 48 inches tall

 

[blackhawk]

Glass aquariums are definitely not what you want but the exoterra offers a little airflow so you might be OK. If you had a Jacksons that required a lot of humidity an exoterra might be the way to go but since panthers and vields don't require so much humidity, a cheaper screen cage is great. Potential problems with the glass cage is heat build up so watch those temps - 40 watt bulb might be all you need. Make sure the cage dries between misting - hard water deposits on the glass will become unsightly over time so distilled water from the grocery store may be in order (might even be better for your cham). Behind your background will offer a great hiding spot for crickets so I'd lose that. Black, blue or green colored paper taped to the back can look very nice and isn't expensive. Personally, I don't go for all the plantings on the bottom of the cage - it makes it difficult to clean. Maybe a cut-to-size piece of reptile carpet would work. It would soak up your excess water and could be easily removed for cleaning (have another to put in the cage while you are cleaning). Your cham will eat soil so make sure there isn't any fertilizers in the soil, he will also poop in it and your crickets will lay eggs in it. Plastic plants (not silk) may be a better option - especially in a glass cage where reducing the humidity might be more of an issue than increasing it. Keeping the cage clean is important - and all the clutter on the bottom of the cage is going to make that difficult. When decorating, think arboreal. Would you put a bird in that cage?
Bottom line - I think what you have will work but keep in mind some of the pitfalls I've discussed and be ready to correct for them if need be.

 

[Defianceofexistence]

Awe he is so cute!!!!!!!!! Your going to have so much fun with him

I have a 6.5 month old male veiled named Loki, he is in a glass exoterra terrarium and he hasn't had any issues. I have no problems with humidity...I do have a monsoon that goes off every 4 hours which helps. I also have all live plants now which is also helpful for humidity.

 

[brownie64]

I think your enclosure is fine, and stay with the real plants you need them for the humidity. and they also give of O2 which is a plus. Keep an eye on temps, make sure he can get away from the heat to regulate himself. And everything else you are doing is fine.

 

[Hanman6]

Thanks for all the input! All the issues you have mentioned with my set up I noticed quickly, the crickets love to get behind the back ground and cleaning the bottom is a pain with everything the way I have it, but I looked at these mistakes as learning experiences I will put into making my new bigger set up this summer. I don't use any other lights on his set up except for the mvb power sun, I was told it provided all the light spectrum chameleons need and I found that it keeps the glass enclosure at a good temp. The basking spot is 85 mid is 70s and lower part is 60s. I keep all the soil covered up with reptile carpet because I have read that some chameleons are notorious for eating the dirt. I used organic non fertilized dirt when I re potted my plants as well.