Newbie questions...

[DuncanK]

Hello from a newbie...

The reason I'm posting this is that my son (12) is considering buying a chameleon (and is a little way along in acquiring equipment) and I wanted to ask to see if there is anything that we might have forgotten. Any comments or suggestions would be much appreciated.

Current species favorite is a veiled chameleon; there is a local breeder who has them for sale at about $50 aged about 2 months.

He has just bought a used enclosure, found on craigslist together with a few supplies such as light fixtures and artificial plants. I'm pretty sure it's a Reptarium brand 65 gallon enclosure; it has a black plastic frame and black (nylon?) mesh zip-up covering and measures 16.5"d x 28"w x 30"h. From what I've read, that size should do for a while, but something a little larger may be needed at some point?

He's planning to have it set up in his bedroom, where it will have a good amount of natural light. I'm thinking that maybe I could install a shelf on the wall above it, with some sort of "hood" surround underneath the shelf which could house a couple of UV tubes plus a heating spot. I've seen the clamp-on type heating lamp fixtures in use resting directly on top of the mesh, but wouldn't that risk melting the nylon? I had in mind setting up a heating spot lamp suspended so that there was maybe an inch or two gap above the mesh. Would that work?

As for humidity maintenance... any particular tricks I should know? I've seen conflicting advice on ideal humidity level (varies between 20 and 50%) which in any case strikes me as pretty challenging to maintain in a mesh enclosure. Are there any automated humidifier/drip systems that are worthwhile, or is just hand spraying twice a day the best bet? I have numerous aquarium air pumps about the house... would a water bubbler be of any use in a large enclosure?

I haven't quite got to grips with necessary temperature regime. Assuming that room temperatures are maintained in the range of 65 - 75 F (with the lower at night) most of the year, with peaks up to maybe 90F occasionally in the summer, is anything beyond a basking spot lamp required? I'm assuming, btw, that we'll have an automatic timer to run any heating lamps.

Lastly, for food, from what we've read we need a mixture of gut-loaded crickets, waxworms and mealworms. Not completely apparent what the nutritional value of the worms is, apart from providing variety so that the chameleon doesn't get bored. Apparently the local pet store (a small non-chain store in our neighborhood) sells gut-loaded crickets specifically for reptile owners needing high calcium content. Also thinking of putting a live ficus plant or similar in the enclosure.

I think that covers it so far .

Sorry for the rather long brain dump... but any suggestions or comments on any of the above, or (especially) anything dumb that I missed, would be very gratefully appreciated...

Regards
Duncan

 

[Justin Carl]

Hello from a newbie...

The reason I'm posting this is that my son (12) is considering buying a chameleon (and is a little way along in acquiring equipment) and I wanted to ask to see if there is anything that we might have forgotten. Any comments or suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanks for doing your homework!

Current species favorite is a veiled chameleon; there is a local breeder who has them for sale at about $50 aged about 2 months. Veileds are the best starter species in my opinion.

He has just bought a used enclosure, found on craigslist together with a few supplies such as light fixtures and artificial plants. I'm pretty sure it's a Reptarium brand 65 gallon enclosure; it has a black plastic frame and black (nylon?) mesh zip-up covering and measures 16.5"d x 28"w x 30"h. From what I've read, that size should do for a while, but something a little larger may be needed at some point? I really dont like thos cages. they are very dark and can keep light form entering. i would have gone with a aluminum screem. thos cages are cheap for a reason. also live plants are far superior to fake. yes, you will need to upgrade at some point. i think that cage will be fine for starters.

He's planning to have it set up in his bedroom, where it will have a good amount of natural light. I'm thinking that maybe I could install a shelf on the wall above it, with some sort of "hood" surround underneath the shelf which could house a couple of UV tubes plus a heating spot. I've seen the clamp-on type heating lamp fixtures in use resting directly on top of the mesh, but wouldn't that risk melting the nylon? I had in mind setting up a heating spot lamp suspended so that there was maybe an inch or two gap above the mesh. Would that work? yes that mesh will melt, but a small bulb in the 60 watt area shouldnt melt it if it is resting ontop. the uv light should be mounted ontop of the screen. they are low wattage and should not damage the screen

As for humidity maintenance... any particular tricks I should know? I've seen conflicting advice on ideal humidity level (varies between 20 and 50%) which in any case strikes me as pretty challenging to maintain in a mesh enclosure. Are there any automated humidifier/drip systems that are worthwhile, or is just hand spraying twice a day the best bet? I have numerous aquarium air pumps about the house... would a water bubbler be of any use in a large enclosure? i would just buy a humidifier from walgreens for the whole room. ideal humidity is between 40-70. 40 being the min. 70 spiking during mistings

I haven't quite got to grips with necessary temperature regime. Assuming that room temperatures are maintained in the range of 65 - 75 F (with the lower at night) most of the year, with peaks up to maybe 90F occasionally in the summer, is anything beyond a basking spot lamp required? I'm assuming, btw, that we'll have an automatic timer to run any heating lamps. i use timers on all of my lights. basking temp for a young veiled should be around 85. the rest of the cage should have varing temperatures.
Lastly, for food, from what we've read we need a mixture of gut-loaded crickets, waxworms and mealworms. Not completely apparent what the nutritional value of the worms is, apart from providing variety so that the chameleon doesn't get bored. Apparently the local pet store (a small non-chain store in our neighborhood) sells gut-loaded crickets specifically for reptile owners needing high calcium content. Also thinking of putting a live ficus plant or similar in the enclosure. You will need a cricket container with cricket food. dont forget your supplements

I think that covers it so far .

Sorry for the rather long brain dump... but any suggestions or comments on any of the above, or (especially) anything dumb that I missed, would be very gratefully appreciated...

Regards
Duncan

i have a caresheet if you want it

 

[DuncanK]

Thanks for the reply! That helps. I'll look out for a humidifier.

I'm thinking the best plan would be to set up the enclosure and monitor temp and humidity for at least a few days before introducing a chameleon into it...

 

[Justin Carl]

yes! how will you deal with your dripping water?

 

[kinyonga]

I'm leaving any comments about the cage and the lighting set-up to someone else....except for the following comments...

You said "I have numerous aquarium air pumps about the house... would a water bubbler be of any use in a large enclosure?"...this would require a lot of work to keep it clean.

The UVB lights need to be fairly close to the chameleon but it also needs to be able to move out of the UVB into the "shade" of a plant if it wants too. Live plants are preferred over artificial ones...especially with chameleons like veileds that are known to eat leaves, etc. The plants should be non-toxic and well-washed (both sides of the leaves).

Exposure to UVB from either UVB tube lights or direct sunlight (it shouldn't pass through glass or plastic) allows the chameleon to produce vitamin D3 which allows it to use the calcium in its diet. If the chameleon doesn't get any direct sunlight, then you may have to dust the insects with a phos.-free calcium/D3 powder a couple of times a month. D3 from supplements can build up in the system though...so don't overdo it.

For a young chameleon, I keep the temperature in the low to mid 80's during the day since their small bodies heat and dehydrate quicker than those of adults. Adult veileds can take temperatures into the mid 90's without much trouble as long as they are well hydrated.

I'm not a fan of mealworms...but I do use crickets, waxworms (not too often because they are fatty), small silkworms and small superworms. You can also use phoenix worms and butterworms and roaches. Most feeder insects have a poor ratio of calcium to phosphorous so dusting them with a phos.-free calcium powder before feeding them to the chameleon helps to make up for this.

I also dust with a vitamin powder a couple of times a month. I use one that has a beta carotene source of vitamin A because beta carotene doesn't build up in the system. Preformed vitamin A can build up in the system, but there is controversy over whether all species of chameleon can convert beta carotene or not....so some people use it once in a while. Excess preformed vitamin A can prevent the D3 from doing its job and lead to MBD.

Appropriate basking temperatures allow for proper digestion so they play a part in nutrient absorption.

I only mist baby chameleons and start to use a dripper on their cages once they are about 4 months old. You can keep it that simple or use more elaborate automated systems.

I don't recomment substrate use for arboreal chameleons and I don't recommend water falls, etc.

Males are more colorful and should live longer than a female and they don't come with the egglaying concerns that the females do.

For a first time chameleon keeper, I would try to get one that is at least 3 or 4 months old.

Good luck with the chameleon!

 

[Brad Ramsey]

Not a complete resource yet .... but a decent amount of info!

http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/

Good luck! And be sure to stay connected here for the best advice and help along the way on your new chameleon keeping adventure!

-Brad

 

[Julirs]

A 65 gallon Reptarium is a little big for a 2 month old baby. I have raised many babies up in the 38 gallon with no issues. I currently have 75W bulbs with no melting effects on the mesh so I wouldn't worry about that. You can get a screen cage from LLLReptile.com that will be easier all around in a 16x16x30 to start but remember an adult veiled will eventually need a 24x24x48. Be sure your 12 year old is aware that this is an animal that may not appreciate frequent handling but will need a high amount of care and maintenance time.

 

[DuncanK]

Many thanks to everybody who responded - much appreciated.

Based on suggestions, I plan to order a ReptiSun 5.0 tube to put in the flourescent unit which we have, and also set up a 75W basking lamp.

We'll also look out for some live foliage on the safe list to put in the enclosure. Once that's set up we can monitor temperature and humidity for a few days and then see what needs to be done regarding humidity.

We're actually just about to go on vacation for a few days, so we can start right after that...

Oh, and happy new year to everyone!