Panther Enclosure Design Questions!

[monkeymatches]

I just got a 16 month old Panther Chameleon (my first) and I am in the process of setting up his digs. I've been reading the forums for the last two weeks but of course still have a TON of questions. I've attached a pic of his (very) preliminary enclosure. I'm waiting for delivery of his custom cage and misting system next week.*

Enclosure -36w X 23d X 43h custom screen- I am going to install this into an alcove in a book case, sort of in the style of a zoo or museum vitrine. The space is going to be sealed and insulated on 5 sides with an 8" clearance above the top screen. I feel like this should keep a balance between giving him enough airflow while maintaining a microclimate. I'm also thinking of installing drapes to close it off for drafty winter nights. Anyone else set up like this or seen this done?


Planting - I currently have a few different vines which I will try to train around the final set up and some bromeliads. I am considering putting in a large Ficus Retusa or Scheffiera bonsai as the center piece. I'm not sure if this is a good idea. I don't know how bonsai would do in these light and humidity conditions. It might also be difficult to clean and of course expensive to replace. Any thoughts?


Hydration- My Panther seems very strange about misting and drinking. He seems to LOVE being misted. He kind of "dances" around when I spay him and gets much brighter. However, he seems very confused about drinking - I don't see him drinking off plants. He sometimes drinks off the ceiling dripping when I spray the screen on top. I'm guessing he was raised with a misting system and I read that panthers enjoy high humidity.

I'm going to try to keep him at the recommended 60-80% but this is going to be a challenge in my apartment which can get very dry in the winter. I can't be home misting him all day, so I went ahead and ordered a "Herpmist" misting system. Anyone have any idea what the general water throughput of this system might be (2 nozzle, maybe 3x 2min daily) ?

I also put a warm mist humidifier in the temporary cage (I'm going to pipe it into the final enclosure) and he also seems to love this. He sometimes sleeps on a branch near the exhaust. Anyone see any problem with this?


Lighting- I have been experimenting with a variety of different things. First I got a Zilla Desert 50 UVB bulb. (Probably a bad choice -I read that these were recalled at one point but I am hoping this one is the new revised version.) I hooked up a 50w halogen desk lamp as a basking light. He seems to like this one and uses it most of the time.*

I was not getting the enclosure up to the recommended 92 - 80F range - also my apartment can be quite drafty in the winter, at times getting down to to the 50's so I also installed a 250W halogen worklight on a dimmer. I figure that I can control this thru out the year to keep the temps right. He has been keeping away from it though... Also want the plants to do well so I installed a compact florescent grow light that I already had (Vita light 20W 6000k) -Does anyone know of any UV (UVA, UVB?) or other problems with these lights? Is this overkill? I use a laser thermometer and the temps are reading about right with all of these running.

I would really appreciate any knowledgeable feedback on this project. I'll post photos as the project is finished.

Thanks!

 

[Dsignrguy]

Make sure you don't close off too much of the ventilation (its why everyone uses the screen cages), and panthers like/need a temp. drop at night (I've heard even into the 50's is ok), so I don't think the curtain will be needed. Also, compact fluorescent lights are very very bad for your little guy. get rid of it and get yourself a 36" reptisun 5.0 fluorescent tube and fixture.

 

[Jeremy l]

you need alot more live plants ! ! ! get rid of the copact flourecent bulb. use the repti-sun 5.0 linier tube bulb. if that cup holds water thats hanging on the side get rid of that too. No standing water it breeds bacteria ! ! what is that little cage in the back left corner. if its for feeding just let your feeders run loose so your cham can hunt. use a pothos ivy or scheffelera abracola (sp) the sticks and vines are good but your cham needs more hiding places and more to explore. whats up with the tin foil, i think that might be too hot for your cham. if you mist your cham and use live plants you wont have to use that humidifier. live plants add humidity.

 

[monkeymatches]

Oh - No, the pic is just the "temporary set up" until I get the cage this weekend. Thanks for the feedback guys... The cup is my attempt to try to get him to cup feed, but at this point he's only interested in free range crickets.

-The compact bulb is a vita lite grow bulb, Does anyone know of a serious problem with these? I'll probably go with the reptisun and a 24" linear grow lite in a dual fixture.

-The metal is a heat shield for the shelf above and a reflector.

 

[sandrachameleon]

Actually you do NOT necessarily need a heavily planted enclosure for panthers. https://www.chameleonforums.com/why-so-many-plants-15356/
You need open spaces as much as you need planted spaces.

Also, contrary to popular belief on this forum, not everyone prefers or uses screen cages. I have successfully kept panthers in wooden/acrylic enclosures for over ten years. Its the proper environment that matters, not the enclosure in which you maintain that environment.

The KEY is to ensure there is adequate air flow (stagnant air = bad), good temperature gradiant within the acceptable range (21-32C / 70-90F at the hotest spot during the day, down to 16C/65F at night), humidity (40-65% or higher is okay if your air flow is also higher), dripping and misted water, good variety of feeder insects (gutloaded), UVB, etc.

If your enclosure is surrounded on three sides, and only has a few inches clearance on the top, this will not provide sufficient ventilation, IMHO. Consider using a small fan or two, like used on PCs, to ensure air movement into the cage as well as out of the alclove.

 

[millionsofchameleons]

i know its a temp cage and everyone has talked about other things but i would like to ask about the shop light that you have, it looks like the one i use for working on my cars at night or basketball and i can feel the heat coming off of mine 10 feet away so if its the same kinda shop light i would worry about it being too strong for the little man.