Please Critique My Enclosure

[Quantum Mark]

Cage Info:
Cage Type – All aluminium screen enclosure. 18 x 18 x 36
Lighting – Reptisun 5.0 and 60W bulb in. 8am lights on, 10pm lights off.
Temperature – Basking spot 90F . Bottom of the enclosure 73F. Readings taken one after the other using an Exo Terra digital thermometer.
Humidity - Using a Lucky Reptile Super Rain, three times a day for 5 minutes at a time. At its lowest point between soaks humidity is 48%. After soads its about 87% fades in between these two figures I have corrugated plastic on two sides of the enclosure to help keep humidity in.
Plants – Two dwarf Ficus Benjamina. Exoterra Bio Vines and lucky reptile artificial vine garland.
Placement – Enclosure is in my bedroom. I have a large room with a large window. Not a heavy traffic area by any means but definitely a steady flow of cars and good breeze coming through when the window is open as im 5 stories up. Enclosure is about half way between the floor and ceiling.
Location – North London, England

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon – Im picking him up on Sunday. He's a 3 month old male Ambilobe.
Handling – I'd like to handle and hand feed it bugs it for five to ten minutes a day in the hope it gets used to it. Will leave him be for the first couple of weeks (if i can resist temptation) to let him settle to his new home.
Feeding – To start with, Ill be using a variety of phoenix worms, crickets, Dubai roaches and silkies (all of which will be baby ones)
Supplements – Komodo Cricket dust (99% pure calcium carbonate) mon-friday, Neutrobal (Calcium + D3) Saturday and Sunday. Was planning on using bee pollen with high calcium feeders such as phoenix worms too.
Watering – In addition to the mister (which really gets droplets built up on the leaves) I'll be using plastic cups for dripping. Excess water drips through a small hole in the base into a container underneath the wire-frame table.
Fecal Description – Poops are yet to be seen but rest assured I've never been more excited about seeing excrement.
History – Came from a reputable breeder
Current Problem – Making sure everything is just right. Even if I use warm water in the mister it still spits out cold water. Is this in an issue? Guess not because its just physics and everyone must get it. Anything else I should be looking out for?

 

[Jonas]

I would say it needs more light. We often forget, or simply do not know, that even the brightest of enclosures are not even as bright as a cloudy day in nature. An average bulb gives away a few hundred lux, the outside is probably more than 100 000 lux...

The cage looks great, I have seen many people who never got to that standard. If anything, I would try to fill upp the few "empty" volumes there is with some branches etc. The chameleon only have use for volume it can climb in, and it can only blimb on things that exists...

Great job!

 

[Quantum Mark]

I would say it needs more light. We often forget, or simply do not know, that even the brightest of enclosures are not even as bright as a cloudy day in nature. An average bulb gives away a few hundred lux, the outside is probably more than 100 000 lux...

The cage looks great, I have seen many people who never got to that standard. If anything, I would try to fill upp the few "empty" volumes there is with some branches etc. The chameleon only have use for volume it can climb in, and it can only blimb on things that exists...

Great job!

Cool, I actually have a couple of small umbrella plants. Ill stick one or both in there to fill up the space. As for light, its night time and my iPhone camera isnt very good. But if I was to get another light what should it be? A basking light or another UV for the side maybe?

 

[Jonas]

Im talking about light, just light and nothing but the light...
If you need more heat, you get a spot. If you need more UV, you get a tube/lamp.
I would recommend daylight tubes around 6500K. A few compact "low energy" bulbs/tubes is a great addition on top of that.

More plants is good, but you could just fill out the space with dead branches, just take a walk and pick up what you find outside...

 

[TylerMcCoy]

Im talking about light, just light and nothing but the light...
If you need more heat, you get a spot. If you need more UV, you get a tube/lamp.
I would recommend daylight tubes around 6500K. A few compact "low energy" bulbs/tubes is a great addition on top of that.

More plants is good, but you could just fill out the space with dead branches, just take a walk and pick up what you find outside...

after of course you disinfect what you find

 

[Jonas]

after of course you disinfect what you find

Ah, the american germ phobia.
What could possibly get your chameleon in trouble from using material taken from the outside? Sure, you should check to see that you dont bring an ant colony back inside, but other than that I dont see any need for disinfection.

 

[Danicuteeyes]

lol sorry but how do you hold the branches in place???
do thumbtacks really work??

Cage Info:
Cage Type – All aluminium screen enclosure. 18 x 18 x 36
Lighting – Reptisun 5.0 and 60W bulb in. 8am lights on, 10pm lights off.
Temperature – Basking spot 90F . Bottom of the enclosure 73F. Readings taken one after the other using an Exo Terra digital thermometer.
Humidity - Using a Lucky Reptile Super Rain, three times a day for 5 minutes at a time. At its lowest point between soaks humidity is 48%. After soads its about 87% fades in between these two figures I have corrugated plastic on two sides of the enclosure to help keep humidity in.
Plants – Two dwarf Ficus Benjamina. Exoterra Bio Vines and lucky reptile artificial vine garland.
Placement – Enclosure is in my bedroom. I have a large room with a large window. Not a heavy traffic area by any means but definitely a steady flow of cars and good breeze coming through when the window is open as im 5 stories up. Enclosure is about half way between the floor and ceiling.
Location – North London, England

Chameleon Info:
Your Chameleon – Im picking him up on Sunday. He's a 3 month old male Ambilobe.
Handling – I'd like to handle and hand feed it bugs it for five to ten minutes a day in the hope it gets used to it. Will leave him be for the first couple of weeks (if i can resist temptation) to let him settle to his new home.
Feeding – To start with, Ill be using a variety of phoenix worms, crickets, Dubai roaches and silkies (all of which will be baby ones)
Supplements – Komodo Cricket dust (99% pure calcium carbonate) mon-friday, Neutrobal (Calcium + D3) Saturday and Sunday. Was planning on using bee pollen with high calcium feeders such as phoenix worms too.
Watering – In addition to the mister (which really gets droplets built up on the leaves) I'll be using plastic cups for dripping. Excess water drips through a small hole in the base into a container underneath the wire-frame table.
Fecal Description – Poops are yet to be seen but rest assured I've never been more excited about seeing excrement.
History – Came from a reputable breeder
Current Problem – Making sure everything is just right. Even if I use warm water in the mister it still spits out cold water. Is this in an issue? Guess not because its just physics and everyone must get it. Anything else I should be looking out for?

 

[TylerMcCoy]

Ah, the american germ phobia.
What could possibly get your chameleon in trouble from using material taken from the outside? Sure, you should check to see that you dont bring an ant colony back inside, but other than that I dont see any need for disinfection.

true, but precaution never did hurt

 

[Jonas]

lol sorry but how do you hold the branches in place???
do thumbtacks really work??

It depends on the cage. In some cases I can just fit them perfectly so I dont need to fasten them in any way, in wooden terrariums i have used screws... In glass terrariums I gave used glue/silikon. Use your imagination.

I dont know the english word for it, but these should be fine for mesh cages:

 

[Jonas]

true, but precaution never did hurt

Haha, but it can! All the unnecessary use of antibiotics and more will hurt when you have recistant bacteria on your hands. It doesnt apply in this case though, so I'll let you go this time

 

[Danicuteeyes]

It depends on the cage. In some cases I can just fit them perfectly so I dont need to fasten them in any way, in wooden terrariums i have used screws... In glass terrariums I gave used glue/silikon. Use your imagination.

I dont know the english word for it, but these should be fine for mesh cages:

i would understand mesh...but my cage is made out of aluminum...the LLL reptile cage...

im just worried on how ill put the branches up...cause they are heavier since the chameleon would perch on it lol

oh well ill give it a try

 

[Dinky]

jonas there called zip ties and yea even with the lll cages the zip ties work fine u just have to get small ones and if u don't feel comfortable using those 20lb fishing line will do

 

[pssh]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but isnt 90 WAY too hot for a panther baby? Something more like 80-83 is better, right?

 

[Bay687]

i use zip ties for sure... it works out perfectly fine for me, and I have the LLL Reptile Cage also.. and i wouldn't have a Baby Panther in 90 degrees.. i keep my 9 month old Nosy Be around 88... but were also talking about a baby.. shouldn't be 90.. at least i would think

 

[Jonas]

jonas there called zip ties and yea even with the lll cages the zip ties work fine u just have to get small ones and if u don't feel comfortable using those 20lb fishing line will do

Aha. The funny part is that I didnt know the swedish word for them eighter, they are just called "cat stranglers" as a joke.
Turns out its "buntband" in swedish, translating into something like "bunch string" or "stack strip", where "bunt" means something collected and held together, like a stack or a pile (only it is thought of as more "round", something you can grip your hands around, like a bouquet) and "band", meaning a strip of something or a broad yet thin string.

There's some swedish for you...

 

[Quantum Mark]

Wow, talk about thread hijacking

Any input on my enclosure would be great. Picking my guy up tomorrow and would like everything to be just right.

Any other input on basking spot temps for a baby panther?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Jonas]

Oups, sorry... hehe.

One piece of advice I like to give people is light. Many times the light itself is forgotten; we have the UVB, we have the spot light, but we forget "regular" whithe light. Daylight tubes around 6500K is great, these days one can also find regular compakt lights (low energy lights) in that color temperature.
Simply put, Its basically impossible to have too much light.

 

[pssh]

Since no one else, except the guy below me said anything about the temps, I looked it up. From what other people have said, 83 should be good till he's older.
I'm not terribly familiar with panthers, but I'll do my best.

So, your light schedule is good for the summer, but when winter comes around, make it at least 12 hour timing(or even eleven). So, you have it at 8-10 now, later it would be 8-8, got it? Three mists a day is good, but you could add another one in there. Maybe a shorter one or something. Now, your supplements, use calcium at almost all feedings, calcium with D3 twice a month, and vitamins once or twice a month.

Other than that, you sound good so far. Post some pics when you get him.