Rudis Chameleons

kk1020man

kk1020man

New Member
I have been looking into getting Rudis Chameleons over the past week or so. I have 125 gallon reptarium that I was planning on keeping a small group of them in. What do ya'll keep yours in? How many could I comfortably house in it?
I read that they don't need a heat lamp because they like their high temps in the mid 70s. I am a bit concerned though because it said that at night they like their temps in the mid 50s. Is this correct and if so, how you maintain these colder temps?
 
I keep one to a cage. They seem to do better that way. My temps are in the high of 75 and a low of 65 and they all do fine. I use a heat lamp with a 25 - 40 watt bulb, I have it turned on for the first 3 hours. They like to bask in the morning. I hope this helps.
Here is a pic of my red rudis.

maleJR.jpg
 
very pretty rudis!
I keep a pair in a 18x18x 24 cage. They have lots of room and do fine together. I have read that if you are doing colonies you will want large spaces inicase females get territorial while gravid.
 
Do you keep them all in screen enclosures? I was thinking about keeping 1 male and 2 maybe 3 females in my reptarium. Our house is NEVER below 73/74 degrees, so I don't know how to drop the temperatures that low. Also, at what humidity are they kept? Thanks for the help so far!
 
If you don't have a lot of experience, I do not recommend keeping any chameleons together. It's too easy to miss the subtle signs of stress and territoriality and those shorten the lifespan of your specimens drastically. Keep them separate.

My bitaeniatus critters are kept at 80F during the day. 60F at night. 70-100% (and this is critical for the montanes) humidity. Any less and they suffer.

Cheers,
t
 
If you don't have a lot of experience...
Click to expand...

I am not totally unexperienced. We have 13 reptiles right now and a lot of furry friends as well. I can read animals pretty well, so I am not worried about identifying issues that may arise. I still want to know if my reptarium is okay for them. Also people keep telling me what temps they keep their Rudis' at but they still aren't telling me how they achieve those cooler temps.
 
Air conditioning sir :) My rudis is outside at the moment though, which gives quite a nice temperature drop...depends where you live :)
 
I live in Canada where cold weather seems to be de rigueur. ;)

I'm not trying to dissuade you or sound like a meanie, but if you are unable to keep those temperatures low then perhaps reconsider keeping a rudis chameleon. I'm often asked my opinion on what kind of chameleon to get next and I measure in experience, availability of CB specimens AND location of potential owner. I do not recommend montanes to people who in Florida, Texas and bits of California for example unless those people are willing to devote a cool room to their animals.

Cheers,
t
 
kk1020man said:
I have been looking into getting Rudis Chameleons over the past week or so. I have 125 gallon reptarium that I was planning on keeping a small group of them in. What do ya'll keep yours in? How many could I comfortably house in it?
I read that they don't need a heat lamp because they like their high temps in the mid 70s. I am a bit concerned though because it said that at night they like their temps in the mid 50s. Is this correct and if so, how you maintain these colder temps?
Click to expand...

Easy -Move to the UK!
 
Yep..Francine changes to nice stripey colours when basking in the morning sun...taking in all the heat before the sun disappears over the top of the building...it only get a few hours of sun...which is ideal at the moment...I'm watching carefully, and she will come in with the AC when it gets too warm :)
 
I admire that attitude. If you can't provide the conditions, you go for something you can provide for. Well done...when you can provide the temperatures I'm sure you'll be a very considerate keeper :)
 
I admire your attitude as well Kyle. Have you perhaps considered a Flapneck Chameleon? (Chamaeleo dilepis dilepis). I realize you had a bad experience with a WC specimen in the past, but there are several well established, captive bred animals for sale right now. The Flaps will be okay in the warmer temperatures of Texas and they are chock full of personality to boot!

Keep us posted on your decision! :)
Cheers,
t
 
We actually live in Phoenix now, but still just as hot and even dryer. Between a veiled and flapneck, I think I prefer the look of the veiled better. Plus the incident with the flapneck was so unbearable to watch I just don't want to do that again. Also the "breeder" we purchased the little guy from said they were moutane, he could have been wrong, which goes against a previous statement that people in hot climates should not purchase moutanes chams. I had trouble researching them after we purchased him, even though the guy said info was readily available. We normally do tons of research before we buy any type of animal but we were at an expo and that was the only type of chameleon there and the guy said they were sooo easy. Anyway, enough with the excuses. If I did decide to go back to the flapneck, what would ya'll suggest humidity and temperature wise? Thanks for the help!
 
I certainly understand your reluctance to get another Flapneck, it's not easy to lose an animal that you've invested so much time and energy into. That said, I'm keeping my little female dilepis pretty much like a Veiled. Slightly warmer temperatures - 85F basking. Nighttime 65-70F. My humidity ranges from 70-100% depending on time of day. I've been working solely with montanes the last several years and I got a little CB female Flapneck last summer as more of a "pet" for me. Since then, I've discovered the dilepis are drastically different personality wise than most other species I've worked with. They are just cool. Don't rule them out.

Here's a recent article on the dilepis for you: http://chameleonnews.com/?page=article&id=49

Carpet Chameleons are another interesting and underrated species if you are looking for something a little different. Get captive bred though! Panthers are nice too - don't rule them out either.

Again, keep us posted with any decisions and questions you've got.
Cheers,
t
 
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