The best incentive to give up smoking? A pair of mellors!

NICK GILCHRIST

NICK GILCHRIST

New Member
Today turned out to be one of those..GO FOR IT! days...little did I know as what today held in store...

I have been searching all the UK forums to see if i could find anyone selling captive bred Mellors...but to no avail...in fact i only spotted one ancient thread stretching back to 2007...and nothing else...quite a few W/C ones. but really dont want that risk...

then...i spotted a thread..which led me to someone selling an adult pair!..hmm wildcaught i thought..but hey..if they were long term captives. might be worth a look...so i sent the seller an email to ask if they were still available...not only were they available...but it got better..they were both captive bred 07. unrelated pair guaranteed from Danish bloodlines..:eek:

then i asked the price.........not really knowing what it might be..i knew how much wildcaughts were..and how much cb babies were going for when available..if ever!!

the price that came back...well..lets say..not cheap..but oh they would be sooo worth it...an unrelated adult captive bred pair!! i mean..how rare is that!!

So...i sat and thought. and weighed up if i could afford it...and realising this was an opportunity not to miss...i went for it!! and the seller has accepted and we finalise everything tomorrow...He has agreed to break down the payment over a couple of months. which allows me the time i need to build the large housing unit..but effectively..i suppose it could safely be said...that they will be mine!!!

Therefore any US breeders (or experienced Mellors keepers anywhere) anyadvice in regards housing. temps and humidity would be welcomed..currently i intend to build a single 6ft x 6ft x 2ft unit (they are housed happily together)
with 2 x ceiling mounted 4ft 5.0 uvb strips. with at least 2 150w uva basking spots. also a secondary ground based low level convection heater as a back up which would be also used at night when spots switch off as a back up heat source to maintain the correct lower temps..the room they will be in never drops below 60f so this is a just in case thing.. so that will create at least 2 seperate basking spots of 85-90F with cooler areas at mid level..the unit will have a mixture of live ficus bushes to assist in maintaining humidity as well as a percentage of higher level fake vines/silk plants etc I know that branch diameters are relatively important to ensure that they can effectively grasp and support their weight without any difficulty..and then there is the question of humidity levels. and water requirement, as i believe they like to drink a lot?
So any info on if the above sounds ok. or anything else i need to know will be very welcome..and much appreciated..

I should be able to post up some pics later tomorrow..so i will welcome any comments..its a lot of money..and i want to get everything right!:)

thanks in advance Guys!

OH ALMOST FORGOT..the reason that i realised that i could afford them? i just decided as of now to give up smoking!! that will effectively pay for them! and ive never had such a strong motivator!!
 
jamncristian said:
have you thought of free ranging them?? because some mellers cant stand being caged
Click to expand...

If i lived in Florida..i would:) but unfortunately i live in England..so not an option. however they have been housed in cages since babies so not an issue..in fact its likely that in fact the cage will be built larger than i said..and be nearer 7ft high by 8ft:)
 
Grats on your new chams. I very successfully used the patch to quite smoking just a little over a year ago. I would highly recommend getting them and following the instructions. Dont beat yourself if ya get one or two smokes in here or there and stay active.

Oh a pics :)

Gpmo (him)
 
First, Congrats on quitting smoking!
Secondly, even more congrats on the Melleri pair. I currently have 7 adolescent to adult Melleri, with three living in cages and the other 4 free ranged. If you have the space, I would suggest trying to free range.
 
Congrats on finding them! I'm also in the UK and I know how hard it is to find anything other than Veileds or Panthers. In fact, where I live I have only ever seen Veileds, Pygmys and a baby Jacksons. Try searching posts by 'Karen' on here - she has a Melleri.
 
withlime said:
First, Congrats on quitting smoking!
Secondly, even more congrats on the Melleri pair. I currently have 7 adolescent to adult Melleri, with three living in cages and the other 4 free ranged. If you have the space, I would suggest trying to free range.
Click to expand...

well i could give them a whole room actually..i have a spare bedroom that is never used...would that be better? oh and thanks for the support on giving up smoking...lol a tad premature. but i will remember your words in 4 days time as i finish eating the sofa whilst designing the cham cage!
 
NICK GILCHRIST said:
well i could give them a whole room actually..i have a spare bedroom that is never used...would that be better? oh and thanks for the support on giving up smoking...lol a tad premature. but i will remember your words in 4 days time as i finish eating the sofa whilst designing the cham cage!
Click to expand...

A spare bedroom would be fantastic! We converted the master bedroom into a "chameleon room" and moved ourselves into the smaller bedroom :rolleyes: oh the things we do for our chams! If you look in those links I sent you, there should be a thread about our free range set up.
 
withlime said:
A spare bedroom would be fantastic! We converted the master bedroom into a "chameleon room" and moved ourselves into the smaller bedroom :rolleyes: oh the things we do for our chams! If you look in those links I sent you, there should be a thread about our free range set up.
Click to expand...



Yes thanks for those..just been going through them...amazing!! really impressed!:cool:

i can see im going to be busy! ...:rolleyes:
 
laurie said:
I am very proud of you for making great choices!! Giving up smoking for chameleons is a win/win. Great job.:D
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Thanks Laurie..:) now all i have to do is to persuade my teenage son that of course its normal for me to expect him to sleep on the sofa till hes 21 so that i can use his bedroom as the "free range" area!! and no of course the misting system won`t make his posters fall off the wall! ;)
 
After receiving some excellent tips already, I have decided to go for a "free range" set up..and after seeing some of the excellent builds done already. i think i have a plan!!:)

A design which will have a perforated polypropylene base sheet in a table top format...beneath this "drainage floor" will be a catch tray for excess water, which in turn will recycle into the mist system..the perforated floor will be the table top support then for the planted areas on top of it..on the sides and back will be a framework supporting a waterproof liner..and on each corner a verical support strut..from these struts. and through some of the holes in the floor area will be other vertical supports at an approximate height of 4ft. These supports will take the criss cross horizontal "branches" or vines across the lenth of the unit at differing heights..within these vines will be placed the varying ficus trees or similar.. above the area will be suspended a canopy framework with 2 x4ft uvb reflective fluorescents with coverage over the whole area..it will also support 2 basking spotlamps and of course the misting nozzles about 6" below the lighting. The nozzles will be adjusted to spray as finer mist as possible over the area within the drainage base.
The expected size of this tabled free range area will be at least 6ft long and 3ft deep..i will get working on a draft design..and post it up to see what you think..:) As the room that the unit will be in never drops below 60f this hopefully will work well for this purpose..its also a room with a large windowed area so in the summer it gets a lot of sunlight (but not so that inside temps increase) It is also draught free.
 
you shouldnt smoke in your house to begin with......i bet you smell worse than my chams poo no offence meant im a smoker also
 
I would recommend against recycling the drainage water back into the misting system. You will have to find a way to drain the water down the drain (or some other far away place). ;)

Congratulations by the way!

Luis
 
Rocky said:
Pics would be awesome ;)
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OK Rocky..well..you know when you get an idea and just have to put it down on paper? well here you go..

My intended "free range" area..

The unit will be approximately 7-8ft long . The height from floor to base of table top will be approx 30" and the rear waterproof screen will be about 4ft high. with the suspended canopy above that..the nozzle heads will run along the front rim of the canopy. and face the screened area. with the adjustment made so that 90% of all water goes straignt down the drainage floor..I have shown it with no plants..but if you can imagine lots of foliage. and ficus type bush trees inbetween and under the stretched vines. that should give you the general idea...took me about an hour to transfer what was in my head to paper..thanks to everyone for suggesting this method of housing..now comes the fun part..i have about 8 weeks to build it:eek:

FINISHEDMELLORS.jpg
 
luevelvet said:
I would recommend against recycling the drainage water back into the misting system. You will have to find a way to drain the water down the drain (or some other far away place). ;)

Congratulations by the way!

Luis
Click to expand...

Valid point Luis ;) Luckily there is an ensuite toilet in the same room on the adjoing wall..i think a bit of plumbing will be required.:rolleyes:
 
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