I have a 30x30x18 screen cage for my new cham I was thinking to buy another one and put SweetPea in that size also. Do you think that size will be okay for a full grown cham or should I get the 48x24x24 instead. thanks for your suggestions


Amy

IMHO ALWAYS go with the bigger size. Bigger IS better when it applies to a chameleon's enclosure, and I think she would really appreciate a bigger cage, I know my cham would!

I also thought bigger is better, but when you think about it, do they really use all that space? Since they are tree dwellers, they are usually up high basking, in the middle cooling off, or sometimes they'll just wonder around. Do they really need all that space? I'm not sure though, I know my chams really don't use all of their cage, just the top half mostly...

well I know the 48 inch height is great but do you think the 24x24 is wide enough?

Hey AMY!
You could always block off a portion of a larger cage on the bottom if you find that a smaller enclosure works better. That way in the future, if you go with a different type of cham that likes a larger cage, then you could just unblock that part, instead of having to buy a larger cage.
In the end that would save you money that you could spend on their best lighting and the best food.
I think Jenna mentioned that she has bars across the bottom of a cage and has her plant set on the bars and the excess debri and water falls down through the bars, for easy cleaning on the bottom of the cage.

I am thinking of doing something like that on the bottom of whatever cage I have so that the plant is not sitting on the tray and I can just slide it out to clean.
I'm thinking out making a bench type thing with legs that would come down on either side of the tray , with bars or plastic connected to each leg that I can set the plant on. Here is a pic

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Bench for Screen Cage_edited to post.jpg (31.7 KB, 11 views)

My uncle kindly volunteered to build my newest cage after he checked out the last one I built. I think the crooked door gives it character, but he had a point about it when a superworm traveled out a crack. My panther's current cage is 36" tall, 30" wide, and 18" deep. He really doesn't use the bottom part of the cage at all, but he has been pacing the areas that he does use for a month or so. Every time the door swings open, he is making a chameleon mad dash for it. So, since I want him to be happy.... the new cage will be 5' of screened area, 30" wide by 30" wide. It sits on a 2' tall cabinet with a five gallon bucket in it to catch the water. The floor is a washing machine drain pan (is Gus on this forum?) that drains the water into the bucket. Total height is 7' 3" because of the wheels on the base. I am not exactly sure why it needed wheels, but my uncle is under the impression that all fine furniture has wheels? Don't tell Ethan Allen... Leaves me just enough room for the lights up top! It is being built out of birch plywood and lumber. I bought nice plastic screen (8 mesh) from a fish netting place that should keep him from hurting his toesies. Now, it just needs to be finished! Almost there! My uncle keeps telling me that I am insane for keeping an animal that needs a cage the size of a refrigerator...

Heika

Hi Heika and Tara
I have not laughed that hard for a long time. I think we are all nuts, I am reading about the cage set-ups and I am picturing a livingroom full of nice furniture and there in the middle the "cham set -up" that was so funny.


chameleon 010 (Small).JPG

chameleon 003 (Small).JPG Amy

Heika, do you think the screen they use in the cages from reptile stores are too small? and your cham is not using the whole 36 inch height do you think for a male panther that height would bo fine?

Amy

Other keepers have reported having problems with the smaller screen. I haven't actually experienced it, because I have never used it. The cage my panther is in now uses a soft, fabricy sort of sun screen that I bought at my local hardware store. Spencer does climb the screen a lot, and always has, so I didn't want to risk using the fine aluminum screen. I begged the folks at www.cages.net to sell me some of the 8 mesh vinyl coated aluminum they use, but they wouldn't budge. They have it specially made, and when I called, they were almost out and wouldn't be getting any more for a while. When I found the 8 mesh plastic netting, I was really pleased because it seems so perfect. Plus, it was affordable. I got 25' of 48" screen for under $50.00, and that included shipping. Now, the real test will be how it holds up.

Amy, I can only tell you that 36" doesn't seem to be enough for my male panther chameleon. But, I am assuming that he is pacing because the cage is too small. If he keeps pacing when he is in the big cage, then the problem wasn't the cage. Honestly, I never intended to leave him in this smaller cage for as long as I have. He will be a year old this month. Part of the reason that I didn't move him to a larger one a while ago was because he got sick, and stayed sick for over 2 months. I was afraid to move him out of the cage.. I didn't want to add stress to his illness. He has been better for a little over a month now, so I think it is time for the bigger cage. If my uncle hadn't volunteered to build me one, I would have bought one of the 48" ones from Cages.net. They seem like nice people, and their cages come highly recommended by quite a few people.

Heika

SweetPea: The larger screened cage would be preferable for a full grown veiled chameleon . Not only does this give your cham more room to hunt and play, but it also creates a more gradual temperature gradient.

I am currently doing something similar. The cage I am using has a small separate door on the bottom which makes this method much easier. Make sure the cham can not get between the bars!! A cross hatch design would be preferable but may be harder to find. My new cage will be similar to Heikas, and use an artificial slope to drain water through a screened hole. This should cut my watering labor by 50% or more

LOL