chameleon habitat

phanx

New Member
hi i am planning on either buying a cage for a chameleon, or building one from scratch. i have seen a lot of different examples on building a screen cage for a chameleon and it doesnt seem to be that hard. chameleons need a lot of air and ventilation so i know that the screen cage would be excellent for a chameleon. but i was just wondering, would an acrylic atrium be good for a chameleon? it has acrylic panels on the back, left, right, and front sides, but the top is wire mesh, and there are some air holes in the front where the cage itself opens. is this safe for a chameleon? what do u think? i really need ur help.
 
hi i am planning on either buying a cage for a chameleon, or building one from scratch. i have seen a lot of different examples on building a screen cage for a chameleon and it doesnt seem to be that hard. chameleons need a lot of air and ventilation so i know that the screen cage would be excellent for a chameleon. but i was just wondering, would an acrylic atrium be good for a chameleon? it has acrylic panels on the back, left, right, and front sides, but the top is wire mesh, and there are some air holes in the front where the cage itself opens. is this safe for a chameleon? what do u think? i really need ur help.

Possibly not enough ventilation. How many holes are you putting in the acrylic? How big will the cage be overall? Are you using any kind of fan? What is the ambient environment like? How are you monitoring humidty, temp, airflow?

Some chameleons do not understand things that are transparent - and thus may paw at it or try to walk through it.

Also, it allows no privacy, so if you have anything else around (dog, cat, children, other lizards, you etc) it could upset / stress the chameleons.

On the plus side, Unlike glass, you can get UV-Transmitting Plexiglas Acrylic Sheets. Acrylic is easier to drill holes in that glass. Its fairly light. Its easy to clean. It doesnt block your view like screen does. Easier to attach things to (assuming there are holes) than screen. It keeps things out as well as it keeps things in (cat, children, etc)

I dont like the fine screen alot of people use because it blocks UVB, blocks your view of the chameleon, can cause damage to toenails, and is useless for retaining heat and humidty. I use acrylic for doors on some of my cages, but the back and sides are peg board on those so lots of holes / air transfer. Peg board is cheaper than acrylic. Screen is probably cheaper than acrylic. Coated wire (big spaces between wires, just close enough to keep cham in) was more expensive, so I only use that for tops.
 
i was actually planning to buy the acrylic cage from Big Al's fish store. they just recently started getting into reptiles (well the store that i go to atleast). the cage is big enough to house an adult chameleon. i am not exactly sure of the dimensions but i will check it out the next time im there which should be soon. if i do buy it, im probably gonna buy some kind of jungle wallpaper to put on the back and side panels. the only thing im afraid of is the air ventilation. but on the box of the cage, it says that the cage is perfect for chameleons and many other reptiles. should i trust this?
 
I'm not aware of anyone selling a cage in box that is really perfect for adult chameleons.
An acrylic cage for an adult cham would be bigger than a 90 gallon aquarium. (Not that you should use a 90 gallon aquarium).
 
yeah, now that i thought about it and did a little bit more research, i think im just gonna stick to building a cage. it would probably be the easier thing to do, hence that i can make a drainage system and everything else. now i just want suggestions on what kind of wood and what kind of screening i should use. should i use sealers for the corners or just nail all the wood together to make a frame? and what is the best way to make a drain system?
 
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