10g vs 20g for Pygmy Chameleons?

[AZJ0SH]

So my wife was browsing the forum today and came across pictures of pygmy chameleons and fell in love, I think it's due to their size and "cuteness" factor, but I gave in and told her we can get some, not letting her know I secretly want them myself.

I have two empty tanks from my days as a freshwater fish hobbyist, I cleaned them out and checked for leaks today. So now I am trying to figure out what one I should use.

I only want 1 male and 2 females, or maybe just 1 male and 1 female. Can I keep them in a 10g, or should I use the 20g?

I am reading up on pygmy keeping currently, I plant to purchase sometime in September or October once I know everything about keeping them.

 

[Tattooface]

I would say go with the 20. You can always start with a 1.1 group, and add more females later. Plus it gives more room to be creative with the design and furnishings.

 

[AZJ0SH]

I would say go with the 20. You can always start with a 1.1 group, and add more females later. Plus it gives more room to be creative with the design and furnishings.

What happens if my chams have babies, how many can you fit total in a 20g?

Also, would I have to separate the babies to prevent inbreeding? I could always keep the 10g for any babies I get I guess or just sell the babies.

 

[Tattooface]

You will have to seperate to prevent inbreeding and males fighting. Just thinking out loud here, you could set up the 10, and then partition the 20 out to hold different groups of babies and males, till you sell or re-house them.

 

[AZJ0SH]

From what I read the max ratio for pygmy's is 2 femals for 1 male, is that correct?

Also, there seems to be a lot of different kinds of pygmys, but they're all WC is that normal? No CB pygmys out there to buy?

 

[Chase]

Occasionally, there are people who get a large amount of eggs, and will hatch them out and allow them to become available. Generally though, most people purchase WC. I cared for a 1.3 group for a total of a month before all four died. Like with all WC, it is a big chance of if you're getting healthy ones. By healthy I mean not having parasites or any other issues that may come with a WC animal. I personally won't ever purchase a WC Pygmy again, unless it is Brookesia or the rarer Rhampoleon. The reason I have this mindset is because of the bad luck I had with them. But, there are some people that have had theirs for a long time and are happy with their little ones.

This is just my opinion.
LPR08

 

[Fool2Think]

I say go with the 20 gallon for your females and keep the male in the 10 gallon. Pygmy chameleons retain sperm for a LONG time so you dont always need a male in with the females.
If you are looking for bearded pygmies then you should be able to find CB babies or maybe even adults. Most of the other pygmies will only be found as WC and they usually don't last very long. If you get WC adult females, they will have most likely already been bred and possible gravid.
One more thing that comes to mind~ If you buy WC buy ALL WC, don't mix a WC with a CB, your CB will most likely not be able to handle the parasites that the WC one WILL have.
Hope this helps some.