veiled chameleon tank

T

tony5787

New Member
hi guys im new here. im planning on buying a female veiled chameleon. as of now i have a 30 gallon tank that is about 3 feet long by 1 1/2 feet tall and about a foot deep. i am thinking about buying a tank topper but am afraid that the holes from the wire may let crickets and other insects escape. also if i do buy this topper it should make the height of the tank around or exceeding 3 feet. should this be tall enough for the chameleon??? i used to own two pygmys but one was diseased when i bought it and within hours it died. the second contracted the same disease or was stressed and couldnt acclimate and after about a month, died. they were wild caught as are most pygmys but they seemed to thrive in the normal tank. but veiled are much much larger so i am scared that it wont have enough room. but maybe with the combination of 3 feet of horizontal and vertical room to walk in, it may thrive. let me know what you think.
 
Hi Tony :-)

First thing, Veiled Chameleons really need a fully screened enclosure, not a tank. This is for 2 reasons...

1. Veileds need the extra air ventilation to ensure health.

2. Veileds are extremely territorial and will commonly fire up (stress) at their own reflections.

For a female, you really only need about 2 x 2 x 3 screen cage. For a male, 2 x 2 x 4 at least. Hope this helps :-)

-Dave
 
meh so wut type of cham would you recommend for this type of enclosure??? i was also looking at jacksons because they are slightly smaller. also if i do keep this tank but cover it in plants would that help to make it seem less stressed. lol maybe i should just tint the glass to save me some trouble.
 
I'd encourage you to spend a few more days researching tony. Welcome to the boards, this is one of thebest places to research!

Aquariaums/terrariums are great for many reptiles including some species of chameleon like pygmies. However it's less then ideal for a veiled chameleon. Veiled's as most chameleons need vertical space, plus horizontal airflow.

A veiled in a fish tank has very decreased chance of survival. Even if the lid is screened. The whole cage should be screen. LLL Reptile sells some great cham cages, but so do some of the sponsors on this forum.

This is just the starting point.

You should look into misting, how will you achieve a regular misting schedule?
How will you provide drainage? It is suggested that you don't use substrate because of risk of comsumption and compaction.

What kind of lighting are you going to use?

What will be your vit and mineral supplimentation schedule?

What will be your feeder rotation? Do you know how much they eat and how much that will cost you a month in feeders?

I highly recommend you don't buy a female. A female will lay eggs and you will need to recognize the signs when she's ready to dig to lay a clutch (fertile or not) you'll need to provide her with a temporary place to dig.

As you can see there are many issue, maybe you know the answers to most of these, but if you don't you'll find them here on this forum. Please use the search tool whenever you can, you'll find mountains of info.

Welcome to the boards tony! This is one of the best forums I've ever been to.
 
Pygmies only for that enclosure.

The stress factor has nothing to do with a place to hide (though that's helpful) It's about ability to climb up and away. Nothing but pygmies in that tank because they require an enviroment that emulates their natural habitat of a moist jungle floor.

All other chams require an enviroment that emulates the tops of trees.


tony5787 said:
meh so wut type of cham would you recommend for this type of enclosure??? i was also looking at jacksons because they are slightly smaller. also if i do keep this tank but cover it in plants would that help to make it seem less stressed. lol maybe i should just tint the glass to save me some trouble.
Click to expand...
 
royden said:
I'd encourage you to spend a few more days researching tony. Welcome to the boards, this is one of thebest places to research!

Aquariaums/terrariums are great for many reptiles including some species of chameleon like pygmies. However it's less then ideal for a veiled chameleon. Veiled's as most chameleons need vertical space, plus horizontal airflow.

A veiled in a fish tank has very decreased chance of survival. Even if the lid is screened. The whole cage should be screen. LLL Reptile sells some great cham cages, but so do some of the sponsors on this forum.

This is just the starting point.

You should look into misting, how will you achieve a regular misting schedule?
How will you provide drainage? It is suggested that you don't use substrate because of risk of comsumption and compaction. i wouldnt use substrate because of this

What kind of lighting are you going to use? one heat lamp and a large uvb light (i still have the lights from the pygmys)

What will be your vit and mineral supplimentation schedule? preferably twice a week with repcal

What will be your feeder rotation? Do you know how much they eat and how much that will cost you a month in feeders? i would feed mostly 1/4 in crickets with ocasional wax and silk worms.

I highly recommend you don't buy a female. A female will lay eggs and you will need to recognize the signs when she's ready to dig to lay a clutch (fertile or not) you'll need to provide her with a temporary place to dig. thats also a reason i was leery on buying a female. males just grow too large which as you can see is the main problem

As you can see there are many issue, maybe you know the answers to most of these, but if you don't you'll find them here on this forum. Please use the search tool whenever you can, you'll find mountains of info.

Welcome to the boards tony! This is one of the best forums I've ever been to.
Click to expand...

ive researched for months on what type to get but cant seem to find the right type. im staying away from pygmys after the last two because they are primarily wild caught. i wish peacock chams were easier to care for because they are perfect size and seem to have a nicer disposition than the veileds
 
royden said:
Pygmies only for that enclosure.

The stress factor has nothing to do with a place to hide (though that's helpful) It's about ability to climb up and away. Nothing but pygmies in that tank because they require an enviroment that emulates their natural habitat of a moist jungle floor.

All other chams require an enviroment that emulates the tops of trees.
Click to expand...
so should i sell the tank? if so for how much? id imagine they cost upsides of 80 so maybe sell it for 60??? i just dont think my parents will want me to do this because they already dont want me to get one and i dont think my parents will let me sell it. my father thinks that you can keep them in the tank after ive told him that they get very stressed and need ventilation. also mesh tanks dont smell at all do they??? chameleons seem to be very clean animals so i doubt that.
 
Tony,

I think you would be really happy with a veiled.
What you need to decide though, is if you want to create a proper set up for a chameleon, or if you want to find an animal that can live in the tank you have.
A tank with a topper really is (in my opinion) a poor choice for an old world chameleon.

-Brad
 
tony5787 said:
. also mesh tanks dont smell at all do they??? chameleons seem to be very clean animals so i doubt that.
Click to expand...

You are correct.
They are very clean and do not smell.
You need to maintain the environment (of course).

I have never had much luck getting $$$ out of a tank.
Good Luck

-Brad
 
Well.. here's my straight up advice to you. Chams are a ton of work. A ton. You're either into it or you're not.

They cost a ton of money, they take a ton of time. If you're really commited then do it right and follow the rules that have proven themselves.

The only chameleon you can house in that tank is a colony of pygmies. You may have been to pet stores where the chameleon is in a tank like yours. That's because they're hoping it sells before it dies.

Veiled's are a great starter chameleon, but they get big, and they get mean. If you're looking for for a friendly species of chameleon you've come to the wrong reptile.

Keep reading. Keep saving. I saved and read for months before I got my first veiled, and even then it took me many more months to 'streamline' my husbandry. It's a great hobby though! And if you're into it, then go for it!

Good luck!

Read Brad's blog.
 
yea i know and i want to get a veiled but i dont want to cause the animal to suffer because i dont have the right setup and dont want to buy it. so are there ANY other chameleons besides pygmies that this would be acceptable for that are easily cared for? i doubt there is though. i thought veileds were also ground dwelling though. is this true?
 
Nope veileds live in trees and shrubs.

Unfortunately you are trying to make an animal you would like to care for fit into an enclosure you already own, and in this case ... it's not going to work.
Chameleons are more like parrots than reptiles.

-Brad
 
i really want a cham. like theres no other reptiles i want besides them. geckos seem dull to me. and after the other chams died i feel i need to do it right to get the most out of them. they were the most interesting pets i have had and i wish they would have lived longer. also, i know that pet stores do this. i dont want to house them in a tank because the pet store does. i want to because i have the tank just lying around with nothing to put in it and a veiled is what i want. jacksons wont be able to survive in this either??? they are much smaller i know but they feel like they will be just as stressed in a glass tank as the veiled
 
Brad Ramsey said:
Nope veileds live in trees and shrubs.

Unfortunately you are trying to make an animal you would like to care for fit into an enclosure you already own, and in this case ... it's not going to work.
Chameleons are more like parrots than reptiles.

-Brad
Click to expand...

yea i know im either not going to buy one now or am going to have to buy a new tank. but unfortunately my parents most likely wont let me buy a new tank because this one seems fine to them. so i guess i wont buy one. i would feel selfish to buy a cham and make the poor animal suffer because i insisted on housing it in something i knew was unacceptable to house it in.
 
Honestly Tony, after reading your posts, I think you should re-evaluate what kind of reptile you want. I honestly don't think chameleons are for you as I think you're looking for more of a low maintenence reptile, maybe a bearded dragon? Beardies are really cool lizards, great personalities to them.

Chameleons need constant care, attention, misting, feeding, temp gradients, and the list goes on. As royden said, it takes many months of research before you even get a veiled in the first place just to get them to survive in captivity, and even longer to perfect your husbandry. I'm still learning, and I got my first veiled about 6-8 months ago. There's always more to learn.

I suggest you do some more research on chameleons before you even consider picking one up. This may really be too much of a burden for you.

And for glass tanks, $1 per gallon is usually the going rate for tanks. ;-) So no more than $30 for a 30 gallon tank.

-Dave
 
yea im a senior in high school now so with college coming up i would have more time to care for it. i mean ive bought several books on the care for chameleons. ive read blogs on housing and feeding. even youtube videos on other peoples setups. beardies, although interesting, are not for me. ive just never been interested by them. my other option is crested geckos but they are fairly expensive. i may look in to buying one of these though.
 
If you do buy one, please please please heed everyone's advice here and get the screened enclosure.

Just as you said, the animal shouldn't suffer because you don't want to spend the money.

But let us know if you need any help at all. There's plenty of people here that'd be glad to help, including myself :-)

-Dave
-Georgia Bugs
 
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