Getting my first chameleon

Texameleon23

New Member
I hope i posted in the correct section

Well before I even buy my veiled chameleon I wanna ask a couple questions first because I wanna be prepared to take good care of my chameleon when i buy him. I've been doing a lot of reading in the forum, and I gotta say its all been very helpful information.

Here are my questions

I have a Zoo Med ReptiBreeze Open Air Screen Cage, 16'' x 16'' x 30'' and I bought to plants to have in there. I got a hibiscus and a camelea to put in cage and is this cage big enough for a baby or juvenile veiled?

I also got a Zoo Med Mini Combo Deep Dome Lamp Fixture and I got a Exo Terra Repti-Glo 5.0 UVB bulb and one of those red light bulbs from petsmart so it can keep him warm. Also im from canyon tx and the nights are a bit cooler at nights but once summer gets here it gets pretty hot so will those light bulbs be sufficient for my veiled?

My next question is i know that veiled need high humidity, how would i go about keeping the humidity at a comfortable spot for him if the cage is a screen cage? I read that having a waterfall in the cage would help, but im concerned about the bacteria that would grow in the water.

My 3rd question is when re-potting the plants I bought do I leave them in the soil they came with and just transfer them into the new soil or do I remove the soil and then re-pot it? What could I use to cover the soil with so he wont eat the soil?

I know I said I've been doing a lot of reading and researching, but I still have so many questions lol :)

I guess i just want to be prepared for when i do get my chameleon

I would appreciate any other suggestion or tips

thanks
 
I cant answer most of your questions, but I can help you with the humidty!
Most people use live plants which help, but also some people will put a piece of a shower curtain on 2 or 3 sides which will help the humidity levels stay high.
Good luck wiht your cham!
 
Stay away from a waterfall, your right to be concerned about bacteria. Misting or spay systems with plants is a better method of raising the humidity.
 
the cage is fine, as for humidty the plants and maybe covering a a few sides of the cage with plastic can help.

as for the lights you only need two lights ,

a basking light between 60-75 watts is fine as long hasbasking temps are good 85-90 should be fine, but not too close to the cage so your cham will not get burned

and the uvb light , the repti-glo should be fine as long as it is linear tube, the older coils were known to casue eye problems, i dont know about the new ones but the linear shoud not give you any trouble

waterfall is not reccommended, i stay away from it all together

as long as the nights temps do not go below 60 maybe 55 degrees lowest
they can be fine

during the day 70's is good, if it is a hot day then more mistings

maybe post a pic of your set up to give us an idea


as for the repotting, i would place the plant with the roots/soil and place it in a slightly larger pot and cover it around with organic soil and cover the top are with big flat river rocks or people have used screen to block the soil, so their cham can not eat from it

hope this helps

goodluck and post pics
 
Thanks for the help. Its funny how I never even thought about putting plastic around the sides to keep humidity in the cage. As for the waterfall I wont put one then.

The UVB light bulb i have is the coil one i don't know if its the older kinds that cause eye problems. How can I know if the coil bulb is one that causes eye problems? The only reason i bought the coil bulb was because the lamp i bought is a Zoo Med Mini Combo Deep Dome Lamp Fixture, but if the coil bulbs can cause problems i wont use it.

Also how high should the lights be from the top of the cage? I have it about 5 to 6in above top of cage
I'll post some pictures as soon as I can

Thanks again
 
you can lay the lights right on top of the screen. Just make sure your basking branch is down low enough so no part of your chameleon's body will touch. He/she might hang upside down on the top of the screen when you first get her/him in the cage under the light and there would be a chance of getting burned then if the screen is too hot, but they should learn pretty quickly to stay away from that area.
 
Here's a picture of my cage. What do you guys think? Any suggestions on fixing anything or is that good?

2s7jsxd.jpg
 
I would change your light fixture setup. You need 1 dome with a max 75watt house bulb. And 1 balisk type fixture with a reptisun 5.0 tube bulb in it. Also to help with humity get a Mistking. It will solve all your problems.
 
I would have a branch or vine (something sturdy) under neath his basking area so he can comfortably sit and bask. I am not sure how sturdy the top of the plant is. I would get rid of the red bulb. It is not natural and does not light up the cage very well either. Get like a 40-60 watt bulb to use for basking. Regular old housebulb. Most of us use the linear tube 5.0's but your compact should be fine. Issues going way back with them but unless you are using a bulb from some old store shelf from years ago, then you should be fine. As long as your cham is thriving and seems to have no problems from the bulb like squinting or closing his eyes, then I would just leave it. You also could use more vines and branches to create walking areas for him.
 
Could I use wooden dowels to make walk ways? Because I was thinking of hot-gluing them together and make walk ways.
Ok thanks I'll get rid of that red bulb and just put a house bulb instead. Yeah the plants in the back are pretty sturdy i have them tied with zip-ties
 
Yeah you can use wood dowles. I am using them now because of there uniform shape.
Here is one of my cages for a example.
058-1.jpg
 
As long as you cham has 3 temp zones in their cage then the rest is just for your chams benefit. Gives them more to do and more places to go.
 

I was about to ask about gutloading, but then I saw the links you posted. Very informative thanks

I just wanna thank everyone for all their help :)
 
Yeah you can use wood dowles. I am using them now because of there uniform shape.
Here is one of my cages for a example.
058-1.jpg

i love how hes not even on his branches in this pic, silly lizard..


as for the red light i see you ditched it, good.

and for the coiled 5.0 bulb if its a newer one i suppose it will work (its like firestone tires once they recalled a bunch of them, i never went back)..the old bulbs where bad and could blind your animals..your branches look pretty good, as for humidity, you can even use plastic wrap for the back and sides, that will increase humidity alot..


read up as much as you can..good luck , prepare to get obsessed!! lol
 
It looks like it's coming together. Everyone has a different approach. Idk how accurate your thermometer is. I would go with a digital thermometer/hydrometer combo. :)
 
I know. Everytime we go to the cage they want us to hold them. So I was taking pictures and he wanted me to hold him.
As you will see from my thread. (Ranger wants out video)
 
Back
Top Bottom