4 random questions....

[jamest0o0]

okay so i just had some questions/concerns as a new cham owner i figured i'd condense into one thread. None of them are really related.

1) my 4month panther keeps climbing the very top screen of the cage. He doesn't do it constantly, but about once a day i see him up there for a little. I even have branches up top, he doesn't go anywhere else, but the top and it bothers me because he's getting big and i know it's not good for them. I notice it's usually under the basking light even though he hs a branch a few inches from there to sit on(which he does). His basking spot is at the recommended 82-85ish or so, but he seems to like it warmer and tries to get as close as possible. He will also run up there sometime when i mist, but has been getting more used to it everyday and seems to do this less and less.

2) Does he need a dripper? He rarely seems to drink from it, i think i saw him check it out and take a lick like once or twice. i see him lick the leaves after/during misting more often. If anything the dripper seems to scare him. The dripper seems to waste a lot of water for how little he uses it.

3) my plants are potted in 50/50 playsand/coco fiber. They are covered by rocks. Today a dubia got away and crawled deep under the rocks which is probably still lost, but he was searching for it. There is little bits of sand and dirt, not much, on some of the rocks from misting and everything. I was wondering how harmful it was if they eat some on accident. Impaction is mentioned a lot, but how much does it take to cause a problem? I clean up when i see anything, but if he's chasing bugs through the rocks a few grains of whatever could possibly be eaten.

4) I bought a few small trees (schefflera, money, dracaena, and weeping fig) at home depot because they were on sale. I haven't gotten around to cleaning or changing the soil yet, but i just have them sitting next to the cage(he has no access to them). Is there anyway pesticides could cause a problem being close to the cage? They aren't touching or anything. Idk much about pesticides and plant chemicals other than to wash them before putting the cage. I think there was some gnats that came in on one as well.

That's it for now, sorry if i'm over worrying.

 

[Andee]

I'll answer 2-4 right now. If no one else answers 1 I can try my best to give a satisfactory answer for it.

4, nothing to worry about there. Just clean them, etc. before putting them in. Otherwise no real issue.

3, a few grains is not much to worry about, they are bound to have it happen in the wild. It's when they sit there just eating mouthfuls of it. Which some chameleons do, especially in captivity when they could be nutrient deficient in some way if the keeper isn't doing correct stuff, and then they have to deal with impaction.

2, I don't use a dripper at all (though you usually don't see chams drinking much or regularly, especially not panthers). But I do have an automatic mister, and longer misting sessions. I also regularly put in extra shorter misting times during warmer months.

 

[Remkon]

My answers in random order (giving random answers would have been mean)

3) as long as it's small pieces and he can't ingest the stones it's no problem... In nature they get small bits of things in their mouths as well, as long as they can't choke on it or it can cause an impaction it's no danger.

1) sooner or later they will climb the screen, my jax did it as a little man but hasn't done it lately.
My panther has done it a few times but not as much as my jax... It can just be exploring, it can be his enclosure is to small or not decorated with enough paths.

4) I put them in the shower for half an our or so just to be sure.

2) Not all chameleons drink from a dripper and if you mist frequently enough you should not need one.

 

[jamest0o0]

Thanks this helps a lot. Looks like im good then.

Remkon- 4 random answers, that would have been great lol.