Beginner wanting panther, cage advice

[Donkus]

Hi there. My name is Jozef. This is my first post. I am a beginner looking for advice on enclosures and supplies before I make my purchase. My plan is to create a well-established enclosure with thriving live plants long before I look for a chameleon. I will likely not have a chameleon until spring.

I am encountering conflicting information online regarding the correct way to keep panther chameleons, and nearly all of the conflicting information pertains to enclosures.

I live in Minnesota and my house is kept at 60 degrees during the winter. My ball python lives in my bedroom, which is kept a little warmer at around 70 (her enclosure is the proper temperature, but her enclosure is also glass).

Some are saying the ONLY way to keep them is in a reptibreeze cage. But I am reading other information stating that the very largest reptibreeze is only a bare minimum in size for an adult male panther, which seems cruel to me, if it is true. I have also had several people tell me they keep their chameleons in glass enclosures because it holds heat and humidity better, but then the other side chimes in saying that the chameleon almost always ends up with respiratory problems, which I don't want either. I am not very handy, otherwise I would be way into building something DIY in my closet, but I have a fear of spending hundreds or thousands on materials and ending up with something completely unsuitable, because I am really that bad at building things, lol.

Can anyone help me out? Honestly, even if someone just sent me a link and said "you can keep an adult panther in this" then at least I would know it is something that works.

Thank you so much for your time.

 

[Jevin]

You are correct that the largest reptibreeze is the minimum size for an adult Panther Chameleon. I do believe some people on this forum have managed to combine a few reptibreeze cages together to form a larger one. As for whether or not you should use a glass or screen enclosure or a combination of the two is dependant on the environmental conditions of where you live and the conditions in the area you are going to keep the enclosure.

Generally screen is easier in terms of preventing health problems for a beginner as the high ventilation they offer prevents harmful stuff from growing in the cage generally, however it also makes controlling humidity and temperature gradient in the cage a bit more challenging. With a glass enclosure, the risk of harmful stuff growing increases but with proper maintenance can be prevented, and unlike the screen enclosure, a glass one will be easier to maintain humidity and a controlled temperature gradient. A combination of the two general will eliminate most of the cons of screen or glass.

It also depends on the environment of where you live and the climate conditions in your living space. Generally a glass enclosure is favoured in an area with a low humidity and higher temperatures, whereas a screen is usually preferred in a more humid environment.

I personally have used all screen enclosures, as despite being in Calgary, Alberta, I keep my room where my cage is located at a minimum of 50% humidity as that is what I find comfortable for myself and as a result, I have been able to use a screen cage in an environment that honestly a glass enclosure would probably be easier to use and maintain. I am also still relatively new to chameleons myself as I have only owned one before my current chameleon, so some of my info may be off as I've only used screen cages so far, however, I was very successful in keeping my first chameleon that was also my first reptile and she lived to a healthy age before passing away.

Based on the temperatures you provided, it seems more like it would be a matter of maintaining humidity rather than temperature gradient.

 

[Syreptyon]

Hi Jozef! I live in Minnesota, too - go figure. I've kept a veiled (past) as well as a panther (present) here and boy can it be annoying in the winter sometimes. I keep my juvenile panther in a 24" x 24" x 48" screen enclosure (which also housed my late veiled for his whole life) I had custom built for me. Most people will say screen is the best way to go and I absolutely agree. There are exceptions to this rule, but it is highly recommended to stick to this before you gain some experience and can experiment a little.

Sounds like you already know this, but you can definitely use the extra large reptibreeze: https://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Med-Rept...F8&qid=1513799813&sr=8-2&keywords=reptibreeze In my experience, I rarely see people use bigger dimensions for panthers, with the major exception of free ranges. Just make sure you have a bunch of live plants and maybe a humidifier or two. I use a ficus, schefflera, dracaena, bromeliad, and two orchids in my enclosure, along with a humidifier and a fogger (which I think is more for visual effect than utility tbh). Depending where you are in MN, I HIGHLY recommend plant shopping at Gerten's!! It's amazing. Home Depot/Lowe's/Menard's are all good options too. Best of luck!

 

[CJ's Exotics]

As previously stated, glass (terrariums) or screen TOTALLY depends on environmental conditions. You have to understand the gray, not just the black and white, for this kind of stuff. Glass is only bad if there is not proper ventilation, like a 10 gallon AQUARIUM. Proper ventilation for glass enclosures are like exo terras, which are TERRARIUMS.

 

[kinyonga]

Glass is not good IMHO if you live in a hot humid evvironment without air-conditioning. Where do you live?

I have used aquariums back in the good old days before the wheel was invented...oops, meant before good chameleon cages were invented...but you really need to know what you're doing concerning ventilation and drainage/stagnant water so I don't recommend it to newbies. I never had a chameleon develop a respiratory infection fom being in a glass cage because I made sure I did things "right".