Cage okay?

[gfgabriel]

Getting a chameleon soon and would just like to know if this is an ok set up
Cage is 2 feet tall 2 feet wide. Basking is at 85 and rest is around 72

 

[xcrystalx]

looks good to me for a baby.maybe add another plant tho thats bushy.it wont be long tho till your cham will need a bigger home
just wondered do you have drainage?? you dont want water gathering on the bottom.

 

[kplatvoet]

It looks really good - you didn't say what kind of chameleon your getting though so I can't say anything about temps- I would also think about more hiding places- I found that in my case giving lots of places to hid makes a new baby settle in better - as they fell secure faster - With my newest I tried to make my cage so I could wipe without much disturbance and lots more hides and she does seem to be setting in faster - different species so it might not have anything to do with it but I think it helped.

 

[Swayne8998]

I would add another live plant in the middle like maybe a schefflera. I would also bring the basking light closer and tilt it so it is focused only in the back right corner, creating only one little area of high heat. Also, I can't tell from the pics, but make sure you have a quality misting system spraying his cage often. How old is this little guy gonna be?

 

[xcrystalx]

forgot to ask what cham are you getting and how old will it be as the temps will depend on the type of cham you get.

 

[kplatvoet]

I don't think I personally would go with another live plant -the ones you have are either going to fill in nicely or die, mine die. and the way you have it it's easy to clean the bottom-and dump any water in the dishes (I can't tell from the pictures but do you have larger rocks on top of your plants so your little guy will not get dirt with his crickets?) I would go with a couple of fake ones just for cover so that he can check you out but still feel like he's hidden. If your good at keeping plants alive it's a different story-

 

[gfgabriel]

Thank you so he's gonna be a blue bar panther almost 5 months old. No drainage system I'm working on that but haven't found out how to make one. I'm using a spray bottle also for misting. The basking spot lamp is as close as I can have it, if it gets any closer the temp goes over 90. Would adding one more ficus under the pothos be enough? Also when misting how can I stop the water from leaving the enclosure through the screen and getting on the floor and walls? Is it a big deal or will it not do any water damage since it's just mist? When cleaning? Do I have to take everything out and set it all back up?

 

[gfgabriel]

Nothing is covering the soil. Is it really necessary to cover it with rocks will ingesting soil be bad? I read that they will eat the cricket and spit out any soil/substrate.

 

[Swayne8998]

If he is going to be 5 months, I would recommend getting a bigger cage because in a couple months he will definitely need it anyways. You can create a simple drainage system by removing the bottom (leaving only the screen) of the enclosure and putting a removable water tray underneath, which LLL Reptile sells on their website. As far as misting, if you can mist four or five times a day by hand for long periods of time that would work great, but otherwise I would suggest getting an automatic mister such as a MistKing. As for lighting, it seems you do not have a problem with temperature differential, but if that comes to be one, I would go lower wattage and focus the basking light in one little corner. I always believe adding more plants is always a good thing, that is mentioned earlier if you can keep them healthy. Ficus are great options as the fill out to be pretty big plants along with schefflera. I'm not quite sure how to answer your misting question, Usually I have never had a problem with mist/water escaping the cage. You might just want to focus the nozzle more straight so water does not spray all over the place. And yes, you should probably remove everything on the bottom of the enclosure when cleaning and wipe out any feces/sheds/anything else. You should probably thoroughly clean your enclosure once every month or two.

 

[symphonica]

Definitely will need a larger cage for a panther. I have my guys in a 24/7 free-range situation, which means that the mist seems to always be getting all over my walls. I've never had a problem, since there's plenty of airflow and dries quickly. It may become a problem with it's in a stagnant, moist part of the house. It will bubble the plaster of the wall (I only know because the splashing caused by the air pump in my 180gal aquarium did so to my wall).

You could put up a piece of acrylic on the side of the cage that the water is escaping from. They sell acrylic sheets at Home Depot and they won't break the bank.