Critique me please!

Bcloughen

Member
Hello all,

I posted a few months back that I was building a custom cage from a bird cage I found on Wayfair. Just wanted to show it off and get some critiques as my first Panther is coming next Tuesday from Kammerflage and I want to make sure I got this all down correctly.


Chameleon Info:
  • Your Chameleon - 3.5 month old Panther Chameleon.
  • Feeding - I ordered 1/4 inch and 1/2 inch crickets cause I'm not sure how big he'll be when he gets here. Plan on feeding 12-15 a day for first few months as suggested.
  • Supplements - Repashy Calcium Plus every feeding. Gutload crickets with bee pollen, veggies and Repashy bug burger.
  • Watering - Mistking 4 sessions a day (1.5 min at 8am, 5 min at 11am), 1.5 at 2pm, 1.5 at 5pm)

Cage Info:
  • Cage Type - 27"x23"x64" converted birdcage. Breeder approved the size. Polyurethaned the entire cage 2 months ago gave it plenty of time to air out. Used great stuff pond foam on some rough edges and to reinforce the screen that I redid (came with sharp chicken wire that I replaced with window screens).
  • Lighting - Zoo med 2' vivarium hood with T5HO 5% UVB bulb, brand new. 65W Incadescent bulb, but I think I'm gonna go to 75w, I have the dimming fixture if need be I can just keep it dimmed to achieve the right temp.
  • Temperature - Basking (86-90F), ambient (70-72F)
  • Humidity - 50-75% during the day, 75-85% at night with a fogger only used at night.
  • Plants - Umbrella plant, 4 Golden Pothos and tons of real sterilized oak branches, I also used 2 vines I bought off Amazon.
  • Placement - In the corner of my living room
  • Location - Long Island New York
The purple light are LED grow lights I have for the plants. Just worried about the setup cause I'm new to all of this, but I followed the breeder and this forum very closely to build this.
 

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Congrats on the new baby cham arriving soon! The Kammerflage chameleons are really nice.

That's a pretty toasty basking temp for a baby. I'd aim for something closer to the low 80s.

What's your reasoning for so many misting sessions? Usually 2-3 is recommended.
 
Thanks!!!! So excited!!! I just went with the recommendation from Kammerflage regarding the temperature, but It's on a dimmer so I can always adjust it. I just assumed cause the cage was so tall that this was accurate. In regards to the misting, the humidity was an issue in the beginning now that I have more plants and I put plastic on some of the sides to keep in the humidity it doesnt seem to be an issue anymore. I was told that the misting schedule was spot on from the breeder. Again im new, read a shit ton, tons of conflicting information out there lol.
 
Colored lights are not recommended for use with chameleons (which are color sensitive), so I would personally switch to white 6500K plant lights. I think your misting schedule is perfectly fine - above average even!
 
The Kammer's definitely know what they are doing. Nothing you're doing is catastrophic by any means. I was being really picky. Those basking temps are closer to what you'd see for an adult vs. a baby.

Ahh that's why I asked about misting because that is sometimes the case and I wanted to be mindful that what misting schedule works for me, may not for another keeper. I'd just make sure you give the enclosure time to dry out between sessions. If it stays damp, you run the risk of mold/bacteria growing which can be problematic down the road.
 
Colored lights are not recommended for use with chameleons (which are color sensitive), so I would personally switch to white 6500K plant lights. I think your misting schedule is perfectly fine - above average even!
Yea, I think im going to ditch them once the dude arrives next week, I read conflicting information about those lights as well, they worked really well though but I also dont want a purple cage lol.

The Kammer's definitely know what they are doing. Nothing you're doing is catastrophic by any means. I was being really picky. Those basking temps are closer to what you'd see for an adult vs. a baby.

Ahh that's why I asked about misting because that is sometimes the case and I wanted to be mindful that what misting schedule works for me, may not for another keeper. I'd just make sure you give the enclosure time to dry out between sessions. If it stays damp, you run the risk of mold/bacteria growing which can be problematic down the road.

No by all means, im looking for any and all advice I can get. I know I am going to be a nervous wreck the first few weeks with him hahaha.

Thank you all!!

-Brian
 
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