Do Chameleons really need absolute darkness to sleep?

[Ocelot357]

I have my cham in our laundry room, theres a light that some times gets left on all night but its not a strong light and doesn't shine directly on the chams cage.He still has some darkness but not total darkness, will this still be ok?.

 

[ajacobson]

That light could keep him up, they need darkness to sleep...

 

[justjumpit621]

Depends on the chameleon really. My chameleon Leopold will sleep through anything. I was even doing work on his cage ( putting on a lock) and he still slept soundly through all the light and shaking. But most chameleons are very sensitive to light and movement at night, leo is just unusual .

 

[jamncristian]

just cover the top of his cage with a blanket

but then again in the wild there is moonlight

 

[MATT2504]

This is quite an interesting one for me aswell, as iam in the design phase at the minute, i intend to keep mine in the living room which has the light on when the viv's goes out! Could i put a sheet over the cage to reduce the light intrusion or would this be a big no no due to humidity and heat issues?

 

[mc9423]

I use my laptop (on brightest level) and my stereo has LED rings around the CD holders. But my guy sleeps just fine.

 

[Tputtwhatwhat]

My cage catches some light from the tv and also the kitchen light at times. I'm always worried about the light affecting his sleep.... But every time I check on him, he's still sleeping.

 

[tigermaniac22311]

Mine is vvery sensitive to light. If I turn on the light to the guest room to get something off the printer or get a book her eyes open almost immediately. I suggest trying to turn the light off as much as possible.

 

[pssh]

I think it just depends. My veiled will sleep through anything and will fall asleep with a dim house light, but my panther wakes up when the dim light goes on and won't fall asleep with it on.

 

[moody232002]

i think i was obsessed with making it "dark at night" when i first got mista.i brought black out material to cover his cage.one night i went to put him to bed and he was sound asleep with lights,television and computers blazing.So now i wait until he is either asleep or in his bed place before i cover him up.like the others have said i think it just depends on the cham

 

[xanthoman]

darkness, darkness

most chams are fairly sound sleepers, and i do believe they should have a reasonably dark room during sleeping hrs, but i dont think that is near as important as not being disturbed. i think its far more important to have relative peacefullness during their sleep hrs. things that can wake them up like excessive foot traffic, dogs, anything that might bump the cage etc . jmo

 

[CAMerchant]

I think it does depend on the chameleon. Our male veiled chameleon will sleep through most anything. We can doing something in his cage and he wont wake up once. I would just leave it on and check on him a few times in the night to see if it bothers him, other wise you will never know.

 

[sandrachameleon]

This is quite an interesting one for me aswell, as iam in the design phase at the minute, i intend to keep mine in the living room which has the light on when the viv's goes out! Could i put a sheet over the cage to reduce the light intrusion or would this be a big no no due to humidity and heat issues?

Yes, you can cover the cage (maybe leave the back or one side uncovered so air circulates) to reduce the amount of light he is subjected to. They prefer darkness. Most of mine will wake up if a red bulb some distance away is turned on, one will sleep during full lights ablazing and camera flashes.

 

[Elizadolots]

Mine are now in a room where someone (my daughter or me) is usually online and watching TV for hours... so, I drape towels over the side that faces the TV and the front (they are in a corner). I know it's hard to say "they are happy" because they don't wag their tails and smile when they are happy, but they now consistently "get into position" 20 or 30 minutes before "bedtime" and they are giving me every sign that this is good--meaning: they are both drinking and eating regularly, moving about the cages during the day, pooping regularly and with visually good poop.

Besides, if your family is anything like mine, they will find the idea of you "putting the chameleons to bed" so funny it will entertain them daily...my husband wants me to make them little PJs and night hats....