Does any1 have good close up pics of their cages?

[pfal26]

I would like to see the inside of some experienced cham owners to get an idea of what my first cage should look like as i want my cham to be happy. Close up pics would be great and links of where to get stuff for them and the cage itself or stores in the boston and greater boston area.

also i read some1s post asking would a 3 month old cham be lost in a large cage (i dont remember the demensions), b/c i thought of getting a cage size for adults so i would not need to change the cage.

Also wat is suggested of where to put ur cham while cleaning the cage. I kno my gecko likes a clear place as he freaks out wen he cant see as far as he can

 

[westcoastchameleons]

Use a lot of foliage, create many obsticels for your chameleon, this will help improve his climbing.

 

[pfal26]

thanks west coast, does ne1 have ne particular plants that r cool and easthetic to the eye, that will be good for the cham that i will get of course. also does ne1 have ne good tips on setting up cages, wat to use wat not, etc... cuz i really want a cham and 1 that will live long i read about dripping systems. i shall find one, i heard about misters but ive always misted reptiles w/ a spray bottle but from wat i hear of misters is like they mist by themselves on a timer. ive read on a lot of sites that their chams seem not to like being misted, they just like mist on plants and the the dripping system but wat i also read is temperature of the water. wat temp. do chams like their water. Also is it best to use distilled water, thats wat i used for my tree frogs, i still have some distilled water its room temp.

 

[Jordan]

When I got my first one I got a little package deal with cage, lights, vines, and some fake follage. It was a baby male veiled(2.5 to 3 months old). The cage was 20"Wx12"Dx24"H. This seem to work good for a couple of months then I just went into a full size cage (he grew fast). I just ran a lot of side to side vines with a couple that ran down. I was using the fake follage that I just drapped across some of the side to side vines. One was set up for a dripper and the rest I just put in what ever way looked cool. I set his basking branch to where he could not get directly under the light and burn his casque. Put newspaper on the bottom for easy of cleaning. I did not really have that much knowledge at the time of humidity and the effects real plants could have on it but he is still ok. A big misting system would probaly be better for adults rather than youngsters. If you are like me and many other when you first get them you will be in there all the time checking on them so keeping the humidity up with sprayings shouldn't be a problem. I used a walmart garden mister rather then a hand pump and filled with the hottest water I could get in there. Good luck with what ever species you get they are all cool in there own way.

 

[pfal26]

thanks jordan. I am confident w/ setting my cage up after i get some tips, i'd rather pick out my own plants etc (cuz when i look in the cage u kno id like to see something i like better than may recieve in a package deal) than a package deal cuz i am confident i can make a happy home. The only thing i need help with is measuring and regulating the humidity and temp for night and day so i can get it at a point where timers etc.. do it all, or is this not possible where u can set up a humidifier and heat lamp, and get it to achieve the same measures? Once i pick out a species ill let u guys kno, cuz maybe they r lamps or bulbs that work better for certain temps that r required for each cham.

Also check my post out in enclosures that is titled the same as this, skip down some on the first post on it by me cuz ive added a bunch of stuff, thanks guys


oh yah wat is "casque" is that their skin?

 

[pfal26]

uggg they deleted the better 1 here and moved the 1 from general discussion.

I wanted to kno if a big cage could be bad for a baby cham. Also wat r the best and easiest real plants to use and should u ever use fake plants.

Also should ur branches be real wood or be fake branches.

Wat is the best, and easiest to clean and cleaning the cage, stuff to put at the bottom of the cage.

Also wat r all the spots necessary for a cham and how to make them distinctively seperate from each other.

also was wondering wat is the best way to give them water, and how to maintain the right humidity level and air temp in the cage and if there r certain thing to measure the levels of humidity and temp and if there is a way where u can put the light bulb or mister on a timer to make it so ur cage is always at the right level w/o having to check it all of the time.

Also, u just need 1 lamp? and make it by the basking branch.

As i am still learning about chams, i saw a cage with vines drapping down and stuff, do the chams like vines, do the climb on em?

 

[Frank Castle]

uggg they deleted the better 1 here and moved the 1 from general discussion.

I wanted to kno if a big cage could be bad for a baby cham. Also wat r the best and easiest real plants to use and should u ever use fake plants.

Yes, You should have a smaller cage for a baby cham. 24wx12dx24h should start you off good with a 3 month old.

Check out the plant section on the home page, it will give you an Idea of what plants to use.

Also should ur branches be real wood or be fake branches..

They can be one or the other or both. If you use real branches off of trees around you house, make sure you soak them in Bleach water, and let them Dry to make sure there are now bugs, parasites, or anything else you dont want in your cage on them.

Wat is the best, and easiest to clean and cleaning the cage, stuff to put at the bottom of the cage.

Paper towls or newspaper

Also wat r all the spots necessary for a cham and how to make them distinctively seperate from each other.

Dont know what you are asking?

also was wondering wat is the best way to give them water, and how to maintain the right humidity level and air temp in the cage and if there r certain thing to measure the levels of humidity and temp and if there is a way where u can put the light bulb or mister on a timer to make it so ur cage is always at the right level w/o having to check it all of the time.

Best way to water is Misting, either with a spray bottle, a pump up garden sprayer, or automated mist syste. They should be misted at least 30 mins every day, broken up into 2 15min sesions or 3 10 min sesions. They often need this time to recognize the water, and hydrate. Drippers are also used to help hydrate Chams but should not be used solely, They need misting. With Misting you should be able to keep the Humidity up where it should be. Live plants also help with the humidity levels.

There are Digital, and analog Thermomiters and Humidity Gauges. I recomend getting a digital, you can pick it up at Radio-Shack

Light bulbs can be put on timers and usually a 12 hour on/off cycle is recomended. Automated Misting systems can also be put on a timer. As far as the heat in the cage you would have to put it on a thermostat to regulate the heat with the weather around us. Nothing is set it and leave it. You have to check and adjust according to changes.

Also, u just need 1 lamp? and make it by the basking branch/

You need 2 Bulbs, a regular, maybe 60 watt basking bulb, and a UVB Floresent bulb. You need to have the perches set up in which the Cham can absorb Heat or UVB seperatly or Both at the same time.

Yes Chameleons like vines, and trees, and branches. They are aborial (Live in trees) You can go with fake vines, but it is recomended that you have at least one live plant in the cage. A good viny live plant is Pothos.

Frank

 

[pfal26]

thanks for ur imput frank,

wat i meant by spots is do they need a place to hide in case of they dont want to be seen by ppl or get stressed out for a reason and other spots of ne sort like a designated spot where the dripper would be for drinking, i realize mist must be the whole cage. wat is the recommended 12/12 hrs? like 7 am - 6 pm on and after that off till back to 7 am or somehting? and i am pretty inexperienced with humidfiying and heating cages, wat is exactly a thermostat, and wat does it do, measure temps like a thermometer... ?

 

[Frank Castle]

thanks for ur imput frank,

wat i meant by spots is do they need a place to hide in case of they dont want to be seen by ppl or get stressed out for a reason and other spots of ne sort like a designated spot where the dripper would be for drinking, i realize mist must be the whole cage.

They need a dense enough area of foliage that yes they can hide, as said in my last post, they need Heat Basking, UVB basking (Where they can sit under each light individually) or both. They should have access to the leaves of the plants that the mist/water drops will sit on so they can drink it.

wat is the recommended 12/12 hrs? like 7 am - 6 pm on and after that off till back to 7 am or somehting?

12 hours on would be 7:00am to 7:00pm. Off would be 7:00pm to 7:00 am. I personally do 13 hours on, 11 hours off. 8am to 9pm ON- 9:00pm to 8am OFF.

and i am pretty inexperienced with humidfiying and heating cages, wat is exactly a thermostat, and wat does it do, measure temps like a thermometer... ?

A thermostat is an electronic device that you would plug your heat lamp into. It then measures the temperature in the cage and turns on or off you light to keep the heat level you want. You still have to moniter these to make sure they are working corectly and make sure you are not over heating or under heating the cage. Chams arnt easy, they take a lot of work and time.

Frank

 

[Jason]

Use a lot of foliage, create many obsticels for your chameleon, this will help improve his climbing.

Huh? Improve their climbing? I can't say that I've ever had a healthy chameleon that had any difficulty climbing or one that needed any improvement in that area. if you have a chameleon that is having difficulty climbing I'd go for a vet visit instead of creating obstacles.

 

[pfal26]

thanks, so the thermostat will supply electricity to turn on the lamp? and it reads wat the temp is at and from the sounds of it there is a way to lower or higher the temp ur lamp + bulb r producing? and always check with a thermometer under the lamp to see if the thermostat works. i c. do they make ne combined basking/UVB bulbs?

 

[Frank Castle]

thanks, so the thermostat will supply electricity to turn on the lamp? and it reads wat the temp is at and from the sounds of it there is a way to lower or higher the temp ur lamp + bulb r producing? and always check with a thermometer under the lamp to see if the thermostat works. i c. do they make ne combined basking/UVB bulbs?

What you would do is set up a timer, plug your thermostat into the timer, plug you lamp into the thermostat. Run the sensor for the thermostat in the cage. Set the heat for the thermostat. The thermostat will heat when needed and turn off the bulb when not needed.

Murcury Vapor Bulbs are both UV and heat but are not recomended. If you hooked a thermostat to one of these bulbs you would not get the UVB when the thermostat turned off the heat. So it is better to go with a UVB set up and a heat lamp set up.

Frank

 

[pfal26]

thanks frank,

so i can find thermostats i radioshack i believe u said?

i appreciate all ur guys help, but does ne1 actually have ne pics of cages of their own?

 

[Frank Castle]

If and when I get a thermostat this is what I would get and recomend.

http://www.bigappleherp.com/Reptile_Supplies/Product/Herp_Power_Proportional_Thermostats_921100.html

The Radio Shack was for the "Digital Thermometer and Humidity Gauge"

Frank

 

[pfal26]

so the digital one is not recommended? is the one on the link u provided better?

 

[pfal26]

where does every1 get their branches and plants?

 

[pfal26]

if i were to get this, wat could i add to it to make my cage good, and how long would this size cage last if i got a baby?

 

[Jordan]

If you got one at about 3 months of age you would need three cages. One for the juvenille small sized for monitering eating, fecal matter, and it is just easier to stabilize the enviroment for optimal conditions (ensuring them a great start). Depending on money you may just go straight in to a full size cage. Just keep in mind these guys get more crafty and agile as they get older so don't make it to complex for them or you. Meaning don't make such a pain for them to get around, find food or struggle to get up to bask. Once they get to a year old they are comparable to monkeys and can navigate almost any terrain. Just remember to give them alot of thick branches so their feet do not hurt. Imagine being your size and having to hang to something as round as bamboo that would hurt after awhile.

 

[zinc99]

I just finished my new cage. Take a look.