Getting a chameleon

[wingslinger]

hey everyone, I'm going to start looking at supplies to get a chameleon. I've been around reptiles and am not a stranger to chameleon husbandry. My girlfriend and I moved into an apartment and we are having our first kiddo so space is obviously limited and a chameleon is the only lizard my girlfriend "likes" haha! I just want to know the best way to obtain supplies and such. I can buy new no problem but if i can save some dollars obviously thats the route to take. The classifieds doesn't seem to have much going on. I know a lot of people may pass it off as I shouldn't bother if I'm worried about the money but I'm not worried just trying to make sure i can save where possible. I know i need a screen cage, I know I need heat and UVB, I know i need humidity, and I know chameleons drink off leaves. If anyone has stuff they are willing to part with or can point me in the right directions or have good ideas please share! I'm in no hurry because I want to get it done right. Thanks!

 

[SaintJimmy]

If you want to get a baby - it's going to be more expensive in the long run!

If you want to get an adult, but be cheap at the same time, I recommend a Jackson's. People sell their adult males for around 50-65$ which is pretty nice.

I would go with this:

-A bird cage that is at least 24" wide, 24" deep, and 30-48" tall. Why a bird cage? https://www.chameleonforums.com/couple-ideas-please-read-121743/

-If you don't want to get a bird cage, you're going to have to make some sort of stand and drainage system for the water you're going to be using. Here are examples https://www.chameleonforums.com/drainage-systems-cages-get-creative-102038/

-Mistkings or Aquazamp misting systems are the best when it comes to quality, bang for your buck, customer service, and reputation.

-If you choose not to house yours in a bird cage, I would recommend using my thread (https://www.chameleonforums.com/diy-sticks-tutorial-125816/) as a guide to gathering and making sticks for your screen cage.

------------

I am being 100% serious about the bird cages. Overall, here are the advantages

- Already comes with a plastic pan underneath. You can drill holes into this, make it into a drainage pan. It's also easy to place plants and things upon these plastic bottoms

- paint-coated and widely spaced bars means that if your chameleon wants to roam around its cage, its toes won't get stuck in the nasty screen that it normally would. It's safer for the cham's feet.

- Bird cages can be equipped with wheels. enough said

- Can easily place lights upon a bird cage

- Can attach dowels and ladders (normally for birds) to the cage. This removes the hassle of finding your own branches and cleaning them

- Don't have to drill through and ruin your screen cage when you try to install a misting system

- More air flow for the cham

- It is very easy to buy a cheap-o shower curtain to put around 3 sides of the cage, this way less mist gets all over your stuff

- When I made my chameleon cage stand (screen cage) for drainage, the thing took over 200$ worth of materials and many hours of time to get it looking like a piece of furniture. It takes up a lot of space and is bulky. It sure does look nice, but it cost a lot, and takes up room! A bird cage looks a little shabbier, but is structurally sound, safer for the cham, and comes with a drainage system already, all you have to do is drill a hole and put in a plastic drain, stick a bucket underneath...

Etc

CONS:

- looks uglier than custom built screen cages

 

[zsazsa85]

Emily, I just checked your bird cage thread, and I find it a wonderful idea!
But aren't those bars slippery for them?

 

[wingslinger]

The bird cage is a great idea, but I really think I'm gonna stick with a screen cage. I just like it haha. And I'm planning on a ambilobe panther. I'm not too worried on the cost of animal because I do want a quality one. And I kinda have a drainage plan already so that shouldn't be bad.

 

[climbng69]

I'm still new but for our set up we have a screen cage set up. Than put the cage on a slope to the front than have paper towels that pull the left over moisture into a rubbermaid bin from walmart.

 

[Duhjoker]

Im a newb to chameleons as well but i did get my set up pretty cheap. I used ebay you can get the same supplies you buy elsewhere for 20-50% cheaper. I started with a juvenile setup for my 6 month old jacksons female. List is as follows.

Reptibreeze NT-10 16X16X24-------49.99 free ship
UVB compact bulb-------------------12.99 free ship
UVA 40 watt blue bulb----------------7.99 free ship
Reptibreeze dual light fixture--------27.99 free ship
Pressure sprayer for misting ---------6.99 home depot
Dowels for climbing-------------------5.00 home depot
Plastic vines x7------------------------1.00 a piece dollartree

Total -----------------------------------117.95

As you can see i got off pretty cheap. But i also had an old 20 gal aquarium that i use to house my feeders and i actually had a couple fixtures but i added the price for you any way. Some times you can get lucky on a cheap aquarium usually $1 a gallon depending on the dealer. Be sure to read the care sheets thoroughly before making your cham purchase and make sure you have the time. If you go with an auto mister like the Mist King you'll be good but if using a hand activated mister you will have to mist at least once an hour or more depending on the cham. Your gonna be pumping lots of water into your cage period so you need good drainage. I set my cage up by drilling a couple hundred 1/8" holes in the pvc sheet my cage came with for a cage floor. From there i just took a piece of plywood (the same size as the bottom of my cage ) then screwed three wood strips around the sides and top and set my cage on top. With that you just place a pan under the cage and it emptys easily. Remember no substrate!!!!

I hope this helps. And welcome to the wonderful world of cham keeping and to the site.

 

[wingslinger]

Im a newb to chameleons as well but i did get my set up pretty cheap. I used ebay you can get the same supplies you buy elsewhere for 20-50% cheaper. I started with a juvenile setup for my 6 month old jacksons female. List is as follows.

Reptibreeze NT-10 16X16X24-------49.99 free ship
UVB compact bulb-------------------12.99 free ship
UVA 40 watt blue bulb----------------7.99 free ship
Reptibreeze dual light fixture--------27.99 free ship
Pressure sprayer for misting ---------6.99 home depot
Dowels for climbing-------------------5.00 home depot
Plastic vines x7------------------------1.00 a piece dollartree

Total -----------------------------------117.95

As you can see i got off pretty cheap. But i also had an old 20 gal aquarium that i use to house my feeders and i actually had a couple fixtures but i added the price for you any way. Some times you can get lucky on a cheap aquarium usually $1 a gallon depending on the dealer. Be sure to read the care sheets thoroughly before making your cham purchase and make sure you have the time. If you go with an auto mister like the Mist King you'll be good but if using a hand activated mister you will have to mist at least once an hour or more depending on the cham. Your gonna be pumping lots of water into your cage period so you need good drainage. I set my cage up by drilling a couple hundred 1/8" holes in the pvc sheet my cage came with for a cage floor. From there i just took a piece of plywood (the same size as the bottom of my cage ) then screwed three wood strips around the sides and top and set my cage on top. With that you just place a pan under the cage and it emptys easily. Remember no substrate!!!!

I hope this helps. And welcome to the wonderful world of cham keeping and to the site.

Thanks man! Yeah, I'm planning on going with a mist king or aqua zamp. I used to have one so I'm familiar with it. My drainage plan is to have a sink installed in a 1 door cabinet that fits the cage and i will drill small holes through the cage bottom so the water can go straight through and collect in a bucket under the cabinet. haha I've already watched numerous videos for ambilobe chameleons and read quite a bit. I plan on having everything ready and together and tested for proper temps and humidity before any purchase. I'm even hoping maybe to adopt an older chameleon if the opportunity presents itself! I haven't decided how I'm going to do feeders. I used to have a roach colony but I'm not sure if i want a colony or just buy a large amount at a time and feed them off. Because i can buy small amounts of various feeders to make sure its always getting switched up but those roaches do really good i feel.

 

[Sanababit]

I wouldn't use a bird cage for the sole reason that my feeders would escape, i just rather put some worms, crickets, roaches, flies inside a screen cage which makes it almost imposible to escape, and i say almost because i have found one of two feeeders roaming around the house, how did they get out, i dont know, lol

Sana

 

[wingslinger]

sana thats a good point. Im not putting down the bird cage idea because it really is an awesome idea and i think you could minimize the bugs roaming but I just decided to stick to the screen cage. And i think i am going to use a uvb/uva all in one bulb. Ive had good experiences with them before with other reptiles....Has anyone else used them? good or bad?