Hi!! I have a question about lights

[djangothejackson]

Hey there! I just got my baby, Django, about three weeks ago. So far everything is good, had a little scare right when i got him but its okay now. Im curious about my light set up though, i have a 5.0 uvb bulb and blue daylight bulb directly on the top screen. But ive seen people say it shouldn't be directly on top because it could possibly burn eyes? If thats the case, how can i prop up my lights?? Attached my current set up and my handsome boy. Thanks in advance!!

 

[MissSkittles]

Hi and welcome. I’m very glad that you’re here. Generally we advise to avoid putting lights on top of the screen for young chameleons who often walk along the top and can easily burn their bellies. I’m really not experienced at all with Jackson’s, but from the size of his horns I’ll guess he’s an adult or close to it. He still may be small or light enough to walk along the screen top though, so if he does you’ll want to raise your basking lights a few inches.
But now let’s talk about your uvb. I’m afraid the coil screw in uvb bulbs aren’t able to provide adequate levels any farther away than 2-3” and in a very narrow area. That is why the standard for a healthy chameleon is a linear T5 HO with either a ReptiSun 5.0 or Arcadia 6% uvb bulb. Then the distance between your uvb and basking area needs to be about 8-9” for ideal uvb levels.
I see some other things that need or can be improved upon for your adorable cham. If you’d like further guidance or advice, just ask and I can tag one of the experienced Jackson’s keepers to help you out.

 

[djangothejackson]

Hi and welcome. I’m very glad that you’re here. Generally we advise to avoid putting lights on top of the screen for young chameleons who often walk along the top and can easily burn their bellies. I’m really not experienced at all with Jackson’s, but from the size of his horns I’ll guess he’s an adult or close to it. He still may be small or light enough to walk along the screen top though, so if he does you’ll want to raise your basking lights a few inches.
But now let’s talk about your uvb. I’m afraid the coil screw in uvb bulbs aren’t able to provide adequate levels any farther away than 2-3” and in a very narrow area. That is why the standard for a healthy chameleon is a linear T5 HO with either a ReptiSun 5.0 or Arcadia 6% uvb bulb. Then the distance between your uvb and basking area needs to be about 8-9” for ideal uvb levels.
I see some other things that need or can be improved upon for your adorable cham. If you’d like further guidance or advice, just ask and I can tag one of the experienced Jackson’s keepers to help you out.

Thank you for replying so quick! He doesn't walk on the screen, at least not that I've seen, I've never caught him hanging from the top or sides. He usually sticks to the his sticks and vines. Okay I will look into those lights. Yes id love more advice, I want to have a perfect home for him. im struggling with my water system and think I need another plant.

 

[MissSkittles]

How are you struggling with your water system? Do you mean misting, drainage, other?
Although afaik Jackson’s don’t nibble on their plants like veileds, it’s always best to have lots of safe live plants for them to hide in, sleep in, drink from, get a pocket of humidity and just for them to live more naturally. There’s quite a few great safe plants and this is where to find that info. https://chameleonacademy.com/plants/ That site is also a fantastic resource to learn not just the standards of husbandry, but why we do things the way we do. But, if you want some truly personal guidance, this is the place. From your pics I can see that your little beauty will be needing a much larger enclosure. 2x2x4’ is the minimum size for adult chameleons and they use every last inch that we give them. It looks like you have possibly bought the chameleon kit…yes? The green reptile carpet tends to just be a way to grow lots of bacteria, so it’s advised to not use it.While it may not look as pretty, a bare floor is best and most hygienic. Filling it up with lots of plants will hide the plainness.
Now I do have to ask what supplements you’ve been using and how often for each one. Jackson’s are very sensitive to multivitamins and D3, so it’s important to get the right regimen.
If you want a full review of all of your husbandry, just ask.

 

[djangothejackson]

How are you struggling with your water system? Do you mean misting, drainage, other?
Although afaik Jackson’s don’t nibble on their plants like veileds, it’s always best to have lots of safe live plants for them to hide in, sleep in, drink from, get a pocket of humidity and just for them to live more naturally. There’s quite a few great safe plants and this is where to find that info. https://chameleonacademy.com/plants/ That site is also a fantastic resource to learn not just the standards of husbandry, but why we do things the way we do. But, if you want some truly personal guidance, this is the place. From your pics I can see that your little beauty will be needing a much larger enclosure. 2x2x4’ is the minimum size for adult chameleons and they use every last inch that we give them. It looks like you have possibly bought the chameleon kit…yes? The green reptile carpet tends to just be a way to grow lots of bacteria, so it’s advised to not use it.While it may not look as pretty, a bare floor is best and most hygienic. Filling it up with lots of plants will hide the plainness.
Now I do have to ask what supplements you’ve been using and how often for each one. Jackson’s are very sensitive to multivitamins and D3, so it’s important to get the right regimen.
If you want a full review of all of your husbandry, just ask.

Yes I bought the chameleon kit but I bought extras besides what was in it. I know the carpet is bad, I actually added that today because when I got home the bottom of the tank was covered with water and it was spilling onto the floor. So it was added just to help with this current issue of mine. I need to change my scheffleras pot, there's a hole in the current one which is why that happened. I have two calciums, one with d3 one without. I dont have a multivitamin or vitamin a for him yet, still looking into that. What I've been doing is calc. without d3 2x a week, with d3 once a month and I plan on getting a multivitamin added to the routine. In his tank I have one medium schefflera plant, the black vine, the brown vine, a fake plant on the side, sticks I gathered and cleaned for him and moss connecting everything to make it sturdy. Im open to any advice or review to help me make his home better.

 

[MissSkittles]

Your plant needs the holes in the bottom to drain. If it can’t drain, the roots will rot. Like most things, setting up a drainage system is only limited by your imagination and resources. Since you’ll be needing to upgrade to a larger enclosure, I wouldn’t invest much into a system for this smaller enclosure. Probably the easiest is to try to find a plastic bin to set the enclosure in (elevated on something so it doesn’t sit in water). ZooMed has a substrate tray. You could get the one for the XL enclosure and sit your smaller enclosure in it. Then you’ll have the tray to use in the big enclosure when you get it. What I did with my XL sized enclosures, I got the substrate tray and the ZooMed stand. Drilled some holes at the center of the tray with a bucket below to catch drainage. To help guide the water towards the holes, I placed a thick sink mat thing over the holes and then a heavy plant on top. It worked great.
For a good multivitamin, I like and use Reptivite as it contains preformed vitamin A for healthy eyes. It comes both with and without D3, so careful. I believe that too would be a once monthly use. @Sonny13 @Lindasjackson are just the two Jackson’s keepers that come to mind right now that can help guide you.

 

[Lindasjackson]

Hi there and welcome! Sorry I’m late to the party! I have a male Jackson’s as well. I’m not sure where to start with advice since missskittles has given you some good info already. As for supplements, Jackson’s are very sensitive to them and so we do it a little differently than for other species of chameleons. I use plain calcium, no D3, at every feeding and the brand I use is Reptical without D3. Then once a month I use Reptivite with D3. This has a preformed vitamine A in it as well as other vitamins and D3. It is very important that you get the correct uvb lighting right away as he needs this to be healthy. I use a 22 inch Arcadia 6% bulb and it came with the light fixture for about 60.00. You could also use Reptisun 5.0. Both of these are long linear bulbs. The screw in coiled uvb bulbs are absolutely useless and need to go in the trash can as missskittles explained. You also need a 24x24x48 inch cage So when you buy your uvb light make sure you get the 22 inch bulb with the 24 inch fixture since this is what you’re going to need when you get the larger cage. Now what I did for a drainage system was, I bought a washing machine drainage pan around 27x27 x4 inches. It had a drainage hole at the front of it. I bought a used end table from goodwill and put it in place then put a round bottle cap under each hind leg then I set the drainage pan on top. Next I purchased some round pvc fittings that were about 2 inches tall and placed 8 of them spaced apart into the drainage tray. Next I drilled about 5-6 holes in the drainage tray in a straight line across the front. Then I set the cage on top of the pvc fittings in the drainage tray. Then I added a bucket to catch the water beneath the holes in the tray and there you have it, a drainage system. When the bucket gets water in it, just empty it . Do you have a misting system and possibly a fogger for your guy? A fogger should only be used atnight when temps are below 67 degrees so you don’t create a warm humid environment where he could develop an upper respiratory infection. A misting system that goes off a half hour before lights out and a half hour before lights come on creates droplets of water on the leaves that he can drink. There’s loads more info but I’m not sure what you already know so just ask if you have any more questions. I’ll try to keep an eye out on this post. Just remember Jackson’s chameleons do not like to be handled. They are very shy creatures and prefer to just be appreciated for their beauty.

 

[Sonny13]

Hi and welcome, that´s one handsome boy!
I´m already to late for some good advice, you already received everything you need from @MissSkittles and @Lindasjackson Only thing I can say that sorry that they seduced you with this money trap of a chameleon kit and best would be to completely return it. And buy the above mentioned equipment. One thing what isn´t said yet, is that the blue day light bulb is also a no-go for chameleon, because their eyes are really sensitive and colored lights can cause irritation to their eyes. Best is just to use a white incandescence light. And big thumbs up for already supplying him some life plants