Hoehnelii Care

frankpayne32

frankpayne32

Avid Member
Hello everyone, let me introduce myself. My name is Frank Payne and I am a high school science teacher and a part-time (former full-time) senior herpetology keeper. Chameleons have always been my favorite herp and I have kept them personally and professionally for about fifteen years. I have succesfully kept and bred many of the more "common" species like calyptratus, pardalis, lateralis, oustaleti, jacksoni, brevicaudatus, and quadricornis.

Recently, I picked up a pair of WC T. hohenelii. These have always been a dream species of mine and I am thrilled to have them. But, since I have never kept them before and don't personally know anyone that has I wanted to ask some advice on here from people that have first hand experience successfully (long term) keeping this species. I have read everything I can on them. I own most if not all of the major chameleon books. But I'd still like to get the most important information of all: first hand experience!

Any first hand experiences with this species is greatly appreciated. I don't want to sound rude but any comments about what you've heard they are like or what your opinion is without actually having kept them successfully will not be helpful. I have done my research on them and have many years of general chameleon experience.

Right now I have my female in a standard screen cage that is very basic for most chameleons. In my reptile room the ambient temp is about 70 F and is about 75-80 towards the top of the enclosure. The night temperature is about 65.

My male is kept in a display style enclosure and this is what I would really like some expert opinions on. It is a glass hexagon cage with lots of plants and light. I also am using a ventilation van that sucks air out of the cage to increase air circulation without adding a draft. Also, a UV/heat bulb on one end increases the "chimney effect". There is also an automatic MistKing system that mist two times a day. I know most of you don't keep chameleons in aquaria but I have raised several species this way when they are smaller without problems at all. And since hoehnelii are rather small I think it can be done long term. But let me know if you have tried it and failed... The temperatures in the display more accurately represent their wild conditions (I think). The basking area is between 75-80. The ambient temperature during the day is approximately 65-70. The night temperature drops to 57-60. (All temps are Fahrenheit). While these temperatures are in line with what I've read I am nervous keeping him this cool because I am not used to doing so. And, he seems to stay pretty dark which worries me. Twice a day (after misting) the humidity is near 100%. It drops to about 50% in between. It is around 65% at night.

Here are some pictures of my display and the male hoehnelii:

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The glass does clear up pretty quickly with the ventilation fan so that makes me feel confident in the enclosure. Anyway, thanks for reading my very long post and please share your own experiences with this wonderful species!

Frank
 
Hey Frank,

I've been working with Trioceros hoehnelii for the last 10 years and in that time have successfully kept and bred both the Kenyan and Ugandan types. I've kept them a few different ways over the years so hopefully I can give you some advice. Unfortunately as you've found, not a whole lot is written about this species.

I suspect that your animals are the Kenyan type, as they are what seem to be available at the moment. In my experience, the Kenyan "Farm Raised" T. hoehnelii are more difficult to acclimate than the Ugandan Wild Caught T. hoehnelii. The Kenyan in particular seem to have heavy parasite loads that before long take their toll on the animals if they are not taken care of. That said, many of us have had problems with toxicity issues by deworming them too abruptly as they often seem to have high lung worm volumes. I definitely recommend deworming them once they are well hydrated and eating but I would recommend doing it gradually.

Your temps sound perfect and don't worry about going even lower if your temps dip. This species is active and feeding at 45 degrees F in the wild. They are definitely baskers, however, so make sure they have that ability.

Over the years I've kept adults of this species in full screen enclosures (18 x 18 x 30" and 30 x 18 x 30" Reptariums), custom built solid sided enclosures with the top and front screen (2'x2'x2') and glass terrariums (18x18x24" Exo-Terra Glass Terrariums). I've found that all work as long as you account for the differences in humidity and airflow. I wrote the following article about keeping chameleons in glass terrariums and it goes over some of the considerations: http://www.chameleonnews.com/10JulAndersonGlass.html Personally, I don't like the tall, narrow aquariums that lack ventilation low in the enclosure and prefer the terrariums with such ventilation but as long as you keep a close eye on the airflow and make sure the enclosure is able to dry out between misting sessions, you should be alright. I only mist my glass terrariums twice a day for about 1.5 minutes each. I misted my screen enclosures and custom solid/screen sided enclosures much more (about 20 minutes twice a day).

If I were you, I would get rid of the rock outcropping in the center of your display and replace it with a live plant like a schefflera. It is taking up a lot of the internal space without providing any security or shelter. You can still make nice displays with schefflera/ficus and I think the chameleon will be happier. I suspect the reason your male is so dark is because he doesn't feel he has a secure place to hide. You can see a couple examples of my glass terrariums on the article I listed above and here is another:

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Hope that is helpful and feel free to let me know if you have any other questions.

Chris
 
Thank you Chris. I was hoping that you would respond. I have read many of your posts in the past. I agree about the rock structure. I originally constructed this terrarium with something else in mind. While I think the air circulation is probably fine, I think you are right that it is not ideal for a chameleon. I will likely set it up in something more appropriate soon.

If you don't mind, I have a few more questions. What dewormer have you had the best luck with for this species and what regimen? While this doesn't apply for this time of year, at what temperatures would you expect to see heat stress from this species? Thanks again.
 
Hi,

as Chris, I have kept and breed hoehneliis from Kenya and Uganda but from my experiences the Kenyan ones are quite easier to keep, I think it just depends on the source you got them from.
I would change the enclosure a bit, in my opinion it looks like a nice one for Dendrobatidaes and not for Highland chameleons. The fan is a must have when you use an aquarium, but I can't imagine that the fan can create an airflow till the bottow of the cage. So I would recommond you a full screen enclosure with more plants like Ficus and Schefflera and less Bromelias. Some more branches would be nice too.

Best regards
Benny
 
frankpayne32 said:
If you don't mind, I have a few more questions. What dewormer have you had the best luck with for this species and what regimen? While this doesn't apply for this time of year, at what temperatures would you expect to see heat stress from this species? Thanks again.
Click to expand...

Please don't try dewormers and other medication without a real need to use them. All those medicaments and antibioticas are not good for the liver and the kidney which are often more or less in bad condition after the import (dehydration)

As long as you can provide an adequate night drop they aren't really problematic regarding warmer days. A good structurated enclosure can help here a lot, if it's getting to warm for some days.
 
eisentrauti said:
Please don't try dewormers and other medication without a real need to use them. All those medicaments and antibioticas are not good for the liver and the kidney which are often more or less in bad condition after the import (dehydration)

As long as you can provide an adequate night drop they aren't really problematic regarding warmer days. A good structurated enclosure can help here a lot, if it's getting to warm for some days.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice but I wasn't planning on prophylactically treating them for anything. I just wanted to know what medication regime has worked succesfully for this species.
 
Enclosure Update

I have since taken your advice Chris and added a ficus and shefellera to the male's enclosure. I have also added a mercury vapor UV bulb to supplement the fluorescent lighting. He seems to appreciate both. He is more active and his coloration is more consistently better. Unfortunately, the female died two days ago. As I suspected when I bought her she was gravid. I performed a necropsy and there were four neonates that appeared like they were approaching full term. They had also expired by the time I removed them. Like many livebearing species the stress of importation on a gravid female was too much. As sad as that is I am hopeful for the male. I have had him for a month now and he looks better every day. Here are some updated pictures of the enclosure and the male:

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frankpayne32 said:
I have since taken your advice Chris and added a ficus and shefellera to the male's enclosure. I have also added a mercury vapor UV bulb to supplement the fluorescent lighting. He seems to appreciate both. He is more active and his coloration is more consistently better. Unfortunately, the female died two days ago. As I suspected when I bought her she was gravid. I performed a necropsy and there were four neonates that appeared like they were approaching full term. They had also expired by the time I removed them. Like many livebearing species the stress of importation on a gravid female was too much. As sad as that is I am hopeful for the male. I have had him for a month now and he looks better every day. Here are some updated pictures of the enclosure and the male:

I think he did except his female died.
Click to expand...
 
Jimturner said:
wats do you call this?
Click to expand...
Regarding the misinformation I have had, it was my opinion to the topic.
Well, I overread the way he has keeped his female. But finally you helped me to find my mistake. So it's always good to have some trolls searching for every mistake s.o. did :)
 
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