In a tight spot with keeping cham?help

[DAD3886]

ok well i posted a thread few wks ago about the musky smell in my chams room.Figured out its the plants..Natural rainforest being created in there.So with that ive turned on a fan to circulate the air which helps alittle but still a problem with my girlfriend.Do to the fact she has said i either need to find a fix for the smell which would i guess be all art. plants but i dont want to do that,place him and his enclosure on my screened porch but it has been said thats not a good idea from previous threads ive posted, the other is she is saying get rid of him which i really dont want to have to do.Ive only have him a MONTH! SO any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[carol5208]

I am not sure why you are getting a musky smell like that. I have a large cage in my computer room with one live plant and a few fake. Maybe you are dripping and misting too much water into the plant and it is rotting? Is the plant continually draining water out? What are your humidity levels reading at? Are you hand mistinig or using an automated one? Sounds like you have it too humid. With AC going in our houses(I live in FLA also) you should not be getting that smell.

 

[jannb]

I agree with Carol. Your cham should not be causing any odor. I have chams, tree and plants all over my house with no oder at all. Chameleons are the cleanest animals I've ever kept.

 

[Trundy]

Yep... sounds to me that you either have standing water or rotting plants.... can we see some pictures? What kind of drainage do you have on the plants?.... I think its highly likely your plants roots are soaked and rotting.... I had my old veiled set up in my dining room... never had a problem w smell......

 

[DAD3886]

I know its not the actually cham causing the smell. I have them in pots with the typical holes in the bottom of the saucers.It drains thru my screen at the bottom into a plastic container which i empty daily.I hand mist 2-4 times a day.How could i tell if their rotting?They are real nice and green and everything drys out between mistings.They are umbrella plants.Ill take pic asap when i get home and post.Its not like unbearable musk its just there like air is stag.The humidity is usually 50 or so and raises to about 70 when i mist.I turned the over head fan on low and it has helped but still enough for girlfriend to notice ;/

 

[carol5208]

Well they could be getting root rot from so much water and not ever being able to really dry out. I try to make sure my dripper only drips into the plant on certain days. I move it around. With misting it is almost impossible to not get your plants wet of course. See if some of the sections from the plant just pull out of the soil. Have you tried getting very close to the soil and seeing if it is the plant that smells?. Also, I am not sure if that is the most healthiest of air for your chameleon. I know you are trying to replicate a rain forest but when they are in the wild they are not confined to a small room.

 

[suzi]

How about getting more plants and changing them out, so no one plant is in there getting soaked all the time, the plants getting some outdoor time should help

 

[jessica]

Is the plant sitting directly on the bottom of the cage?

I had a similar problem until I put the plant on a stand or used hanging pothos from the frame of the cage. It gave more airflow so there is not standing water under the pot.

 

[DAD3886]

i didnt think about the smell affecting the cham.Well the confinment i cant help he has to be in the enclosure other wise he'ed be dog food.Maybe i should mist less. I mist before work when i get home around 3-4 again at 6 or so and thats it unless its the weekend and i can squeeze a fourth one in.Should i maybe mist just once am and once pm? His health actually to me anyways has gotten better hes eatting again everyday and eatting alittle bigger crickets.His feces is white/brown? so i know hes hydrated..idk this is hard for my to figure out...thanks to all!

 

[Damus]

Chams themselves dont smell, but their poop does. Also, standing water, like someone suggested can lead to bad smell. Just make sure you keep their cages clean and get rid of as much poop as you can!