xmorganx33
New Member
Hi all,
Im new to this group and I am about to take in my friends male veiled chameleon. They are giving him to me because they realized they dont have the time or equipment to take care of him and will also be moving soon. I have never owned any reptiles but have always wanted one and have done lots of research into proper care of veiled chameleons since making this decision three days ago.
My primary concern is how to go about setting up his tank once he is under my care. I dont want to potentially stress him out or put him into shock by making drastic changes even if they are changes for the better of him. Upon talking with the current owner they havent been keeping a UVB lamp or a Heat lamp on his enclosure and his only water access is them misting the tank once or twice a day. The do have a lamp on his tank but bulb they have for him is the Exo Terra 13W Natural light that from my research does not put off heat or UVB only light. They also havent been monitoring the temp or moisture level in his enclosure as his enclosure is next to their ball pytons enclosure so they have just gone with the temp on that thermometer for him but the pythons enclosure is a glass tank vs the chameleons wiremesh siding.
Knowing he needs the Heat, UVB, and constant access to water I have already gotten him a water feature to give him constant access to moving water and I also got him a replacement bulb that will give him UVB as well as an additional dome with a heat bulb so I can maintain a proper temp/moister level for him. Will setting all of that up immediatly be too much change along with the location change or is it better to go ahead and get all of that set up right away so he isnt deprived further?
I know Chameleons arent a starter reptile and in a perfect world would have started with something less fragile first but the little buddy needs some love and im going to do my best to give him everything he needs. Any and all tips are welcomed!
Im new to this group and I am about to take in my friends male veiled chameleon. They are giving him to me because they realized they dont have the time or equipment to take care of him and will also be moving soon. I have never owned any reptiles but have always wanted one and have done lots of research into proper care of veiled chameleons since making this decision three days ago.
My primary concern is how to go about setting up his tank once he is under my care. I dont want to potentially stress him out or put him into shock by making drastic changes even if they are changes for the better of him. Upon talking with the current owner they havent been keeping a UVB lamp or a Heat lamp on his enclosure and his only water access is them misting the tank once or twice a day. The do have a lamp on his tank but bulb they have for him is the Exo Terra 13W Natural light that from my research does not put off heat or UVB only light. They also havent been monitoring the temp or moisture level in his enclosure as his enclosure is next to their ball pytons enclosure so they have just gone with the temp on that thermometer for him but the pythons enclosure is a glass tank vs the chameleons wiremesh siding.
Knowing he needs the Heat, UVB, and constant access to water I have already gotten him a water feature to give him constant access to moving water and I also got him a replacement bulb that will give him UVB as well as an additional dome with a heat bulb so I can maintain a proper temp/moister level for him. Will setting all of that up immediatly be too much change along with the location change or is it better to go ahead and get all of that set up right away so he isnt deprived further?
I know Chameleons arent a starter reptile and in a perfect world would have started with something less fragile first but the little buddy needs some love and im going to do my best to give him everything he needs. Any and all tips are welcomed!