SaintJimmy
Avid Member
The top does not look like a burn but the bottom bracket kind of does. I have no experience with burns though.
GabeCastro
Established Member
before making any assumptions, what are the temps you have your guy at?
And how far is he away from his basking light?
Wattage of the light? Type of light?
From the pics, I'd say i'm on the fence with a solar burn, kinda looks fungal. But thats my opinion.
And how far is he away from his basking light?
Wattage of the light? Type of light?
From the pics, I'd say i'm on the fence with a solar burn, kinda looks fungal. But thats my opinion.
mirrinias
Member
His temps sit around 90 degrees, the wattage of the light is 100 watts. I was having some difficulty getting the temps high enough because I moved and I am now living in the bottom level of a split-level home and it's much cooler down here.
As for how close he is to it, the top of his casque is about 2" from the screen and at most 4" from the bulb itself. Too close, I know, but I can't seem to get the temperature high enough down here otherwise. I don't ever see him sitting up trying to get right against the light, but of course, I don't know what he does when I'm not home.
As for how close he is to it, the top of his casque is about 2" from the screen and at most 4" from the bulb itself. Too close, I know, but I can't seem to get the temperature high enough down here otherwise. I don't ever see him sitting up trying to get right against the light, but of course, I don't know what he does when I'm not home.
mirrinias
Member
Oh, and the bulb is a neodymium basking bulb. Yes, I know I can use basic incandescent bulbs you can get anywhere, but I work at a pet store and desperately needed a bulb that day because he was too cold. So I picked one up from there as I did not have time to go to another store that day.
GabeCastro
Established Member
Def can be a burn...100 watts is pretty high. Some members even use 25w bulbs.
How are you measuring your temps? Usually analog temp gages are iffy and never accurate. Digital ones work decent aswell so hopefully you have a few in your cage. I'd suggest you get a temp gun to measure the basking area.
I use one similar to this product and it works great.
http://www.amazon.com/Temperature-Infrared-Thermometer-Laser-Sight/dp/B002YE3FS4
The rule is to have your basking bulb atleast 8" away from your cham...So knowing your guys casq is 2" it most likely is a burn. I'd change your bulb to a 60watt regular house bulb and your temps should be good enough. If not bump it up to a 75watt but no higher, just be sure to raise the clamp lamp above the mesh. Assuming your guy is an adult his highest basking temp should be about 90 degrees. You'd also want atleast 2-3 other branches with different temps from 82-90 degrees. Just so you cham can choose what temps he likes best.
For the damaged area my best advice would be to take your guy to a good reptile vet in your area and have them diagnose what the black marks are. If they're burns, they'll be scared for life but you can easily prevent fungal or any other problems. The vet will most likely give you a cream to apply on the damaged area.
Hoped that helped!
-Gabe
mirrinias
Member
It helps, the problem is when I was using a 75 watt bulb, he was clearly too cold and was not eating and was constantly dark, trying to absorb more heat. I increased his bulb wattage and suddenly he was active, eating, and a normal green color again. So how would you deal with that without increasing the wattage? I fear if I have the heat lamp so far away from the screen the temperatures will drop again. I was afraid for his health when he wasn't eating, and afraid he'd develop an RI because my area is so humid and cool.
GabeCastro
Established Member
I'm not too familiar with Veileds to be honest, but I know they're very similar to panthers. My panthers get dark and ugly when basking, but they're just absorbing heat. As long as your basking temps are on point, you shouldn't have a problem. Your cham may be running around to "cool down".
Id highly recommend that heat gun and check the temps you have your cham at. It'll help out allot with your heat problems. If you have a 5.5" clamp lamp dome you can bump it up to a 8.5" and keep the 100w and it'll help out with ambient temps just be sure the temps are accurate to prevent solar burns. Usually burns turn white and spikes become melted, some burns turn yellow, etc.
Just make sure your basking temps are on point! thats pretty much it haha.
nightanole
Chameleon Enthusiast
Use multiple bulbs if the peak is above 95 and hes getting so close hes burning the top but the body is still too cold. Im running 2 39 watt wide flood halogen bulbs. They project 33% more heat per watt vs a standard bulb. So the "bulb" heat is reduced and most of the heat is in the form of light. I have 2 of them lighting up a 1 ft area and he cant get closer than about 1 foot to the bulbs.
PS there is damage to the crest, but with mine he did it himself getting stuck in the sheet metal of the coat hangers in my room. Yours might be rubbing the crest trying to navigate a poor layout.
PS there is damage to the crest, but with mine he did it himself getting stuck in the sheet metal of the coat hangers in my room. Yours might be rubbing the crest trying to navigate a poor layout.
Curtis James
Established Member
Maybe try a bigger bulb. I hear all kinds off ppl say they have these small bulbs, I use a 160w I live in Minnesota. And I mean the summers get hot but we still have are cold winter and cold days. I have my light hanging from ceiling by string so I can unjust when needed. With the bigger bulb I'm able to keep a constant temp. But with the bigger bulb you wanna be real care that it is not to close to cage he WILL burn himself.
