Lighting!!

[Kalieslaney]

I can't read the strength of that bulb, but if memory serves, it comes with a 5.0 (vs. 10.0), which is fine.
A 10.0 will also work, but as it's a stronger bulb, may need to be raised higher above the top of the enclosure.

The correct basking lamp may take some trial & error between wattage, distance, angle, ambient temperature, and heat loss of the enclosure.

60W is a good starting point. I know of people needing wattages between 40 and 100, depending on the above variables. I had to bump it to a 75W halogen flood, and insulate a small portion of the enclosure top. YMMV.

Is there any better type of bulbs that I can get? I really want to get the best for our new girl!

 

[GrayMadder]

Unfortunately there is a lot wrong with this current set up. ):

You will def need to take out the fake plants as veiled chams are known for eating their plants from time to time. The fake plants put your cham at risk for impaction.

You are also using the incorrect lighting. You will need a ho t5 linear fixture and bulb. Something that you can put across the length of your enclosure or diaganolly on top.

I would start with this link and thoroughly read through it to give you an idea of everything for your husbandry.

https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-husbandry-program-getting-started-with-chameleons/

Neptune the chameleon on YouTube also has a lot of helpful videos.

 

[GrayMadder]

Here is some other helpful information on gutloading, feeders, cham safe plants.

 

[Kalieslaney]

Unfortunately there is a lot wrong with this current set up. ):

You will def need to take out the fake plants as veiled chams are known for eating their plants from time to time. The fake plants put your cham at risk for impaction.

You are also using the incorrect lighting. You will need a ho t5 linear fixture and bulb. Something that you can put across the length of your enclosure or diaganolly on top.

I would start with this link and thoroughly read through it to give you an idea of everything for your husbandry.

https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-husbandry-program-getting-started-with-chameleons/

Neptune the chameleon on YouTube also has a lot of helpful videos.

I have been setting up my own cage for quite a few months now. I wasn’t even planning on getting a chameleon for awhile. But a friend of a friend needed to rehome them asap and obviously she wasn’t being taken care of properly. We have the money and time to get everything she needs. I’m just very new and confused as to what I need to be getting! Thank you so much for all the info!!!

 

[Kalieslaney]

I have been setting up my own cage for quite a few months now. I wasn’t even planning on getting a chameleon for awhile. But a friend of a friend needed to rehome them asap and obviously she wasn’t being taken care of properly. We have the money and time to get everything she needs. I’m just very new and confused as to what I need to be getting! Thank you so much for all the info!!!

I am currently waiting on this guy to get delivered! Could anyone send me some links for what type of basking bulbs I can be getting? Also my house is somewhat colder than normal I would say so I know that has a lot to do with my watts.

 

[janjan20]

I am going to center this around you having a female vs male. That way if I am wrong most everything will still apply. I may have left some stuff out so I apologize a head of time. I highly recommend going to the chameleonacademy.com and read as much as you can. Also, on youtube Neptune the chameleon channel is great.

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care? Veiled, female, unknown- I have had her for an hour or so. To be 100% sure, take a pic of the back feet to confirm male or female.
• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon? None Try not to handle her for now and just let her settle in. You can move to trust building eventually with feeders.
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders? None. They gave us crickets and dubai roaches. For females, 2-3 large crickets 3-4 days a week. Dubia's are meatier, I personally feed my female 2-3 small every 2 days. Overfeeding females will cause them to produce large clutches and that is what we want to avoid. It takes a toll on their bodies over time. Crickets are ok, just make sure you are housing them in a large enough container that is well ventilated to prevent die off. They can get pretty smelly. Dubia's are good, I prefer roaches as a staple feeder. I will link some gut loading and feeder pics below.
• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule? Repti with and without d3. They couldn’t tell us what schedule that they had her on. Supplements are very important to keep in balance. When you can please take a pic of what you have so I can see it. For scheduling purposes you want to dust with plain phosphorus free calcium at every feeding. Then twice a month dust with calcium with D3 one day alternating with a multi-vitamin one day. So for example dust with Ca/D3 the 1st/3rd Saturday and multi-vitamin 2nd/4th Saturday. Make sure the multi-vitamin does not have D3. I have Reptivite no D3, there are some others but I don't know the names off the top of my head. So this is the basics when it comes to dusting. Light dusting is good, don't make them look like powdered donuts lol.
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking? We have a dripper. The dripper is good but most people have problems keeping the bottom from flooding. You can run the dripper for an hr or two in the morning. I would get something to mist with as well so you can mist the leaves in the enclosure. Typical misting session is 2-3 mins twice a day. Some mist more if they live in an area with low humidity. Veiled's are notoriously shy drinkers so if you never see them drink you can keep track of hydration by their urate. Also, look into naturalistic hydration, I will leave a link below. This is when you use a humidifier or fogger to increase humidity at night to 100%. https://chameleonacademy.com/basics-hydration-for-chameleons/
• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? It looks dark and slimy. Poo should be brown with a white sometimes yellowish urate. https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/chameleon-poop-101.120171/
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you. unknown.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions? She came with a small all around screen enclosure. From what I can see that looks like it is a Chameleon kit. I would recommend if you haven't already get a 2x2x4. Extra room for them is always good and you will need it for the laybin. The enclosure needs lots of hiding spots, horizontal branches. I put a laybin diagram below.
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule? Double dome fixture. 60 watt daylight blue bulb, reprising 5.0 uvb 13 watt tropical bulb. Ditch the coil bulb ASAP, you can keep the fixture for the basking bulb. You will need a T5 HO linear UVB light. Light schedule is 12hr on 12hrs off. No other lights, they need completed darkness.
• Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps? Max basking temp for females to help keep them from ovulating is around 80. Get a digital thermometer/hygrometer combo to put in the enclosure. You can also get a temp gun or temp probe to measure the basking branch temp.
• Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity? unknown Humidity should be between 30-50% daytime and nighttime optimal 80-100% (nighttime fogging)
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind? no Veiled's are plant eaters, so fake plants should be avoided. Great plants are pothos, scheffelera, ficus, hibiscus. I will link some pics below as well.
• Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor? in the corner of the living room. there is a air vent kinda close. about 2 feet away from ceiling or so. If it is a high traffic area I would consider moving it to a low traffic room for more privacy.
• Location - Where are you geographically located? Virginia USA.

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about. We just brought home her. The people couldn’t tell me anything about her. I have been slowly getting stuff for a chameleon but a friend of a friend needed to rehome her ASAP. So we took her in. The above info is what we came home in and what they gave us. I have been ordering things online for a couple months but do not have my own complete supplies. We built a cage that is 4 feet tall and about 24 inches all around. I have also bought a humidifier. We brought in a bunch of vines and more life like branches to decorate. I am waiting for the proper lighting to come in as well. The picture is what she came home in.

 

[ERKleRose]

View attachment 291874
I am currently waiting on this guy to get delivered! Could anyone send me some links for what type of basking bulbs I can be getting? Also my house is somewhat colder than normal I would say so I know that has a lot to do with my watts.

It is best to get everything in person if it’ll be faster. Lowe’s or Home Depot, Walmart, etc. (if you’re in America) should have plain white light incandescent household bulbs for basking. You’ll have to play around with the wattages to get the correct temps, like @Klyde O'Scope said. Pick up a few digital thermometer-hygrometer combos, a digital infrared temp gun (optional), some bamboo sticks (large cheap ones from Home Depot if you go there-they should be rough enough to not have to sand with some course sand paper to roughen them up), and a bag of rocks too big for her to eat while there if they have it, along with veiled-tested chameleon-safe live plants (you’ll have to properly clean them and put the rocks too big for her to eat over the soil in the pots first before putting them in her enclosure)! A local pet store might have a digital thermometer with a probe (needed for measuring her basking temp), fake vines (no moss or Exo Terra), maybe some branches (no moss ones), and a T5 High Output linear fixture and either an Arcadia 6% or Zoo Med 5.0 linear UVB bulb of the matching size. Make sure to get a linear fixture the length of, or a foot longer than, the length of her cage.

 

[Kalieslaney]

I am going to center this around you having a female vs male. That way if I am wrong most everything will still apply. I may have left some stuff out so I apologize a head of time. I highly recommend going to the chameleonacademy.com and read as much as you can. Also, on youtube Neptune the chameleon channel is great.

• Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care? Veiled, female, unknown- I have had her for an hour or so. To be 100% sure, take a pic of the back feet to confirm male or female.
• Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon? None Try not to handle her for now and just let her settle in. You can move to trust building eventually with feeders.
• Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders? None. They gave us crickets and dubai roaches. For females, 2-3 large crickets 3-4 days a week. Dubia's are meatier, I personally feed my female 2-3 small every 2 days. Overfeeding females will cause them to produce large clutches and that is what we want to avoid. It takes a toll on their bodies over time. Crickets are ok, just make sure you are housing them in a large enough container that is well ventilated to prevent die off. They can get pretty smelly. Dubia's are good, I prefer roaches as a staple feeder. I will link some gut loading and feeder pics below.
• Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule? Repti with and without d3. They couldn’t tell us what schedule that they had her on. Supplements are very important to keep in balance. When you can please take a pic of what you have so I can see it. For scheduling purposes you want to dust with plain phosphorus free calcium at every feeding. Then twice a month dust with calcium with D3 one day alternating with a multi-vitamin one day. So for example dust with Ca/D3 the 1st/3rd Saturday and multi-vitamin 2nd/4th Saturday. Make sure the multi-vitamin does not have D3. I have Reptivite no D3, there are some others but I don't know the names off the top of my head. So this is the basics when it comes to dusting. Light dusting is good, don't make them look like powdered donuts lol.
• Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking? We have a dripper. The dripper is good but most people have problems keeping the bottom from flooding. You can run the dripper for an hr or two in the morning. I would get something to mist with as well so you can mist the leaves in the enclosure. Typical misting session is 2-3 mins twice a day. Some mist more if they live in an area with low humidity. Veiled's are notoriously shy drinkers so if you never see them drink you can keep track of hydration by their urate. Also, look into naturalistic hydration, I will leave a link below. This is when you use a humidifier or fogger to increase humidity at night to 100%. https://chameleonacademy.com/basics-hydration-for-chameleons/
• Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? It looks dark and slimy. Poo should be brown with a white sometimes yellowish urate. https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/chameleon-poop-101.120171/
• History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you. unknown.

Cage Info:

• Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions? She came with a small all around screen enclosure. From what I can see that looks like it is a Chameleon kit. I would recommend if you haven't already get a 2x2x4. Extra room for them is always good and you will need it for the laybin. The enclosure needs lots of hiding spots, horizontal branches. I put a laybin diagram below.
• Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule? Double dome fixture. 60 watt daylight blue bulb, reprising 5.0 uvb 13 watt tropical bulb. Ditch the coil bulb ASAP, you can keep the fixture for the basking bulb. You will need a T5 HO linear UVB light. Light schedule is 12hr on 12hrs off. No other lights, they need completed darkness.
• Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps? Max basking temp for females to help keep them from ovulating is around 80. Get a digital thermometer/hygrometer combo to put in the enclosure. You can also get a temp gun or temp probe to measure the basking branch temp.
• Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity? unknown Humidity should be between 30-50% daytime and nighttime optimal 80-100% (nighttime fogging)
• Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind? no Veiled's are plant eaters, so fake plants should be avoided. Great plants are pothos, scheffelera, ficus, hibiscus. I will link some pics below as well.
• Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor? in the corner of the living room. there is a air vent kinda close. about 2 feet away from ceiling or so. If it is a high traffic area I would consider moving it to a low traffic room for more privacy.
• Location - Where are you geographically located? Virginia USA.

Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about. We just brought home her. The people couldn’t tell me anything about her. I have been slowly getting stuff for a chameleon but a friend of a friend needed to rehome her ASAP. So we took her in. The above info is what we came home in and what they gave us. I have been ordering things online for a couple months but do not have my own complete supplies. We built a cage that is 4 feet tall and about 24 inches all around. I have also bought a humidifier. We brought in a bunch of vines and more life like branches to decorate. I am waiting for the proper lighting to come in as well. The picture is what she came home in.

Can you suggest a brand other than the reptisun to get?

 

[janjan20]

https://www.pangeareptile.com/store/arcadia-prot5-uvb-kit.html
http://www.lightyourreptiles.com/fixtures/t5-high-output/
Make sure it’s a 6% bulb. I would recommend a plant light as well. Some have fixtures that have daytime bulb combos.

 

[Kalieslaney]

https://www.pangeareptile.com/store/arcadia-prot5-uvb-kit.html
http://www.lightyourreptiles.com/fixtures/t5-high-output/
Make sure it’s a 6% bulb. I would recommend a plant light as well. Some have fixtures that have daytime bulb combos.

Thank you! Both are out of stock sadly. I will be definitely going to home depot and or lowe’s .

 

[GrayMadder]

Thank you! Both are out of stock sadly. I will be definitely going to home depot and or lowe’s .

I bought my arcadia fixture and bulb from lllreptile. You can try them.

 

[Quick Draw Mcgraw]

Thank you! Both are out of stock sadly. I will be definitely going to home depot and or lowe’s .

Light your reptiles has the linear arcadia prot5 22.5'' fixture with 6% bulb for 69.99 in stock its on page 2 of the t5 lighting section

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

Is there any better type of bulbs that I can get? I really want to get the best for our new girl!

Not that I'm aware of for enclosures. (Indoor free-range may have other options.)

For chameleons, the two basic choices are:

• Reptisun T5HO (5.0)
• Arcadia T5HO (6%)

Both have stronger bulbs for different habitat conditions & species.
Both are warrantied for 1 yr. Both made in Germany. Both fit the same fixtures.

I have both, and a Solarmeter 6.5 (which I think should be standard equipment for reptile care).
Both brands are holding up well. My Reptisun is now 15 mo. old and still as strong as when it was new.

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

I am currently waiting on this guy to get delivered! Could anyone send me some links for what type of basking bulbs I can be getting? Also my house is somewhat colder than normal I would say so I know that has a lot to do with my watts.

That UVB should be fine.

For basking, an old-fashioned power-sucking household incandescent bulb* will do fine.
Wattage, distance, angle, and ambient temperatures are variables that will go into what wattage will work best for you, and I'm afraid it's a trial & error process, so links won't help. No plug & play options.

I would avoid pet store "basking bulbs"; they seem to be notorious for high price, short life, and are often SPOT lights. (See below)

Since your house is somewhat colder than normal (don't worry about nighttime) I would start with a 75W bulb and work up (or down) from there as necessary. You may have to go up to 100W.

I recommend mounting basking lights at an angle (UVB too for that matter**). This provides an elliptical basking zone rather than round, and also provides a gradient of temps—warmer closer to the bulb and cooler farther from it. Reptiles will seek out the temperature they want, and it can vary just like other creatures including us.

* Alternatively, incandescent FLOOD lights or halogen FLOOD lights can do the job (I'm currently using a halogen flood). I DO NOT recommend SPOT lights of any kind; spots create a sudden transition from cold to hot—no gradient. LED lights of any kind will not provide the heat.

** For UVB, gradients can be achieved by mounting either the lamp or the basking perch at an angle.

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

Some random notes:

For covering potting soil, look for "river pebbles" or "washed pebbles". They can be found at Home Despot (though they may be frozen solid this week ) or any garden store. You may have to cull out any small enough that the cham might accidentally swallow.

Digital hygrometers... come with a long probe wire—use it. Keep the main unit outside the enclosure. My mister just fried one. (My bad.)

Pothos and Wandering Jew are both fast-growing live vines.

 

[Kalieslaney]

Some random notes:

For covering potting soil, look for "river pebbles" or "washed pebbles". They can be found at Home Despot (though they may be frozen solid this week ) or any garden store. You may have to cull out any small enough that the cham might accidentally swallow.

Digital hygrometers... come with a long probe wire—use it. Keep the main unit outside the enclosure. My mister just fried one. (My bad.)

Pothos and Wandering Jew are both fast-growing live vines.

All of this information was extremely helpful!! I appreciate so so much!!!