Looking for Any Help With Chameleon Care!

[melkodavid]

Hi, so a couple years ago I cared for an Ambanja panther chameleon. Sadly he passed away and I have only recently been looking into purchasing another chameleon.

The downside is, I sold all off my previous equipment during my sadness.

But now since I am looking to purchase another, I am looking for any advice or recommendations you guys have with the equipment.

I am looking to get the best possible equipment.

And for reference, I am looking to get a Nosy Faly, so if anyone is/knows of someone breeding Nosy Faly's or has juvenile to young adult males please let me know.

I still need some time, of course, to brush up on all the proper care, but I remember most of what I need to do.

This is my first time on the forums, and I am very excited to get back into the world of my favourite animal.

All advice is welcome! Thank you in advance

 

[melkodavid]

I am also planning on having the enclosure in my room, as there is not a lot of extra space in my home. I have also heard that it is better to have real plants in there as opposed to fake, does anyone have any knowledge of this?

 

[kinyonga]

Welcome to the forum! This is a good place to learn.

Real plants are always better for a chameleon. They help with the humidity...for one thing.

There are lots of articles on this forum about caging and supplements and lighting and also podcasts with lots of information in them.
https://www.chameleonbreeder.com
https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/

 

[Dbash44]

I am also planning on having the enclosure in my room, as there is not a lot of extra space in my home. I have also heard that it is better to have real plants in there as opposed to fake, does anyone have any knowledge of this?

Welcome to the forums! Just a little word of advice, don't ever get rid of your reptile supplies. I am yet to find someone that doesn't become addicted to one type of critter or another. lol

Kinyonga gave some great links. Check those out.

I can tell you what I use and have success with:

-T5 Linear UVB light Fixture & Bulb: Typically 5.0 Zoo Med or 6% Arcadia bulb when I had them sitting on the top of the cage. I stress this being one of the most important parts of your husbandry. Don't be cheap on this. Get the nicer fixture out the gate and the correlating size for the size cage you get.

-Heat Bulb: I use reptibasking spot light. Wattage varies between all enclosures. Some use a regular house bulb for this. Basking temp will vary for age of your cham.

-6500K LED Bulb: for my plants to keep them alive and give some visible light to my cham.
-Fixtures for both heat and led bulb

-Supplements: Plain calcium, calcium with d3, mutivitamin. Brand is up to you. I can tell you I've used Repcal brand with no problems.

-Live plants, tons of them. I use no fake plants at all.

-Branches and vines. Most of my branches are non synthetic and I think they look better.

-Mistking and hand mister for hydration. I bought a $50 RO machine from amazon I use for both. That one is up to you, though. It's mostly for convenience.

-Fogger for nighttime humidity (Do your research before deciding on this one. It's controversial whether they are good or bad if not maintained properly)

-Screen cage: If you're experienced you can use glass, but my knowledge is with screen so I can't tell you about glass. A number of members, including Kinyonga, use glass with success. For a male panther you'll want a 2'x2'x4' minimum. Plan to have room for at least that size cage if not bigger.
-Depending on your location you might consider covering left, right and back sides of cage to help with humidity and heat. I have done this for many many moons and suggest this to anyone asking for tips.

-Plastic Feeder Bins: I use these to hold all of my feeders so they don't jump or crawl out of smaller containers. Also, if you plan to use crickets, I find they survive better in a larger plastic bin.

-Food for feeders: I use Bugburger with added bee pollen for most of my feeders (unless they specifically have a need for a different chow). Otherwise, fruits and veggies. There's a list on the good ones if you'd like to have it.

-Feeders: I suggest getting these sooner than later. A lot of places are back ordered right now and take a minute to get delivered. Make sure you have a variety: silworms, crickets, dubias, hornworms, black soldier fly and black soldier fly larvae, locusts/grasshoppers. I use all of these and use silkworms and crickets as a staple. You'll find what your cham likes and doesn't like. I suggest to stay away from superworms, meal worms, waxworms. If you feed those do so in moderation. That's basics, we can delve into it more if you'd like.

-Hygrometer/Thermometer: I use Acurite brand they sell on amazon around the room for ambient temp and ambient humidity. Inside the cages I use the Govee bluetooth hygrometer/thermometer.

-Temp Gun: I have a zoo med infrared temp gun that's used to test the temps at the basking spots. I highly suggest this and find it one of the most useful tools I own (aside from my UVI meter)

I can explain why I use each item I listed if you wish. I'm sure I probably forgot something. I bet another member will add to it.

 

[Gingero]

If videos are more your thing, I have a bunch of 'How to' chameleon videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3n4S2GRkOGfk2U8-xhaw6Q/

 

[MissSkittles]

If you are wanting the best and cost isn’t an issue, I would personally look into getting a Dragonstrand enclosure. I can’t afford them so use ReptiZoo screen enclosures, but I did add dragon ledges which are a godsend in hanging plants & things. Dragon Strand is one of the site sponsors...check them out.

 

[absolutbill]

I can second the Dragon strand recommendation. I used to use the screen 2x2x4 cages, but switched to the Large Atrium, clearside. The top and right side is screen and even though I'm in FL i haven't had any issues so far with RI. I've found that my chameleons use the horizontal space a lot more than the vertical. I'm including a photo comparison of the 2x2x4 to the Dragonstrand - it was in the middle of switching over cages, which is why they are bare. If you do go with Dragonstrand I have a blog about how to set it up with backgrounds.

 

[MissSkittles]

I can second the Dragon strand recommendation. I used to use the screen 2x2x4 cages, but switched to the Large Atrium, clearside. The top and right side is screen and even though I'm in FL i haven't had any issues so far with RI. I've found that my chameleons use the horizontal space a lot more than the vertical. I'm including a photo comparison of the 2x2x4 to the Dragonstrand - it was in the middle of switching over cages, which is why they are bare. If you do go with Dragonstrand I have a blog about how to set it up with backgrounds.

Wow! I didn’t realize there was that much of a size difference! Thanks so much for the comparison pic. Now I guess I’ll need to start saving for some Dragonstand enclosures.

 

[melkodavid]

Welcome to the forums! Just a little word of advice, don't ever get rid of your reptile supplies. I am yet to find someone that doesn't become addicted to one type of critter or another. lol

Kinyonga gave some great links. Check those out.

I can tell you what I use and have success with:

-T5 Linear UVB light Fixture & Bulb: Typically 5.0 Zoo Med or 6% Arcadia bulb when I had them sitting on the top of the cage. I stress this being one of the most important parts of your husbandry. Don't be cheap on this. Get the nicer fixture out the gate and the correlating size for the size cage you get.

-Heat Bulb: I use reptibasking spot light. Wattage varies between all enclosures. Some use a regular house bulb for this. Basking temp will vary for age of your cham.

-6500K LED Bulb: for my plants to keep them alive and give some visible light to my cham.
-Fixtures for both heat and led bulb

-Supplements: Plain calcium, calcium with d3, mutivitamin. Brand is up to you. I can tell you I've used Repcal brand with no problems.

-Live plants, tons of them. I use no fake plants at all.

-Branches and vines. Most of my branches are non synthetic and I think they look better.

-Mistking and hand mister for hydration. I bought a $50 RO machine from amazon I use for both. That one is up to you, though. It's mostly for convenience.

-Fogger for nighttime humidity (Do your research before deciding on this one. It's controversial whether they are good or bad if not maintained properly)

-Screen cage: If you're experienced you can use glass, but my knowledge is with screen so I can't tell you about glass. A number of members, including Kinyonga, use glass with success. For a male panther you'll want a 2'x2'x4' minimum. Plan to have room for at least that size cage if not bigger.
-Depending on your location you might consider covering left, right and back sides of cage to help with humidity and heat. I have done this for many many moons and suggest this to anyone asking for tips.

-Plastic Feeder Bins: I use these to hold all of my feeders so they don't jump or crawl out of smaller containers. Also, if you plan to use crickets, I find they survive better in a larger plastic bin.

-Food for feeders: I use Bugburger with added bee pollen for most of my feeders (unless they specifically have a need for a different chow). Otherwise, fruits and veggies. There's a list on the good ones if you'd like to have it.

-Feeders: I suggest getting these sooner than later. A lot of places are back ordered right now and take a minute to get delivered. Make sure you have a variety: silworms, crickets, dubias, hornworms, black soldier fly and black soldier fly larvae, locusts/grasshoppers. I use all of these and use silkworms and crickets as a staple. You'll find what your cham likes and doesn't like. I suggest to stay away from superworms, meal worms, waxworms. If you feed those do so in moderation. That's basics, we can delve into it more if you'd like.

-Hygrometer/Thermometer: I use Acurite brand they sell on amazon around the room for ambient temp and ambient humidity. Inside the cages I use the Govee bluetooth hygrometer/thermometer.

-Temp Gun: I have a zoo med infrared temp gun that's used to test the temps at the basking spots. I highly suggest this and find it one of the most useful tools I own (aside from my UVI meter)

I can explain why I use each item I listed if you wish. I'm sure I probably forgot something. I bet another member will add to it.

Wow, this is an amazing help! And for the plants, I have little to no knowledge on them. Are there certain types of plants I would have to purchase? And I am going to start ordering the equipment in the coming weeks, and my only reason for wanting to look into glass (My last cage was screen) is because the enclosure will be in my room, I feel like it may be harder to keep the humidity and temperature where it needs to be. Although your tip for covering the sides could be useful because I was planning on putting it in the corner Thank you again, this was so extremely helpful.

 

[melkodavid]

I can second the Dragon strand recommendation. I used to use the screen 2x2x4 cages, but switched to the Large Atrium, clearside. The top and right side is screen and even though I'm in FL i haven't had any issues so far with RI. I've found that my chameleons use the horizontal space a lot more than the vertical. I'm including a photo comparison of the 2x2x4 to the Dragonstrand - it was in the middle of switching over cages, which is why they are bare. If you do go with Dragonstrand I have a blog about how to set it up with backgrounds.

I've never thought about looking into a horizontal cage! Dragon Stand is definitely what I will be purchasing when it comes time! They currently don't have any of the Large Atriums in stock, but since I haven't found a Nosy Faly or Nosy Be breeder yet, it seems that time is on my side. Thank you for the help It is much appreciated.

 

[Gingero]

Video about plants and chameleons:




Video about ways you can increase humidity:

 

[absolutbill]

I've never thought about looking into a horizontal cage! Dragon Stand is definitely what I will be purchasing when it comes time! They currently don't have any of the Large Atriums in stock, but since I haven't found a Nosy Faly or Nosy Be breeder yet, it seems that time is on my side. Thank you for the help It is much appreciated.

Honestly, the best thing is to have plenty of time to get what you REALLY want and need. I've loved my Dragonstrand, but also can realize they aren't in everyone's budget. For bases I looked at World Market (they had a deal a few years ago where you could build your own desk, so I just used part of that for the one in the picture), and Amazon. Take the measurements of the bottom then look for something that will fit. My third cage is on an Amazon desk that has shelves which is really useful. Here's my step-by-step blog just in case you are interested:

https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/blog/setting-up-a-large-clearside-dragonstrand-cage.40644/

 

[Beman]

Yep I highly recommend the Dragon strand line. I have the medium tall atrium clearside. Totally wish I would have gotten the large atrium. Mine has a width of 30 inches rather then the standard 24. He uses every extra inch of horizontal space.