Noah_mayfield
Member
What humidity should panthers be at
Looking into getting my first chameleon!
- Thread starter Let'sTalkLizard
- Start date
Here is the link for panther caresheets...
https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/panther/
I think it says 50-70% recommended.
Noah_mayfield
Member
Oh ok that’s what I’ve been doing just making sure
Jonathan Torres
Member
AAAHHH NICE MAN!!!Hello! I am hopefully getting my first chameleon soon, and I am really excited! I have 3 snakes (2 Ball Pythons and 1 BCI Boa), and love reptiles! I did always want a chameleon, and I'd start with a veiled. As I have no experience with lizards myself, my cousins have bearded dragons, leopard geckos, and crested geckos. I often visit them and see how they do things! I've been seriously looking into a cham in the last two-ish months, and I've learned a lot! My checklist is
Now I know a veiled's temps should be about 80°F-95°F, right?
- The Cage https://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Med-Rept...514529889&sr=8-3&keywords=screen+reptile+cage
- Décor
- Double Light with a Basking Bulb & Blue Bulb
- Climbing Vines
- Substrate-Newspaper
And humidity from %50-%60?
I'm pretty sure that's really all. If anyone has any tips/questions, feel free! Thank you!
Sounds really exciting to get a new pet, I have a veiled their so cool but also the meanest species ( I think...) Make sure to have more than one food option just to make sure his interest fall and lots of hiding places, Please continue to show progress when you get him !!
Let'sTalkLizard
New Member
Hey @dshuld , or anyone lol. Sorry about this, and please don't get mad at this! But, for the first year of the chams life or more/less, what's sort of the minimum I can do..? I found a cheap, used 36'' cage for $20... Because really I don't have as
Thank you! I'm SUUUPER excited too!! Thank you for the advice! And yes, once I get him you'll be annoyed about the smallest things I update about XD
Thank you! I'm SUUUPER excited too!! Thank you for the advice! And yes, once I get him you'll be annoyed about the smallest things I update about XD
Jonathan Torres
Member
Hell yeah man their cool animals to keep
For the first year and talking about a veiled or panther a 36" tall enclosure would be O.K. Just make sure it is elevated so the top of the enclosure isn't too low and your cham is uncomfortable. If money is a real concern, make sure to look into the potential medical costs. You may want to consider pet insurance for the unexpected.
Jonathan Torres
Member
How old are you looking to get you veiled?
Katacara
Avid Member
Hello sorry I missed my cue again back there... a frozen pipe in a 3rd floor bathroom is NOT fun to deal with on no sleep and already so stressed about other things!
If I remember the question correctly it was, do I sell supplements? At this time I do not, however @dshuld is correct I am working on a dry gutload, and maybe if I can figure out the logistics of shipping, offering my frozen blocks to others as well, because all of my feeders LOVE them!
I can't wait to see pictures of your new baby @Let'sTalkLizard
If I remember the question correctly it was, do I sell supplements? At this time I do not, however @dshuld is correct I am working on a dry gutload, and maybe if I can figure out the logistics of shipping, offering my frozen blocks to others as well, because all of my feeders LOVE them!
I can't wait to see pictures of your new baby @Let'sTalkLizard
dshuld
Chameleon Enthusiast
@Decadancin beat me to it. Just make sure you sterilize it well before using it. If you have a sallys beauty supply near you they sell gallons of "hair developer" for $13ish. Go with 20 volume which is a 6% peroxide solution. Be very careful when you spray it because it burns a bit if it gets on you. I sprayed mine down with white vinegar waited 10 min then rinsed, the 20 volume hair developer waited 10 min then rinsed and then used cvs antiseptic skin cleanser which is 4% chlorhexidine (Thanks @Katacara for the help on this one) with a wash cloth and scrubbed it down waited 10 min then rinsed again.
Let'sTalkLizard
New Member
Sorry, I just looked back at this post
So, here's the deal. I don't have as much money as I was getting at set aside for a chameleon, maybe $200? (Not including food cost, or medical) Is there any way what-so-ever, that I could fit set up in that price range? Including the cam itself ideally. I might be in over my head, and if so just tell me to wait on it. But chameleons are something I've always had a love for, and I would absolutely love to get one (unselfishly) asap. I'm finding a lot of used 30'' and 36'' for some pretty cheap prices. This would be temporary, of course. But maybe up to a year? However long I can go with him thriving in his make-shift set up lol. Any cheaper lights out there like the SunBlaze?
And I didn't realize I included the first part! I was typing it up, but then replied to @Jonathan Torres and forgot to erase it lol. I was just working on trying to work it right... what I'm trying to say is:
So, here's the deal. I don't have as much money as I was getting at set aside for a chameleon, maybe $200? (Not including food cost, or medical) Is there any way what-so-ever, that I could fit set up in that price range? Including the cam itself ideally. I might be in over my head, and if so just tell me to wait on it. But chameleons are something I've always had a love for, and I would absolutely love to get one (unselfishly) asap. I'm finding a lot of used 30'' and 36'' for some pretty cheap prices. This would be temporary, of course. But maybe up to a year? However long I can go with him thriving in his make-shift set up lol. Any cheaper lights out there like the SunBlaze?
IMHO you can't skimp on food, water, supplements, UVB light, proper feeding/gutloading of insects and the chameleon.
I don't know if you're intending to skimp on these or just the caging and the set up of the cage so I mentioned them anyhow.
You can use a hand mister and a simple dripper (tall deli cup with a tiny hole punched in the bottom that drips at the rate of one or two drips per second) for a while. You will have to hand mist more often and for long enough that the chameleon drinks well.
You can get non toxic branches from outside and buy a scheffleura or pothos or other non toxic plants for the time being. Be sure to wash the plants well...both sides of the leaves.
To gutload crickets, superworms, roaches, locusts you can use dandelion greens, kale, endive, escarole, carrots, collards, squash, sweet red pepper, sweet potato, zucchini, and a bit of fruit such as apples, pears, berries, melon, etc. Veileds will often eat these same greens, fruits, veggies when offered to them in appropriately sized pieces but don't usually start until they are a few months old.
Don't forget supplements!
You can use a regular white incandescent household bulb for a basking light...but you need a good UVB light. For years I have used the long linear Repti sun 5.0 UVB tube light. You can buy the hood/fixture at a hardware store or Walmart, etc for a cheaper price than at a pet store...but don't use the glass or plastic cover that comes with some hoods because the UVB won't pass through them.
And as @Decadancin said..."For the first year and talking about a veiled or panther a 36" tall enclosure would be O.K. Just make sure it is elevated so the top of the enclosure isn't too low and your cham is uncomfortable".
And as @dshuld said..."Just make sure you sterilize it well before using it."
Hope this helps!
I don't know if you're intending to skimp on these or just the caging and the set up of the cage so I mentioned them anyhow.
You can use a hand mister and a simple dripper (tall deli cup with a tiny hole punched in the bottom that drips at the rate of one or two drips per second) for a while. You will have to hand mist more often and for long enough that the chameleon drinks well.
You can get non toxic branches from outside and buy a scheffleura or pothos or other non toxic plants for the time being. Be sure to wash the plants well...both sides of the leaves.
To gutload crickets, superworms, roaches, locusts you can use dandelion greens, kale, endive, escarole, carrots, collards, squash, sweet red pepper, sweet potato, zucchini, and a bit of fruit such as apples, pears, berries, melon, etc. Veileds will often eat these same greens, fruits, veggies when offered to them in appropriately sized pieces but don't usually start until they are a few months old.
Don't forget supplements!
You can use a regular white incandescent household bulb for a basking light...but you need a good UVB light. For years I have used the long linear Repti sun 5.0 UVB tube light. You can buy the hood/fixture at a hardware store or Walmart, etc for a cheaper price than at a pet store...but don't use the glass or plastic cover that comes with some hoods because the UVB won't pass through them.
And as @Decadancin said..."For the first year and talking about a veiled or panther a 36" tall enclosure would be O.K. Just make sure it is elevated so the top of the enclosure isn't too low and your cham is uncomfortable".
And as @dshuld said..."Just make sure you sterilize it well before using it."
Hope this helps!
dshuld
Chameleon Enthusiast
I personally would say take your time gathering the supplies as you have the money then. Here's a bit of the back story for when I started my journey into this part of the reptile hobby. Like you, I had been interested in chams for a long time. I had mainly kept snakes previously as well. So here's the story, it'll be a long post so I apologize for that but hopefully you'll understand why I say take your time then get the cham in this case....
I was in one of the only two dedicated reptile shops in my area that I know of and saw a male veiled that my wife and I fell in love with. I want to say this was late August. I spent the rest of late August and Sept doing my research here and finally piped up on @Traildrifterphalanx thread I want to say late Sept. His thread at first had me really second guessing myself on getting into chams beyond looking at them in pet shops. Then as I read on it got better and his story prompted me to say something along the lines of it gave me hope we could have success with keeping chams too. I had mentioned the little male veiled I had seen and was directed to @Matt Vanilla Gorilla since pet shop chams can be questionable at times but I had already sent someone a txt on their chams so I didn't immediately reach out to him.
I had sent the other person a txt about a listing for cape est they had for sale on 10-1 looking to see what their prices were and how many they may have had available. I did this for two reasons, one I wanted to know what I was looking at price wise going through a breeder and my original plan was to take the month of Oct to build out an enclosure buying a little bit each week. As soon as I mentioned the part of wanting to setup the enclosure over the month of Oct all communication stopped with this person. I understand breeders are extremely busy but as a possible customer this really irked me to no end. I felt that even though I may not buy what he had at that very moment a rough idea on pricing since there was no published prices wouldn't have been that hard to say and then when I was ready I could've asked if he still had any or, make a deal like I ended up doing with Matt.
My wife and I took the next few days to see if he would respond to my last txt and he never did so I sent Matt a message on 10-4 asking about his pricing and availability and I can honestly say, I'm beyond glad we did. He replied with his phone number and to txt him but I had already gone to bed for the night. We spent most of the next day talking about my plans, his availability and he sent me pics of the only two he had left at the time. My beloved Blue Lighting and one of his sisters. Though I had told him the same thing that I was looking to take the month to get setup, Matt patiently stuck with me as we talked in between both of us being at work. I loved how Blue looked at first sight, kind of like that butterfly feeling you get when you think you've found the right girl for yourself
, and his sister. My wife and I had discussed the possibility of trying to breed down the road so I had talked with Matt about this too while I waited to meet up with my wife later that night to get her thoughts on Blue. Both Matt and I were in a holding pattern for probably 3 or 4 hours at that point. Blue was one of Matt's hold backs so he wanted to get his wife's thoughts on price and I needed to get my wife's thoughts on him but we still chatted about various things in the mean time.
My wife absolutely loved him when she saw his pics. To the point of her not even questioning what price he was it was a "OMG, I have to have him". Matt told me what they were looking to get out of him and I mulled it over with my wife on seeing if Matt would let us make the purchase but hold him until we were ready. We both wanted him to be our first cham there was no doubt about it but we were far from prepared to actually buy him at that point. So I "countered" Matt on a deal that I thought would help us secure Blue as our first cham, still give us the month to get setup as properly as we could and help cover the added costs for Matt if he agreed. Needless to say we agreed on a deal and over the next month I built out Blue's enclosure as my time and weather permitted. During this month I ran my ideas by Matt and he would give his input on if he thought it would work or not. Many things changed as I went along, MANY! We talked so much during this month he became more of a mentor and brother from another mother then just the guy I was buying my first cham from lol. We still talk at least every other day if not every day about things I may have a question about or just life in general. But, all this said, even though we made our first cham purchase before we were really prepared for doing so, we still wanted to make sure we were as prepared for him to arrive as we could be before him coming to his new home. I really feel it is the best way to go for both yourself and the cham you end up getting. If you haven't already, read through @Traildrifterphalanx thread on getting his first cham. It is a long read but well worth the read.
Trust me I know the feeling of wanting to have one now lol. It was almost torturous for us during that month of building knowing Blue was across the country waiting to come here. During that month our air handler decided to put a wrench in our plans which threatened to put me back a weeks build time and a weeks supply money. Matt was very understanding about the situation though. In the end we ended up pulling some from our savings to finish the build out because my wife decided she didn't want to wait the extra week for him to arrive. Matt was kind enough to send us pic updates and videos though which was awesome of him to do. But, I would do it the same way now if I had to do it all over again as I did then. Sorry for having been so long winded but hopefully it helps with understanding my view point. As mentioned before, take your time and set it up the right way the first time 
.
I was in one of the only two dedicated reptile shops in my area that I know of and saw a male veiled that my wife and I fell in love with. I want to say this was late August. I spent the rest of late August and Sept doing my research here and finally piped up on @Traildrifterphalanx thread I want to say late Sept. His thread at first had me really second guessing myself on getting into chams beyond looking at them in pet shops. Then as I read on it got better and his story prompted me to say something along the lines of it gave me hope we could have success with keeping chams too. I had mentioned the little male veiled I had seen and was directed to @Matt Vanilla Gorilla since pet shop chams can be questionable at times but I had already sent someone a txt on their chams so I didn't immediately reach out to him.
I had sent the other person a txt about a listing for cape est they had for sale on 10-1 looking to see what their prices were and how many they may have had available. I did this for two reasons, one I wanted to know what I was looking at price wise going through a breeder and my original plan was to take the month of Oct to build out an enclosure buying a little bit each week. As soon as I mentioned the part of wanting to setup the enclosure over the month of Oct all communication stopped with this person. I understand breeders are extremely busy but as a possible customer this really irked me to no end. I felt that even though I may not buy what he had at that very moment a rough idea on pricing since there was no published prices wouldn't have been that hard to say and then when I was ready I could've asked if he still had any or, make a deal like I ended up doing with Matt.
My wife and I took the next few days to see if he would respond to my last txt and he never did so I sent Matt a message on 10-4 asking about his pricing and availability and I can honestly say, I'm beyond glad we did. He replied with his phone number and to txt him but I had already gone to bed for the night. We spent most of the next day talking about my plans, his availability and he sent me pics of the only two he had left at the time. My beloved Blue Lighting and one of his sisters. Though I had told him the same thing that I was looking to take the month to get setup, Matt patiently stuck with me as we talked in between both of us being at work. I loved how Blue looked at first sight, kind of like that butterfly feeling you get when you think you've found the right girl for yourself
, and his sister. My wife and I had discussed the possibility of trying to breed down the road so I had talked with Matt about this too while I waited to meet up with my wife later that night to get her thoughts on Blue. Both Matt and I were in a holding pattern for probably 3 or 4 hours at that point. Blue was one of Matt's hold backs so he wanted to get his wife's thoughts on price and I needed to get my wife's thoughts on him but we still chatted about various things in the mean time.My wife absolutely loved him when she saw his pics. To the point of her not even questioning what price he was it was a "OMG, I have to have him". Matt told me what they were looking to get out of him and I mulled it over with my wife on seeing if Matt would let us make the purchase but hold him until we were ready. We both wanted him to be our first cham there was no doubt about it but we were far from prepared to actually buy him at that point. So I "countered" Matt on a deal that I thought would help us secure Blue as our first cham, still give us the month to get setup as properly as we could and help cover the added costs for Matt if he agreed. Needless to say we agreed on a deal and over the next month I built out Blue's enclosure as my time and weather permitted. During this month I ran my ideas by Matt and he would give his input on if he thought it would work or not. Many things changed as I went along, MANY! We talked so much during this month he became more of a mentor and brother from another mother then just the guy I was buying my first cham from lol. We still talk at least every other day if not every day about things I may have a question about or just life in general. But, all this said, even though we made our first cham purchase before we were really prepared for doing so, we still wanted to make sure we were as prepared for him to arrive as we could be before him coming to his new home. I really feel it is the best way to go for both yourself and the cham you end up getting. If you haven't already, read through @Traildrifterphalanx thread on getting his first cham. It is a long read but well worth the read.
Trust me I know the feeling of wanting to have one now lol. It was almost torturous for us during that month of building knowing Blue was across the country waiting to come here. During that month our air handler decided to put a wrench in our plans which threatened to put me back a weeks build time and a weeks supply money. Matt was very understanding about the situation though. In the end we ended up pulling some from our savings to finish the build out because my wife decided she didn't want to wait the extra week for him to arrive
. Matt was kind enough to send us pic updates and videos though which was awesome of him to do. But, I would do it the same way now if I had to do it all over again as I did then. Sorry for having been so long winded but hopefully it helps with understanding my view point. As mentioned before, take your time and set it up the right way the first time .
Katacara
Avid Member
@Let'sTalkLizard I agree on what was said above. There are ways and places you can save $$ but there are things that your cham will need that will be well worth the price you pay!
For anyone with or without a lot of $$ saved up for a cham I always remind them to check their local dollar stores for supplies!! We have a Dollar Tree here in Greenfield, and it is a life saver!! I find things in there that are exactly the same or even better as other stores where they would charge MUCH more than $1 for it!!
I also remind people to be creative!! It is often a lot cheaper to make/build something yourself than it is to buy it! Have fun! I can not tell you how many times I have turned the "chore" of putting something together into a fun family project for me and my boys!
I do want to say that I don't think that in even finding a used cage, and getting all the supplies you will need @ a dollar store, you will not come in under $200 for sure. I understand the feeling of being excited and wanting to get your new baby "NOW". That is how I felt, and unlike @dshuld I did rush in, and although I love my Peepers to death, and would not change him for the world, I do wish I had done things differently when I got him because it cost SO much more in the long run! Save your $$ up until you can afford to get supplies that will last your new baby his/her whole live! You will thank me for it someday! I think you should wait honestly, it seems to me that you a rushing a bit faster than your wallet will be able to handle. That will benefit no one, and certainly not be good for you or your new cham. I wish I was a part of this forum before getting Peepers, and I wish someone had said to me, what I just said to you.
But that is only what I think, and my advice you can do with it as you would like.
For anyone with or without a lot of $$ saved up for a cham I always remind them to check their local dollar stores for supplies!! We have a Dollar Tree here in Greenfield, and it is a life saver!! I find things in there that are exactly the same or even better as other stores where they would charge MUCH more than $1 for it!!
I also remind people to be creative!! It is often a lot cheaper to make/build something yourself than it is to buy it! Have fun! I can not tell you how many times I have turned the "chore" of putting something together into a fun family project for me and my boys!
I do want to say that I don't think that in even finding a used cage, and getting all the supplies you will need @ a dollar store, you will not come in under $200 for sure. I understand the feeling of being excited and wanting to get your new baby "NOW". That is how I felt, and unlike @dshuld I did rush in, and although I love my Peepers to death, and would not change him for the world, I do wish I had done things differently when I got him because it cost SO much more in the long run! Save your $$ up until you can afford to get supplies that will last your new baby his/her whole live! You will thank me for it someday! I think you should wait honestly, it seems to me that you a rushing a bit faster than your wallet will be able to handle. That will benefit no one, and certainly not be good for you or your new cham. I wish I was a part of this forum before getting Peepers, and I wish someone had said to me, what I just said to you.
But that is only what I think, and my advice you can do with it as you would like.
Let'sTalkLizard
New Member
I personally would say take your time gathering the supplies as you have the money then. Here's a bit of the back story for when I started my journey into this part of the reptile hobby. Like you, I had been interested in chams for a long time. I had mainly kept snakes previously as well. So here's the story, it'll be a long post so I apologize for that but hopefully you'll understand why I say take your time then get the cham in this case....
I was in one of the only two dedicated reptile shops in my area that I know of and saw a male veiled that my wife and I fell in love with. I want to say this was late August. I spent the rest of late August and Sept doing my research here and finally piped up on @Traildrifterphalanx thread I want to say late Sept. His thread at first had me really second guessing myself on getting into chams beyond looking at them in pet shops. Then as I read on it got better and his story prompted me to say something along the lines of it gave me hope we could have success with keeping chams too. I had mentioned the little male veiled I had seen and was directed to @Matt Vanilla Gorilla since pet shop chams can be questionable at times but I had already sent someone a txt on their chams so I didn't immediately reach out to him.
I had sent the other person a txt about a listing for cape est they had for sale on 10-1 looking to see what their prices were and how many they may have had available. I did this for two reasons, one I wanted to know what I was looking at price wise going through a breeder and my original plan was to take the month of Oct to build out an enclosure buying a little bit each week. As soon as I mentioned the part of wanting to setup the enclosure over the month of Oct all communication stopped with this person. I understand breeders are extremely busy but as a possible customer this really irked me to no end. I felt that even though I may not buy what he had at that very moment a rough idea on pricing since there was no published prices wouldn't have been that hard to say and then when I was ready I could've asked if he still had any or, make a deal like I ended up doing with Matt.
My wife and I took the next few days to see if he would respond to my last txt and he never did so I sent Matt a message on 10-4 asking about his pricing and availability and I can honestly say, I'm beyond glad we did. He replied with his phone number and to txt him but I had already gone to bed for the night. We spent most of the next day talking about my plans, his availability and he sent me pics of the only two he had left at the time. My beloved Blue Lighting and one of his sisters. Though I had told him the same thing that I was looking to take the month to get setup, Matt patiently stuck with me as we talked in between both of us being at work. I loved how Blue looked at first sight, kind of like that butterfly feeling you get when you think you've found the right girl for yourself
My wife absolutely loved him when she saw his pics. To the point of her not even questioning what price he was it was a "OMG, I have to have him". Matt told me what they were looking to get out of him and I mulled it over with my wife on seeing if Matt would let us make the purchase but hold him until we were ready. We both wanted him to be our first cham there was no doubt about it but we were far from prepared to actually buy him at that point. So I "countered" Matt on a deal that I thought would help us secure Blue as our first cham, still give us the month to get setup as properly as we could and help cover the added costs for Matt if he agreed. Needless to say we agreed on a deal and over the next month I built out Blue's enclosure as my time and weather permitted. During this month I ran my ideas by Matt and he would give his input on if he thought it would work or not. Many things changed as I went along, MANY! We talked so much during this month he became more of a mentor and brother from another mother then just the guy I was buying my first cham from lol. We still talk at least every other day if not every day about things I may have a question about or just life in general. But, all this said, even though we made our first cham purchase before we were really prepared for doing so, we still wanted to make sure we were as prepared for him to arrive as we could be before him coming to his new home. I really feel it is the best way to go for both yourself and the cham you end up getting. If you haven't already, read through @Traildrifterphalanx thread on getting his first cham. It is a long read but well worth the read.
Trust me I know the feeling of wanting to have one now lol. It was almost torturous for us during that month of building knowing Blue was across the country waiting to come here. During that month our air handler decided to put a wrench in our plans which threatened to put me back a weeks build time and a weeks supply money. Matt was very understanding about the situation though. In the end we ended up pulling some from our savings to finish the build out because my wife decided she didn't want to wait the extra week for him to arrive
Thank you so much you guys! I will wait on it. Also, things do usually seem to be much cheaper at expos, so who knows what I'll find! I definitely won't be coming home with my own beb yet, not until I'm ready.
@dshuld thank you for sharing your story! It was great to read. You are amazing! Thank you for the list too, that helps so much! Anyway, thank you for sharing and helping! I've honestly learned a lot from what you've told me! @Katacara thank you for the advice! It would be a lot cheaper to buy stuff twice than to just get everything he'll need all at once And I never thought of checking my dollar store! There's a huge one minutes away from me, I'm sure I'll find something! I guess I am rushing. My snakes are pretty cheap, I thought it might be kind of the same for a cham honestly lol. I realize now it's NOT! I will get one someday, mark my words! Thank you two, and everyone! I'll take some time to raise some money and learning more. Thank you!
dshuld
Chameleon Enthusiast
Thank you so much you guys! I will wait on it. Also, things do usually seem to be much cheaper at expos, so who knows what I'll find! I definitely won't be coming home with my own beb yet, not until I'm ready.
No problem
. Keep watching craigslist. I searched cham cage, cham enclosure, reptile cage and reptile enclosure for a month before I found the 4 reptibreeze I bought. I saw several people selling complete cham enclosures lights and all for $100 to $200. There's nothing wrong with going "used" just make sure you sterilize everything! While your at search hydroponic lights there too. Sometimes you can get a decent used one cheap. The one's I'd look for would be sunblaze and quantum bad boy. The sunblaze uses a tad less power with a bit reduced par numbers vs the bad boy but they are very close and worth the few watts saved an hour over the bad boy.
Do like I did and collect a little here and there and you be there in no time
. If you find something on craigslist you're unsure of you can a pm if you want before you buy it too 
.
