My chameleon is drinking from the catch dish

[Azaria]

I have a Little Dripper, but it's hard to get it to drip anywhere that my veil will drink from it regularly. Either way, I have it going all the time, and catch the water in a plastic dish, which I empty every day or so.

However I just watched her sit on its ledge and shoot her tongue into it for several minutes, while the dripper dripped away into it.

Should I stop this? Or is it okay, if that's what she chooses?

I clean it out every time it gets pooped in, and don't let it get too full.

 

[Elizadolots]

As long as you clean it out when it gets poop in it (and, I mean clean it...use soap! don't just empty it) it should be okay. There's nothing intrinsically bad about standing water, it's just that it seems to attract poop and obviously that is a problem. Also, if it gets deep, it can present a drowning concern (if they fall into it).

Maybe you need to look into establishing some drainage. There are a lot of good systems around the board, just search for "drainage system" and see what you get (or, we can provide ideas here).

 

[Azaria]

I shall try and look into that! I don't really understand how it will be done, as of yet, as I feel like my "floor" space in the cage is limited, especially with a 50 pound tub of sand in there. (Not sure if I can get rid of that yet, since she may go a while before laying again?)

 

[Elizadolots]

Definitely keep the sand!

However, if you can put the cage up on blocks or a table so there's room for a pan to fit under it, you can drill holes in the bottom of the cage and the water will drip into the pan which you can just take to the toilet and empty once or twice a day (depending on size and amount of water).

 

[Azaria]

My problem with that, is the cage is an exoterra flexarium, and they are a little flimsy, especially with the weight of the tub. I have it on a dresser which isn't even as big as the cage, so I don't know how to raise it up yet ^^

 

[Elizadolots]

Can you make like a little short table the enclosure can sit on? Cut out a piece of the table top so you can put a catch pan under the hole. That way the tub is still well supported. You might need to put a little rim around the table top to keep the water from going out the sides. My husband built my stand for me and I know a lot of people have home built stands that support the cage but let the water drip into container.

 

[pbveiled]

I use a small aluminum baking pan as my catch pan. I cover it with a scren top from a small aquarium to keep my cham and feeders out of the water and to catch any poop. I drain the water and clean the screen as needed.

 

[Azaria]

I use a small aluminum baking pan as my catch pan. I cover it with a scren top from a small aquarium to keep my cham and feeders out of the water and to catch any poop. I drain the water and clean the screen as needed.

This sounds like what I was thinking might be my solution.

 

[fluxlizard]

When I use drip systems I always use a bowl to catch the water and always thought it was great the chams would drink out of the catch bowls- it means I know they can fill up on as much water as they want... These days I mainly use misters so no catch bowls, but I see no reason to discourage drinking from the bowl as long as it is kept clean, and I always thought it was a benefit of having the bowl when using a drip...

 

[Azaria]

Do they not need a dripper to drink from if there is mist? Is that an automatic system that goes off regularly?

 

[TOMMYBOY72]

Drinking

I think its great if they drink from the dish. As long as you use distilled water and keep it fresh. All that dripping and clean up is more work. Try keeping it out of the drop zone and see if he still drinks.