New member, new set up - tell me what else I need

G

GCS2000

New Member
Back story: This is for my son (relax he is a responsible 13 year old and I will be helping every step of the way). About 3-4 months ago he wanted a chameleon and we said no so he talked us into a crested gecko. He did all the research on them (set ups, care, feeding, etc) and he paid for everything including the gecko. He has done very well with it and Wookie (gecko's name) has been doing fine. All this time he has been researching, reading about chameleons and what to do. My youtube channel is full of nothing but chamelon videos now. So for x-mas all he listed is all the things he needs for a chameleon and he is saving his money to buy one himself if he gets the things he needs for x-mas. He didn't put anything else on his list other than this and Halo 5.


So for the last month I have been researching chameleons - care, feeding, setups, etc etc and particularly this site and I have put together the following setup. Please lmk what else I need to get this completed and ready in time to receive his chameleon on Christmas Eve. We have already ordered a high color translucent veiled from FL Chams which they are holding for us until we are ready.

Enclosure - Dragonstrand Large clear side enclosure with drainage tray - Don has been advising me on this the whole way and it just shipped today. Will be here next Thursday.

Stand - I'll most likely have to build something out of 2x4s I guess as we want this to be off the ground a bit to keep it away from our cats as well as house the misting pump and accessories. Could use some advice on this if anyone has it.

Lighting - I got everything from Todd at Lightyourreptiles.com. 22" T-5 HO Fixture with Arcadia d3 6% HO bulb and an Arcadia Deep Dome 8" Deluxe clamp lamp. Per Todd's instructions we will install a halogen flood lamp in the dome.

Mister - Climist misting system. I will install 2 nozzles - one in each front corner spraying back and to the right of the enclosure since those sides are the closed off areas in the dragonstrand cage. I have a new lowes 5 gallon bucket with lid ready to go

Temperature - picked up laser temp gun from Amazon

Temp/Humidity gauge - picked up the exoterra combo gauge

Branches - picked up 2 XL bendable branches and I will take my son out to my dad's house where he has a lot of woods and we can scoure the place for some good branches. We will bring them home and wash them and then bake them in the oven based on what I have read here. Guessing we need a bunch of these since we have a large cage.

Plants - went to Lowes last night and they have plenty of golden pothos plants in plastic pots. They are good size and about $20. I didn't see any umbrellas which from my research would be the other really good option in the enclosure. We will probably need to hit up Michaels for some additional fake plants to fill in where needed.

In reference to the plants we buy from Lowes/HD am I right that I need to repot them but get organic potting soil? Should I put them back in the simple black plastic pots they came in or use something else?

Feeding Cup - this is where I am definitely hazey. I think we need to do this to make life easier and hopefully avoid too many free roaming critters (i.e. crickets). Really wish there was something we could feed other than crickets etc as the wife is really not happy about this part. We did buy a cricket keeper and some bug burger to feed them. We also bought some Repashy calcium plus.

Just trying to decide to how to go about doing the feeding cup. I have seen on the dragonstrand site how they have use the black spray foam around a cup to make things look more natural and I like this idea. I have also seen the more elaborate cups forum members have done out of sunny d containers.


I apologize for the long winded post but I kinda need to think this through and get it out there. There is a lot to do and we want to be sure to do it right.

Thanks in advance for any advice you guys care to share.
 
First off welcome! Second, thank you so much for taking the time to do all the research for your new cham. There is so much that goes into it as you've found out and when parents let their 13 year Olds take on such a huge responsibility on their own it ends up creating tons of problems. I commend you for all the extensive research you have done! You pretty much have everything taken care of. For feeding cups it's really what works best for your setup. I know member nick barta has some feeding cups that look great and function great as well. A lot of people make homemade ones like some you've seen and those work good too. I personally just use a small tuperware bowl that I can put in and take out extremely easy. It doesnt have drainage but i dont leave it in while misting. I usually put superworms and dubias in the cup along with the crickets. A few crickets jump out sometimes but I'm okay with that because it allows him to hunt. Crickets really shouldn't be the only thing being fed to them anyways. I also like using hornworms because I can release them on branches and he can hunt them and I don't have to worry about escapees. And they're good for him. Good luck on finding what works for you and your new cham, and welcome :)
 
GCS2000 said:
Back story: This is for my son (relax he is a responsible 13 year old and I will be helping every step of the way). About 3-4 months ago he wanted a chameleon and we said no so he talked us into a crested gecko. He did all the research on them (set ups, care, feeding, etc) and he paid for everything including the gecko. He has done very well with it and Wookie (gecko's name) has been doing fine. All this time he has been researching, reading about chameleons and what to do. My youtube channel is full of nothing but chamelon videos now. So for x-mas all he listed is all the things he needs for a chameleon and he is saving his money to buy one himself if he gets the things he needs for x-mas. He didn't put anything else on his list other than this and Halo 5.


So for the last month I have been researching chameleons - care, feeding, setups, etc etc and particularly this site and I have put together the following setup. Please lmk what else I need to get this completed and ready in time to receive his chameleon on Christmas Eve. We have already ordered a high color translucent veiled from FL Chams which they are holding for us until we are ready.

Enclosure - Dragonstrand Large clear side enclosure with drainage tray - Don has been advising me on this the whole way and it just shipped today. Will be here next Thursday.

Stand - I'll most likely have to build something out of 2x4s I guess as we want this to be off the ground a bit to keep it away from our cats as well as house the misting pump and accessories. Could use some advice on this if anyone has it.

Lighting - I got everything from Todd at Lightyourreptiles.com. 22" T-5 HO Fixture with Arcadia d3 6% HO bulb and an Arcadia Deep Dome 8" Deluxe clamp lamp. Per Todd's instructions we will install a halogen flood lamp in the dome.

Mister - Climist misting system. I will install 2 nozzles - one in each front corner spraying back and to the right of the enclosure since those sides are the closed off areas in the dragonstrand cage. I have a new lowes 5 gallon bucket with lid ready to go

Temperature - picked up laser temp gun from Amazon

Temp/Humidity gauge - picked up the exoterra combo gauge

Branches - picked up 2 XL bendable branches and I will take my son out to my dad's house where he has a lot of woods and we can scoure the place for some good branches. We will bring them home and wash them and then bake them in the oven based on what I have read here. Guessing we need a bunch of these since we have a large cage.

Plants - went to Lowes last night and they have plenty of golden pothos plants in plastic pots. They are good size and about $20. I didn't see any umbrellas which from my research would be the other really good option in the enclosure. We will probably need to hit up Michaels for some additional fake plants to fill in where needed.

In reference to the plants we buy from Lowes/HD am I right that I need to repot them but get organic potting soil? Should I put them back in the simple black plastic pots they came in or use something else?

Feeding Cup - this is where I am definitely hazey. I think we need to do this to make life easier and hopefully avoid too many free roaming critters (i.e. crickets). Really wish there was something we could feed other than crickets etc as the wife is really not happy about this part. We did buy a cricket keeper and some bug burger to feed them. We also bought some Repashy calcium plus.

Just trying to decide to how to go about doing the feeding cup. I have seen on the dragonstrand site how they have use the black spray foam around a cup to make things look more natural and I like this idea. I have also seen the more elaborate cups forum members have done out of sunny d containers.


I apologize for the long winded post but I kinda need to think this through and get it out there. There is a lot to do and we want to be sure to do it right.

Thanks in advance for any advice you guys care to share.
Click to expand...
Hey I'm 13 too. Anyway, chameleons are pretty great. Your setup seems fine. For a feeding cup I use a plastic party cup and that works fine...that doesn't have to be expensive anyway. I have one gigantic piece of advice for you: GET A MALE!!!!
Females add a bunch of extra problems. I thought I had a male....*sigh* it seems like it was only 9 days ago.....
Anyway, yeah. The soil thing you can do if you want. I've had no problem with my Cham eating dirt...(she's not mentally challenged) and most of the time sits on a silky plastic vine near her bulb and chills....or rather, warms. (Hehehehe puns)
Make sure you have calcium with AND without vitamin D3. With D3, every two weeks. Without, every day/ other day. I mist the cage until I see droplets the size of rain drops on the leaves, then stop, and repeat in 2-3 hours, though she is left alone at night. Also, make sure you have atleast one live plant. Chiche is smart enough to know which are live and which aren't. She's terrorized that poor golden Pothos..... Yeah they eat the leaves for extra moisture. Make sure there is plenty of foliage. Also, test the durability of the branches when they are in place. I get two fingers and pretend they are walking down the branch. Apply partial force, like you would apply to a pencil. If it hold like that, it will hold your chameleon.
 
NickyChameleon said:
The soil thing you can do if you want. I've had no problem with my Cham eating dirt...(she's not mentally challenged)
Click to expand...
I advise against keeping bare soil. Even if a chameleon does not eat it, accidents do happen like if they shoot for an insect and miss. Chameleons can not digest it. Its the same thing with desert reptiles owners keep on sand because "its natural". the substrate get stuck inside and that will just create problems. There is actually no need for soil at all in an chameleon enclosure but if you decide to add it anyway you should cover it up. Some members prefer to cover the soil with rocks big enough not to get eaten by mistake. As for me who have a bioactive setup I use moss as cover, thick pieces so the same mistake cannot happen here.

And for the crickets. Crickets are only a base food. Chameleons need a variation just like humans. Superworms are a good treat like feeder that they are known to love (my cham would probably only eat them if he got to decide) but avoid mealworms as they are though to digest. Another good base feeder is
dubia roaches. The word roach might sound even more frightening to your wife but they are actually very docile. They cant fly/climb, don't bite, don't eat very much in comparison to crickets and are very easy to keep alive and breed if you want.
You have picked out an UVB light to your cham too right?
 
Welcome! You might consider making your stand out of PCV pipe, and fittings works real well. And yes I would repot the plants in organic potting soil without fertilizer. You have got a good handle on things like to see it when people do their research. You will also need calcium without d3, and some multivitamin. Good luck:)
 
Yep got the lighting from Todd at Light your reptiles.

Not doing any substrate on the bottom. Mostly just not sure what to do about the potted plants we get from Lowes/HD etc. Do they need to be replanted from their exiting containers or leave them alone?

Thanks for all the great advice.
 
Like you said I would replant them in organic soil, but they can stay in the same containers if that works for you. Just put large enough rocks on the top of the soil that the cham can't eat. Better safe than sorry. :)
 
GCS,

Welcome. Sounds like your on top of things. Get everything set up and give it a few days for a trial run. When you know you set up is stable, call FL chams to send your translucent out. This way, you can make sure that your "arrangement" of plants/branches, along with the mister, temp and humidity is set correctly, so there are no surprises when he arrives. Looking forward to seeing your new guy soon. The site's full of info and great people to gain knowledge from. Hope to see a few pics of your setup soon.
 
Welcome, and no need to apologize. You sir, are the type of new keeper that this forum loves. You've taken the initiative to research, research, research! I am fairly certain your 13 year old boy will mold himself into a great chameleon owner with you assisting him a long the way. Superworms, Dubia roaches, butterworms, and phoenix worms are very easy to care for and maintain. Some other greats feeders are silkworms and hornworms. I don't believe you specified in your post, but what kind of chameleon are you looking to buy?
 
GrimCamel said:
I advise against keeping bare soil. Even if a chameleon does not eat it, accidents do happen like if they shoot for an insect and miss. Chameleons can not digest it. Its the same thing with desert reptiles owners keep on sand because "its natural". the substrate get stuck inside and that will just create problems. There is actually no need for soil at all in an chameleon enclosure but if you decide to add it anyway you should cover it up. Some members prefer to cover the soil with rocks big enough not to get eaten by mistake. As for me who have a bioactive setup I use moss as cover, thick pieces so the same mistake cannot happen here.

And for the crickets. Crickets are only a base food. Chameleons need a variation just like humans. Superworms are a good treat like feeder that they are known to love (my cham would probably only eat them if he got to decide) but avoid mealworms as they are though to digest. Another good base feeder is
dubia roaches. The word roach might sound even more frightening to your wife but they are actually very docile. They cant fly/climb, don't bite, don't eat very much in comparison to crickets and are very easy to keep alive and breed if you want.
You have picked out an UVB light to your cham too right?
Click to expand...
I feed mealworms too.
 
I would keep the crickets in a larger container than a cricket keeper, depending on how old your chameleon will be could mean he will be going through 12-22 feeders a day, to possibly only 6 or a few more depending on what you are using every other day. Which means buying your feeders in bulk you'll be most cost effective. I would consider a larger rubber maid container with egg crates so that the feeders feel secure and less territory battles arise. They also will be more likely to stay in a rubber maid container. Use aluminum bug screening and punch a hole in the side and top and hot glue it in. I really suggest starting a roach colony as well. I make my own roach chow, and feed fruits and veggies as a water source. I also suggest feeding soft bodied worms such as hornworms and silkworms.
 
We will definitely be doing superworms and NOT mealworms.

I'll look into the other food choices as well. Hoping to find a few different things to feed that aren't difficult to get maintain or deal with. Really not wild about any of the options but the Chams care is the priority not my desire to have less bugs around.

We are getting a male high color translucent veiled. That is what my son picked out.

Side note the dragonstrand enclosure was delivered yesterday. Just need to get it assembled and set up tonight hopefully.
 
Wow, great homework! Nice planning too! If I missed it I am sorry, but I did not se a heat source. I recommend a ceramic infrared heat emitter in a hood, connected to a thermoregulater too. Do not use heat rocks - bad idea for chameleons they get burned! Best of luck! Proud of you!
 
Re: feeding cups
For a baby, I use a small critter keeper with a vine twisted around the edge, and just place it in the cage. It works well, keeping the bugs in one spot and also allowing the cham to hunt. You will get some escapees, no matter what you do. It's kind of a fact of cham life. When the cham is older, I use a tall clean yogurt container and punch a couple holes near the top, and zip tie it to the cage. Then I place another yogurt container inside that one, and use that for a feeding cup. It's easy to clean because the inside cup is easily removable, and it's generally too tall for most critters to climb or otherwise escape. Sometimes there is an accidental escapee, mostly from over-enthusiastic tongue action on the part of the cham!

Other things:
  • Make sure you have a lot of feeders handy if you are getting a juvenile- they can eat 20 crickets in a go! Very small babies will need to be fed a couple times a day.
  • The Repashy Calcium Plus is not my favourite thing to use with chams, as I feel it risks over-supplementing them. You may be better off getting three different products: Calcium withOUT D3 (daily), Calcium WITH D3 (biweekly), and a multivitamin with prOformed vitamin A (biweekly).
  • Make sure you are using a reliable humidity gauge: I've had nothing but trouble with analog dials and switched to a hygrometer probe years ago, which I find much more accurate.
  • You will probably get a tree, either real or fake, for showers, free-ranging, or outside time at some point so it's better to just budget it in now!
  • A hand mister. Better to have one on hand if your misting system breaks, just in case!
  • Feeding tongs, if you are like me and don't like touching superworms. I've been working with reptiles for over a decade, and I still think they are awful.
  • Large rocks for around the base of your plants, to prevent your cham from eating all the soil.
  • Free-draining potting soil. It doesn't necessarily have to be "certified organic", but it does have to be free of pesticides, herbicides, antifungals, and fertilizers. Make sure the pots you are using have screen mesh over the bottom holes and at least a good inch of drainage (rocks or crushed clay pots,whatever), and are sturdy enough that your cham won't crush them (I've had a cham destroy a flimsy plastic pot). I find that a fast-draining, loose soil is really the key to long-term plant health in a very wet situation. Soils that contain a lot of coconut fibre, sand, and larger particles like cypress mulch are likely to be more free-draining than soils that contain a lot of heavy composted organic material. I'd give some brand recommendations, but I was never really happy with store-bought soil so I started making my own a few years ago. A nursery or garden centre should be able to help you if you bring them a list of requirements. I'm not sure I'd trust Lowes or Rona to know what is or is not in a soil mix, to tell you the truth.
 
Last edited:
Figure I should update things since my last post.

Worked every night for about a week and half but got his cage all set up, misting system installed and running, lights all set up, branches installed (spent 4+ hours sanding and cleaning-yikes), bought some live plants for the enclosure and a feeding cup from a forum member.

Had some drama getting the little fella though. FL Chams shipped on Tuesday for next day delivery but UPS f'ed up as always and did not deliver til Thursday! They blame the shipper of course. Anyway the little guy arrived just fine and seemed to be ok (emphasis on little). He finally got into his new home around 1pm on Thursday. My son was over the moon of course as he knew nothing about the cham coming before x-mas. We told him it wouldn't be ordered until after x-mas.

Anyway we let him be for most of the day - no handling, no bothering, not too much hovering and then about 7pm we went ahead and fed him. Normally I would have waited a day to let him settle but since he had been trapped in box for a day longer than planned I figured we would give it shot. Within about 10 seconds of dumping about 7 baby crickets into the feeder cup this guy was hauling a$$ over there and pounded down everything he saw. Didn't take him long to eat all 7, guess he was hungry from the journey. He eats about 7 crickets per day at the moment before he seems done. We put in 10 on twice and he has left 3 each time. We have also rolled superworms into his diet as well. He started eating those on Sunday which is great since I want to be sure he gets a variety and the worms are a lot easier for us and my son to deal with than the crickets. We will probably try roaches or something else later on but right now he needs small foods.

He seems to be doing well. Gets around the cage ok even though we don't have enough vines/branches (ordered some zoomed ones that Kammerflage recommends and should be here soon). He was really funny the first day or 2 as he looked like he was break dancing with every step. He would put one foot forward then bring it back and then do the same with the other foot until he eventually got going forward either that or he would pump his leg a few times and then make the step. Essentially he looked nervous, lol. He still does this every once and while but not much. He has definitely gotten comfortable with his surroundings and has picked out a few favorite places. Particularly when he sleeps he has found a placed under a certain set of pothos leaves and is almost hanging upside down.


The only questions I have at this point are:

What temp should his basking spot be? It was at 76 with a 60W bulb so I swapped it for 100W bulb and it is now just over 80. This is measured at the basking spot which is 8" from the top of the cage. We are measuring with a laser temp gun. Do I need to go higher by adding a second light and bulb?

Misting time. How long should the mister run per cycle - 1 min, 2 mins, 5 mins? We currently have it set to mist 4 times a day.


Health wise he is eating and pooping and moving around well. We have not tried to handle him yet.

Below is a pic of the little arriving in his shipping cup. Will get my son to take some pics of him in his enclosure soon.

Please say hi to PLUTO


IMG_0840.JPG
 
Last edited:
My cage is glass and I can only get to 85 basking with a 100w bulb.
Seems that this will be okay until he gets bigger... Then I'll be getting a 125w infrared ceramic heater.

Though I wonder if this will be too hot... As the wattage is all focused on wavelengths that deliver heat....
 
GCS2000 said:
Figure I should update things since my last post.

Worked every night for about a week and half but got his cage all set up, misting system installed and running, lights all set up, branches installed (spent 4+ hours sanding and cleaning-yikes), bought some live plants for the enclosure and a feeding cup from a forum member.

Had some drama getting the little fella though. FL Chams shipped on Tuesday for next day delivery but UPS f'ed up as always and did not deliver til Thursday! They blame the shipper of course. Anyway the little guy arrived just fine and seemed to be ok (emphasis on little). He finally got into his new home around 1pm on Thursday. My son was over the moon of course as he knew nothing about the cham coming before x-mas. We told him it wouldn't be ordered until after x-mas.

Anyway we let him be for most of the day - no handling, no bothering, not too much hovering and then about 7pm we went ahead and fed him. Normally I would have waited a day to let him settle but since he had been trapped in box for a day longer than planned I figured we would give it shot. Within about 10 seconds of dumping about 7 baby crickets into the feeder cup this guy was hauling a$$ over there and pounded down everything he saw. Didn't take him long to eat all 7, guess he was hungry from the journey. He eats about 7 crickets per day at the moment before he seems done. We put in 10 on twice and he has left 3 each time. We have also rolled superworms into his diet as well. He started eating those on Sunday which is great since I want to be sure he gets a variety and the worms are a lot easier for us and my son to deal with than the crickets. We will probably try roaches or something else later on but right now he needs small foods.

He seems to be doing well. Gets around the cage ok even though we don't have enough vines/branches (ordered some zoomed ones that Kammerflage recommends and should be here soon). He was really funny the first day or 2 as he looked like he was break dancing with every step. He would put one foot forward then bring it back and then do the same with the other foot until he eventually got going forward either that or he would pump his leg a few times and then make the step. Essentially he looked nervous, lol. He still does this every once and while but not much. He has definitely gotten comfortable with his surroundings and has picked out a few favorite places. Particularly when he sleeps he has found a placed under a certain set of pothos leaves and is almost hanging upside down.


The only questions I have at this point are:

What temp should his basking spot be? It was at 76 with a 60W bulb so I swapped it for 100W bulb and it is now just over 80. This is measured at the basking spot which is 8" from the top of the cage. We are measuring with a laser temp gun. Do I need to go higher by adding a second light and bulb?

Misting time. How long should the mister run per cycle - 1 min, 2 mins, 5 mins? We currently have it set to mist 4 times a day.


Health wise he is eating and pooping and moving around well. We have not tried to handle him yet.

Below is a pic of the little arriving in his shipping cup. Will get my son to take some pics of him in his enclosure soon.

Please say hi to PLUTO


View attachment 148111
Click to expand...
Hi GCS2000 and the good looking PLUTO,welcome to this wonderful forum.
 
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