New to chameleons, need advice! I want to do this right!

[NREwanick]

I've researched quite a bit including feeding, enclosures, species, etc. I'm going to go with a Male Jackson's as it is the perfect size and the 10+ year lifespan is something I want as I'd like my 3 yr old son to enjoy this growing up. The most important thing to me right now is enclosure and extras I need to purchase. Here's what I've got so far (nothing purchased yet):

• Dragon Strand 45" x 44" x 24" Clearside Atrium
• Exo Terra Sun-Glo - 75 Watt w/ 5 1/2" Clamp Lamp
• 36" Zoo Med Fluorescent Fixture w/ 36" Raptor in 5.0 UVB Bulb
• MistKing Starter w/ Repeat Cycle Timer, Zip Drop Valve, and Double Mist Assembly
• 30"-40" Zoo Med Sandblasted Grapevine
• 2-3 Zoo Med Vines and Bamboo
• 2 Zoo Med Digital Thermometer
• 2 Pothos Plants
• Reptivite
• Zoo Med Calcium w/o D3 and w/ D3

I think I have most of the general things down. A few things I have read are 12 hours of light and 12 hours of darkness. 60-80% humidity. 70°f-80°f ambient temperature and 80°f-85°f basking, minus 5°f top end on both for baby/juvenile. Feeding depends on size/age and I am using the Jackson Care Sheet on Chamelon Forums. The Chameleon Forums say calcium w/o d3 twice a week and multivitamin/calcium w/ d3 once a month. Does once/twice mean one/two feeding(s)? Or one day(s)? The rest of my questions like temperature and humidity seem to be answered in the care sheet.

Am I missing anything? Do I need to change anything? Any other comments?

Thanks a ton! Much love and good vibes.

 

[Ponyboy]

Sounds like a great setup! Just a couple suggestions!

Don't rely too much on store-branded items for interior husbandry such as fake vines/plants/bamboo simply because you can go to somewhere such as Lowes or Joanne's Fabrics/Honby Lobby and save yourself a LOT of money!! For example I bought my bamboo sticks from Lowes for about 50 cents a piece and have it all throughout my enclosure to provide "highways" for my Cham. Much cheaper! Zoo Med knows where they can make money

I also prefer to use non-digital thermometers and hygrometers just because I don't trust computers :/ personal preference though!

Pothos is a great choice! I also have two in my enclosure in addition to camellia, and Arbricola. That's a big enclosure (Bill does great work by the way so good choice! I will be purchasing new my first dragonstrand soon as well!) so think about adding more live plants where appropriate; variety is the spice of life for your new family member!

So it sounds like your husbandry is good to go, have you thought yet about feeder options and setups? You'll notice most of us hobbyists are almost as into our feeder bugs as our chams! I would recommend peeking over at the chameleon food section and looking at the incredible variety of feeder bugs Nick Barta had available for the community, he prices his bugs very very well, ships fast, and even provides care sheets for the bugs!

I've noticed that a great variety of feeder options is absolutely as important as a great husbandry and I think you're well on your way.

Good luck and welcome to the community!

 

[Daypaul]

Good vibes brother! I am new to owning chameleons as well I have a female veiled named Blanche. Your list seems good to me I'm sure if you are missing anything someone will let you know. I also have children and they are infatuated with Blanche so you and your son will really enjoy him. Some people might disagree but taking care of children is harder than chameleons so you've got this. As far as supplements I use calcium without d3 every other day but Blanche gets atleast 2hrs sun a day. Just find what works best for you and your new chameleon. Good luck! You will get so much enjoyment from your new pet.

 

[Daypaul]

Also if you are able to free range I would go with that Blanche's attitude changed dramatically once I started letting her do so.

 

[NREwanick]

Hey!

Thanks so much for all the love and info! It's greatly appreciated. What's a good place to purchase crickets, roaches, worms, gutload, etc. in one place? Nick Barta has some nice stuff but I want to get everything together to cut down on shipping costs. Thanks so much! Look forward to hearing from you guys soon.

 

[NREwanick]

So, after calling FLChams they recommended that I go with a Veiled as they are the heartiest breed and they live the longest, 7-8 yrs for males. They told me that Jackson's are not as hearty and tend to only love about 5 yrs.

 

[Daypaul]

I'm very happy with my veiled she is a translucent and has white and clear blotches on her feet. Underground reptiles is where I got her from, I have to say I don't think how she was shipped was the best way I figured they would make her comfortable in a nice container she was litterally in a paper lunch sack. So be inquisitive about how they ship I won't be ordering from them again. I am very glad I did once though because blanche is awesome! Sorry for the long reply my point is I think you will be very happy with a veiled.

 

[NREwanick]

So after reading a bunch of websites, online reptile magazines, etc. It seems that male Jackson's do live to be 7-10 years old. I'm not sure why FLChams would tell me otherwise. I've also seek to run into a lot of conflicting information overall. I was really hoping for more replies. I'm trying to get a hold of Kammerflage to see what they have to say since they're one of the top chameleon breeders in the US. I know they breed Panthers but I'm sure they have a general understanding. Does anyone know a good person to talk to? Preferrably a herpatologist or someone many many years in?

 

[jajeanpierre]

So after reading a bunch of websites, online reptile magazines, etc. It seems that male Jackson's do live to be 7-10 years old. I'm not sure why FLChams would tell me otherwise. I've also seek to run into a lot of conflicting information overall. I was really hoping for more replies. I'm trying to get a hold of Kammerflage to see what they have to say since they're one of the top chameleon breeders in the US. I know they breed Panthers but I'm sure they have a general understanding. Does anyone know a good person to talk to? Preferrably a herpatologist or someone many many years in?

I think the truth is that no one really knows. Chameleons in captivity are kept in conditions that are inferior to their native range. They usually avoid predators in captivity, so that is in their favor.

I keep parrots and parrot people often quote life spans. For example, I have some African Greys which "everyone" says live to be 45 or so, but won't find one that old in captivity. Captive Greys that are well taken care of and actually make it to the 20s (just hitting that age is incredibly rare) tend to be dead of heart disease before they hit 30. I don't know any (other than one I have) that is over 30 and I've had contact with a lot of African Grey keepers. Most die in their teens if they make it past two years.