New To Forum, Chameleons....Have a Few Q's

[Sneak]

Have been doing research for a good minute on the veileds as i will be getting a male in the next week or so. My question is about a juvenile cage, why would you need a juvenile sized cage if you just restricted movement space in an adult sized cage? Would this not be the same?

As quickly as these things grow, I just dont see the point of dropping a decent amount of change just to turn around and need to get an even more expensive one in a few months......Maybe yall can explain why restricting space in a bigger cage would not be a good idea if it isnt. thanks

 

[MALTReptiles]

Well, how would you restrict the size of a larger cage? Where would you put the dripper, UVB lamp and heat lamp? They need to be close enough to allow enough warmth. I think it's a good idea to get a small cage for a juvenile. It's not like they're that expensive to buy.

 

[Brad Ramsey]

The reason for a smaller enclosure is that it allows you to better monitor feeding, watering, etc.
It is also close to impossible for a weeks old baby veiled to find his food in an adult sized enclosure.
I highly recommend growing them up in a small enclosure.
It doesn't need to be anything more than a rubbermaid container with some plants and a Repti-Sun 5.0 UVB linear tube over the top.

http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/

-Brad

 

[Sneak]

I could buy aluminum screenin and a long enough 1x3 to cut in order to make an enclosure inside the enclosure for like ten bux and still have full access to the lil man. What about cup feeding, would he not learn where the cup is? Even my less than inteligent tropical fish in my smaller tank learn where the food comes in at.

 

[alhickabee]

Since you are going to buy a juvi male veiled you could start him out in a bigger cage than normal if he can easily find his food i.e. cup feeding. If you are planning on eventually getting a female for him then get a ~3'x2'x1.5' to house him for now. Then when he is ready for a bigger cage move him to a 4'x2'x2' and you have his old one for a female friend. Just a reccomendation as this is what I've decided to do, but I got my guy at 4 months so he was ready for the 3x2x1.5.

 

[Sneak]

like 3-4", maybe that is a baby still? I call everything that is not almost full grown, a juvie. I will be getting one that is just at the point of being able to be shipped. I can see how one could get lost in a huge cage, I just wanted to see if anyone has ever just modified a big cage to house a lil cham to save a couple bux.

 

[Vince]

Ive seen people split their larger cages in half with a piece of plywood, then when he gets older you can just remove...

 

[klangford]

...a big cage to house a lil cham to save a couple bux.

Sneak - I appreciate what you are trying to get at and I may be wrong but in my limited experience thus far it seems owning chams and saving a couple of bux are not possible together - proper husbandry takes an investment of both capital and time.

 

[kenya]

I will play the devil's advocate here- I think it is perfectly doable. Do you have an Ikea nearby? They have a small $12 table called a LACK. If I am right in my eyeballing, it should just fit into a 2x2x4 cage. You could put it inside the cage and then put a perfectly cut piece of plywood or something similar in on the table to create a bottom. You would be using the top half of the cage and you could put a ficus or another plant in. It would take some testing, but I think it is doable.

This is all pretty complicated- it may be better to go Brad's route and get a cheap Rubbermaid tub and wait until he grows a bit more.

 

[Sneak]

I will play the devil's advocate here- I think it is perfectly doable.

Thanks, your idea doesnt seem that complicated to me. What Im thinking about doing though, is like an L shaped frame since my cage is three feet wide. If i make it about an 1/8" wider than the actual cage, it will snuggle in there real nice. It would take the 36w x 18d x 48h cage down to around 18w x 18d x 24h. Those dimensions would work good right?

Klangford wrote:
Sneak - I appreciate what you are trying to get at and I may be wrong but in my limited experience thus far it seems owning chams and saving a couple of bux are not possible together - proper husbandry takes an investment of both capital and time.

I go the extra mile to take care of all my animals as I keep fish at the top notch level of fish keeping and doing so requires alot of time and money but if I can save a few bux and not compromise the health or needs of my lil ones, then you better believe I will save the dollar everytime. I understand what you are saying though.