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lisafoster2510

lisafoster2510

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I figured I would introduce myself. I have not kept reptiles in probably 15 years but I have decided I would like to keep a chameleon again. I had gotten my first and only chameleon 20 years ago I also kept a very large iguana, geckos, water dragons and a ball python.(now I feel old) I have decided to go with a female Jackson chameleon. She will be coming from Florida. I have been doing alot of research and I have all the basic supplies for her. I have a screened enclosure for her acclimation area it is 16x16x20". I also have an enclosure arriving friday that is 24x24x48" Screened also. I know that she is only about 4" can I put her in the large enclosure right away even if she is that small. The smaller one I have seems small to me. I do not want it to be to difficult for her to get access to catching the crickets that is why I had gotten the smaller one however now that it is set up it seems small. I really look forward to learning from everyone on this forum I can see keeping reptiles has come a long way in 20 years.
Supplies I have
flourescent coil uvb bulb 13 watts
75 watt zoo med basking light
reptivite d3 Still researching supplements It seems jacksons do not need alot.
Lots of branches
fake vines
live plants I am going tonight to get =
weeping fig
dwarf umbrella tree
pothos
hibiscus I figure with the large enclosure I can fit alot of plants :) mini jungle
mist sprayer
paper towels (substrate)
gut loaded crickets
digital thermometer
digital device to track humidity (getting tonight)
 
lisafoster2510 said:
I figured I would introduce myself. I have not kept reptiles in probably 15 years but I have decided I would like to keep a chameleon again. I had gotten my first and only chameleon 20 years ago I also kept a very large iguana, geckos, water dragons and a ball python.(now I feel old) I have decided to go with a female Jackson chameleon. She will be coming from Florida. I have been doing alot of research and I have all the basic supplies for her. I have a screened enclosure for her acclimation area it is 16x16x20". I also have an enclosure arriving friday that is 24x24x48" Screened also. I know that she is only about 4" can I put her in the large enclosure right away even if she is that small. The smaller one I have seems small to me. I do not want it to be to difficult for her to get access to catching the crickets that is why I had gotten the smaller one however now that it is set up it seems small. I really look forward to learning from everyone on this forum I can see keeping reptiles has come a long way in 20 years.
Supplies I have
flourescent coil uvb bulb 13 watts
75 watt zoo med basking light
reptivite d3 Still researching supplements It seems jacksons do not need alot.
Lots of branches
fake vines
live plants I am going tonight to get =
weeping fig
dwarf umbrella tree
pothos
hibiscus I figure with the large enclosure I can fit alot of plants :) mini jungle
mist sprayer
paper towels (substrate)
gut loaded crickets
digital thermometer
digital device to track humidity (getting tonight)
Click to expand...

Hi there, and welcome to the forum!

Your list there looks pretty good, the only thing I might change would be the coil bulb (If it were me I would go with the reptisun 5.0 linear tube bulb, or the reptiglo 5.0, also a linear tube bulb)

Also, I would keep a very good eye on the temp in her basking area. A 75 watt bulb may be a bit too warm for such a little one.

As far as supplements go, from what I understand, Jacksons don't need to be supplemented as much as say, a panther, but it is still important that they get calcium WITHOUT D3, and also a multivitamin. I see you already have the calcium WITH D3 so that is a good start :)

As far as the larger enclosure, there are a lot of people that do put baby chams into a large enclosure, but they cup feed their chams to allow easy access to their food, and make sure there are vines or sticks in there small enough for her to grip.

There are a lot of great people on here that are a bit more educated than I am as far as Jackson go, and I'm sure they will be here to answer your questions if you have any.

Also, what are you using to gutload your crickets?
 
I was reading about the coil bulb I am running out tonight I will change it for a linear bulb, I will also pick up a 50 watt , I will also grab the other supplements you mentioned. I had read about the cup feeding I did not know if tey also like to hunt. I think I will try the larger enclosure the more I look at the small one the smaller it seems. Good question I bought the crickets in a package that just says gut loaded. I am going to be setting up a seperate cricket enclosure so I can feed them myself. I figured I would buy them already gut loaded but I guess I should have checked the label. They are petco crickets. Any advice on wat to feed them myself is welcome. They sell so many different options for feeding the crickets yellow green orange gel.
 
Every thing looks fine now that you are changing the bulb and gettin calcium w/o D3. You will also need a multivitamin. As for pre gutloaded crickets. As soon as they poop they lose their gutload. You should gutload fresh each night or every 2 nights. That way when you feed the next day your cricket will have a full belly ready for your cham.
I would use fresh fruits and vegies over the store bought gutload. Think of a cricket as a empty pill cap. that you can fill with healthy things for your cham. You are what you eat type of thing.

Welcome, you are at the right place for chameleon help and fun.
 
Great thanks for all the help is 50 watt basking to high. I am going now to do some shopping my favorite thing to do. Good to know about once they poop they are not gut loaded.
 
I have to change my bulbs watt by the temps here. Right now it is beggining to get hot so I went down to a 40 watt. It mainly depends on how hot or cold your basking area is.
 
lisafoster2510 said:
I was reading about the coil bulb I am running out tonight I will change it for a linear bulb, I will also pick up a 50 watt , I will also grab the other supplements you mentioned. I had read about the cup feeding I did not know if tey also like to hunt. I think I will try the larger enclosure the more I look at the small one the smaller it seems. Good question I bought the crickets in a package that just says gut loaded. I am going to be setting up a seperate cricket enclosure so I can feed them myself. I figured I would buy them already gut loaded but I guess I should have checked the label. They are petco crickets. Any advice on what to feed them myself is welcome. They sell so many different options for feeding the crickets yellow green orange gel.
Click to expand...

Good call on the bulbs :)

I cup feed all my chameleons. They do quite well with it, and I would definitely recommend that you cup feed yours as well if you are going with the larger enclosure. Sometimes it can take a few days for them to get the hang of it, I know it did for mine, but eventually it is like a little light bulb goes off in their head, and they just get it, so don't let it discourage you.

Also, as far as buying gutloaded crix, they may very well advertise this, but 1. It doesn't take long for the crix to poop out what they eat (what your cham needs) and 2. I'm very much doubting they "gutload" the crix with anything substantial aka what you WANT to use for the health of your little one.

As far as gutloading goes, there are many options. I use carrots (grated), zucchini (grated), kale, mustard greens, collard greens, oranges (they help with hydrating the crix as well, and help with the smell), mango, cantaloupe, honey dew, sweet potato, and the list goes on and on. Don't use iceburg lettuce, and make sure that everything that can be grated, is! A lot of people use a good dry gutload in combination with these ingredients as well.

I keep my "cricket salad" ingredients in separate Tupperware containers in the fridge, and feed my crickets about 5 hours before I feed them to my chams. This allows them to ingest what I have given them, without excreting it. Be sure to alternate the ingredients every 2 to 3 weeks to keep your chams from getting bored.

You can also feed your chams silkworms, hornworms, butterworms (my personal favorite bc of their high nutritional value) dubia roaches, lobster roaches, painted lady butterflies, superworms, and other things. Wax worms are available at local pet stores, but are high in fat, and low in nutrients, so I don't feed them right now.
 
Where I am it still drops into the thirties at night. I like to keep my house cool at night 65-68 degrees. Awesome I am a vegetarian so I have lots of veggies around and fruit.
 
lisafoster2510 said:
Where I am it still drops into the thirties at night. I like to keep my house cool at night 65-68 degrees. Awesome I am a vegetarian so I have lots of veggies around and fruit.
Click to expand...

Make sure your lights (both) are on for 12 hours, and off for 12 hours. Your cham will be just fine in 65 degree temps at night.
 
Ok I got a linear t5 25 uvb bulb and fixture, multivitamin w/out d3, need to find calcium w/out d3, canged to 50 watt basking bulb. I picked up some plants from home depot sould I wash the leaves in anti bacterial soap or can I leave them in the shower for like 10 minutes to rinse off any pesticides? I will be repotting into some better pots. I am also ordering a temp gun and checking out misting systems.
 
lisafoster2510 said:
Ok I got a linear t5 25 uvb bulb and fixture, multivitamin w/out d3, need to find calcium w/out d3, canged to 50 watt basking bulb. I picked up some plants from home depot sould I wash the leaves in anti bacterial soap or can I leave them in the shower for like 10 minutes to rinse off any pesticides? I will be repotting into some better pots. I am also ordering a temp gun and checking out misting systems.
Click to expand...


You can find the calcium W/out D-3 at LLLreptile which is one of the forums site sponsors. Thats if you can not track it down at your local pet supply. I had a very difficult time with this and our stores did not have any at all! So had to order it. Good luck sounds like you are off to a good start, I would defiantly wash the plants twice with the anti-bacterial soap and rinse 2-3 times. :) and welcome to the forums.
 
lisafoster2510 said:
Ok I got a linear t5 25 uvb bulb and fixture, multivitamin w/out d3, need to find calcium w/out d3, canged to 50 watt basking bulb. I picked up some plants from home depot sould I wash the leaves in anti bacterial soap or can I leave them in the shower for like 10 minutes to rinse off any pesticides? I will be repotting into some better pots. I am also ordering a temp gun and checking out misting systems.
Click to expand...

who is that bulb made by? Does it say desert or tropical series on it?
 
I got the one that said tropical. zilla that is the only brand they had. I live 30 minutes from petco. I need to find a reputeable reptile store. I am sure they are at least an hour from me but I am used to that I keep reef tanks and everywhere good is far.
 
zilla lights might be a problem...i woud return it and order the uvb light online if possible for you...zilla lights in the past like th coil and i thinl linear produce either too little or way too much uvb and can hurt the eyes your future chameleon...if it closes its eyes in time, the first thing to do is change the light. bbut maybe save the trouble and get the correct lighting
 
lisafoster2510 said:
I got the one that said tropical. zilla that is the only brand they had. I live 30 minutes from petco. I need to find a reputeable reptile store. I am sure they are at least an hour from me but I am used to that I keep reef tanks and everywhere good is far.
Click to expand...

I understand I live 20 minutes from either of our 2 towns! So I am at best to always order online or go towards D.C :rolleyes:
 
:)
lisafoster2510 said:
Which brand is it just the bulbs that are the problem not the fixture? Which brand is good?
Click to expand...

the fixture i feel should be okay as long as the tube fits and it works

the brands to look for is either zoomed 5.0 reptisun linear uvb tube

or repti-glo 5.0 uvb tube.

measure your current tube so you can get the same tube size

there 15in, 18in, 24in, and 48in as far as i know

goodluck and welcome to the forums:)
 
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