outdoor enclosures in south FL

[savannahblue]

I recently moved my chameleon into an outdoor enclosure and i live in south FL. He gets plenty of heat and sun light from sunrise until the afternoon showers(around 3pm and may last as long as sundown). the temperature never drops below 77 during the storms and i put a piece of ply wood over the top of the cage. I was wondering if i should be moving him inside under heat and UVB during the afternoons. I have a small 1x1x1.5h screen enclosure that i could transfer him into, but i feel that this may be too small. Is the morning sun enough??

 

[carol5208]

Where is south fla? I live in Lake worth and would never consider having my cham outside right now, no way! It is way too hot. how long have you had him outside? I am waiting for the weather to cool down in the fall and then i plan on moving him out on patio.

 

[jannb]

I have a big enclosure on my screen back porch but in the summer it's usually to hot for them to enjoy it.

 

[savannahblue]

yeah, im in the same county. I regular check the temperatures. altough temperatures get as high as 104, he has tons of shadey spots to escape to and i also have a misting system which i run for a couple of minutes each day. He's been out there for about 4 or 5 days now. but between the hot mornings and the rainy afternoons i have been considering moving him back inside. You think it is simply too hot this time of year??? hes native to Yemen and Saudi....

 

[carol5208]

yes, but she has hers OUTSIDE with a piece of plywood on top. I remember in May my temp gage on my patio was around 88-90 and that was back then.

 

[james L]

Jann, love the cage!

 

[jannb]

Jann, love the cage!

Thanks James! Luie is so spoiled I have to leave the door open for him or he just sits at the door begging to get out.

 

[carol5208]

I dont know much about that type of cham. I know the panthers(which I have) are from Madagascar and the median temp is around 80 deg so 104 deg and he would probably be dead. Just see how it does I guess but that just seems so extreme.

 

[james L]

Ive kept and am currently keeping veileds, panthers, and senegals outside. Panthers do get over heated the fastest ive noticed. Early sun is the best. Avoid the afternoon heat.

 

[Julirs]

I currently only keep 3 chams outside, unless the temps drop well below 50 degrees. I have a WC Panther, an Oustalet, and one of my CB Veileds. They are under the overhang outside my screened lanai poolside. They are hooked to a mist king programmed to come on several times a day, and only recieve direct sunlight late afternoon. Mind you I live on the Bay, so there is always a breeze here. I cannot imagine keeping them out in the dead heat of summer in central or south Florida. The high heat and humidity seems to cause respiratory infections especially in Veileds.

 

[WinstonChrchll]

Way to hot down here for outdoor caging unless you are very well setup (as julirs is). I take my panther out every so often for some sunlight and on the hotter days he is gaping in a few minutes, and I have to rush him back to the AC . And yes Vieleds are from yemen, but the area they reside in isn't as hot as you'd expect.

 

[chameleonoobie]

Seems to me some of the Florida feral veileds I’ve seen collected look quite robust and are obviously reproducing with the conditions they are living in here now. Imagine that, no incubators, dusted bugs or UV bulbs! Who taught them to do that? I pretty much expect them to be a common sight around here sooner or later like Knight anoles, red head agamas, and curly tail lizards. How could they have a problem with adequate outdoor caging? By the way, that walk in size aviary type cage is really great!

 

[james L]

Julirs, Where did you hear "The high heat and humidity seems to cause respiratory infections especially in Veileds" There are population of veileds though out south, south east, south west, and west central FL. If it wasnt for people collecting the hell out of them, they would spread like wild fire. Everything about S.FL is perfect for wild veileds.

 

[Julirs]

Julirs, Where did you hear "The high heat and humidity seems to cause respiratory infections especially in Veileds" There are population of veileds though out south, south east, south west, and west central FL. If it wasnt for people collecting the hell out of them, they would spread like wild fire. Everything about S.FL is perfect for wild veileds.

Not hear-experienced. Although I was told this by some large scale keepers prior to experiencing for myself. CB Veileds (weirdly enough mostly from the West coast) ended up getting URI when I put them outside here.

WC Veileds are very different. They are not in cages and have plenty of room to thermoregulate. And where are you seeing populations outside of West/Central?

 

[james L]

WC's are not very different. There still veileds. The same rules apply. Ive heard of many west coast keepers housing veileds outdoors without any issues. Not sure why yours got URI. Sorry cant give up the spots. Do some reasearch. The west coast has a few populations.

 

[chameleonoobie]

I always thought it was funny keeping the spots secret when you can find veileds as cheap as $25.00 at reptile shows, and maybe $40.00 on line. Who would rather drive, jump a fence, trespass, climb a tree full of bugs in the dark and risk injury and arrest, etc. Please people, buy captive raised, it’s not worth it to go chameleon hunting! Think about it, they aren’t free!

 

[james L]

Did you have a bad experience trying to catch some lizards? FL veileds are worth the it if you dont break any laws. Your not going to find a 150-200 gram female or a amazing high yellow male for $25-$40, unless you have the hook up.

 

[chameleonoobie]

Yea, got bit by a big Doberman, cut my leg jumping the fence, had the land owner shoot at me with a shotgun, got arrested for trespassing, bad case of poison ivy, bit by fire ants and fell out of a tree and dislocated my shoulder. Don’t even think about it!

Seriously, the spots should be publicized within the community and they should be collected and eradicated or eventually you will see them added to the “species of concern” list ( which they can do at any time with no public input) and make it illegal to own, buy and sell them in Florida. This is all the law now since the “python bill” passed. Protecting the feral populations because you get a kick out of them being here is detrimental to your hobby in the long run. It might not be too late to do something about it among ourselves before things are mandated and taken out of our hands.

 

[james L]

Sounds like you did everything wrong... and if you know a spot, give it up then. I had nothing to do with the creation of these populations, im just taking advantage of them. Also by protecting them in a way is protecting the genral public such as your self from going out and doing dumb stuff... If you do thing right, you wont find nearly as many, but you wont get hurt or go to jail. Never brake laws!

 

[Julirs]

CB from California, not the West Coast of FL. I did not ask you to give up the "spots"-I know where they are.
I don't think anyone is complaining about the size and high color of the CB Veileds I produce.

Veileds are Veileds, but just like any other animal generational CB does not equal WC.