GabeCastro
Established Member
Panther Chameleon Set Up Help/General Questions (questionnaire filled out)
Chameleon Info:
(First time chameleon owner)
Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care? Panther Chameleon, Male, 5-6 months old, Has been in my care for about 5 days so far. Named him Jasper.
Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon? Held him a few times, but i started letting him be so he can adapt to his new home.
Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders? I mainly feed him medium sized crickets. He would eat about 6-10 every day, take them out at night before he sleeps. I gutload the crickets with flukers green cubes, red bell peppers, zucchini, & pairs. Also plan on adding Dubia, silkworks, and hornworms to his diet here and there.
Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule? I use reptical calcium w/out d3 for every day feed, plan on using ReptiCal Calcium w/D3 on the 1st and 15th of each month + ReptiCal Herptivite.
Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking? I have a MistKing that sprays for 30 seconds at 8:15am, 10:30am for 3 minutes, 12:30pm for 3 minutes, 3:30pm for 3 minutes, and 5:10pm for 3 minutes. Also i have a reptifogger that i use for about 30-60 mins a day to increase the humidity. Also i have a Big Dripper that drips tap water about every 20-25 seconds w/ added Reptisafe drops. Bay Area tap water is the best water in my opinon...So i chose not to use filtered water for his mister, dripper, and hand mister.
Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? I haven't seen any fecal matter yet...He's eaten about 20 crickets since i've had him for the 5 days, today being day 5. His appetite decreased because i think he's due for a shed. Since the day i've gotten him he looked a bit frosty.
History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you. Bought him from a reptile shop out here in the bay area, he was kept in a super small enclosure all his life. He had substrate on the bottom of the cage and also he could see the 2 other female panther chameleons on his left/right side. They hand misted the chameleon when they opened up (11am weekends, 12am weekdays). Had a small live plant inside the cage with a few branches. Not sure about his heating source either.
Cage Info:
Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions? I have him in a 18x18x36" ReptiBreeze Full Mesh aluminum cage. Also have a 24"x24"x48" full mesh aluminum cage. Planned on building it up when my cham gets to around 8-9 months.
Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule? I use a Zoo Med ReptiSun Terrarium Hood w/ Reptisun 5.0 UVB light, also a Flukers clamp lamp 5.5'' that has a ceramic bulb holder w/ 75w Zoo Med Basking Spot Lamp. Schedule is at 7:35am cut on, 7:35pm cut off.
Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps? The temperature is usally around the mid 80's in his basking spot, but when he basks under the light on a perch i use a handheld thermostat that reads high 80's. Sometimes super low 90's, 92º max Which i move the lamp higher to decrease the chance of burning him. Near the screen door it reads 78º. Bottom reads 74º. I use about 4 different gages, 3 digital and 1 set that are analog. Lowest overnight temp is about low-mid 60's.
Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity? My humidity is always above 70%, usually when its about 30 minutes till a mist it drops to 68%. Basking Spot assuming it dries out reads at 55% humidity level.
Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind? one small Ficus Benjamin and a hanging pothos plant. Both have been kept for about 2 weeks and are still green as can be.
Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? It's on the right side of my desk where i'm always at. I'm a graphic design student so i spend allot of time at home/using the computer. My girlfriend always lives with me and he's currently in our room. His cage is infront of a window, theres a curtain that i wanted to replace and make it black so light doesn't shine through. I hung up navy blue bathroom curtains around his enclosure so he wouldn't be able to see me working. He also falls right asleep when his lights cut off.
Location - Where are you geographically located? I am located in Alameda, California. (Bay Area)
Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about. I want to make sure i have my cage set up for him before i start going back to school again which is a week. I want to make sure he's not too hot and that my misting times are ok for him. He's also due for a shed i believe. I don't have any concerns with his health other than his skin being a bit brown/frosty looking. I can see a "FEW" scales on him that look like dead skin is forming. I tried adding a morning mist so he can get alittle wet and move around to get ready to eat. The past 2 nights he's fell asleep on his basking perch, but when he wakes up he will not move for a good 2 hours. Today he got up and moved away from his basking spot to his UVB bulb where he spends majority of his time at. Also he opens his mouth a few times, and i've read they do that when they're alittle too hot? Should i add more misting cycles but make them 1 minute mists? OH, another thing is...WHAT TYPE OF LOCALE PANTHER DO I HAVE!?!?! i was told i bought a male Nosy Be! But he looks nothing like a Nose Be haha. He has beautiful red rain patterns (Oorana Mena) on him so i was thinking Nosy Faly? Even a Ambilobe...I've made a few threads about this topic but didn't really get the answers i was looking for. Also didn't know we had to fill out this questionnaire, so sorry for that. Please help me out with any adivce/info i could get. I really want to make sure my little guy is ok while i'm gone majority of the day. I would be gone from around 11am-8pm 3 days out of the week the others i'll be home.
Video of cage set up (Watch in 1080p):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exK1sirhOnA&feature=plcp
Day i bought him from the reptile store:
Current Pics:
Current sleeping Colors:
Current First Wake Colors w/ no flash:
Current First Wake Colors w/ flash:
Chameleon Info:
(First time chameleon owner)
Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care? Panther Chameleon, Male, 5-6 months old, Has been in my care for about 5 days so far. Named him Jasper.
Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon? Held him a few times, but i started letting him be so he can adapt to his new home.
Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders? I mainly feed him medium sized crickets. He would eat about 6-10 every day, take them out at night before he sleeps. I gutload the crickets with flukers green cubes, red bell peppers, zucchini, & pairs. Also plan on adding Dubia, silkworks, and hornworms to his diet here and there.
Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule? I use reptical calcium w/out d3 for every day feed, plan on using ReptiCal Calcium w/D3 on the 1st and 15th of each month + ReptiCal Herptivite.
Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking? I have a MistKing that sprays for 30 seconds at 8:15am, 10:30am for 3 minutes, 12:30pm for 3 minutes, 3:30pm for 3 minutes, and 5:10pm for 3 minutes. Also i have a reptifogger that i use for about 30-60 mins a day to increase the humidity. Also i have a Big Dripper that drips tap water about every 20-25 seconds w/ added Reptisafe drops. Bay Area tap water is the best water in my opinon...So i chose not to use filtered water for his mister, dripper, and hand mister.
Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites? I haven't seen any fecal matter yet...He's eaten about 20 crickets since i've had him for the 5 days, today being day 5. His appetite decreased because i think he's due for a shed. Since the day i've gotten him he looked a bit frosty.
History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you. Bought him from a reptile shop out here in the bay area, he was kept in a super small enclosure all his life. He had substrate on the bottom of the cage and also he could see the 2 other female panther chameleons on his left/right side. They hand misted the chameleon when they opened up (11am weekends, 12am weekdays). Had a small live plant inside the cage with a few branches. Not sure about his heating source either.
Cage Info:
Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions? I have him in a 18x18x36" ReptiBreeze Full Mesh aluminum cage. Also have a 24"x24"x48" full mesh aluminum cage. Planned on building it up when my cham gets to around 8-9 months.
Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule? I use a Zoo Med ReptiSun Terrarium Hood w/ Reptisun 5.0 UVB light, also a Flukers clamp lamp 5.5'' that has a ceramic bulb holder w/ 75w Zoo Med Basking Spot Lamp. Schedule is at 7:35am cut on, 7:35pm cut off.
Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps? The temperature is usally around the mid 80's in his basking spot, but when he basks under the light on a perch i use a handheld thermostat that reads high 80's. Sometimes super low 90's, 92º max Which i move the lamp higher to decrease the chance of burning him. Near the screen door it reads 78º. Bottom reads 74º. I use about 4 different gages, 3 digital and 1 set that are analog. Lowest overnight temp is about low-mid 60's.
Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity? My humidity is always above 70%, usually when its about 30 minutes till a mist it drops to 68%. Basking Spot assuming it dries out reads at 55% humidity level.
Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind? one small Ficus Benjamin and a hanging pothos plant. Both have been kept for about 2 weeks and are still green as can be.
Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? It's on the right side of my desk where i'm always at. I'm a graphic design student so i spend allot of time at home/using the computer. My girlfriend always lives with me and he's currently in our room. His cage is infront of a window, theres a curtain that i wanted to replace and make it black so light doesn't shine through. I hung up navy blue bathroom curtains around his enclosure so he wouldn't be able to see me working. He also falls right asleep when his lights cut off.
Location - Where are you geographically located? I am located in Alameda, California. (Bay Area)
Current Problem - The current problem you are concerned about. I want to make sure i have my cage set up for him before i start going back to school again which is a week. I want to make sure he's not too hot and that my misting times are ok for him. He's also due for a shed i believe. I don't have any concerns with his health other than his skin being a bit brown/frosty looking. I can see a "FEW" scales on him that look like dead skin is forming. I tried adding a morning mist so he can get alittle wet and move around to get ready to eat. The past 2 nights he's fell asleep on his basking perch, but when he wakes up he will not move for a good 2 hours. Today he got up and moved away from his basking spot to his UVB bulb where he spends majority of his time at. Also he opens his mouth a few times, and i've read they do that when they're alittle too hot? Should i add more misting cycles but make them 1 minute mists? OH, another thing is...WHAT TYPE OF LOCALE PANTHER DO I HAVE!?!?! i was told i bought a male Nosy Be! But he looks nothing like a Nose Be haha. He has beautiful red rain patterns (Oorana Mena) on him so i was thinking Nosy Faly? Even a Ambilobe...I've made a few threads about this topic but didn't really get the answers i was looking for. Also didn't know we had to fill out this questionnaire, so sorry for that. Please help me out with any adivce/info i could get. I really want to make sure my little guy is ok while i'm gone majority of the day. I would be gone from around 11am-8pm 3 days out of the week the others i'll be home.
Video of cage set up (Watch in 1080p):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exK1sirhOnA&feature=plcp
Day i bought him from the reptile store:
Current Pics:
Current sleeping Colors:
Current First Wake Colors w/ no flash:
Current First Wake Colors w/ flash:
Last edited:
