Preliminary Stages Garage Free Range

[Djturna4thakidz]

I have been researching free ranging my 2 chameleons for the past several weeks. At this point I get them (1 male, 1 female ambilobe Panthers) out of their cages as much as possible to roam or get sun. I think they would be much happier in a free range setup. At the moment, my garage needs to be cleaned out and insulated. As it is now, it gets to hot in the summer and too cold in the winter, seeing as I live in Los Angeles. Has anyone transformed a garage into a chameleon room? How would I go about making a garage cham safe? Should I proceed with this idea or just keep them in their cages when they get moved to the garage? Let me know what you all think

 

[Djturna4thakidz]

Nobody? just weight in. Thoughts?

 

[SarahcoadunatioZac]

I wouldn't make the entire garage free range, as I've read on other posts that sometimes you can have a "wanderer" and having a large space its harder to 'cham proof'. I'd section off a part of the garage just to be safe personally.

 

[Mmcbain1]

Hey i think it is an awsome idea i lived in ventura county (thousand oaks) and i free ranged my chams but in a bedroom. With no heat or AC. I dont think a garage is a bad idea just be aware of hazards like hot water heater attic crawl spaces. In the winter is when you have to worry a bit but in LA it only gets at freezing levels 1 or 2 times a year and you can prepare for that.

 

[Djturna4thakidz]

Thanks guys,

I think I am going to convert the garage into a cham room. Move my cages out there and build some sort of free range where they could be supervised. I was thinking of insulating the garage. Do you think that would be necessary or do you think I can get away with just having a space heater and heating the area when it got cold?

 

[EvilLost]

Hey DJ,

I would be wary of doing an entire garage by yourself unless you have some experience. "General" answers to questions posed on the internet are dangerous because these situations vary greatly.


Space heaters are Dangerous to use in these situations. They generate a large amount of heat in a small area, which is exactly what we do NOT want. Often times you end up with either too much heat directed at the chams, or not enough heat. What you want is AMBIENT temperatures to be stable, and for that you would ideally want to insulate (or semi-insulate) the environment.


-What kind of a realistic budget do you have set out for this project?
-Do you intend to just keep 2 cages in your garage (and let them out when you are there) or do you permanently want to free-range your garage?
-The floor plan, size, layout, and traffic of the garage will all impact your designs as well.


If you'd like some more technical discussion, send me an email at [email protected] and I can help you out with simple advice or complete construction.