Project: Realistic chameleon habitat

[Dperez87]

Hey folks, im looking to start a new project soon, i want to build a realistic habitat for my male veiled chameleon. I want to use a natural substrate, live plants and branches, a mister or rain system, and i have a humidifier already, and a good draining system.
Now I was hoping you guys can help me with finding the stuff i need, or pictures of your setups, i would appreciate any help. Thanks

 

[KarmaChameleon1337]

Pretty much no subsrates are good for chameleons. They can eat them by mistake. If you want it to look grassy just use green pet carpet.

 

[DavidBuchan]

It's true that a substrate will add nothing for your Chameleon, and does have potential dangers.........so you will need to keep a close eye on his eating (pref. cup feed) and a close eye on his droppings. Make sure the substrate is tightly packed, not loose like in a laying bin, no loose moss or anything like that......
Here's a clip of mine when I was just setting it up - it's a very simple one with no mist system or drainage system set up.......http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IJWApNQZ3g Here's a link to the safe plant list - http://www.flchams.com/safe_plant_list.asp

 

[KarmaChameleon1337]

Even tightly packed ones hold dangers. If just looks is what you're going for, then don't bother. It's unsafe.

 

[grimjob]

Hey buddy I've got a full natural set up with soil live plants growing in that soil and everything and my 3 month veiled loves it, the soil is great cause once the little micro organisms start to grow they break down all the poo wish gets fed into soil and makes the plants thrive,

 

[Angrychair]

just grow grass on the bottom !!! like golf coarse quality stuff!!

 

[Dperez87]

Hey buddy I've got a full natural set up with soil live plants growing in that soil and everything and my 3 month veiled loves it, the soil is great cause once the little micro organisms start to grow they break down all the poo wish gets fed into soil and makes the plants thrive,

Sounds just like what i want to do, have any detailed pictures?

 

[Dperez87]

just grow grass on the bottom !!! like golf coarse quality stuff!!

Grass could work also, has anyone done this?

 

[JackP308]

my substrate of coco fiber works just fine, it also adds humidity and gives it a more natural look. If i don't use that I go bare bottom.

 

[sdheli420]

the best possible solution for a realistic set up (has been my idea to hand make one for awhile now) would be to use clay (with different colors) and make a "fake" soil bottom with potted plants inside(hide the pot with the hardened "fake soil" that way there is no danger of impaction from eating soil, no smell from over watered dirt, no mold can grow so easy, but will still have that "real" look..also chams in the wild are up in trees so often they dont eat soil, in cages, they are stuck closer to the ground, where in turn while hunting prey will ingest whatever else sticks to the toungue) thats the main reason we all DO NOT USE soil..we can controll the environment to be as safe as possible..

 

[Carlton]

Hey folks, im looking to start a new project soon, i want to build a realistic habitat for my male veiled chameleon. I want to use a natural substrate, live plants and branches, a mister or rain system, and i have a humidifier already, and a good draining system.
Now I was hoping you guys can help me with finding the stuff i need, or pictures of your setups, i would appreciate any help. Thanks

IMHO, a realistic setup for a veiled would be a free range situation made from a clump of larger densely branched potted shrubs. No cage at all. The typical small cage setup is going to be a hassle to arrange and keep clean. The cham will be too close to any substrates. The plants won't get very large because their roots will be restricted and constantly wet. And, live growing surfaces like grass planted below the other climbing plants won't do well unless your lighting is very intense and direct. In a free range, you can buy larger shrubs, hang your basking and UVB lights from ceiling hooks overhead, use a mister to create rain over the area and protect the floor with a piece of tarp, pond liner, or even soil colored ceramic tile. The cham won't care what the actual floor covering is as it isn't really part of their useful habitat.

To get some idea what a wild veiled's habitat looks like you could always research where they occur in Yemen. I think the Chameleons on line e-zine had an article on this some years ago. They are more common in dense bushy river valleys reaching to the coastline. One problem will be finding large potted shrubs that can handle the relatively low light conditions indoors.

 

[Rosco]

I use river rocks that are approximately the size of a fifty cent piece and cover the floor. I have a grated bottom that holds it all in and a large plastic tub to collect the water, that is on a shelf below; basically the most bare-boned drainage system. The rocks are to big for him to even fit in his mouth and I HIGHLY doubt that a cricket could hold that while it's getting snatched by his tongue. I have real tropical plants that require lots of water and are grown in lava rocks on the floor as well. It's not an accurate habitat, but I think it's very cool and tropical.

 

[JonRich]

It's very hard to create and maintain a "realistic" Cham environment in an indoor enclosure smaller than 8' x 8' x 8'.

I wish i lived in a state where we had good "tropical" type weather and a nice backyard. Something like Florida or certain parts of Cali.

I would love to build something like 15' L x 15' W x 8' H with a natural ground. Mesh top section for basking and a Roofed or Canopy section for really rainy days.

Maybe get a somewhat "wild " population of about 3 or 5 animals (with a 1:2 male/female ratio). Of the same species in hopes of having them show "wild" type behavior.

 

[ktravelet]

Sometime I'm going to make a large free range similar to what you're talking about. I was going to go with 2 ft of soil, then some very fine mesh wire, then another foot of sand.

I shouldn't have to worry about a laying bin again! Also the mesh would prevent the chameleon from digging too far. If you have a male, you wouldn't have to worry about the mesh at all!

I was going to go with a ficus, money tree, and umbrella plant, for my taller plants and assorted plants on the bottom.

 

[Scottsf]

I use real grass in my outdoor enclosure. I just grabbed a few rolls of leftover sod from my neighbors back yard. I just let it grow and have to don't cut it, and my chams love the little Nats and bugs that pop out of it.

 

[Olimpia]

In a large enough cage you could do it. I would have no qualms about using substrate at all if I could find a way to drain the water properly. I mean, come on, we trust to keep a laying bin of sand or dirt with our females and we think they can't handle a full ground of it? I would feel completely comfortable using organic top soil if I could make it work.

When/if I ever live in a house again with a yard I will make a large outdoor cage and let it be the most natural thing ever.

 

[sdheli420]

In a large enough cage you could do it. I would have no qualms about using substrate at all if I could find a way to drain the water properly. I mean, come on, we trust to keep a laying bin of sand or dirt with our females and we think they can't handle a full ground of it? I would feel completely comfortable using organic top soil if I could make it work.

When/if I ever live in a house again with a yard I will make a large outdoor cage and let it be the most natural thing ever.

completley agree..i was never worried of impaction, never had that issue, nd never had chams eating soil (i provide edible flowers and veggies )..i used clean, organic soil for years..but just as you stated, drainage is a problem, and even when drained properly, it is much to moist for most plants to tolerate, as well as light levels are usually to low of a lumen output to keep plants alive for a long healthy time..

 

[JonRich]

Sometime I'm going to make a large free range similar to what you're talking about. I was going to go with 2 ft of soil, then some very fine mesh wire, then another foot of sand.

I shouldn't have to worry about a laying bin again! Also the mesh would prevent the chameleon from digging too far. If you have a male, you wouldn't have to worry about the mesh at all!

I was going to go with a ficus, money tree, and umbrella plant, for my taller plants and assorted plants on the bottom.

That sounds like a great idea. But you want the whole enclosure floor to be this "egg laying substrait"?.. From what i have reserched , females "wonder" for a sutiable laying area. I assume you would only need a portion/s of the this substraight avaliable for the females to lay. The rest can be packed soil, something that will not cave under your weight as you move about and maintain the enclosure.

I like the idea of having levels of foliage. Taller sturdy trees, some grass and bushes.

 

[iLik3LIzards]

REALISTICALLY, chams are never really near the ground. Their ecosystem is high up in the canopy. So some cool cross sections of vines, branches, foliage, with no substrate would be technically the most realistic. So if its a wild chams realistic environment you want then substrate is not apart of it. It be like cropping out a section of jungle canopy and displaying it in your living room.

 

[JonRich]

REALISTICALLY, chams are never really near the ground. Their ecosystem is high up in the canopy. So some cool cross sections of vines, branches, foliage, with no substrate would be technically the most realistic. So if its a wild chams realistic environment you want then substrate is not apart of it. It be like cropping out a section of jungle canopy and displaying it in your living room.

So do they tend to spend their entire lives confined to a single tree if there is no connection to other trees ?

I thought i read a story of a Chameleon with a stubbed tail because it lived in area along a tree-lined road and while making it's way from one tree to another it was partially hit by a car and lost a section of it's tail. I assumed iff needed they would venture to the floor to move from one tree to another (aside from females laying eggs)

i'll see if i can find the story.

Also this.. vv Quoted from the Crash runaway thread.

The day before he was in the outdoor freerange and I noticed he was really mobile, and kept going to the ground, like he was searching for something (girl?!)

Oh, by the way, he was a block over and 2 blocks up....ON THE STREET!!!!
He is a subadult and lookin for a girl figure!!

Thats a long ways to go without going to the ground.