Questions! Soon to be a first time Cham. owner.

[sfv89]

So, I live in Perú and have been looking for people who sell chameleons here, and already found a guy who will have some baby Veiled Chameleons by March next year, so I wan't to get ready for when I get the little guy.

Lima is a very humid city. Humidity here goes form 80% up to 99% all the time, it doesn't go much lower than that. I will definitely get a humidity meter for the cage. I'm guessing that with those conditions I would not need a mister, but only the dripper, right?

Also, i have found a store here that sells UVB bulbs, they have UVB 100, 150 and 200. I'm not sure about what that means, i know the numbers represent intensity, but still, I don't know much about that. I've read that with the 100 it should be OK. I've also read that for heat it's good to use a 50 watt regular lightbulb.

I'm would be keeping my chameleon's cage inside my room, do you guys have any advice about that?

The cage I want to get will be 50x50x100cm, and get a lot of branches and vines for him to climb.

This forum is great and I'm learning a lot, hope time passes by fast and I get to have my own chameleon soon

Thanks!

 

[kj9]

If you haven't already, you probably will want to check this out:

https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/veiled/

It is very thorough and should hopefully answer a lot of your questions.
Good luck!

 

[sfv89]

Thanks! I had already read that but i'm going to keep it as a guide for when i build the cage. If humidity levels in my city are higher than what the chameleon needs, the bulb for basking should help keep that down right?

Do chameleons get hydrated through their skin also? I mean, would I still have to mist, and if I do, should it be directly on to the chameleon or do I only mist the plants?

 

[Oliviabryant]

Thanks! I had already read that but i'm going to keep it as a guide for when i build the cage. If humidity levels in my city are higher than what the chameleon needs, the bulb for basking should help keep that down right?

Do chameleons get hydrated through their skin also? I mean, would I still have to mist, and if I do, should it be directly on to the chameleon or do I only mist the plants?

If you have the means I would suggest buying MistKing brand misting system.
If not then any old hand held sprayer will work so long as it has not contained any chemicals prior.
If you could find a Jackson's chameleon he would love the humidity !

The himdity should not be an issue as long as you have a screen enclosure. Will you be keeping him outside ?

 

[sfv89]

Thanks for the tips! I'll see if I can get a Jackson's. It's very hard to get chameleons here in Perú, so I'm going to buy the first one I can lay hands on, and it's most likely to be a Veiled chameleon.

Nope, I'm keeping it inside, where it's actually dryer, because I live near the ocean and there is a lot of fog, specially in winter. Luckily the breeder said he'll have some new babies available for summer so the humidity is not going to be that high.

 

[kj9]

Good luck with your chams! I have veileds & personally they're my favorite!

 

[Oliviabryant]

Veileds are amazing, just be sure to get him used to socializing at a youn age. You don't want an aggressive veiled

 

[kj9]

One of my veileds I got when he was 8 months old - he'd never been handled much & it took a lot of work to get him used to being handled & even more work to get him to eat from my hand.

 

[sfv89]

I've been told that the ones that will be available for sale are going to be babies so i'll definitely do my best to get him used to being handled from time to time and eating from my hand and a feeding cup maybe. I know they are not supposed to be handled a lot so i'll be careful with that.

I'm a chef, so I'm at work a lot, maybe between 10 and 14 hours a day, how many times a day do you feed your chameleons? How could I manage to keep him happy without me being around much?

 

[Psychobunny]

Thanks for the tips! I'll see if I can get a Jackson's. It's very hard to get chameleons here in Perú, so I'm going to buy the first one I can lay hands on, and it's most likely to be a Veiled chameleon.

Nope, I'm keeping it inside, where it's actually dryer, because I live near the ocean and there is a lot of fog, specially in winter. Luckily the breeder said he'll have some new babies available for summer so the humidity is not going to be that high.

Why is it hard to get them in Peru?
Is it because of laws forbidding them, or just lack of interest in selling them
(no demand)?

 

[Kate]

Good luck with your new baby. It's a long time to wait but you should have all tour answers by then. You will need to mist as they drink droplets off the leaves in the viv, and no they don't absorb moisture through their skin.

 

[sfv89]

There is almost no demand, and they have been very difficult to import, so a couple guys started breeding their chameleons and now they are selling the babies, that's why I think I'm getting a Veiled cham, those are the ones being breeded around here.

Although i know they are very difficult to take care of, I would really like to have a Parsons or a Meller's sometime, those big chams are amazing!

 

[sfv89]

Good luck with your new baby. It's a long time to wait but you should have all tour answers by then. You will need to mist as they drink droplets off the leaves in the viv, and no they don't absorb moisture through their skin.

Thanks! I will set the cage up before getting the baby and start doing some test so I learn how to handle the humidity levels. It's a good thing i have time to prepare