rearranging open air terranium

[pikebomb]

Ok i think its time for me to redecorate my panther chams terranium. I only have one problem, Im sure he would bug out if I change all of the stuff in the terranium with him in it. He only goes on my hand if I feed him and then after im done he goes quickly back into the terranium. What would be the best way for me to redecorate and the least stressful to my cham?

 

[OntarioLizardman]

maybe get him out and put him on a something, like another plant you have lying around and then rearrange? and leave him a cup of bugs to keep him happy

 

[pikebomb]

I dont know if I could get him on a plant so easy. He is a really nice cham and I dont want to stress him so Im just clueless as to what to do. Anyone have this problem as well?

 

[OntarioLizardman]

take him out while hes on a plant, with the plant?

 

[pikebomb]

the thing is that I dont have a plant in my terranium yet. I have 3 branches with the fake leaves around them. I think he would freak if I tried to take him out while he is on the branch. I also have a jungle vine in there as well. I kno that I need to put a couple of plants in there because he needs to have a little fun lol but I just dont know how to do it. My cham is 8 months btw. thanks for ur help

 

[OntarioLizardman]

lol well welcome to the forum! and put some pics up of your panther! im sure so more people will post and give you more advice, this forum is a great place and ask any questions! if i were you i would just take him out really slowly and carefully while hes on his vine.

 

[panthercham]

Some thoughts......

Buy a decent size fiscus (1 you can use either in the cage or to take him outside for some sun or to park him in while you clean etc ) wash it to get rid of all the chemicals (do a search on that) and put him on that while you rearrange his cage. I do this for my boys while I do a thorough cleaning every 2 weeks or just to get them some sun when its warm. They look forward to this as a treat as the fiscus is bushy and they can hide or bask in the sun or jsut roam around in it.

What do you do when you clean his cage? Do you work around him? How big is this rearranging project? Are you getting him a bigger cage?

I am a believer that chams should not be overhandled....but I do believe that you should be able to handle them as stress free as possible for situations like this along with able to check them physically for any health issues, cage cleaning etc.

To do this I simply get them on a branch and slowly and carefully slide it under them until they grab on and lift them out gently and then onto the fiscus tree that is in a safe area and go about cleaning their cage. (with 1 eye on them all the time so they dont disappear & take off)

The great thing with a fiscus is that when they are in it you can move them anywhere you want. Mine have learnt that slow invasive branch = fiscus tree = adventure, sun and change of scenery and generally a fun time.

No matter what happens its good to be able to handle your cham occasionally for these types of reasons that way if anything major happens (vet visit, cage cleaning etc) he is not too stressed. Eventually he will have to come out of his cage so you may as well start training him now. Make it a great experience for him so that when it happens a few times he will learn that its ok and you are not out to hurt him...it may take a while but its worth it.

Good luck

 

[pikebomb]

hey this is the setup I have in my room. I have a mistking under the terranium(see photo) and the water is under my bed with a submersable aqarium heater to keep the water warm. Does the setup look good for my panther cham? Please post any comments or suggestions as im becoming ocd with keeping my cham happy. Thanks!!