Senegal Cham is this the habitat

Blacktip26

New Member
hi, new here and the chameleon world in general.... i had WC anols when i was a kid, i live in south Texas, they're everywhere...

anyway i bought a Senegal cham at the flea market 3 days ago... after doing some research i realize the dude who sold it to me didn't have a clue, so i want to make sure i keep it in good health, i'm getting a ESU Fresh Air cage today after work (18"*12"*20"), as well as a Zoo Med Repti Sun 5.0 Fluorescent Lamp, a Zoo Med Repti Basking Spot Lamp, calcium supplements, gut load and some more crickets....

i'm thinking it's only 3-4 months old, it's eating, just found out about Gut Loading, and was thinking bout a product from Petco called, "Fluker's Laboratories High-Calcium Cricket Feed", and for the crickets to drink a product called, "Fluker's Cricket Quencher" and dust the crickets once a week with "Zoo Med Reptivite Reptile Vitamins" 2-1 calcium to phosphorus ratio...


it's drinking water, and it's green... i have a pic in my Gallery(how do i post it to a thread?), and will get some more after i get home, and can anyone give me a link to the proper coloring for this species...

the current setup is a 10 gallon aquarium with some coco in the bottom (won't be in the new cage) with some fake sticks, plastic vine, and a fake plant bought from wal-mart that was in the craft section... i have a feeding bowl hanging from a branch, but after reading bout them it seems not needed since it's most likely a WC and needs to use it's hunting instinct

temp in the basking area is 90 (using a desk lamp at the moment with a T10 60watt bulb) and the ambeint is 77 (house temp), humidity is around 60% (South Texas lol)

the tank is located on my dining room table in front of a window (not receiving direct sunlight till around 5-6pm), the new cage will be in a guest bedroom by a window facing south.... i was thinking to put the cage so that just a 1/4 of the cage would be in direct sunlight during the afternoon...

now for some ?s
What wattage basking lamp should i get if the amient in the house is always 76-78? and if there are cheaper ones can ya'll clue me in?

the cage, Is 18" long is one 15watt fluro enough with natural sunlight?

Are the supplements listed good ones, and is the way i intend on using them the correct way?

Is this the humidity a good range or should i get a humidifier?

and all comment and suggestions are welcome

thank you,
Blacktip
 
This is what I am currently using for my female juvenile veiled chameleon:

Lights:
- florescent uvb/uva Reptisun 5.0 bulb
- One 100 watt basking light on a dimmer switch.( Connecting it to a dimmer lets me control how hot I want it to get)
- Timer outlets to control the times lights go on/off

Plants:
- plenty of fake vines of different sizes
- Plenty of silk plants to wrap around vines
- One Live Corn Plant

Enclosure:
- Fresh air Aluminum screen habitat that measures (L 24"xW12"xH26")
note: this is alright for my juvenile since she is still only 6" long. But I will move her to a bigger enclousure as soon as she grows bigger. It may be twice the size of this one.
- Also I cut a hole with a drain on the bottom so that the water can drip off into the bucket. I recomend doing this because of all of the water it takes to get them to drink.
-I use no substrate. Just a plastic bottom to the cage. It may not look as good, but it makes my job a whole lot easier because at the end of the day, all I do is wash out the bottom of the cage.

Water:
- One dripper that I turn on for 30 minutes in the afternoon
- Humidifier to keep up the right humdity level
- DIY water mister by jordan https://www.chameleonforums.com/misting-system-diy-1995/
(This works great for now and it is cheap to make. I turn it on for 20 minutes at a time, 2-3 times aday. Allow the cage to dry inbetween mistings.)

Food:
- Crickets are the main staple. Others include: Silkworms, waxworms, Wax Moths, Dubia Roaches, and mealworms.
(More variety is better)
-Gutload: Romane Lettuce, Collard Greens, Sweet potato, Carrots.
( Don't use the store bought cricket food to gutload. ex. cricket quencher. They are not as healthy to your cham as fresh veggies. I only use the cricket food to maintane crickets for long periods of time. I still gutload a group of crickets that I will feed the next day in another container.)

That is the basics. you should do more research on the forums to get more details.
 
Or invest in a UVB meter instead of doing exactly what the companies want you to. Be the judge on when you should replace the bulbs yourself.
 
I have kept Senegals quite a few times over the years. Although they have a reputation for not being an easy chameleon to keep, I have had good luck with them once acclimatized. All of mine were WC's.

You asked..."can anyone give me a link to the proper coloring for this species"...generally they are a nice green color but they can also be various shades of brown and yellow. This site shows some of the colors...
http://www.reptilecity.com/gallery/slideshow.php?set_albumName=album29

You said..."temp in the basking area is 90 (using a desk lamp at the moment with a T10 60watt bulb) and the ambeint is 77 (house temp), humidity is around 60% (South Texas lol)"...90 might be a little high for a young one. Do you have a UVB light on it?

You said..."the tank is located on my dining room table in front of a window (not receiving direct sunlight till around 5-6pm), the new cage will be in a guest bedroom by a window facing south.... i was thinking to put the cage so that just a 1/4 of the cage would be in direct sunlight during the afternoon"...sunlight passing through glass will not provide the UVB needed by a chameleon. You have to be very careful when using an aquarium that you don't overheat the cage and kill the chameleon.

You said..."What wattage basking lamp should i get if the amient in the house is always 76-78? and if there are cheaper ones can ya'll clue me in?"...I use a regular incandescent light bulb for the basking area. The wattage used is determined by the temperature that results from it. I use Repti-sun 5.0 tube lights for UVB.

You asked..."Are the supplements listed good ones, and is the way i intend on using them the correct way?"...I can't tell you. I don't use any of them. I use a phosphorous-free calcium powder on most feedings. Insects have a poor ratio of calcium to phos. so this helps compensate for it. I gutload crickets with a variety of greens and veggies.

I dust with a vitamin powder that contains a beta carotene source of vitamin A twice a month. There is controversy over whether chameleons can convert beta carotene to vitamin A or not...so some people give them a small amount of preformed vitamin A once in a while. Preformed vitamin A can build up in the system....and too much vitamin A can interfere with D3 and lead to MBD.

Because my chameleons only get UVB from tube lights I dust with a calcium/D3 powder twice a month. Exposure to UVB light (sunlight or UVB tube lights) allow the chameleon to produce D3 which allows the chameleon to use the calcium in its diet. (UVB must not pass through glass or plastic.) D3 from supplements can build up in the system...so care is needed not to dust too much with it.

You asked..."Is this the humidity a good range or should i get a humidifier?"...it sounds okay. Senegals are big water drinkers...so be sure to mist and use a dripper.

Good luck with it! They are an interesting species!
 
sweet thanks for all the replies,

i've change my mind and am going to build a cage out of screens using this design: http://www.repticzone.com/forums/CagesandEnclosures/messages/286449.html

another member made one and it looks real nice...

i was thinking to make it 18*18*36, does that sound big enough, i could make it 24" wide, but don't want to make it 24" long cus i only have a 18" fluro fixture....

i have a 18" 15watt 5.0 uvb light, and a 75w basking bulb.... he's eating good and this morn i dusted the crickets with Zoo Med Reptivite, since the dude i bought it from was kindof shading i figure that the poor thing wasn't receiving proper nutrition....

and since it's in a tank i have a oscilating fan going 24/7 so that air doesn't get stagnant...

thank you for all the help... i'm going to home depo today after work to get the screen supplies, and i'll take photos through the process.... i just need to know whether or not 18*18*36 will be big enough

blacktip
 
Sounds good. Usually going taller is better than making it wider because they like to climb as high as they can. They also feel more secure if they're highest basking perch is above our eye level. So either put the cage on a table or make it bigger. The one I am designing for my female will be 48" tall and on a table.
 
cool thanks man,

it'll be in a guest bedroom so there wont be any distractions.... and i'll put it on an end table, bout 2' high

thanks
bt
 
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