Setup Questions

[sibeers]

I first want to thank you for this post. Being new to owning a cham it's very helpful.

Cage Info:

Cage Type -18"x18" Screen cage with one wall being a foam "rock" wall.
Lighting - Don't know the brand but I have a basking lamp and a uv light. Schedule is 8 am to 8 pm.
Temperature - Average temp is 85-90. High of 95 low of 72ish at night. Thermometer in cage.
Humidity - 40 to 60. Hygrometer.
Plants -no live plants
Placement - Corner of a small apartment room. 3.5 ft from top of cage to floor. Nearest vent is across room on ceiling.
Location - Columbus, Ohio

Chameleon Info:

Your Chameleon - Female Veiled. I've had her for about 8 weeks. I don't know how old she was when I got her.
Handling - I try to handle her everyday. Mostly every other day.
Feeding - Diet of crickets. Tried meal worms but she never went for them. About 3-5 medium/large crickets per day. Some days less, most was about 8. Gut loading crickets with cricket food and cricket drink green pellets.
Supplements - "Bone Aid" Calcium powder. Dusting almost every cricket.
Watering - Running water fountain. Mist at least twice a day sometimes up to 4. Yes I've seen her drinking.

My questions for you are:

1) If I get rid of the substrate the pet store told me get, what should I use instead?

2) If I get rid of the waterfall the pet store told me to get and buy a dripper system, how do collect the excess water?

3) I have one live pothos in the cage. Good idea or bad idea?

Thanks

 

[SS4Luck]

I first want to thank you for this post. Being new to owning a cham it's very helpful.

Cage Info:

Cage Type -18"x18" Screen cage with one wall being a foam "rock" wall.
Lighting - Don't know the brand but I have a basking lamp and a uv light. Schedule is 8 am to 8 pm.
Temperature - Average temp is 85-90. High of 95 low of 72ish at night. Thermometer in cage.
Humidity - 40 to 60. Hygrometer.
Plants -no live plants
Placement - Corner of a small apartment room. 3.5 ft from top of cage to floor. Nearest vent is across room on ceiling.
Location - Columbus, Ohio

Chameleon Info:

Your Chameleon - Female Veiled. I've had her for about 8 weeks. I don't know how old she was when I got her.
Handling - I try to handle her everyday. Mostly every other day.
Feeding - Diet of crickets. Tried meal worms but she never went for them. About 3-5 medium/large crickets per day. Some days less, most was about 8. Gut loading crickets with cricket food and cricket drink green pellets.
Supplements - "Bone Aid" Calcium powder. Dusting almost every cricket.
Watering - Running water fountain. Mist at least twice a day sometimes up to 4. Yes I've seen her drinking.

My questions for you are:

1) If I get rid of the substrate the pet store told me get, what should I use instead?

2) If I get rid of the waterfall the pet store told me to get and buy a dripper system, how do collect the excess water?

3) I have one live pothos in the cage. Good idea or bad idea?

Thanks

How tall is your cage? and get rid of that fake rock wall stuff, ive heard of bad things happening as far as impactions

As far as lighting it is HIGHLY, wait let me say this again, HIGHLY important to know what lights you have. The wrong light can cause blindness or even kill your cham! Most people go with the ReptiSun 5/0 linear UVB tube. you can pick them up for less than $20 online and the general opinion is they are the best on the market

95 might be a little to hot, try and keep it down around 85. an easy way to do that is just a nroaml 40-60 watt house lightbulb. No special heating bulb needed. Your 8-8 schedule is good

for plants you should try and get like a small ficus tree, veilds will eat their plants and if they are eating silk/fake plants they will get impacted

You also dont need to handle your cham every day, it can stress her out, alot, which is bad. The gutloading crickets is good, but try throwing in an orange slice or a piece of kale for them to eat too. Can you get silk worms around you? If not you should order some, Reptar will just about knit you a sweater for a silk worm.

Does your calcium dust have D3 in it? You need to be using one that doesnt at almost every feeding and then one with D3 every other weekend and most people use a reptile multivitamin on off D3 weeks.

1) for a substrate you can use nothing, like most of the rst of us its not needed. What is the bottom of your cage? is it a piece of flat white pvc?

2) you drill a hole in the bottom of your floor, lift your cage up 4" with blocks of wood/bricks/whatever you have that you like the look of and put a drain pain under the hole. empty as needed

3) Pothos, good idea, pothos and ficus, better idea

your off to a good start you just need your setup tweaked a ltitle bit. Post pictures of you girl and your setup and that will help alot too

 

[tkilgour]

I first want to thank you for this post. Being new to owning a cham it's very helpful.

Cage Info:

Cage Type -18"x18" Screen cage with one wall being a foam "rock" wall.
Lighting - Don't know the brand but I have a basking lamp and a uv light. Schedule is 8 am to 8 pm.
Temperature - Average temp is 85-90. High of 95 low of 72ish at night. Thermometer in cage.
Humidity - 40 to 60. Hygrometer.
Plants -no live plants
Placement - Corner of a small apartment room. 3.5 ft from top of cage to floor. Nearest vent is across room on ceiling.
Location - Columbus, Ohio

Chameleon Info:

Your Chameleon - Female Veiled. I've had her for about 8 weeks. I don't know how old she was when I got her.
Handling - I try to handle her everyday. Mostly every other day.
Feeding - Diet of crickets. Tried meal worms but she never went for them. About 3-5 medium/large crickets per day. Some days less, most was about 8. Gut loading crickets with cricket food and cricket drink green pellets.
Supplements - "Bone Aid" Calcium powder. Dusting almost every cricket.
Watering - Running water fountain. Mist at least twice a day sometimes up to 4. Yes I've seen her drinking.

My questions for you are:

1) If I get rid of the substrate the pet store told me get, what should I use instead?

2) If I get rid of the waterfall the pet store told me to get and buy a dripper system, how do collect the excess water?

3) I have one live pothos in the cage. Good idea or bad idea?

Thanks

Hello, welcome to the forum! as far as substrate goes totally get rid of it! Pet stores just need to sell products so they recommend it. I would use only white paper towels and change them out with dry ones each day. As far as collecting water you can incorporate a drainage system or simply let the dripper drip right to the plant and any excess water the paper towels will soak up. Pothos is a good plant choice, seems to tolerate many conditions.

Great post here.