Substrate

[Uvagohoos]

Hello, as of now my veiled is in her cage and she has no substrate, she seems fine but I worry about her falling and I have a Reptibreeze so the bottem of the cage isn't exactly soft do you think I could put some reptile carpet in the cage or would I be smart to not

 

[nightanole]

Substrate is never recommended, and is impossible to use if you dont cup/hand feed the cham.

You can however load up the bottom of the cage with vines, either live or plastic.

On the other hand chams are designed to fall. They have nice rubbery rib cages that they can instant fill with air as an air bag. So a defense mechanism is just to "drop". Yes in the wild they drop onto leaves.

 

[Uvagohoos]

Okay thank you I may try to cover it in some vines but it does make me feel better that chameleons are prepared for this.

 

[TheGuvnor]

I currently have a Bioactive substrate for 2 of my 3 Chams.
About as natural as you can get.

Substrate like with all reptiles, is a no win subject. Pro's and con's for them all, including having nothing.

Ultimately, it's your choice.

 

[junglefries]

99% of people use nothing. Chams generally only fall when startled (photograhing ) or have health issues. They balloon up with air upon falling for safety reasons. They are at a very minimal risk falling in 48" or less cage height. (In Europe, substrate and glass cages are popular, so what do I know)

 

[JHumm]

I cover the bottom of my cage with a microfiber cloth. It soaks up any drips from misting, it's synthetic so there's less of a problem with bacterial growth, and it's easy to wash. It's also really soft so if you're worried about your cham falling it will provide a lot of cushion.

 

[Uvagohoos]

Okay I think I may just go with none to save some money although I may try to add some vines to the ground just to help her incase she falls.

 

[Carlton]

Okay I think I may just go with none to save some money although I may try to add some vines to the ground just to help her incase she falls.

A healthy cham will hardly notice a fall from the height inside the typical cage. If there are lots of branches and foliage she can easily catch herself and break her fall. I wouldn't worry so much about it.

 

[Uvagohoos]

Yea she's pretty healthy I haven't seen her fall yet she seems to be healthy and active and her cage is covered with Foliage and live plants