Substrate............

JackAttack

New Member
hello all,

so im having trouble keeping humidity up in my guy's cage......teenage panther cham......lol...........we just transfered him to a larger cage, the smaller one before wasnt a problem........the pet shop here suggested keeping substrate in the bottom of the cage, but i know from reading on here that its not the best idea because the chams can accidentally eat pieces of it.......i bought a brick of substrate, T REX FOREST BED....it says its organic, odorless, and harmless if ingested.........just wondered what people thought of putting this in the bottom of the cage? I thought of maybe keeping a tub of it at the bottom of the cage with a screen over it to prevent Jude from even touching it..........thoughts??? thanks a million!!!!!!
 
Gonna need some more info on the type of cage you are using and your setup. Can you post photos or explain in detail the housing for your cham? Substrate should be avoided no matter the type if at all possible.
 
Allot of the members here use a humidifier for panthers to keep the humidity up. Substrate is not good and I would not recommend using it.
 
You could try adding a couple more live plants to his set up if you have the space. These will help with humidity levels.
 
another good way to help raise and stabilize humidity is to put a cheap opaque acrylic light panel, one, two, or three sides of the cage from 1/3 the heighth to all of the way up (depending on your watering schediule, planting and the level of humidity you are trying to achieve). acrylic light panels come in 2x4' sheets for about $6 (a fraction of the cost of a brand name plexiglass type product) to attach just drill some 1/16th" holes and use #6 x 1/4" stainless sheet metal screws
 
i wouldnt use substrate realy...i just leave it glass bottom in my vivarium!..its easy to clean...

the subsrtate i used got damp...and held the moisture...and it created mould...and spores...i cudnt see it...but he ended up getting a URI...

substrate looks good..but its high maintenance!!
 
Without knowing your setup, this is really a difficult question for anyone. How low is your humidity? I'm with Jannb on the humidifier. But there are simpler, less expensive, ways. A few suggestions in the blind then, if you're not already doing so:

Use live plants.
Mist the screen as well as the foliage.
Get an automatic misting system.


I know it's more fun to start your own thread, but there is a lot of good/great information out there if you're willing to read:

https://www.chameleonforums.com/easy-way-keep-good-26528/
https://www.chameleonforums.com/humidity-25871/
https://www.chameleonforums.com/humidity-levels-22250/
https://www.chameleonforums.com/mister-alternatives-13925/
https://www.chameleonforums.com/how-important-misting-21379/

Hope things go well.
 
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