Sven Enclosure with D.Y.I. Dripper

[Darkness13]

This is my setup atm for my Pather Cam . "SVEN"
It's my 1st try at it so any feedback to improve it will be much appreciated so when I build his new enclosure this spring I can do it properly for him.

Enclosure (18" L X 18" W X 36" H) Screen and glass
Repto vines (vertical and Horizonal)
wooden laddder (Added climbing)
fake vines with leaves (for cover)
Humidifier from Petco "Zoo MED Repti-Fogger" (To help with humidity)
D.Y.I water dripper (A 1$ dollar childs juice box)(fish tank valve to control dripping)(fish tank air line)and a (plastic containers with sponge to catch water from dripper)
Zilla 50w Night red heat bulb
Zilla 13w 25Uvb Corkscrew bulb

 

[Djturna4thakidz]

Can you post a pic?

 

[Ferrah88]

Do you leave the red light on all night?

Live plants help a lot with humidity issues. They smell good, look good, and chams love them! There's a lot of links to cham-safe plants, if you're interested!

I was always iffy with my fogger as I had to have standing water to use it. The water would get icky after about a day, so I stopped using it to prevent problems. I'm sure there's some people around that use them though!

 

[Ferrah88]

Since you added some pictures:

He might need a bigger cage soonish.. he looks like he's getting a bit big for it! And always remember, taller is always better.

I've always been told substrate was bad, as it can be ingested, but I am not going to say "NO DON'T USE IT!!" or anything... I am no expert. Is it big enough that he can't accidentally eat it?

Does the glass have sufficient ventilation? Or is there only ventilation via the top? (My glass terrarium has the top as screen and a lower ventilation from the side, which I occasionally blow a small desk-fan into.)

::EDIT::
What is in that clear container you have at the bottom?

 

[Darkness13]

The red lamp I leave on all night for him because it gets a bit cold in our house in the winter
the container in the bottom is a plastic tub with a sponge to catch the water from the dripper and the fogger tub I empty it every morning after I feed him
the cage has three sides of glass both sides and rear the front and top are screen for ventilation

 

[Darkness13]

im going to use live plants and no substrate when I build his new enclosure in the spring I herd Ficus and hybiscus and wandering jews are great live plants to use and look Awsome in there enclosures
SVEN is about 4.5 inches atm from snout to tail and I thought since its all petco had at the time he would be fine in that till spring

 

[Ferrah88]

The red lamp I leave on all night for him because it gets a bit cold in our house in the winter
the container in the bottom is a plastic tub with a sponge to catch the water from the dripper and the fogger tub I empty it every morning after I feed him
the cage has three sides of glass both sides and rear the front and top are screen for ventelation...

...im going to use live plants and no substrate when I build his new enclosure in the spring I herd Ficus and hybiscus and wandering jews are great live plants to use and look Awsome in there enclosures
SVEN is about 4.5 inches atm from snout to tail and I thought since its all petco had at the time he would be fine in that till spring

You'll need to make sure that light is off at night. Chameleons can take it colder than we think. Chameleons also need a temperature drop at night. How cold is your house in the evenings?

Can he access the fogger water? I've no idea how people set them up, but make sure he can't drown! (If you haven't already of course)

Alright, so the door is screen, that's good for ventilation on a glass terrarium then! (My house is also cold and dry most of the time, so I have to keep one of my chams in a glass terrarium to keep the humidity up properly.)

Fair enough on the substrate! Just make sure he doesn't ingest anything right now.. if you want to play it safe, you could always take it out.

Ficus are great and hibiscus are also lovely. With the hibiscus though, you'll have to have multiple. They don't do so well under fake sunlight and need the real thing. People tend to rotate them to make sure they get the sunlight they need You'll have to read up a bit on that yourself though. Some other good plants are: Pothos (Lovely vines, big leaves for catching water. Marimo LOVES his and drinks off the large leaves.) and Schefflera arboricola (NOT to be confused with Schefflera actinophylla, which is poisonous). I use both of them in both my enclosures and my chams love them They also have a ficus and Marimo has some African violets.

I read it too late that you were building a new enclosure come spring. He should be fine in there until then, I believe

 

[Darkness13]

Really WOW!!
i was told that he needed the red lamp on all night long and to turn the uvb light off after 8-9 hours then turn it back on in the morning but to leave the red one all night for him thats crazy thank you I'll definatley do the lights diffrently i was just scared he get to cold at night and get sick on me or worse
my house is a dry in the winter and the room hes in stays about 70 about 70-80 with his lights on he regulates himself I have noticed he sleeps in diffrent areas up higher if hes colder and lower if hes to warm I would guess
OH! 1 more thing the UVB light is a 25 UVB and 13w atm and a corkscrew type I read somewere the last few days that these are bad they can cause blindness in the chameleons can anyone confirm this if so I'll remove it at once and try a short Repto UVB bulb i have a old 10 gallon hood i could probably use if the one I have is bad for him

Here is a link to a You Tube vid might be a bet better I hope to see what all i have for him ATM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3soEAUbHJ8

 

[Ferrah88]

Really WOW!!
i was told that he needed the red lamp on all night long and to turn the uvb light off after 8-9 hours then turn it back on in the morning but to leave the red one all night for him thats crazy thank you I'll definatley do the lights diffrently i was just scared he get to cold at night and get sick on me or worse
my house is a dry in the winter and the room hes in stays about 70 about 70-80 with his lights on he regulates himself I have noticed he sleeps in diffrent areas up higher if hes colder and lower if hes to warm I would guess
OH! 1 more thing the UVB light is a 25 UVB and 13w atm and a corkscrew type I read somewere the last few days that these are bad they can cause blindness in the chameleons can anyone confirm this if so I'll remove it at once and try a short Repto UVB bulb i have a old 10 gallon hood i could probably use if the one I have is bad for him

Whoever told you he needs the red light on at night was being silly. Chameleons need total darkness to get as good of rest as possible. If he's in a place where it's still bright when lights go off, I would recommend a towel or blanket over his cage so he can get his beauty sleep! (Just be sure to take it off before the lights go on for him, so you could take it off just before bed or something. That's how we do it ) The room seems fine temperature wise, you shouldn't worry about him freezing with all his lights off He will thank you for it, I'm sure!

I'm using a coil bulb myself on Yuki's terrarium at the moment. I haven't had her very long, but so far so good! Just be sure to monitor him for any changes that may indicate any eye problems (closing his eyes during the day for example). If you can get a tube fixture however, I would recommend it. But since he will be getting a new cage soon, I would say to wait with it. As long as he can get out of the UVB when he's had enough, it should be fine! Just, again, watch for any signs of eye problems. YOu shoul dbe fine though

 

[Darkness13]

I Will and thank you all the info is greatly appreciated

 

[ForrestJungle]

I would say you are off to a good start first yes substraight isn't the best be if you are going to fix it I'm sure you will be fine for now. The lights. I recommend just getting a 40w house bulb that is clear for basking and a 5.0 exotetra light for uvb. I use a tube so that the uvb is through out the cage. Also the digger. You probably are reaching super high humidity levels and panthers don't need that. I would say with three or four good mists and your dripper you will be fine. keep up the good work.