Chameleons

[RaeAnn]

Hello all,
I'm wondering if any of you have any experience with chameleons and could offer me a few words of wisdom?

My brother purchased a "chameleon kit" and is so excited to get his first chameleon. Knowing most of those "kits" in bearded dragon world do not provide all that is truly needed, I convinced him to hold off purchasing a chameleon until we can find out how to properly care for one.

Do any of you know if a reptisun 10.0 would be a suitable form of UVB? Aside from this I'm wondering if he can simply buy one of those fake dripping plants to use as a water source? And last but not least, I'm finding mixed information about greens. Will he need to offer it a fresh salad daily or do they just eat a variety of insects?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[PatsyB]

What kind of chameleon is he going to get? Each one has their different needs. I have a veiled and similar lights to my bearded dragon. We use a T5 UVB light with an Arcadia 14% bulb (because the tank is so high) and a basking bulb with a dome. I've heard bad things about the dripper plant.

We use something called the big dripper, it's sits on top of the tank. We set a small wire shelf on the frame of the tank and then set the dripper on that and cut a small hole in the mesh to stick the hose. We also use a misting system that mists him throughout the day to help keep the humidity up. We use a mixture of live plants and fake plants and sticks and stuff for him to climb on. Veilds like to have lots of coverage. We also set up a drainage system so the water drips through the plants and then out the bottom of the cage.

As far as feeding, he eats the same as the beardies. I even make mine a salad in the morning. When we first got him he would eat his live plants and he would eat the dirt and pick through it. I started giving him a bowl of just greens and he stopped all of his bad behavior.

I'll take some photos of my set up for reference. I use the T5 UVB/LED light because they say it promotes plant growth. I've used it for 2 years and my plants are doing great.

 

[PatsyB]

This is the top, Big Dripper, lights.

The whole cage. We had to upgrade him to this cage within a few months of getting him because he grew so fast. You can see the dripped and the nozzle for the mister right in the middle.

This is the bottom. Substrate is bad for them, harbors bacteria and you don't want them to eat it. The plant in the middle puts weight in the middle so the water goes right to the holes and out to the bottom.

Wire shelf helps, so the water just drains through it. Every couple of days we empty the bucket.

 

[RaeAnn]

This all helps a ton thank you!!

He is debating between a panther or a veiled. Based on the research we have done those two seem to be the best fit. Any recommendations between the two?

I sent him a link for the big dripper like you have so he can order that a long with the uvb light. They seem simple to use so that is a huge plus. I'll get him to mimic your methods and just cut a hole in the mesh to stick the nozzle through and set up a similar system.

For the live plant do you have any recommendations? What type of soil should he use for the plant and how will we know if it is free of pesticides?

He loves reptiles so I have been on him to get a beardie or a gecko. Leave it to this guy to choose something hard that neither of us know much about lol


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[PatsyB]

Veilds are notorious grumps. When we first got ours we put him right in his cage because he traveled so far in a box, we wanted him to settle in without bothering him. It took us 5 months to get him out of his cage LOL! He really is a sweetheart on his own terms though. Now I held a female panther at a show once and she was so sweet, she didn't want me to put her back.

My big plant is a hibiscus. I also have a shefflera in there. I've used a spider plant too in the past. There is a great list of good safe plants at FLchams.com.

 

[RaeAnn]

Thank you so much patsy I know he will appreciate all of the info. I'll send him the link so he can decide which plants he would like to get

Im excited to have one in the family it will definitely be a new learning experience for me


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk