Questions about Chameleons

[Chris Anderson]

Thanks guys, that was some good reading!!

Yes they were veiled chameleons at the pet store, I remember this now.

I see from the article veiled chameleons require atleast 48”x 24”x 24” (height x length x width) I plan to go 48" x 72" x 24". Thats about 359gallons of space, and my house does get cold in the winter. Should I get a ceramic coil bulb and a thermostat to remedy this? Should I mount the thermostat in the cage and build a smaller mesh screen cage with a door over the thermostat?

Should I use Reptisun 10.0 bulbs? how many would I need for my size of cage? As for basking I see I can use an Incandescent bulb, I'll just have to play with different wattages to find the 95-100 degree basking area.

For the cage I'm thinking screen for the front, all other sides plywood.

Will a couple 80mm computer fans mounted to the rear of the cage at either end give me suffice airflow? they would be mounted outside and so he can't touch them of course.

Anything I can do better?

It will be a while before I get a Chameleon, I plan to read and learn more first, and obviously have to construct the cage and get all the proper heating/lighting installed.

Thanks again.

How cold does it get in the winter? Night temperature drops are good for chameleons and in the winter, veileds can safely get down into the high 40s at night without any worry. Then during the day, they can elevate their body temp in the basking spot. I wouldn't worry about it unless your house gets into the 40s.

You could use the Reptisun 10.0 in a cage that size but you don't need to. I wouldn't use a 10.0 in a cage shorter then that though and to be honest, I use Reptisun 5.0s on my 4' tall cages.

In a cage that size, if you have a screen front and screen top (Your top needs to be mesh and the lights sitting on top, not mounted inside), you won't need a fan, there will be plenty of airflow. You'll just want to make sure the cage can dry out between mistings during the day.

Here is another good site for Veiled Chameleon care: http://veiledchameleoncaresheet.com/

Chris

 

[chemicall]

How cold does it get in the winter? Night temperature drops are good for chameleons and in the winter, veileds can safely get down into the high 40s at night without any worry. Then during the day, they can elevate their body temp in the basking spot. I wouldn't worry about it unless your house gets into the 40s.

You could use the Reptisun 10.0 in a cage that size but you don't need to. I wouldn't use a 10.0 in a cage shorter then that though and to be honest, I use Reptisun 5.0s on my 4' tall cages.

In a cage that size, if you have a screen front and screen top (Your top needs to be mesh and the lights sitting on top, not mounted inside), you won't need a fan, there will be plenty of airflow. You'll just want to make sure the cage can dry out between mistings during the day.

Here is another good site for Veiled Chameleon care: http://veiledchameleoncaresheet.com/

Chris

Thanks for the info, yes it definitely goes into the 40's here inside in the winter.

And thanks everyone else for the info/pics. I'm a ways away from getting one yet since I have to build a cage, get all the supplies etc. But that's fine. Lot's to learn. Do it right the first time.

 

[dirtyblacksocks]

Once again I would really recommend starting out with a nice ambilobe panther chameleon - they've got a lot better of a temprement than other chameleons and look absolutely beautiful.

You can find full grown males with excellent coloration for around $250 if you keep an eye out on faunaclassifieds and kingsnake.com