Many have commented on some of the issues to be concerned about (great points by the way) but we do admit that after running our pardalis operation through a greenhouse for many years now—it certainly has been a great experience for the panthers and the humans involved. Emphasis on getting the greenhouse tuned in for plants and the particular species you choose is crucial.



Once the greenhouse is “tweaked” however (temperature management primarily, along with humidity, and lighting requirements) then the benefits will soon be apparent. Although it cannot be overstated that OUR situation does not necessarily merit the use of greenhouses for ALL, we have experienced significantly larger clutch sizes, longer lives for both males and an additional breeding season for females too and generally healthier chameleons via greenhouse use (no eye problems, shedding issues, etc)—not to mention a dramatic increase in the amount of livable space in our own domicile when the chameleon setups were transferred to greenhouse space. The use of fog-it nozzles for watering your chameleons, placed on timers to really “pour on” the hydration is a real plus and you won’t worry a bit about ruining your carpet. If you let too many crickets loose then you won’t be kept awake at night trying to find that one rogue who is just out of reach behind the refrigerator at 2:38 A.M. Natural Biological processes, (isopods primarily, along with other soil dwelling invertebrates) will take care of “cleaning your cages”. An added caveat that we have experienced is the use of early morning timers that turn on some low wattage lights an hour before sunrise, attracting hundreds of night-dwelling, flying insects (otherwise known as free food and target practice for the chameleons) into the greenhouse through ½” mesh—the wild insects hide in the lush foliage within the greenhouse once the sun comes up and the chameleons spend the great part of their day hunting these tasty morsels throughout the daylight hours (to be promoted only where pesticides are not utilized, by the way).



There are many items of concern to be addressed long before you place a chameleon in a greenhouse, but we simply wanted to “toot the greenhouse horn” in favor of them for just a bit.



Take care and good luck.



Stephen O’Neal

Natural State Chameleons

info@truechameleons.com

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