Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am setting up a tank for my female Rampheleon brevicaudata, and I thought waterfalls in general were a good thing for chams, but now I'm wondering. I know she just drinks from the plants after we mist the tank, so I guess it would only add humidity. What's the consensus?

I don't use waterfalls for any reptiles...they are hard to keep clean and to keep the insects & poop out of.

With little ones like brevs, I would worry about them falling into the water and drowning (assuming that the waterfall has a catch-bin at the bottom of it).

Just my two cents worth...

Thanks for the opinion...anybody else got one?

I think its a nice idea thats for sure, but in this case its dangerous to your animal....Im sure that a chameleon could dround in a waterfall...they are small animals that dont have the stregth and momentum to get out of a swirling little pool....

On the matter of animals pooping in it, yes lizards occasionally take a dump in their water source..But they also take craps on the substrate..Should we not use a substrate? Of course not. Animals like source a solid ground bottom to relax on...When the substrate is fouled you simply change it...With a waterfall same idea applies...You just have to clean it in order to prevent the spread of bacteria and what not....

You could do a waterfall....actually my friend has idea for you if you want....i think it would be safe too....inconvenient, but worth it...ill link you a picture similair to his idea....

Hey if you got questions please ask...it gives me something to do

Keep it chill my man!
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Eric

I fight for the unconventional
My right, and its unconditional
I can only, be as real as i can
The disadvantage is
I never knew the plan
This isnt the way just to be a martyr
I cant, walk alone any longer
I fight, for the ones that cant fight
And if I lose, at least I tried....
(Slipknotulse of the Maggots)

Well lost the link, but ill try my best to describe it....

You would have something to pump water over a piece of driftwood (prolly a pump) that would slowly trickle down the piece of wood....instead of haveing a pool, you have a deep drainage layer (6 inches would be nice) filled to the tip of the pebbles...that way the pump has water below to pull up and use for the water fall, but there is no pool of water for your chameleon to drown in...

If that was confusing, ask for clarafication.....But it works well....
-----
Eric

I fight for the unconventional
My right, and its unconditional
I can only, be as real as i can
The disadvantage is
I never knew the plan
This isnt the way just to be a martyr
I cant, walk alone any longer
I fight, for the ones that cant fight
And if I lose, at least I tried....
(Slipknotulse of the Maggots)

I had a waterfall, and it honestly didnt do a damn thing. Just make some relaxing noise. She didn't do anything with it, and may have gotten some eye problems from it (Those still havent been solved and i'm too afraid to take her back to the man handler vet)

P.S. Beardiedude, when you said "Something to pump the water over the driftwood (probably a pump)" I nearly pissed myself laughing

Cheers,
Faust

Thanks for the ideas and input! Eric, I do understand what you're suggesting...and that's sort of what I was thinking about. With my frogs, they need a pool to sit in...but the cham would get more (?) out of the waterfall itself, so she doesn't need a pool. I'll keep considering..but I really need to get her in a tank and out of that critter keeper....so I'll have to decide soon.

Jan

BTW--i'm a woman...no offense taken...

You said..."Should we not use a substrate?"...I don't believe in using substrates for chameleons(with the exception of the ones that live on/near the ground....and even then you need to be careful of what you use).

I do have containers of washed sandbox sand in with any egglaying females....but its a type that passes through the chameleon without causing impaction.

Cedar and pine contain oils that are toxic to chameleons and if many of the soils and other things that are recommended can cause impactions. Also, chameleons have been known to ingest substrates on purpose...so even if you bowl feed, you can't guarantee that they won't end up with some in their system. I just don't even want to risk impaction. Its a terrible way for a chameleon to die.

You said..."Animals like source a solid ground bottom to relax on".....animals maybe, but most of the species of chameleons do not relax on the ground. They are generally only on the ground to get from one tree/shrub to another or to lay eggs.

Leaf chameleons are kinda semi arboreal....of course they still chill in the trees, they do come down to the leafs and foliage to forage for some grub and what not....

In the wild they inhabit small short bushes...they arent lurking up in 20 foot tall trees...they do come down in the wild to come and rumage through the leaves for some food t eat...

Animals, such as most true chameleons, have no need for a substrate at all....But i think that almost every animal should have some sort of ground material to sit on...it should be able to provide what the animal needs. An example would be a sandfish....they use the sand to burrow under to cool down. Leaf tailed geckos use the leaf litter to blend in...

Im not saying that i am totally correct on what i think, and you are not wrong, we both just have different ideas on this matter....lizards can adapt to many situations, so there really is not just one way of keeping them.....
-----
Eric

I fight for the unconventional
My right, and its unconditional
I can only, be as real as i can
The disadvantage is
I never knew the plan
This isnt the way just to be a martyr
I cant, walk alone any longer
I fight, for the ones that cant fight
And if I lose, at least I tried....
(Slipknotulse of the Maggots)