Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok im looking at getting a vailed but i want to buy a 4x2x2 chage an i have been told buy a few people that he wont be able to find his food in such a large place... should i spend the extra 50 and buy a small chage to start out i was looking at a 24"HX 16"W X 16"D Screen Cage. or should i save the money and get a reptarium when he out grows this i will be puting him in the 4x2x2 any way so if it really nessary to get a "starter chage"?

I had the same dilemma a little while back. I had a large screen enclosure but was worried about it being to big. I bought a small (16 x 16 x 30) Reptarium to put him in meantime....He hated it. I hated it. He couldn't see out, I couldn't see in, and I ended up putting undue stress on him by scrambling to get his bigger cage fixed up and once again moving him. After a day though I could tell he felt much better in there. Because of this I have learned my lesson on reptariums. They are good in a quick fix and I will keep mine, but I do not like them. Save that money and get a nice big, open, easy see-in-see-out cage...or build your own.

As for the size...he will grow into it, and will just be very lucky to have such a big house. Use a bowl for feeder insects and strap it to a branch in an area he likes a lot....He will learn where the food is almost instantly.

Hope this helps
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Matt

y should i cup feed? i personaly think that ruens the chameles heart in wanting to hunt. also if i put crickts in a cup or bowl they will jump out wont they? any way if have any other sugestions let me know. it sounds like u would cup feed but would u cup feed if u had a smaller cage

don't knock it till you try it...but whatever works best for you
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Matt

You can try cup feeding like this:
Get a tall opaque cup plastic cup, or a small waste paper basket. Change the location of it daily. Your cham will still hunt. He doesn't know where the cup will be, and if it is large enough (like a waste can or plastic tub) he can go in (make sure there are branches that go in that he can get to but crix can't - about 4" from the bottom, or put shishkabob skewers in as a ladder). This will keep him moving and hunting, but will keep the crix from wandering around and hiding from him (I found that they would hide out in the planters). Also, crix can eat poop and things before your cham gets to them... not good. Also, you can make sure what your cham is eating. If he isn't for some reason, you will know right away.
Once Orion got to be about 6 months I started using a plastic cup and cup feeding her by hand. I'd hold it at varying distances from her, and made her work hard for some, and let her get others more easily. Good exercise for the tounge, and for her as well.
Also, when free-roaming to feed the dust can come off of the crix easily. Free-roaming can be done, but it involves a lot of thought... I like the hand cup feeding method best. But, for babies, tub feeding in the cage (like mentioned above) works really well.