Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I recently purchased a veiled chameleon from a pet store in good condition, but I have no knowledge on them as to what they need for care.(Yes, idiot me) So far I have read message board after message board and about 15 sites regarding care. I bought reptisun 5.0 online and is not going to be here for another week or so, will this be ok for now or will he die from not having the uvb lighting? all i have now is a dayglo-75 watt basking lamp. i have fed him 2 week old gut-loaded, crickets and a couple of house flies(very entertaining) My drip system does not seem to be working properly. i poked a whole in a container and filled it w/ warm water and put it on top of my 38-gallon reptarium, the water just condenses at the top, over the nylon, occasionaly it drips, but usually in mass amounts in unpredictable places, usually where my recepticle isn't. i hope my lack of preparation doesn't have any fatal consequences for him. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

you are dumb . first of all you should have never bought an animal without reasearching it, or having prper knowledge of the species . you should have also gotten all your supplies before purchasing the animal

we have no idea of how well you are taking care of your pet, therefore i cannot tel you how long it will ilive without the light . all i know is 1 week without the light will not benifit your cham any
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Jason, Ichiro, Mika & Toki

razior_@hotmail.com

But the posters shouldn't call you names (you are dumb... shame Jason!), but they do mean well .
Yes, you should have researched first and not impulse buy, but the fact is you have your chameleon.
Try to give your chameleon as much natural sunlight as possible. Right now, I'm keeping all my chameleons outside 7/24, but I bring them in at night when the temp starts to drop during the fall/winter.
No, your chameleon will not die from no UVB for one week, but just because you don't have the bulb doesn't mean he can't have the UVB. Move him outside as much as possible!
Good luck with your new guy.
BTW, what's his name?
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Victor Gomez
gomezvi.tripod.com/sdchamkeepers/
gomezvi@yahoo.com

i meant that buying it, when not having all the materials was dumb - just take good care of your cham
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Jason, Ichiro, Mika & Toki

razior_@hotmail.com

I know. We all mean well, just that something gets lost when you type it up and post it (notice I don't post that often!).
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Victor Gomez
gomezvi.tripod.com/sdchamkeepers/
gomezvi@yahoo.com

Just ignore any negative response you get-people get self righteous on the internet.
The lack of UVB will not kill it, don't worry. UVB is the best way to get the animal to metabolize vitamin D3 and calcium. The reptisun, while good, will probably not be enough. Either get rep-cal or minerall (with D3!), or invest in a ceramic fixture that can handle a 250 watt bulb, and a zoomed 100 watt powersun. I know of at least one breeder that uses these, with NO D3 supplementation or natural sunlight, and has raised hundreds of veilds to adulthood with NO calcium problems.
If you use an artificial supplement, like rep-cal with D3, you have to be aware of the amounts you use, it's a difficult tohing to balance out, so I recommend the Mercury Vapor bulbs.
As for the watering system, put something under it. Take two plastic deli cups, cut the bottom inch or so out of one, invert it, then stick the other one in the narrow end. It makes the cup stand a few inches above the screen, and the falling droplet has enough velocity to splatter on the screen, instead of pooling until the weight of a big puddle causes the surface tension to break, splattering a few tablespoons of water onto your little guy.
what kind of cage is he in, and are you using any vitamins/mineral products? Let me know, and I'll tell you :
1.what NEEDS to be done to make sure it lives well.
2. What SHOULD be done.
3.What COULD be done
4. what you SHOULD NOT be doing.

there's a lot of conflicting info, and a lot of useless, overpriced products out there. Most of what you'll need is kind of pricy/and or labor intensive, but worth it. chameleons are like salt water fish, awesome, interesting, not necessarily difficult, but demanding.
Just fill out the list..
Cage type, materials, and size
Lighting
Vitamins, minerals used,
Insects fed
how big is the thing? total length, snout to base of tail(vent)
Eric A

He is 5 in. long and in a 38-gallon reptarium(17inx17inx30in). his cage consists of a branch that was bought from the pet store and is clean. and 3 8-10 in plastic plants. the humidity in the cage hovers at about 50%. i have a 75 watt basking lamp, which for today atleast is all he has! it is 4 inches above the cage and has a dome on it. the temp in my room is about 75-82 degrees during the day depending on if i have my window open or not, I live in wisconsin so its going to depend on the season. as of now the only supplement i use is ESU gutload and i feed that to the crickets along w/ some potato peels and apples. i caught 3 houseflies that were pretty big and he sucked them up like they were nothing. i spray the entire cage down in about 15-20 sec w/ the mist from a squirt bottle and am going to use your suggestion for water-droppage. what should i go out and buy, also which brands? if you respond back soon he can have all this by tomorrow, minus the reptisun 5.0. thanks for all your help

well the chameleon is ok in that cage for now, once he gets bigger you are going to want to buy a 2x2x4 foot cage, they are made of wire mesh screen. you can get them from chameleoncondo.net or build your own.

a veilded chameleon gets pretty big, that cage is good for it for about a month or two.

you are going to need to put more stuff un its cage. invest in some fake vines for the cage (green, looks alive) and wrap those around in parts of the cage so he has somthing to hide in, this will also help collect water droplets so he will have somthing to drink. dust your crickets with miner all and repcal.

get some more stuff for it to climb on, 1 stick is not enough.
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2 month old veilded chamleon (heinekin)
2 juvie crested geckos (not named)
3 month old ambanja panther chameleon (not named yet)

What you need depends on what course you plan on taking. If you go with a 100 Watt Mercury vapor Zoomed bulb, you will want to go VERY light on the calcium powder, and VERY VERY VERY light(once a month) with any D3. Think of the D3 in Rep-cal or Miner-all as a substitute for sunlight exposure, a mercury vapor bulb and fixture(about $40-$50 for the bulb, plus $10-$15 for a good ceramic fixture) is pricy, but a much better, and EAISER and safer alternative to the sun. Where the Reptisun puts out 5% of the sun at a foot, the MV bulbs put out 20-50% at several feet. You CANNOT rely soely on the reptisun, but you can rely solely the MV bulbs.
I would get Herptivite for vitamins, and use it about once every week or two. OR mix it in the cricket food. Rep-cal has a lot more D3 than minerall, but less trace minerals, so if you plan on getting a MV bulb, I'd get minerall. You can get it without the D3-that would be better if he's got a MV bulb, if he has sunlight, or a MV bulb, too much artificial D3 with a calcium powder will lead to calcification of the organs, and vitamin/mineral imbalances, and a lot of problems.
Too much vitamin A can lead to lots of problems as well, so stick with Herptivite, it uses beta-carotene, not pure vit. A--they wont overdose on A.
When he's a bit bigger, in a month or so, go to Home depot or lowes, and pick up a small sheffelera, they seel for like $5 in the summer, and are perfect for veilds.
You NEED a source of D3:
a.either Sunlight(not reliable up north, so I would count it out)
b.calcium powder with D3 works great, but easy to over/under dose.
c.Zoomed powersun Mercury Vapor bulbs. Provide as much UVB rays as needed to meabolize D3 & calcium. Provide heat, and last longer than reptisn bulbs. expensive though, about $50-$70 to get the bulb and fixture. Also, only come in 100W sizes, so it oculd be too much for the little guy, unless kept at a distance.
overall, your best bet is the MV bulb, but you could also use a D3 poder, like rep-cal, for a few months, then switch over to a MV bulb. this is good, especially if you are unable to get the bulb right now.

ERic

these guys are giving you good guidelines!read thruogh these 4 pages of posts, MANY good links. I believe Chameleon Paradise just recently put up new do's and dont's (on his site) that would help you very much.keep handling light,much peace and quiet is good for while expecsaly (where's the sp.check!!)when young.Sounds like you will do fine.
stnman----HD tech

http://groups.msn.com/ChameleonParadise/dodontlist.msnw
this takes you to good stating point,will stop many pitfalls!!

lots of great info WITH pictures! he posts here often and gives excellent advise. you cant go wrong with him!
i would stay away from jsinger's advise though as he is pretty much just starting out and a typical post my is usually something like "guts squish out of the crix when they are eaten" or when given advise by someone that knows his stuff he tries to show is "smarts" by discrediting the guy.

just a novise with a big ego. sorry jason thats what how i see it.

dennis
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compasscreek backcountry adventures

Ditto!

Jason is young and trying too hard to make up for his previous problems here. My suggestion is just leave it be...I think he knows how he can come across. Just my 2 cents

I am not going to offer more advice because you got tons of great advice from lots of people. I am going to offer some words of encouragement. I made some big mistakes when I bought my first chameleon. He was wild caught (not a good idea) he had health problems I did not know about an upper respiratory infection. I had read lots of info but from outdated books. I did not know about this forum. He was an impulse buy at a reptile show and was not only my first cham but my very first reptile ( I had only frogs when I bought him ). He is alive today and I have had him for almost two years now. So it can be done all it takes is a commitment on your part and a willingness to learn about the animal you have. Read all you can and you are in the right place for great help! I have never regretted buying Salvador he has made a big impact in my life and once you get the hang of it you will love having your chameleon too so if you get a negative post don't let it get you down. Most people on this site mean well and remember they once were new at it too no matter how long ago that might have been. Good luck with your new friend.
Sonia

....that was very nicely said! And it even applies TO me as well! Zoe was an impulse too, although a slightly different, being a "rescue". But, an impulse none the less.
Then like Salvador, Zoe has had health problems, that I thought (and sometimes still do think) he'd never get over.
But...I don't regret a single minute of it, or a single dollar, of the HUNDREDS I have spent since getting him a few months ago.
Hopefully he'll be around for a looooong time for me to enjoy this wonderful animal that I impulsively brought into my life.
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Kim