If you are not going to use reptisuns, because their usefulness is outweighed by their cost, fine, I won't argue with that(don't always agree, but that's been discussed many times).
If you are not going to use UVB lighting, for fear of the "dangers" of MV bulbs, then I think you're not on the right path.
While there IS a danger of overexposure, it can easily be avoided--even in "small" cages.
Even the amount of mercury vapor in the bulbs is quite trivial, and in such low concentrations, it is not to be worried about--it will quickly diffuse in a room when shattered.
The use of UVB light is benificial in that it makes it eaiser to maintain PROPER body levels of D3 and Ca. IF you use MV bulbs, not on;y do you get healthier, better looking chameleons, but most of the guesswork and over supplementation is gone.
I have done and stll do quite a bit of "guesswork" supplementations on some of my animals.
I have raise 3 deremensis with no UVB, one CB male from when he was tiny, and two subadult WC from when they were less than 2" S/V. They show no signs of MBD, and are in perfect health.
I also raised my male veild from a little over an inch S/V lenght to 17" TL in about 15 months with no UVB.
The thing that kind of frightened me, was that I used about 1/3 to 1/5 the amount of repcal(and in the CB deremensis, minerall, which has MUCH less D3 than repcal) than I did when I raised my first veilds, years ago.
they showed no signs of over supplementation, even though not a day went by when they DID not get repcal--even onall their pinheads and fruit flies.
Most of it was unnecesaary.
The way I see it, for veilds, is that they can be raised without UVB very eaisly. For my male, I gave him repcal every other day, on half his crickets for the first few months. then I cut back a bit after his growth spurt.
After he was about full grown, I placed a MV bulb over him. He immediatly improoved color, appitite, and activity. When I swapped it to save the little females with MBD, he went ugly again. His appitite is down again.
the only time he's in good color is when the sun shines throught he window, when he'll actually move to the front side of the cage to bask, even though the heat lamp is much warmer. When he had the MV bulb, he usually stayed under it to bask.
He knows there's something missing fromt he heat lamp.
I think the usefulness of MV bulbs FAR FAR outweighs any potential danger that they have.
The usefulness of 5.0 bulbs is another story. they ARe useful, in the behavior/better than nothing area, but I think their cost is a bit high to compensate for their weakness--as well as the many kids that get them thinking all is fine, and they don';t NEED artificial D3 because they've got a reptisun.
I simply cannot afford all the MV bulbs I need. I need probably 2-3 more. WHich I cAN afford. However, since I have deremensis, the heat becomes an issue. Not the basking area, they have half a room, but the ambient room temp would go up to 85 with 2-3 100W bulbs plugged in--stupid 2nd floor/hot air rising/thermostat DOWNSTAIRS=70 degrees downstairs, 80 upstairs.....
The thing I need is a mister to cool them down and keep the humidity up, then the MV bulbs willbe OK, if at least for a few hours a day.
Lots of coffee....lots of coffee=lots of typos& off topic ranting.
E
