Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am more than sure all of this has been covered on this board but I have been scearching and can not find it.

Why do people say that the cage for a Chameleon is too big? Is this just a feeding issue? Speaking of how long can one go without food?

As for lighting, I am lost as I have been reading here to just use a normal house light bulb, would a UBV bulb just be a waste of money or did I misread something?

In your setup, what all electrical appliances do you have and what do they serve to the Chameleon?

Sorry for rambling I am just looking to become educated.

you need a uvb light and yes people think cages are to big doe to feeding but if you train your cham to cup feed and train them where the cup will be then the big cage will be fine. the longet a cham should have to go without eating is 1 day but im sure they can go longer
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1.0 veiled chameleons(Rocket)

Haa noo.. was not thinking a bird cage at all..

But how is a desert coil-lamp with 7% UVB? for lighting?

who said anything about a bird cage. no use aa reptisun 5.0 or if you have a cage 5 feet or taller i would use a mercury vapor bulb
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1.0 veiled chameleons(Rocket)

lol.. yeah I am lacking much sleep !
I thought you did but after reading it again, I see it said "Big cage"
My bad..

Thanks for the info, anything else I should look for in a set up?

just make sure there are plenty of hiding spots and places for the cham to climb
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1.0 veiled chameleons(Rocket)

I just read on the Reptisun 5.0 UVB UVB, it said it was 6.1% in UVB, why would that one be better than the 7% UVB bulb I already have?

What kind of chameleon are you planning on getting, and also how "big" is the cage you are thinking about??

For an adult chameleon, no cage out there is really too big. Adult cages may be too big for babies though because they may not be able to find their food and have a hard time regulating their temperature. Cup feeding would solve the one problem, but getting them to eat from a cup doesnt always work.

Yes, you need UVB. ReptiSun 5.0 is the most often used bulb. Mercury Vapor bulbs are also used for bigger cages. I'm not sure about that other bulb you have.

When people say "just use a regular lightbulb" they are talking about heat. Most UV bulbs do not give off heat, or not enough. So you will need a bulb for heat in a reflector dome. You don't need any special "heat bulb" though. A regular lightbulb will do. Try different wattages until you achieve the correct temp.
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~Melissa
1.0 Ambanja Panther (Diesel)
0.1 African Hegdehog (Kaimah)