Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i got anole and hes been fine and i read stuff on the interent on how to take care of him and such. but i moved back to my dorm and i bought new stuff for him. and origally he was really really green and since he has shedded his old skin he has been really dark brown. and im just wondering if im doin everything rite?

i have a 10 gallon tank.
newspaper on very bottom
a therometer and hydrogauge.
some tree bark covering the entire ground.
a fake limb thing to climb.
a little bit of fake green plants.
i feed him crickets. (how often should i feed him?)
then i have a blue/purple 16w aquarium light that put on the top.
the temp stays about 76-77.
im going to get a heat pad to put under the tank.

should i use more greenery? and softer greenery?
should i use a different light?
i have a silver heat thing with clamp that i can put a reg light in should i use that with a low powerful light?

someone help cus i dunno if im doing this rite or just worrying.

You need more heat and a basking spot. I just got my guys a week ago myself, so here's what I've learned.

They need a basking spot of around 90 degrees. You can use a normal light bulb for this, just put a thermometer in that area and see how far away the light has to be from the branch/thing they lay and bask on to get the right temp. We use a 75 watt about 6" above their branches. Keep this on during the day, they'll be ok without the extra heat at night. You also want to make sure there is a cool spot they can go to in order to escape the heat.

You will also need a special bulb (flourescent) that gives off both the UVA and UVB rays they need to digest their food. This light needs to be no more than 12" above the lizards and CANNOT go through glass or plastic as the rays will not reach the lizard.

As far as the feeding goes, feed him crickets 1 at a time till he won't take anymore and then feed him that amount each day. Hope this helped

-Martha

Good advice your learning fast. I was going to make the same exceptions but you already did. A 15W Light? What? The smallest I have ever used for my Anoles is 40W and the current light is 75W.
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