Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi, I'm not new to reptiles, but I'm new to frilleds. I've done quite a bit of research online, and we just got a youngling. BUT, I don't know too much about how to set up his cage (I couldn't find much about this online) - I know it should be vertical oriented, but how do you do all this? I have many cleaned branches, an easily (and daily) cleaned waterfall since he likes the running water, a separate water dish for soaking if he likes, sand on the bottom (although we might chance to coconut fiber), and some fake plants to hide in in one section. He's only about 3" nose to vent, and he is in a 45 gallon tall aquarium for now until we either buy a big cage or make one... He's not grown much and hadn't eaten much while at the pet shop (he was there probably 3-4 months), but he's eating alot of crickets now and we're starting some fruits and veggies this week too. Oh, we got him on Saturday.

So can anyone show me some pics of their cages? How do you get things set up for vertical orientation? what other things should we put in for him? He seems happy and likes being held and was just sitting on my shoulder for quite awhile this weekend (he's at my fiance's place, while I live an hour away, so I only get to see my lizards on the weekends when I go up there... getting married in 2-3 months tho... ) Any suggestions? Thanks alot!

Buggzter
0:0:1 frilly
2:1 collared lizards
1:1 veiled chameleons
2:2 fence lizards
1:0 fiances
0:1 toddlers

Congrats on both sides.. good luck! I would suggest that you put him/her in a smaller enclosure if you notice that its hard to catch the food easily, otherwise.. leave it alone. That enclosure will do well for a while. I don't know if you've been to Sundial's website, but its worth a look, www.sundialreptile.com, they have a super nice care sheet on frilleds, they are also very nice, knowledgeable people. Also, when you think of questions post them here. You can provide this lil one with many plants to hide in and around and for now you may want to just have the water container, you wouldn't want it to become too humid for the little one, also put a rock in the center of the water so he/she can get out easier. As this frilly is so small, make sure you make it drink daily once or more, eventually it will drink while soaking.. hopefully. They are usually very shy by nature, I hate to keep repeating that, but I feel its the most important part of learning to understand them. Their vision is incredible, they may get upset just watching TV, or being near a window that is open slightly, they fear birds and snakes. Feeding is so easy, they will eat most feeders, so keep plenty of calcium dusted small crickets, small supers, (true) minimealworms (www.mimimealworms.com) on hand until the size picks up, then work on adding roaches, mice and silkworms, to name a few other options, my frilled will not eat any veggies, fruits or wax worms, just regular feeders, but yours is very young so try it, good luck there. When thinking of adult enclosures, its probably best to build something, check online for cage plans that suit your budget and space. I will try an take pics of the new enclosure that I just built and post them. One more thing.. gentle handling and speaking softly goes a long way, my frilled loves to sleep/hang out on my shoulder inside my shirt, if you notice it getting stressed put him/her back in the enclosure and give it some time to absorb the attention. I hope I have been of help.. take care and post pics when you can. Sorry the post was so long..

Thanks so much for your reply. Tony (my fiance) did a quick measurement and he's over 4" stv, he's eating 1/2"-3/4" dusted crickets, and he's not held much since Tony is rarely home (new job, overtime, and side jobs). He seems quite happy in the tank, but how do you tell if he is NOT happy and would be better off in a smaller tank? And what size would be better?

So how can you tell it the enclosure is too humid? This little one seems to like both the bowl and the waterfall (we got the waterfall since he liked being sprayed and we wanted to see if he would like it). We could always take it out and put it in another herp's cage if need be, but there don't seem to be problems YET. What sort of real plants are best for them to have? It seems he might be able to tear the plant apart unless they are fairly hardy... Oh, and he's eating 6-8 crickets or so each day, and from what Tony says he MIGHT be getting close to a shed.

One of his stress isues at the pet store was he was only in a 20gal tank with just a horizontal stick to climb on and a too-small water dish for a couple months, and for the last month he was in a 30 or 40 gallon with a small blue-tongue skink where niether liked the other... But now, he seems happy.

Thanks for all the help, and long posts are fine!
~Buggzter
1:0 frilly
2:1 collared lizards
1:1 veiled chameleons
2:2 fence lizards
1:0 fiances
0:1 toddlers

If he doesn't look dark in coloration and doesn't hide all the time, he's probably fine. I thought he was smaller, which is why I suggested a smaller enclosure, but it sounds like he is able to catch his food without too much effort. I use silk type plants, rarely do frillies eat veggies, mine doesn't, but its worth a try with yours. Humidity while shedding is fine, just make sure it doesn't look steamy all the time, if that makes any sense. Sounds like he's doing well, try to handle him daily so he doesn't become hand shy. Hopefully someone else will chime in on the veggies.

One more thing... I wouldn't advise you housing different species of reptiles together. It's just my opinion, but many others seem to agree. If there is a problem and they don't get along, you might find out until it's too late, there is also a chance that one will expose the other to parasites and illness, the most important thing is the fact that they both have different care requirements. I know it's a pain with all those enclosures but its worth it in the long run to have a happy, secure pet.

Ok, he's already by himself, and we only do 1 species per cage anyways - no need to stress any of our friends out with competition from other species... Also, the waterfall has no fogger and is on the cool side of the tank, so it's not steamy in there.

We got some superworms as an addition to the diet (we might get a box occasionally for everyone), and he took them right from me. He's so cool... lol!

Also, is there any reason for an almost perfectly circular small hole in his frill? It's probably less than 1/4" accross, and it's only visable when examining the frill's folds. I saw it when I was checking him over before getting him. I'm thinking it might have been from the breeder (?) to mark "who's who" or a scar from a cricket when he was a hatchling, or something similar. I don't see how it could be at all harmful to him, and it looks as if the scales are maybe going to grow to close the hole.

Anyhoo, thanks so much for the help. He's getting close to shedding I think, so I know he's growing! Thanks again!

Buggzter

Sounds like your getting good advise; I would add hat the water fall can become a living toilet and that he may be using it for just that. If our not completely sanitizing the waterfall and pump then eventually it can cause major bacterial infections. Also the hole in its frill isn't from the breeder it is most likely from the mite that was chewing on him when he was in the wild, or sitting in a box during importation. Many imports big and small have these holes in their frill. Never do you see it in a true CB animal who is healthy.

Cheers,
miz
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Mizzy: frilldragon.com