Veiled chameleons for dummies

the time has come for another herp..i havent gotten one since last october and i'm starting to go crazy! lol. so what i want is a male veiled cham. The smallest baby i can safely get...so here's my questions....

is a "65 gal" sized reptarium ok as an initial setup for one baby until it outgrows that one?

I read that the crix need to be dusted every day and vitamin dusted once a month..true/false?


is it better to offer the crix in a cup or release them into the enclosure (will use moss or similar substrate)?

where's the best place to get my baby veiled over the internet?

is this a good package? (i'll get a few other things as well) http://lllreptile.com/store/catalog/...eleon-package/

true/false...males have bigger crests than females as adults?

is it even possible to sex a baby veiled?

are veileds old or new world chams?...and which one means their tails are detachable? lol

do you leave a dripper over a plant in the cage 24/7?

can you place heat lamps right on the screening of the reptarium?

thanks, any other tips would be appreciated. i'm doing my research but i want a really broad array of opinions, and i apologize for the amount of question, i just want to do the best i can for the new one.

-adam

*edit* i got rid of some questions that were answered by looking at the HC caresheet...now is there anyone who can answer the rest??

Adam I am no Cham keeper but I can answer a couple of your questions from a basicly generic standpoint.
Males do develop a larger crest (casque) than females.
Baby chams can be sexed due to the presence of a tab on the back feet of the males.
I've never heard of a cham having a detachable tail except in the case of anoles which are often called the american chameleon. But they are not a chameleon.
The heat lamp cannot be put on the screen. It will melt the plastic mesh.
The rest I will leave to those more knowledgable.

I can't tell you how many times I've heard that keeping Cham's successfully requires a mesh cage. I know the Calgary Zoo uses one, as well as several people I know that are successful with them. The ones that struggle seem to be the ones with glass aquaria. I'm no expert, but here goes:

is a "65 gal" sized reptarium ok as an initial setup for one baby until it outgrows that one? Make it a tall one.

I read that the crix need to be dusted every day and vitamin dusted once a month..true/false? False. Vitamin dusting should be unnecessary if you get a UVB set up...also, calcium should be at least twice a month.


is it better to offer the crix in a cup or release them into the enclosure (will use moss or similar substrate)? Do them right into the enclosure, they cham's hunt well. There are very small babies at the petstore I work at and then devour the crickets straight from the cage with no cup.

where's the best place to get my baby veiled over the internet? www.reptilescanada.com has a guy that seems to bring chams in straight from madagascar, you could try snooping around there. Either that or www.Kingsnake.com (or .ca) will give you some leads.

is this a good package? (i'll get a few other things as well) http://lllreptile.com/store/catalog/...eleon-package/
That looks like a nice deal, Chams up here run about 150 for just the lizard, the set up there would cost about that too. So it looks alright.

true/false...males have bigger crests than females as adults? TRUE. They also have bigger everything else.

is it even possible to sex a baby veiled? Apparently by using the tabs on the feet. I've also heard that the ones that change color as babies (not dramatically, mind you) are males, but I don't know if that's true. Go with the tab thing.

are veileds old or new world chams?...and which one means their tails are detachable? All true Chams are Old world. Seriously, I don't know why people call Anolis Chameleons, it's kind of silly. Either way, if a tail is prehensile like Chameleons, I don't think it has Autotomy (the ability to drop) simply because it won't grow back.

do you leave a dripper over a plant in the cage 24/7? You should. You could always have it on a timer, I'm not sure what exactly they need for the dripping

can you place heat lamps right on the screening of the reptarium? If it's metal, yes. If not, no!

can you place heat lamps right on the screening of the reptarium? If it's metal, yes. If not, no!

Reptariums are made from nylon mesh, not metal.

Originally Posted by geckoguy14

the time has come for another herp..i havent gotten one since last october and i'm starting to go crazy! lol. so what i want is a male veiled cham. The smallest baby i can safely get...so here's my questions....

is a "65 gal" sized reptarium ok as an initial setup for one baby until it outgrows that one?

I read that the crix need to be dusted every day and vitamin dusted once a month..true/false?


is it better to offer the crix in a cup or release them into the enclosure (will use moss or similar substrate)?

where's the best place to get my baby veiled over the internet?

is this a good package? (i'll get a few other things as well) http://lllreptile.com/store/catalog/...eleon-package/

true/false...males have bigger crests than females as adults?

is it even possible to sex a baby veiled?

are veileds old or new world chams?...and which one means their tails are detachable? lol

do you leave a dripper over a plant in the cage 24/7?

can you place heat lamps right on the screening of the reptarium?

thanks, any other tips would be appreciated. i'm doing my research but i want a really broad array of opinions, and i apologize for the amount of question, i just want to do the best i can for the new one.

-adam

Not sure how to do the qoute thing but to answer your questions I used it.

65 gallon reptarium will probably be a bit large for a baby cham..Usually they dont like cages that big when small. I would use a smaller one and work your way up. Chameleons are very expensive, and thats just the beginning of the expenses.

Crickets need to be dusted daily, or every other day. I have never heard of the vitamin dusting and I personally dont do it, but Im sure it would hurt to.

Cup feeding is the best thing you can do, if it will eat. I doubt it will though. Cup feeding is safer, cleaner, easier and helps you know how much the cham is eating. If using reptariums you need to cup feed, the crickets will chew through the mesh. About using moss substrate, I wouldn't. Paper towel or newspaper is best because the cham may eat the moss for no apparent reason.

The best place I have found so far is www.chameleonsonly.com . I would highly reccomend buying from them if they have veileds available.

Males do typically have bigger crests (or whatever you want to call them) then females.

It is VERY easy to sex veileds. Males have spurs on their hind feet, females dont. Any sort of reading should tell you this.

Im not sure about old or new world chameleons but I know that veileds will not drop their tail..

The problem with drippers is they constantly flood cages. If you use one make sure it drips into the plant and not onto the ground.

If you put heat lamps on the screen of the reptarium you will melt it.

MY personal advice is to save a bit more money and buy a panther. They are much better and dont have the tendency to be ****y adults.

Anymore questions PM me and I would be happy to help

Alex

Edit:Sorry for the curse thing didnt know the word I used would be bad.. What I meant was mean, hissy, bitey, easily stressed etc

what many have said is right, except for the calc powder being only a once a month thing. If you are getting a tiny cham you'll want to dust often. I've heard from every day to every other day, but definitely not just once a month.

As for their hissyness, this is true, somewhat. The male veiled I pesonally raised has no problems with me, however the female that was raised by my brothers ex won't let anyone but my brothers ex near her... which isn't to good seeing as how she is an ex. If you get it young and care for it, taking it out when you can for little trips and such and build up its confidence in you, you shouldn't have a problem.

Good luck with the Cham

Hi.
All relevant questions have been answered I think but I will add my two penneth... Everyone says not to use glass vivs for chams but all my chams are in glass. I find them ideal for the U.K. because you can control thet emp and humidity much better especially when the temp/weather is so unpredictable. I must admit they the vivs were custom made and have mesh vents on the front and the lid so there is good ventilation.
Veiled Chams do have a reputation for being bad tempered gits but over a period of three months I got my two fellas and girl to bear stroking under the chin and happily walking onto hand when offered without doing the 'black banded kung fu' stance. It takes LOADS of patience though.
Have fun.
Jan

You need a full day spec. light, a night light, and a uva/uvb light.
As for crickets and to release them or not..I don't feed my chams crickets at all. I use roaches, much healthier and I feed in a bowl as my juvis seem too stupid to catch enough food.

This thread is from a year ago.