rear wall?

[dudsky]

have any of u guys ever built a cage for a cham with a rocky rear wall? im building a cage for mine right now, and its going in the living room, so it gota look outstanding ;) i m planning on makin a rear wall(the styrofoam technique) and i wanted to see if any of u guys know any techniques on how to do it, also i mostlikely will make a built in waterfall in the wall, so he can drink all he wants, no need for dripper, and will keep up the humidity.
thanks in advance
igor

[galad]

one thing to look out for in water fall is that you change the water and clean it daily, it might be less of a hassle to just mist three times a day. Even with the water fall i would still recomend a good misting at least twice a day.

[CarlC]

Maybe instead of making the cage look outstanding for you try making the cage look and feel natural for the chameleon.

If you plan on having the waterfall as the only source of drinking water for the cham you need to do more research. You will be lucky to get cham to drink from it.

Carl

[peterm15]

you will still need the mistings.... or even a dripper... the waterfall is a great way to keep humidity.... itll be alot easier if you keep the water outside of the cage.... that way you dont have to move a bunch of stuff to get to the water and change it... make sure theres LOTS of cover from the outside and good luck..

[dudsky]

i already decided not to do a water fall cuz it mostlikely wont even look good, i dont know if its healthy to lick silicone even tho its cured and crickets will drown in there .
i really hate it when u ppl just go oooo u need more research, ooo u dont know ur stuff. whats with that? y do u judge by one post, i spent enough hours researching and reading books. i asked u guys for help and not criticizing my knowledge. not only in this post, i dont care if its once, but ive seen many posts of other guys who had that said to them unreasonably. "Maybe instead of making the cage look outstanding for you try making the cage look and feel natural for the chameleon." i went to a tropical plants outlet, and i talked to people there who helped my wit hthe plants i can put in the cage, im getting them when the cage is done, so there. there will be ENOUGH plants. Have i ever said i dont spray? i spray MULTIPLE times a day, and my chameleon is ALWAYS light green and happy. im still going to be spraying the cage around 3-4 times a day in the new cage, and a waterfall would substitute for a dripper.
other then that guys thanks a lot for help, u changed my mind too, ill call the water fall off. the rear wall is already in progress. and looking nice. ill post up pic when im done building.

thanks

Igor

[SaIiLdVaEnR]

Calm it down Igor. No one was criticizing you, just pointing out some things. You never said you wouldn't spray, but you said no need for a dripper. Frankly, if you have a dripper you don't need to spray nearly that much. Can't handle it? Don't bother.

Aidan

[CarlC]

I replied to what you put in your post. Where in your original post do you say you would be misting or spraying?

What kind of chameleon are you planning on keeping in the cage?

No one was coming down on you, just offering suggestions.

Carl

[peterm15]

ya man... i did about three months of reasearch bought multipal books and even tried to borrow some... but i still made mistakes... everyone does.... it may not even be your first cham... but everyone is different.... my guy doesnt like to be seen at all... i have to keep alot of coverage... which i just add a few days ago... look at the cham growth pages... thats when i learned something new...

ive read through this post a coupple more times and fail to see where anyone came down on you... you never really know with some ppl.... i met a guy today that says "i know nothing about lizards, i just take care of them" so you really never know...

the water fall is a very good idea for looks and humidity reasons.. no one ever said it wasent...

just with you saying that "its gotta look outstanding" kinda leads me to believe you really like your lizard to be on display... wich is nice... everyone likes that... but you must have a happy medium.. display and comfort/coverage ... with many books and hours of internet reasearch most sources says to create lots of cover but dont croud your cage... well mine is crouded and hes actually starting to enjoy it...

but this sounds like youve had you cham for a while... am i right... and not to stab at you but... my reasearch shows that chameleons arent very forgiving to canges to surroundings... they dont like to be taken from there home and put into anouther... they dont like to be up routed and moved... your cage may be absoutly beautiful and an excellent home for your cham... but youve gotta realise that hes not gonna like it... he may be green now but he wont be for long... hell eventually get used to it but expect it to be a WHILE...

no one knows how much reasearch youve done.. and they wont cause they werent there.... so before you jump on ppl for suggesting you do more, realise that you didnt give us much info to work with.. were just given you our comments and suggestions that you asked for... thats all...

now on a lighter note.. i hope your cage woeks out and that your cham loves it... are you gonna free range crix? if so what type of screen are you useing... and i would really suggest taking progress pics... cause im gonna wanna see them... LOL... as im sure alot of other ppl will....

good luck...

pete

[dudsky]

dont make a big deal out of this guys, i just see ppl say things like that in these forums sometimes thats y i decided to say that.
as for the cham, hes a baby, a juvenile and is outgrowing his 10 gallon rite now so i would guess a change of evoronment is essential rite? i heard bad things can happen if u dont free roam crickets so i will, and im thinking of a screen mesh. I think i heard taht screen is not the best thing, since their claws can be trapped or something, i cant find the sourse i read this from a while ago, so what do u guys think?
thanks

[peterm15]

well i had to do the same thing and had the same prob... alot of the books i read and sites that i saw showed the chams either hand feeding or cup feeding... at the time i was more worried about his limbs but now i want to free range... but the mesh i used is way to big... so i just scattered a few deep cups in the cage and put 2 or 3 crix in at one time... i would still like to free range but i also wanna know how ppl got around that prob...

if you cand free range i suggest also hand feeding make him work for it...

can you hold your cham or is he pissy, and i was thinking about your wall.. you could make it a weeping wall with water just trickling down it. it would collect in the bottom and pass through a screen into a canister on the outside... no drowning crix no escapies easy cleaning and changing of water... and you could coat the wall with cement of any colour to create it like a rock...... and if you have some creeping plants thay would creep up the dryer sides....

[dudsky]

yea, i am already coating the rear wall, and thats what i wanted to do, a weeping wall, but then i decided not to. i am not sure how the cage is gonna turn out after im done doors nd all sides etc, so after a good examination, if there are no cracks or holes that crickets will be able to get out thru, i will deffinately free range, and hand feed of corse lol, but so far no luck with that, he wont take from my hand. I can handle him but he does get a little pissed off. im thinking about deoration tho. i dont want to put a tree in, because i dont want a big tub at the bottom where the tree is growing from , so i am thinking of putting in a lot of vines and putting some plants on the walls, and around the vines etc. u think that wud work? also, what plants would u suggest to use? also, is it true that if there is any glass present in the enclosure, it may result in problem? like he will see the reflection and get stressed? i know several chams that are nice and happy in enclosures with glass, so im wondering if you guys ever had any problems.
thanks

[peterm15]

as you can see hes knida pissed.. and hes pissed alot... less now that i added the plants to the walls... he now gets very green more often... he just doesnt like ppl...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v604/peterm15/DSC00302.jpg

thats my start... its about 55g and theres 2 more areas about the same size to be opened up.. one below one beside... which gives me an upside down L shape... i have a pothos going beside... and 2 fiscus going below... the pothos is a creeper so i might get another to creep up the back wall...

i used fake plants to line the walls of the cage( recently) and to wrap around vines... the vines i made from $3 wreaths i bought from walmart... i braided some together so create small and large vines... they kinda limit what you can do cause there will always be a curve to the... there very studry though... i used cable ties and twine to attach everything and the twine adds a really nice touch...

dont get ripped off on fake plants. go to a dollar store... theres a rally good one at young and davis drive if you ever go to that area...

i also used moss and stuffed it into the vines and let some hang to create a nice look...

i for the lights a have a 24"repti 8.0 a 150w ceremic thats on 24/7 and a jungle glow thats on during the day... my room is really cold though so you prob wont need that... i made a doubble dripper system so theres 2 drips at 2 dif sides.. that cost me 6 bucks to make.. and i have a full size door..

i dont have a pic of the entire cage but i not all the way done,... just gotta add the plants...

as for glass id suggest not useing it just in case.. just use wood if you wanna cover one side....

if you have any more ? feel free to ask... im by no means an expert but have gone through your exact situation recently so you can learn from my mistakes...

[galad]

big tub for a tree? You shouldnt need that big of a pot for a smaller tropical tree. As for screen you can still use it its just when the holes are to small theyre nails can get caught and ripped out. I also have no troubles cup feeding and i have been doing it for a year. the thing with cup feeding is you cannot do it all the time, as they can develop lazy tounge. I prevent this by yes hand feeding weekly, and also just releasing crix one at a time on the vines in the enclosure. I used 1/4 gauge galvanized mesh so the cricks can easily escape other wise.

peace

ws

[peterm15]

i used the same thing....

[dudsky]

thanks for help guys. Yea i wont need a 24 hour heat lamp since my temps in room dont drop below 75, and in case u didnt know, a drop at temps at nite is essential digestion etc, 150 just seems pretty hot so i thot maybe u never heard, sorry if im wrong. i was just wondering if u made ur driper in some special way since u say it cost u 6 bux, all the drippers i've seen and made are made for free, by makin a hole in a bottle or similar. i will use glass for the front though, because by the design there is gona be a bit support needed from there, so i need it, and of corse i want glass for viewing, if any problems arise tho ill just change it to mesh and figure something out about support then. I will have 2 full hight walls made of mesh and working as doors, i think that will give plenty ventilation imo. especially there will be a fan hole in the floor near by the cage so the air around it wont be still, so im sure it will be enough ventilation. ummm also, i wanted t say that i almost deided to get a big grape wine and put it in the tank from bottom to top, and then attatch things to it from there..... bendable vines plants and stuff. and maybe a nice little tree will go in the tank too. do u know any plants that are safe to creep around vines? the back wall too. i cant take process pics since my sister took the camera with her on a vacation, when she comes back ill take some.. OH! its tomorow lol. ill take some pics 2moro. for the bottom i might use big cypress mulch or mameluca mulch so its not loose. if i free roam crix, i dont want any substrate ingestion.
alrite thanks for he help guys.
igor

[Collide]

here are some pics of soem of my cages. Some times it helps to see others setups for ideas ect... A word on glass if u have any amount of hard water it will stain the glass and it is extremly hard to get off with out chemicals. I hope u luck.

my cages

http://oldworldchameleons.info/album/thumbnails.php?album=16

articles, some may not apply but good reads
http://www.chameleonnews.com/year2002/nov2002/gradients/gradients.html
http://www.chameleonnews.com/year2002/july2002/up_north_caging/up_north.html
http://www.chameleonnews.com/year2003/oct2003/baby_caging/baby_caging.html

[peterm15]

ya.... like i said the temp in my room is cold.... i need all thoes lamps jsut to keep it up... i also have a space heater... my night time heat in the cham cage is 73-76 and day time 80-85 so i found that thoes lamps worh great.. theres nothing to retain heat...(until tonight) so most of it escapes... ... oh and ps... they dont seem to like it when you turn lights on on them... but sice itll be in the living room i figure your bound to have some lights on... so if you make a small box just above the glass you can hide a window blind in there and then at night just turn doun the blinds.. that way less night time light and a happies chameleon... and youll never see the blinds... ( unless let down)

[peterm15]

sorry for the second post... but pothos is a great hardy vine plant... itll climb if you give it a head start... it will climb toward the light... and if you go and invest into a steam cleaner youll save yourself alot of hastle... it kills germs and cleans really well... and will most likely get rid of hard water stains...

distilled water( i think) is whats best for your cham... it will also lesen hard water stains.....

the dripper i made i bought all the materials so the juice jug cost me 3 and the tubes 2 valves and a splitter cost another 3.. all from wallmart...

[dudsky]

heh, blinds idea is actauly great, ill need custom blinds tho. ill never find the size i need. thanks for the pictures are links collide, ur cages are awesome. did taht problem arise with u about the glass by the way? if so, did u have any problems with ur chameleon "seeing" himself in the glass reflection and getting pissed? i really dont believe glass will reflect well enoff to do that and i know several chams as i said that are house in cages with glass and no problems. you guys agree with me on ventilation tho? in my previous reply? peterm, ur setup looks VERY aweosme. i love it. great job. but u gave me a great idea on the blinds tho because i was thinking about it myself actually. i think instead of blinds, ill just take some nice cloth used for like drapes or w/e and make drop down drapes and ill rest them on top of cage ans when the lights in cage are off ill just drop em down. ;) thanks

[Collide]

Yes i have problems with hard water om my one cage, i have keept a werner, a babie panther and a Honelli in the glass with seemingly no problems with reflection although my Ho isent to happy im not sure if it is that or not, and the babie veilds seemed to see there reflections in there too, I only use that cage because it is smaller and works well for my smaller chams i have had but i will never get another like it too much work in them. just my opinion though, *** for cleaning the glass hard as hell i have to dump the cage clean about 3 times with CLR or some other strong chemical and then rince till im happy it is clean, too much work IMHO.


B

[peterm15]

as long as you have the top mesh too.... it should be ok.. im sorry but what are the dimensions again

[peterm15]

hey collide have you tried the steam cleaner yet... i got one and it cleans glass great...

[galad]

yea i dont really like glass at all. Not very good for ventilation and like you said some chams can see themselves in it and freak out. Also that thing blowing next to the cage might not be a good idea. Any cool drafts are not good in the summer when the airconditioning is on, and it might be to dry of air in the winter with the heat on. I know it would be in my house.

ws

[dudsky]

no no its not blowing at it, its not close enoff to the cage to make any cold drafts, just not going to keep the air in the room still. the air in the room gets refreshed tahts all i was saying. same story with drying out. doesnt blow directly.
thanks

[DragnDrop]

Originally posted by peterm15
ya.... like i said the temp in my room is cold.... i need all thoes lamps jsut to keep it up... i also have a space heater... my night time heat in the cham cage is 73-76 and day time 80-85 so i found that thoes lamps worh great.. theres nothing to retain heat...(until tonight) so most of it escapes... ...

Chams need a drop in temperature at night. If you have yours in a heated house, I'm pretty sure the night temps are safe for a cham, no need for heat 24/7. You can safely drop the night temps to lower then 73-76 at night and not be risking the health of your cham, it might even be better for him.

[peterm15]

how low would you suggest... cause my room is in the basement so its cold to begin with... plus we use a fireplace to heat my house... but thats upstairs on the other side of the house... i keep my room at like 69-72 so the 150 w only raises it to 73-76...

it might be a little easier now that i have 2 sides blocked... it might stay a little warmer

[DragnDrop]

My panthers and jacksons chams were outside during summer with temps going down to the mid 50's before I'd bring them in at night and none of them suffered any problems. Indoors in winter, the room they were in went down to 65 F at night, no problems at all. If you check some good sources of info, you'll see they all mention the importance of a night drop in temperature.

[peterm15]

ok thanks... im gonna go back to my books right now