New Veiled Owner

DvSKiN · 03-01-04, 09:43 AM

Hey guys.. I just got my first baby veiled the other day. This is my first cham, and all my research told me to start w/ a veiled.. I have done my research on the little bugger (coming from a saltwater reef hobby background, doing research is my middle name) and I just wanted to ask a quick question about an enclosure I was thinking of... I basically wanted to take a suitable housplant (could somone point me to a link, w/ a list of them, I have a few lists, but like to cross reference) and make a screen box to go over it.. I could hang a little feeding cup in there, and set up a drip.. Is this something that would work, or should I stick w/ the 10 gallon for a few more weeks?

DvS

crazyboy · 03-01-04, 10:56 AM

congrats on the new vieled. sorry i cna thelpy ou with your question though. do you have any picks of the cham.

Big Mike · 03-01-04, 10:57 AM

Welcome to sSnakeSs.com

Always nice to see people who do their research. I'm no expert but I'd say that you should keep the little guy in a small enclosure (your 10 gal) for a little while...just to give him/her some security and to make easy for you to keep conditions favourable.

This will also give you some time to set up an enclosure with live plants etc.

I remember reading a few list of plants that are OK for chams but I don't recall exactly where I found them. I Know that Pothos is quite common and I think ficus trees are used as well.

Good luck with him/her.

choriona · 03-01-04, 11:23 AM

If you are going to use that kind of set up, you will want to make sure the plant is bushy enough that the cham feels hidden. Also, I reccomend not putting it near other plants.

For example, my chams are free roamers and I try to place thier territories as a nice happy island surrounded by scarry places. Does that make sense? Like having them up high on top of a dressor that is smooth to walk on. They would rather stay on the sticks than walk on the smoothness. You could have your plant as a safe island and have other plants far enough away that it looks unsafe to try to get to. If you do this, you will have reduced nose rubbing from your cham trying to get somewhere else.

Good big growing plants that support an adults weight well are ficus and hibiscus trees. They love to munch on the hibiscus flowers, and I find mine flowers year round. Lots of people use pothos, but I have trouble keeping them bushy. Mine eventually turn into two or three long vines. Also, this is a veiled salad, so it is great to have for them, but almost impossible to keep as the main focus plant. If you're real good with plants, you may have luck with a huge schleffera (sp) since they have real strong stems when they are BIG.
Now, I can guarntee that your cham will need water more than your plant will, so your drip system will need a seperate catch basin in the bottom. YOu will still need to mist too, cause providing drinking water and spraying for humidity are two different essential things.
But for now, I would keep the little bugger in a small tank - just so you can monitor that things are going okay and practice all the things that your cham needs EVERY DAY on a small scale. Depending on how fast your cham grows, I would not move it to a bigger house until it is 4-6 months old. You should be able to tell when it is too big for its house, treat it like a fish!

Anyways, good luck with that. Hope this helps a bit.

DvSKiN · 03-01-04, 11:36 AM

Treat it like a fish!! So how often do I water change the little guy?? LoL But seriously, those replies were great!! Thanks for the info.. I understand what ya mean about "the scary place" and a separate catch basin... I'ma have to think about that one..

Pics?!? I got a few on my digi camera, but I just cant get a good shot of em for some reason?? I'm better at taking pics of corals, LoL, But I will get some decent pics, asap!

DvS

Collide · 03-01-04, 01:22 PM

Hey congrats, Im kinda confused about what kind of enclosure u are trying to make here is a link to a good site with some enclosure info and the FDA toxic plant list.

http://chamownersweb.com/husbandry/encls1.htm

http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~djw/plantox.html

Brandy

DvSKiN · 03-01-04, 02:27 PM

Basically I was going to make a "box" w/o the bottom (screened in of course) Then make the bottom of the box a separate piece.. And simply put the plant in the bottom 1/2 and slip the top 1/2 over it.. But I really appreciate the link!!!

DVS

huhet · 03-01-04, 02:53 PM

another reefer gone chams. you may want to watch out. i kind of feel like giving up my 125 to make more time, money and space for more chams.

my cham is a free roamer for now, kicking it in a pothos plant that his hanging from the ceiling. if she were to drop, the first thing she would see would be the power chord to the basking lamp, which i assumed she'd climb, because she obviously hates flat surfaces.

as for cham safe plant lists, type exactly that into google and you'll find several sites with such lists.

as for the tank, i tried to put mine in a fully planted terrarium, and she hated it. she was fine for a bit, but then she climbed up to the top screen, took on a really dark pattern and wouldn't stop moving around. that's why she's in the plant.

DvSKiN · 03-01-04, 03:10 PM

I was looking at ur avatar of the puffer!! LoL I dont tihnk I'll ever stop the SWF hobby, LoL.. Thanks agian, will do that search!!!

DvS

K1LOS · 03-01-04, 04:43 PM

There is a long well debated post that talks about whether a small cage is necessary for babies titled 'Nusery Cage'. I think you will find a lot of information in there about cage size requirements. As to the design of your cage, i don't see anyreason your cage wouldn't work. The only things you need consider is whether it would be cricket proof (but you are planning to cup feed anyways), and the catch basin already mentioned.

I disregarded the advice to buy the catch basin before you build the cage, and build the cage around the basin. BIG mistake, i can't stress enough, you WILL NOT find a rubbermaid that will fit your dimensions as well as you'd like. I lucked out and had an awesome stainless steel thing built for me that will funnel all the water into my basin.

Good luck

Geoff

DvSKiN · 03-01-04, 05:17 PM

thanks again!! I saw that post, it looks real nice!!

DvS

meow_mix450 · 03-01-04, 07:38 PM

lol ignore about the debate lol, everyone had there own opinion in there, but if you dont have another cage for it then i would use the 10 gallon and get/make the screen cage fast. Make sure you dont fry him in the 10 gallon, and im gald you do your reaserach a lot of people dont, and do the completly wrong thing lol

Welcome to snakes, and i hope you enjoy it here

Meow

DvSKiN · 03-02-04, 09:38 AM

OK!! Update! I fed him yesterday, for the first time, and he ate.. I cup fed him from a deli cup lid. Pinheads w/ the back leg taken off. Used calcium and mineral sup. The only thing I noticed is, he seemed to struggle when he was taking it down. I was thinking maybe I used too much dust?? So I sprayed at him a little, and he walk over to the leave and grabbed a sip..

I know they will eat silk worms, but what about wax worms???? I can get those on a steady basis, and if they'd be good for him, I'll grab some tonite, I know they can make reptiles "obese." Do u think he will eat today after I get outta work, (24 hr's from previous feeding?) He ate a whole of 4 crix yesterday (outta 6)

choriona · 03-02-04, 12:44 PM

Wax worms are high in phosphorus...something you don't want. Maybe we could say its like eating a bunch of eggs every day when you know your cholesterol is high. Bad news, but acceptable in moderation. They should only be given for a treat, and then maybe only 5 for an adult. Two for a baby. They are definately NOT a daily food item.
I would stick with silks, supers, mealies and crix as the main diet.
For reference, I give waxies maybe once a month or so. But my guys don't seem to like them anyways.

choriona · 03-02-04, 12:48 PM

Yeah, he should be hungry today. I think the general appetite for a 3 month old cham is like 10-20 pinheads or 2 week old crix per day. Whatever size is smaller than his head is wide.
Correct me if I am wrong. I haven't had a baby on its own (without 10 other mates) in a long time.