This section of our website is still under development. We have provided you with the below information to give you guidelines for the proper equipment needed in order to provide your panther chameleon a healthy and safe habitat.
The Care & Equipment of Panther Chameleons (Furcifer pardalis)
The health, proper care, and equipment of your panther chameleon are the most important components to having a happy and long living pet. Panther chameleons come from the north in Madagascar where high humidity levels, tropical temperatures, and forested regions are among the most common of habitats. If you are a new owner of a panther chameleon, or are considering purchasing one, please read carefully over the necessary care and equipment that is needed. To have a healthy panther chameleon, it is essential to mimic their natural habitats which tend to be much different than our own environment.I will briefly talk about some important things you need to know prior to purchasing a panther chameleon. It is essential that you thoroughly research and consider all aspects of a panther chameleon's care before deciding it is truly a pet for you. If confident and ready in your choice for a pet panther, Prism Chameleons will work with you to ensure proper habitats and care in order to guide you after you receive your new treasure. You truly are in for a treat if you properly take care of your panther chameleon. They are truly one of the most beautiful Old World Chameleons there are on this earth.
Knowing what your panther chameleon needs for captive survival and understanding what it requires to take proper care of one, is extremely important to be aware of before you consider purchasing a panther chameleon. Yes, I’d love to sell every one of my panthers to anyone who inquires about them, but I’d rather make sure that all my customers understand and realize that a panther chameleon has special needs, is relatively expensive to take care of (equipment, food, health care, and time), and is not a pet to “play” with. Please read carefully below what it requires to have a beautiful panther chameleon and give it deep thought to make sure that both you and your panther chameleon will have a happy and healthy relationship.
Panther Chameleon Characteristics
Panther chameleons (Furcifer pardalis) are a solitary type of reptile. In Madagascar, where they originate, they consider everything a predator and have to constantly be on the defense against many type of birds, snakes, and can even be eaten by other larger types of chameleons, including larger panther chameleons than themselves. They are silent creatures, and territorial as well. Sometimes they can sit for days in the same tree, waiting for a passing bit of prey to come by for them to eat and the only thing that moves are their incredible eyes that can see in nearly a 360 degree view by moving both eyes in opposite directions.
Their movements are such as to pretend they are part of the environment in order to not be noticed by predators (slow jerky steps, swaying back and forth like the wind or leaves in a tree). Despite popular belief, chameleons DO NOT change colors to blend into the environment. This is a myth and color changes are directly due to mood, health, stress, aggression, fear, temperature, mating rituals, among other states of mind.
It is up to you, the owner, to earn the trust of a panther chameleon to let them know you are not a predator that is a danger to him. It is also important to know these characteristics of panther chameleons in order to understand that they are not the type of pet like a dog or cat may be. Sudden movements may frighten them, and stress is one of the top killers of panther chameleons, as well as inadequate lighting, lack of humidity, and not enough water. These Old World Chameleons, which have existed for thousands of years are used to tropical weather, high rainfalls, and solitary habitats in the forested regions of Madagascar. In order for them to survive properly in captivity, these conditions must be simulated in your home environment with the proper equipment for a long life in captivity as your pet.
Setting Up Your Panther Chameleon’s Habitat Before You Purchase
Housing
Panther Chameleons need screened cages for their habitat; never use glass terrariums or aquariums as a home for your new panther chameleons. Screened cages provide air circulation and temperature gradients in order for them to be able to get heat from their basking lights near the top of the cage and cool down as needed towards the lower sections of their cage. Placing hot basking lamps on glass habitats can make the temperatures rise to dangerous levels for panther chameleons.
Baby Chameleons
If your first purchase is a baby chameleon, 3-5 months of age, their first home should be small enough in order for them to be able to catch their food. If you try to save money by buying a big cage for them that they will need later, it will be very difficult for the baby chameleon to feel safe and difficult for him to reach his feeders that you purchase for him to eat. Make sure your cage is no bigger than 20" high x 18" wide x 12“ deep.
Add small plants such as Schefflera and Ficus that have limbs small enough for their little feet to grasp and climb. Additionally, they should have small vines that reach areas of the cage that give them good access to be able to reach feeders.
Note: It has been found in recent veterinary literature that the sap from broken Ficus leaves and branches can cause eye irritations and that some chameleons may have reactions in general to Ficus plants, so pay attention to any eye problems you may end up with. It could be a need for more water and/or humidity, but also if you have a Ficus plant inside their cage, you may consider replacing it.Juvenile Male Chameleons (6-10 months) and Female Adults
Juvenile (sub-adult) chameleons should move up to a larger cage to accommodate their growth and size. During this time you can move them to a cage that is medium sized or skip the medium sized cage altogether (for a male) and prepare a habitat in an adult sized cage as long as you have it set up where the juvenile can reach all areas to catch their feeders.
Medium sized screened cages you can obtain from various sizes that range around 26-30" tall x 18-24" width or so. This size is also fine for adult females as they do not get as big as adult males.
Adult Male Chameleons (10+ months and older)
The bigger the better. I prefer for my own adult male panther chameleons to have a lot of space to feel more at home in their environment. The largest screened cages on the market right now (without having one custom made or going to a great expense by using some companies that specialize in making huge habitat enclosures) is 48" x 24" x 24". This is a decent size to house an adult male panther chameleon for it’s life duration.
Cage and Habitat Design
Now that you’ve obtained your cage and put it together, here comes the fun! Designing and interior decorating can be great fun and it is here you can use your imagination to create a beautiful residential condo for your panther chameleon’s new home =).
When thinking about the design for your chameleon’s cage, consider your panther chameleon being able to reach all areas of the cage, being able to get to a higher part of the cage for basking and a lower part of the cage to cool down should he/she have that need. Also consider where your dripping system and/or misting system may be for drainage purposes. You also want your chameleon to be able to reach areas that feeders may roam to (i.e. crickets seem to love to go to the upper corners and edges of the top part of cages and worms tend to fall to the ground if you don’t cup feed). You can accomplish this by using vines, branches, plants, and I even use some other types of furniture in some of my cages to add to the decor that the chameleon can climb as well. Use your imagination and be creative. Not only will it be a nice habitat for your chameleon, but it can also be pleasing to your eye too, as you will have this as part of your own home decor. Just be sure that whatever you decide to use, it cannot be harmful to your chameleon. Be careful of adding things with sharp edges and if you use branches you get from the outside, make sure you treat them properly prior to using. Additionally, make sure that you don’t make the cage so dense with foliage that they cannot obtain the proper UVB rays from your lighting system. Have open areas, as well as places for them to have privacy and places to sleep too.
Lighting Systems
I cannot stress the importance of proper lighting enough... Proper lighting is one of the MOST important components to ensuring your panther chameleon has a healthy and long life. Without proper lighting, your chameleon will not have enough heat to bask, nor will they receive the proper UVB rays that are essential for them to get Vitamin D3 that they don’t get in an inside environment without direct sunlight. Without proper lighting they can go through slow stages of obtaining Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD) and they must have heat to warm and bask as chameleons are cold blooded creatures. If these elements are not properly assembled, I can assure you, you will not have a panther chameleon as a pet for long. I don’t know how many calls I’ve had from people who have begun to have problems with their chameleons, only to find out that they don’t use a Reptisun UVB bulb because they get “sunlight” through a window. UVB RAYS CANNOT BE OBTAINED THROUGH YOUR STANDARD HOME WINDOWS! Windows in households are made to protect us from these rays as human beings and because of this, the UVB rays are filtered through standard window panes. So please, spend the extra money and obtain the proper lighting for your panther chameleon.
Lighting Fixtures
Heat Bulb Domes: You can find lighting fixtures from various sources of companies with different price ranges. When you look for a fixture, consider the size of cage you have and also take a look as to whether or not they have an on and off switch (I made the mistake once of buying one without the switch and it is kind of a pain to actually have to unplug it every night - it is in the basement now). For smaller cages, I recommend using a fixture with a 5" dome for heat bulbs, especially for baby cages. These are sufficient for your medium size cages too. For larger cage set ups, you might consider moving to a 8.5" or 10" dome for heat bulbs, as the range is larger in diameter for a lighted basking area for larger panthers.
UVB Lighting Hoods: Any type of lighting hood will be sufficient as long as it reaches the width of the top of the screened cage you set up for your chameleon. For instance, if you have a cage that is 24" across the top of your cage, look for a 24" lighting hood. Be careful when purchasing a lighting hood for that is made for aquarium tanks. Although these will work fine, most will come with a plastic enclosure that the bulb sits inside of, and if this is the case, it too will filter out UVB rays and your efforts to provide the correct lighting for your chameleon to receive these rays will be worthless! However, there is a remedy for this... All you need to do is to be sure to remove the see-through plastic piece from the hood and you’ve eliminated the problem. By doing so, you have now provided your chameleon with the necessary rays from your new bulb you’ve purchased when obtaining one of these types of lighting hoods.
An additional piece of information regarding lighting hoods: If you purchase a 24" lighting hood, the bulb size is typically smaller than the hood itself. For instance, I have a 29" inch hood on one of my cages and the UVB bulb size it takes is actually an 18" bulb. So when purchasing a hood, be sure to verify the correct size bulb it will use prior to purchasing one. It will save you the effort of having to exchange for the correct size bulb later.
Heating Bulbs: Basking light bulbs provide two essential needs for panther chameleons, 1) allows them to warm their cold blooded bodies as needed throughout the day, and 2) provides UVA rays that has been found to be beneficial for the general well-being of your chameleon, as well as encouraging breeding behavior. For baby chameleons (3-5 months), go easy on the strength of heat a bulb puts out. You can use a standard 50-60 watt light bulb and Zoo Med makes 25 - 50 watt heat bulbs. Babies have tender skin and you must be careful not to place the basking light and vine too close together so as to not get burned. I usually make sure a heating lamp is at least 12" away from the area in which a baby may use to bask to be on the safe side.
For Juvenile and older chameleons, the recommended temperature at the basking area (vine or branch) for which your panther chameleon will be using to gain heat is 90 degrees. Obviously, the stronger wattage of basking bulb you use, the stronger and hotter temperature it will emit. To ensure you are allowing the correct temperature for their basking area, it will be necessary for you to purchase a temperature gauge (there are ones that combine temperature and humidity levels that are nice out there on the market). Any hotter than 95 degrees and you risk burning your chameleon, and if the range is much lower than 90, your chameleon will not be able to properly gain the heat they possibly need for warming their cold bodies up. I usually stick to a 75 to 100 watt bulb at the most for older juveniles and adults, depending on the size of caging and the distance between the basking area and heat bulb. This is especially important for gravid (pregnant) females as well, as they bask frequently to warm their eggs as they grow inside of them.
UVB Bulbs: UVB bulbs, next to the correct dusting of your feeders (discussed in the feeding section), are one of the most important pieces to having and maintaining a healthy chameleon, as most of us will be keeping our panthers inside away from the sunlight. UVB bulbs provide your chameleon with the vitamins and nutrients they need that we take away from them by keeping them in captivity within our households. Without the proper lighting to replenish the vitamins the natural sunlight gives chameleons in the wild, they will lose bone density that leads to Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD), lose the necessary vitamin D and A needed for proper growth and development, and can also cause other many other health issues. As said earlier in this care sheet, sunlight through a window will not give them the nutrients natural sunlight provides for them in nature. Household windows are designed to protect us from these rays and filter out the necessary UVB rays chameleons need for survival. So even if you consider a “free range” habitat for your chameleon, you must still provide the proper lighting for them to be able to obtain UVB rays to prevent illness.
Reptisun by Zoo-Med is what I would recommend as your choice for a good UVB bulb to use for your lighting systems. They come in various strengths of 2.0, 5.0, 8.0, and 10.0. My recommendation is to consider the size of your cage in order to determine which strength to use. I use 5.0 for baby cages, 8.0 for medium sized cages, and 10.0 for large cages. The strength is actually how “deep” the UVB rays penetrate.
Another very important note about UVB bulbs. As time goes on, the strength of UVB rays actually emitted from your bulb reduces with age. Regardless if your bulb is still working or not, it is important to replace your UVB bulb at the very least every 6 months. An easy tip to know whether or not your bulb is due for replacement, is to put a date with a permanent marker on the bulb itself so you can see when it is time to purchase a new bulb for replacement.
NOTE: Chameleons can only feel ambient heat and do not realize if they are actually getting burned from heat lamps. Be very careful to not place your heat lamp directly on the top of the screen without using a clamp and make sure their basking area is at least 6-10 inches away from the bulb itself, depending on strength of your heat bulb. Burns can be deadly and are very, very difficult to treat and may lead to infection, such as sepsis if not treated properly. Also, their scales are thick, so their healing process from a burn takes months and months to heal, as well as leaves scarring. Also, be careful of the clamp’s security. I have had personal experience of finding one of my heating lamps fall on top of the cage because the clamp snapped and fell off the edge of the cage I had it set on. This can lead to dangerous situations for your chameleon. Additionally, make sure your heat lamp is not too close to your lighting fixture for the UVB bulb lighting hood you purchase. These heating lamps are so hot, they will actually melt the hood.
Humidity and Providing Drinking Sources
Panther chameleons, as said earlier, come from a tropical humid environment and it is necessary to provide them with the correct humidity levels within their habitat in order for them to thrive happily. The humidity levels in the wild for panther chameleons is 70 percent or higher, however, it has been documented that in captivity humidity levels of 40-50% have been observed with no ill effects (Ferguson, Murphy, Ramanamanjato,Raselimanana, "The Panther Chameleon" pg. 75). However, the higher the humidity you can provide for your chameleon, I feel the happier and more comfortable they will be. If you are lucky enough to live in geographical areas such as Florida, this will not be as much as an issue, unless you keep your chameleon indoors frequently where air conditioning units are running which dries out the air inside our homes.
Chameleons also need lots of water to drink, not only for thirst purposes, but for also keeping their eyes clear and clean from any debris they might get into their eyes during their travels in their residential condo you have provided for them. Chameleons do not drink out of water bowls or water fountains! Don’t waste your money on purchasing either one... Not only will they not use it as a drinking source, but it is also a factory for potential bacteria that may cause illness in your chameleon. Even though it may look pretty in your new habitat you have designed for your chameleon, it will not be used and could potentially lead to disaster. Save your money.
Live Plants: Chameleons drink off leaves of plants. This is their main source of receiving water and moisture to their systems. In order for this to happen, you must have plants in your chameleons cage so that they can drink. Additionally, live plants inside your chameleon’s habitat helps increase humidity levels a great deal. Not only do they retain water on their leaves for them to drink, but the moisture from the soil in which you have your plant potted provides moisture in the air as well. It is okay to add silk additions if necessary to provide extra privacy, but live plants in themselves are a tremendous help to retaining the humidity levels for your chameleon.
When purchasing live plants, make sure you completely rinse off the plants of any potential pesticides that may have been used by the establishment where you purchased them. Even turn them upside down and thoroughly wash and rinse the plant of any potential toxin. Additionally, many nurseries put fertilizers inside the soil as well. It is always a good idea to repot your new plant with organic soil that does not have fertilizers in it to be on the safe side. Chameleons will occasionally eat dirt, rocks, and leaves. Make sure you are aware of this and remove any potential small rocks that a chameleon might try to eat and swallow. To prevent them from eating the soil and/or rocks, providing some nice large decorative rock (larger than a chameleon can place into their mouths) to place around the plant in the pot can help alleviate this problem.
Misting: Misting is necessary to provide your chameleon with moisture, for them to obtain water from leaves, and increasing humidity. Misting can be done in several different ways. You can either purchase a hand sprayer and mist the cage yourself or purchase an automatic misting system if you are not at home frequently enough during the day to do this yourself. Panther chameleon cages and plants should be misted at least 3 times a day with a good soaking. A real good mist will show drops of water still on the plant leaves at least 30 minutes after misting, and even better if it lasts longer This gives them time to move around the plants to drink from the leaves and allows humidity levels to rise and maintain a decent humidity level throughout the day. Frequent misting not only provides your chameleon with the necessary water they need for drinking, but also adds humidity in your chameleon's habitat as well. The dryer the air where you live or your household has, more frequent misting may be needed in order to help retain a higher humidity level and provide adequate drinking water.Dripping Systems: Dripping systems work very well for those who work during the day and cannot be around for hand misting their chameleon cages. There are a variety of ways to provide a dripping system for your chameleon’s drinking source: Large plastic cups with a tiny hole poked in the bottom, store bought dripping containers with a knob to regulate the speed of the drop outlets, and IV medical bags have become a popular choice of late. The downside of dripping systems is that the water must go somewhere! If you need to design a way for your dripping system to catch the water, please ensure that it doesn’t become a trap for your chameleon to potentially drown in. To eliminate this problem, you may either design a tray to slide underneath your cage to catch run-off water, or some have even designed a bowl to catch the water with an aluminum screen hot-glued to the sides of the bowl to prevent a chameleon from falling in. At the end of the day the left over water can be discarded. Dripping systems also help with humidity levels.
Humidifiers: There are some decent humidifiers on the market that are smaller that you can either place beside your chameleons cage to help raise humidity levels, or in some cases, may even fit inside the cage at the bottom depending on cage size. I have one panther chameleon myself, that tends to need higher humidity levels than the rest of my panthers and I have put a small humidifier inside his cage which has helped him tremendously with frequent eye issues due to lower humidity levels in the winter months. There are also homemade systems that can be constructed with PVC piping connecting the humidifier to the top of the chameleons cage to increase humidity with directions of how to construct on the internet.
Sections on Health, Feeding, Breeding, & Nutrition will be added soon
I am excited that you are interested in panther chameleons for they are absolutely wonderful creatures and extremely beautiful in their colorations. There is a color for just about everyone, and can be very attractive to just about anyone who views them. Your friends and family will be in awe when they see this beautiful creature in your home. Go ahead! Show them off! And the best part about owning a panther chameleon is that they can also be your best friend.
If you have ANY specific questions or concerns at all, please do not hesitate to contact me! One thing about panther chameleon breeders you will find is that they love to talk about them. Plus, I am here to help you in any way I can for you to understand them.
Please read these links thoroughly, and I hope to hear from you soon in helping you purchase a new panther chameleon from Prism Chameleons.
Most sincerely,
Jenna Tynan - Owner of Prism Chameleons, LLC
sales@prismchameleons.com
For information regarding various species of reptiles please visit The Lizard Lounge - an information site with a multitude of knowledge of species around the world.