Veiled Chameleon (Chamaelo calyptratus)

Chameleons are like the Picasso paintings in the reptile world they are fun to look at but youre not supposed to touch them. Chameleons live very solitary lives up to 10 years in captivity and usually dont like to be handled a lot. As you all may already know chameleons are one of the most unique reptiles of all with their ability to change colors, their long stick tongue and their turret like eyes which move independently. A native to Yemen and Saudi Arabia they are also arboreal reptiles, this means they spend most of their lives in a tree and they love to climb. For this reason it is why chameleons require special cages, you know the ones that are tall and made of screening. This is because many glass cages are too short and the chameleons cannot climb in them, another reason is that glass cages tend to have a mirror effect and chameleons are usually alone for their lives and this can stress them out, another and probably the main reason is poor air circulation chameleons need fresh air at all times otherwise they develop fungus and infections all over and can quickly die.

Chameleons are mostly from the tropics so they have to humidity. This can easily be accomplished by spraying the cage down with water 1-2 times daily. And for cage accessories many chameleons are happy with either live or fake fiscis of hibiscus plants just make sure that they have plenty of places to hide and plenty of up and down space to climb usually a 24 by 24 inch cage that is at least 3 feet tall is enough room for most full grown species except parsons and mellurs chameleons. But for all species chameleons should be housed separately unless they are under 3 months old or it the breeding season, but no 2 adult males should ever be in the same cage they will fight like there is no tomorrow. Chameleons like a variety of foods crickets and mealworms make great staple foods and wax worms, silk worms, and pinkies (adults only) make great treats. Also if you use live plants they may nibble at them so make sure that they are non-toxic a great non-toxic plant is a potho plant. Many chameleons may enjoy small grapes hung from the top of the cage so they can reach them. And there is a whole range of substrates that can be used for chameleons anything from sand to news paper but things that I would recommend would be: repti-bark or a mulch type stuff made specifically for reptiles also sand works well but it doesnt help with humidity at all, but is good for egg laying.