Getting a veiled chameleon

I have bearded dragons but have decided to get a veiled chameleon. We get her in January and I have read books on them. But what I wanted to know if anyone has any suggestions or comments to help me take good care of her. I know you can learn a lot from books but getting info from people who are experienced in chameleons I feel can sometimes be better. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I was wondering what lighting everyone used. I have a mvb bulb on my dragons but I don't know what lighting is best for the chams. I have a reptisun 5.0 coming for the veiled cham and have a 50 or 75 Watt basking bulb for them etc.

Howdy Brenda,

Here's some links to info that will get you pointed n the right direction.

http://www.chameleonnews.com/ especially http://www.chameleonnews.com/ref.html

http://www.chameleonsdish.com/

http://www.adcham.com/

The Reptisun 5.0 is fine. Make sure that your Veiled can get within 6"-12" of the Reptisun 5.0 UVB source. Whether your basking flood should be 50W or 75W or more will mostly depend on the temperature at the basking spot. You're aiming for a basking temp around 90-95F or so. Usually a 75W flood at about 12" will put you in the ballpark. It is easy to burn your chameleon so be careful with basking temps. If the basking spot feels hot to your hand then it is probably too hot for your Veiled. Digital thermometers are handy. Your research and experimentation will help you get that temp to where he wants it. By the way, definitely get a male Veiled. A male will have fewer health issues since he won't be producing eggs.

Thanks for the info, this will help. I have already ordered a female. I thought of using a mvb bulb instead of the bulbs I have but I was not sure if this would be good for cham. I have them for my bearded dragon and I love them. I also have a temp gun so I can keep a check on temps. All my other stuff will be here before we get her.

Howdy Brenda,

Yep, Bearded Dragons love high UVB but some chameleon species can have problems with it. The Reptisun 5.0 tubes have a good reputation with chameleons.

Thanks Dave, then I will be all set when she arrives. Reading up on the females, I wish I had bought a male now. Well I guess I won't have to worry about egg binding for a little while at least.