Care Information

Temperament: Veiled Chameleons are usually tame but frequent handling could stress the chameleon. You should separate males and females when they reach the size of about 4". DO NOT HOUSE MALES TOGETHER. Chameleons are a territorial species. Personally I found that the females are very aggressive and will attack the males.

Housing: An adult Veiled Chameleon will require at very least a 29 gallon aquarium, but I and most other Chameleon owners strongly suggest a 65 gallon or more terrarium. In addition the cage should be an "open air" cage. That mean that it should have screen on three or more sides (front, left, right and top). I recommend the 65 Gallon Reptarium. The cage must be setup in a vertical manner not horizontal because Veiled Chameleons are an arboreal species. Which basically means that they live mainly in trees.

Heating And Light: Veiled Chameleons like hot basking spots. It is not uncommon to see one basking even when the ambient temperature is 80° to 90°F. It is important that you provide a heating lamp to create a basking spot of 90° to 100°F. I recommend that you put the heating lamp at the to of the cage so that it simulates natural heat. If they want more heat the climb up to the top of the cage and if they want less heat they climb to the bottom. At night TURN THE LIGHTS OFF all animals need there nighttime too. I recommend that you have to clamp lights one with a day bulb (Blue) and one with a night bulb (Red) so that you can turn the day bulb off during the night and just leave the night bulb on. The chameleon will also need a Full-spectrum light with UVB. This light must be on for 12 hours a day. I recommend that you hook the full spectrum light and the day light up to a timer and set it to be on from 7:00am to 8:30 pm. 

    NOTE:  You must replace your UVB bulb every 3-5 months even if it still works. After about 3 or 4 month the UVB bulb only puts out about 5% of UV ray compared to natural sunlight and when its new it puts out about 50% compared to natural sunlight.

Water: Veiled Chameleons usually will not drink from standing water so a water dish is not necessary. Their cage will need to be misted lightly and you should provide them with a drip system that catches in a dish or plant. Personally I found that the causes spills and its messy, I purchased a waterfall system and use that in there cage. You can all purchase a drip system or make you own with either some ice cubes on the top of the cage or a deli cup with a tiny hole in the bottom of it. There are also fog systems which are perfect for chameleons that like high levels of humidity. You can also combine any watering system.

Substrate/Bedding: with chameleons you can't use any sand or dusty material to put at the bottom of the cage. This is because the crickets that the chameleon eat will get coated in the sand which is very harmful to the chameleon. Personally I use medium size wood chips, but you can also use reptile carpet, orchid bark, tropical moss, all natural soil (the soil can't have the white granules in it). If the bottom of the cage is not glass then you may leave it empty but I don't recommend this, because it can be very difficult to clean.

Food: Veiled Chameleons are omnivores. Their diet consist of insects like crickets, mealworms, and flies. a veiled chameleon will eat 5 to 10 crickets every other day. Baby Chameleons must eat only crickets, remember that the crickets should be smaller than the Chameleons head. DO NOT LEAVE THE CRICKETS IN THE CAGE FOR A LONG PERIOD OF TIME. If you do the crickets may start to eat the chameleon, or even kill it. You should also provide your chameleon with some vegetables including turnip greens, mustard greens, collared greens, and dandelions. You should dust your chameleon's food with a vitamin/mineral supplement.