veiled chameleon

[Francois]

Is it possible to keep a male and female veiled in the same cage.The cage is 91cm w 91cm l 121cm h. Is it possible or what would be the right size. They must live together for there lives. I still have to make the cage so it can be bigger.I would like to breed them.

They are from the same clutch will they breed?
Will the female be scared?

Thank you

[Chameleons]

It is inadvisable to keep two Veiled of either sex together unless the cage is very large. I have kept trios of Veiled in an aviary 4m*2m*2m. Anything less is asking for trouble. It is quite likely that the female will attack the male, if not the other way around. Even if they do live together for a while, at some point there will be trouble, even if it only the female getting very stressed when gravid and becoming egg bound. I get phonecalls on a regular basis from people who have kept Veileds together, sometimes for a good period of time, but eventually one or the other gets damaged. Tails bitten off, fights, eyes - don't even try it.

They will try to breed.

You should buy a new cage for one of them
David
www.sa-chameleons.com

[Francois]

I don't have them yet I was just wondering. I'm thinking about an aviary ,but I have a problem with sunlight and space outside. Have any of you tried BSS (bioactive substrate system) with veileds. I like a natural looking cage.
Thank You

[Chameleons]

Even with an aviary you need to be prepared for winter. Veiled will, in the right conditions, be happy enough outsdie for much of the year (in Gauteng) during the day and at night so long as the temperature stays above 10c, to be safe allow 15c as the minimum to cater for the sudden unexpected drops.

That still leaves enough days/nights where an indoor cage is needed; which brings you back to needing seperate cages.

Natural sunlight beats artificial UV light any time, as does the free flow of air and the exposure to changing day lengths and weather patterns found outdoors. Obviously common sense and caution are needed as they are still in an artificial environment. One big problems with veileds in this country is the high night time temperatures and the 365 day constant environment, which is totally unreal.

I have not tried the BSS idea on Veiled as I think they are too big for it too work, unless a lot of time and effort is spent monitoring it carefully in the early days. This is only my opinion and is weighted by having far too many large chameleons to be able to do it properly.

I have used the BSS approach with Brookesias and Rhampholeons with good success. This was based around the use of two species of springtails and a soft woodlouse (Trichorhina tomentosa); to the best of my knowledge I am/was the only person breeding the tropical woodlouse in SA. Veiled will produce large droppings which may overwhelm springtails and probably also woodlice. Overseas I am aware that such setups exist but overseas there is a wide range of suitable organisms freely available to make it work. Locally, I think it is best to go for an easy to clean environment, which can still be very decorative.

But, as I have said, that is only my opinion and I am sure there are people currently experimenting with BSS setups on chameleons larger than Brookesias.
David
www.sa-chameleons.com