caiman lizard enclosure ideas and pics anyone?

[cheezy]

Im about to get a caiman lizard, I was just wondering how everone has their enclosure set up. I was thinking a tank with water at the bottom and wood/logs out of the water for him to climb, then a ledge he can climb up and lay on to bask? I really like the idea of using water at the bottom for easy cleaning. It will get time to free roam the room on a regular basis. I know they like to dig, I havent found a solution to that yet. Any ideas?

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Also, what would be the min size enclosure be for an adult female?

 

[grimz]

That would be a alright tank but personally what i have done with my three caiman lizards was just to give them half land and half water and when i say half water i mean i have a huge water bowl that covers half the tank because as you said they like to dig mine does anyway so that way they also have places to hide and dig under for there pleasure as for free roaming the house or room in my opinion is not the best idea for a little baby caiman lizard that is so small and would be hard to find (i should know one of mine escaped its cage and i looked for ever but finally found it).

 

[chelvis]

I agree with Grimz, my male is all over the place. He loved his hammock (before he got so big he broke it), but also loves to swim and soak, loves the branches and loves to dig.

The problem is really keeping the water clean, remember they are swimming and drinking this water. So with branches in the water and the whole bottom being that way you are going to have a really beefy water filter to keep up with the cleaning. The nice thing with a tub is you can remove it and just dump it out if it gets really bad. They also need a place to hide, especially when little, my male no longer uses his hide anymore and often sleeps in the branches but if there is something that scares him (like the cat) he will hiss and run back in there. I currently use the cement mixing tubs they have at homedepot with a turtle filter and heater.

Here is a picture of my set-up for now. Its way too small for an adult but it seems fine for now:

Its a 4x2x2 vision with loads of branches, I added more after the pic was taken. My new design for his adult cage is going to be 8lx4wx5t; I hope the tegus can have the bottom of the cage and the caimans can have the top with some elevated dig boxes and such. We'll see.

A female caiman lizard might be fine in a 6x3x3, just remember the water requirement makes a need for more floor space. Bigger is always better as well. The two year old female I have is about the same size as the yearling male I have so they are a bit smaller, she is still growing but not very fast, lol.

 

[cheezy]

Thanks for the replies. I want to try and make maintenance as convenient and easy as possible. The problem with a land area is that there is more maintenance, like removing feces and the odor. With water at the bottom I can just clean the filter and change the water and it wouldnt smell as bad. Any ideas for land? Maybe a tub with substrate surrounded by water. Another option is a waterland tub but temps will be harder to maintain.

 

[chelvis]

Mine has never pooped on land, it has all been 100% in the water, and thats what most other keepers have found. What filter are you looking at and what size tank?

 

[cheezy]

I'm thinking a canister filter like a fluval or something in a 180 gallon tank. Tanks 2 feet wide only though. I read the same thing somewhere about caiman lizards pooping in the water, so I guess its true. Do you have problems with odors from these guys?

 

[chelvis]

Oh ya the water can get really bad. If you think about it their diet is fish based and fish based diets make for some sticky animals. I have t clean my filter (a small one) every other day or so to keep it clear. The snails themselves can be smelly as well. They are not a low maintenance lizard by any means.

 

[cheezy]

I will keep that in mind.

 

[cheezy]

Hey since caiman lizards only drop feces in the water, how often do you think I should clean the land part of his cage without having issues with odors?

 

[grimz]

I would exchange the bedding once a month but if feces does get in the subtrate from the caiman lizard i would take it out so all in all you shouldnt have to clean the land area that much but i would try to keep as clean as possible i would however change the water daily.
Just remember the more decorations the more you will have to clean.

 

[chelvis]

I do it once a month and normally its just the humidity of the cage, splashing of the water and the chuckes on snail that i miss at spot cleaning that makes me do it. I spot clean the cage regularly just to keep things clean, it also allows me to interact with Bacardi more.

 

[cheezy]

Ok, so about once a month. I'll post pics of the enclosure once its completed.