# Chameleon Vivs



## diverfi (Jun 23, 2008)

After a long and fruitless search of UK shops I had grudgingly decided to build a 2'x2'x4' arboreal viv for my soon to arrive panther cham. 
HOWEVER.... great news; I've found a company in the USA who do aluminium mesh vivs in this size, big enough for a full grown cham AND they ship to the UK. The viv I've ordered cost $75 and the shipping was $65, which given the exchange rate of sterling to dollar at the moment, it's a bargain! 
Anyone looking for a similar viv should look at www.LLLReptile.com
They responded immediately to my email and the viv should be here in about 2 weeks.
Of course, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I don't get whacked with customs duty.... :lol2: Fi.


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## Lotus Nut (Jan 7, 2008)

If you get stung for customs duty then you also get done for vat on top of all that!, with luck you may be ok.


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## paulskin (Jul 5, 2007)

i cant find any aliminum mesh vivs??


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## fixitsan (Apr 15, 2008)

Lotus Nut said:


> If you get stung for customs duty then you also get done for vat on top of all that!, with luck you may be ok.


 
I buy a lot of items from abroad, for personal use, mainly electronic components. I can confirm that getting stung by customs is a real pain.

but, one supplier which I use at the moment has this terrible habit of always ticking 'gift' on the customs form and always writing 'no commercial value' in big letters on the package they send, and because there is no duty on gifts, etc etc


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## diverfi (Jun 23, 2008)

Hi, here’s how to find the aluminium mesh cage I’ve ordered: 
Go to www.LLLreptile.com
Hover over STORE to show sub-menu Catalog, then hover over Reptile Supplies, then click Reptile Cages (Glass & Screen).
You are then on a page marked current products, showing a range of mesh vivs – I’ve gone for the 24 x 24 x 48 inch cage to house one male ambilobe panther chameleon. I think the rest of the cages are a little small for a full grown cham. 



If I do get stung for tax/customs duty, I will be philosophical about it, because I think the cost of the viv and shipping is very good anyway and I haven't been able to find an aluminium mesh viv this size in the UK. 
That's not to say I'm not keeping my fingers crossed.... :lol2:
Hope this helps you! Fi.


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## Vase (Jul 14, 2007)

Whats the cost in british pounds, if you dont mind me asking? :no1:


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## paulskin (Jul 5, 2007)

same thing is availible in uk via terru thatcher......Captive Bred Snakes and Lizards

alot of people on here could of recommended him if you requested a mesh cage or an alternative to flexariums


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## diverfi (Jun 23, 2008)

The dollar is currently at roughly 2 to the pound, so whatever the total is in dollars it works out at approximately half that in pounds. My total cost was $145, therefore around £73, which I think is really good!! :2thumb:
Fi.


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## dmrich (Nov 29, 2007)

I would be really interested to know how you get on with this both in terms of the viv quality and the delivery/tax's? I will need to move my baby yemen out of the Exo Terra shortly as he seems to be growing by about a millimetre a day.


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## diverfi (Jun 23, 2008)

*Chameleon Mesh Viv*

Wooohooo.... My new aluminium viv has turned up from America!
And I didn't get stung for customs/tax....heheheheheh :lol2:
Will try to get it set up this weekend and get a photo uploaded for anyone who's interested.
Fi


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## dmrich (Nov 29, 2007)

I would be interested - how long did it take to arrive - and did they put gift on the courier forms?


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## diverfi (Jun 23, 2008)

*Chameleon Viv*

The order was placed on 23rd July and I received the viv on 29th, so it only too 6 days to arrive! They very kindly ticked "gift" on the customs label, even though I didn't request it, which explains why I didn't get any additional charges. I've opened the box, but not put the viv together yet (I haven't even got my panther cham yet as he's only a baby and he'll be starting off in an ExoTerra) but I will post pictures when it's constructed. It looks good though!
Hope this helps, Fi :2thumb:


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## dmrich (Nov 29, 2007)

Cheers mate - look forward to the pictures!


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## 955i (Aug 17, 2007)

These cages are GREAT!!

I had four 18x18x36 delivered last week for a total cost of £214 (and not got clobbered for duty:2thumb


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## Bantastic (Jul 29, 2008)

is it really cheaper than buying an exo terra flexarium here?


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## 955i (Aug 17, 2007)

slr123 said:


> is it really cheaper than buying an exo terra flexarium here?


Not cheaper but these are aluminium mesh not plastic and are cheaper than you can buy a similar product in the UK. Cages I got (18x18x36) are reduced to $57.99 (currently £29.36) at the moment and shipping is $49.95 per cage (currently £25.28 ) making a total of around £54.64 per cage delivered.


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## Plutino (Aug 5, 2007)

diverfi said:


> And I didn't get stung for customs/tax....heheheheheh :lol2:
> Fi


Yet!  We've been hit 2 months down the line. Suddenly you get a bill in the post and it's like wtf is this? ...OH yeahh... :bash:


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## pollywog (Oct 6, 2005)

> Yet!  We've been hit 2 months down the line. Suddenly you get a bill in the post


Yep if it's come via FedEx they normally bill you for the vat & duty later as the driver isn't allowed to ask you for any money on your doorstep. But you may get lucky.


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## 955i (Aug 17, 2007)

pollywog said:


> Yep if it's come via FedEx they normally bill you for the vat & duty later as the driver isn't allowed to ask you for any money on your doorstep. But you may get lucky.


Hi Andrew 

should be OK as they came via normal post and were ticked as 'gift'


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## diverfi (Jun 23, 2008)

Bummer... thought I'd got away with it, but maybe they'll catch up with me?? Ah well, I still think it's a great cage at a good price even if I do get stung a bit more. 

I just wanted a big viv for my cham and was really struggling to find that size and quality in the UK.

Fi


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