New Memeber with new Chameleon

Rivmage

New Member
Hi everyone,

I just got my new female veiled chameleon (Eve) Tuesday night. She is about 6 months ago and StV length of 5 to 6 inches. Up until I got her she had been living in an enclosure about the size of a 10 gallon aquarium, also until about a week ago she also had a cage mate. She only had a couple of dowel rods to climb on. Her enclosure was as close to the ground as possible as well. It seems I pick a chameleon with a lot going against her for my first chameleon.

Eve seems to like her new home. She seems to enjoy the vines, the new branches and all the room she has to stretch out in.

She is very shy and aggressive but, I expected that. I wish I had a way to check on her and feed her without too much stress on her. One of my concerns is she has, at least my guess is, stuck shed on her. It looks like small pieces of paper that has been rolled and dried. I have been trying to keep her humidity high to see if that helps but, I’m not able to get a close look as she lounges at me if I get too close and I don’t want to cause her any undue stress.

I know I shouldn’t have taken on such a “project” chameleon for my first one but, she already has a special place in my heart. I want to make sure I give her the best life I possibly can. I hope one day she will accept my presence with I need to feed her or clean out her enclosure.


I have been in the reptile hobby for 17 years. The lizard that made me fall in love with the hobby was a Jackson’s chameleon, which I saw about 20 years ago. My current collection includes 2 ball pythons, 2 blue tongue skinks, 3 leopard geckos and now my first chameleon.

Thanks for reading and have a good day.
Scott
 
hi guys, im new here i just ordered my frist cham a ambilobe panther i have keep other herps but chams are a little more difficult i like the challenge, any advise would be helpful. dos and donts thanks guys...
 
Rivmage, I just want to say how much I admire you for taking that animal on. I love when people put themselves out to help an animal that's been treated poorly by others. Eve is a beautiful name for her. I suspect you won't find her as much of a project as you fear. Despite their fragility, chameleons often display considerable ability to rebound from bad situations once they get in a good situation.

Unless the stuck shed (which is almost certainly what it is...that description you gave is exactly what it looks like) is around a limb, I wouldn't worry about it overly. As they get older, they tend to "spot shed" more and sometimes some doesn't come off completely. It will usually come off with the next shed. If it is around a limb, post that. I'm sure someone on here will have a suggestion on how best to remove it without flipping her out too much (as she's likely to gain size now that she's getting proper care, you don't want something restrictive around a growing limb).

You can try misting her more. Sometimes that will help with shed hangers. Usually, they just end up rubbing them off on something as they climb around.

Eventually I'm sure she'll stop lunging at you. She might start backing away when you reach into the cage, but that's okay. Hopefully she'll get to where she just waits for you to do your business and leave (that baleful glare as she waits for the cleaning person to finish his chores).

I'm sure you will get limitless enjoyment out of this girl you've rescued.
 
Hi, I'm a new member also and will soon be receiving my first chameleon.

I'm so excited to start on this adventure. Right now, I'm anxiously awaiting the arrival of the complete setup kit I just purchased from Screameleons. Once that's set up and working, I'll be getting a male Ambanja Blue-Barred Panther (also from Screameleons). There are three available males from a December hatching and I haven't yet been able to make up my mind on which one I want.

All three babies look so different. One looks smaller and chubbier and somehow more infant-like. Very sweet face. One looks longer and leaner and mid-sized. He has a lot of green already. And the last one looks larger and sturdier with very prominent neck bulge and top crest.

How do I choose? They all look equally healthy to me. I read on a couple of websites that you should choose the largest available baby of the hatching because they're more developed and theoretically more likely to survive. Any thoughts? Any advice?

Thanks so much!
 
purlescence, going with the largest one is probable the safe bet. Just saw some of Screamelions panthers at the li reptile expo and the adults had great colors, and the juvies were very active. Never bought from them but they seem great. wish i had more room.
 
Thank you so much for posting, JPM! I couldn't make it to the show. But I know that the Ambanja babies were there, so you must have seen the ones I'm considering! :) It's good to know that they looked healthy and active. :)

What kind of chameleons do you have?
 
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