4mo Teen Angst

[KaylaMaeDesign]

Hi there,

Ginseng, our 4-ish month old Veiled Cham is really going through an angst phase or something.

He didn't mind at all when I first got him about 1.5 months ago. I would take him out of his enclosure to put him on his fave plant (ginseng) and get natural light. Now I'm trying to get him out to clean his enclosure and he is hissing at me and throwing his face at me like hes going to bite me. I don't "grab" him aggressively I just put my hand close from under him and wait for him to be comfortable enough for me to get closer, but as soon as I touch his foot he goes into a fit of rage. He'll eat crix out of hand without getting pissed. I'm not sure what to do to get him to comfortable with me again.

The dude is eating and growing like a monster so I'm wondering if chameleon teen angst is a thing and he'll mellow out after his growth spurt.

He is very spoiled with his enclosure. Mostly all live plants with pothos, hibiscus and umbrella plants, but those plants also require care too. I need to get them out and water and trim them, but Ginseng won't come out for me to do so

Please advise!

 

[janjan20]

Instead of using your hand try to see if he would be coaxed onto a branch you are holding with a cricket.

 

[KaylaMaeDesign]

Instead of using your hand try to see if he would be coaxed onto a branch you are holding with a cricket.

Thanks! I'll try that.

 

[Graves923]

Typical veiled attitude. Mine is close to 3 years old and I am greeted by a mouth full of teeth if I open his enclosure to clean.

 

[KaylaMaeDesign]

Typical veiled attitude. Mine is close to 3 years old and I am greeted by a mouth full of teeth if I open his enclosure to clean.


View attachment 241127

Oh my gosh! They turn such pretty colors when they're angry. Lol.
How do you get your temperamental cham out of the enclosure to clean it?

 

[AnamCara]

Oh my gosh! They turn such pretty colors when they're angry. Lol.
How do you get your temperamental cham out of the enclosure to clean it?

I use a stick. She still hates it.

 

[KaylaMaeDesign]

I got lucky with my first Veiled. He was an adult when I got him, but he was so sweet and gentle and LOVED coming out of his enclosure.

However, I've never owned a Veiled from a youngster so I was hoping Ginseng was just going through a "phase". Any tips on temperamental chams welcome!

Should I stand my ground and keep trying to coax him out or just give up and let him be?

 

[Brodybreaux25]

He may relax some as he matures but don’t get your hopes too high. You stand no chance of gaining ground with him by forcing him to bend to your will, however it’s possible you will by doing things on his terms.

All the tips given above are all great, you should try them. Start with the baited stick technique. But it seems to be your hand he has the real problem with.

Get his attention with his favorite treat and place Your hand on the branch in front of him. Then move the feeder just out of reach so he has to take a step forward onto your hand to reach the treat. Every time he takes a step forward move the feeder back the same amount so he hast to continuously walk onto your arm to get it. The first few times let him get it there and walk off your hand when he’s ready. After doing that a few times repeat the same thing but at the end slowly lift your hand out of his cage with him on your hand. But it’s going to be all up to you to read his reaction to know when you’re doing more damage than good with his trust. It takes time!

 

[Graves923]

Oh my gosh! They turn such pretty colors when they're angry. Lol.
How do you get your temperamental cham out of the enclosure to clean it?

I don't take him out lol. I learned to work quickly and distract him with one hand while scrubbing with the other.

If I need to take him out I try to get him on a long stick and will move him to his free range area or his outdoor enclosure. If i need to be hands on with him I wear leather work gloves. He has drawn blood too many times for me to not wear gloves lol

I tried building trust with him but he never warmed up to the idea.

 

[Rst_Cham]

I don't take him out lol. I learned to work quickly and distract him with one hand while scrubbing with the other.

If I need to take him out I try to get him on a long stick and will move him to his free range area or his outdoor enclosure. If i need to be hands on with him I wear leather work gloves. He has drawn blood too many times for me to not wear gloves lol

I tried building trust with him but he never warmed up to the idea.

I had a veiled just like this, he hated my guts and when I HAD to handle him for whatever reason, I wore leather gloves. His bite was just too hard not to.

OP, Definitely keep hand feeding. I've been doing that with my panther and he may not love me but he tolerates me very well and is easily handled. I've noticed that he is always watching my hands now, but not in a defensive scared way anymore, but in a "what bug do you have for me now?!" kind of way, so my hands=food now.

 

[Jevin]

Honestly, sounds like typical veiled personality, but some people luck out, my female veiled I had was an absolute sweetheart that preferred to be on people more than anything else.

 

[KaylaMaeDesign]

*UPDATE* I eventually got him out and I didn't realize he was shedding until I had him out and noticed. I do remeber my last cham being a cranky shedder. Since I've rearranged his enclosure plants, including taking out one that wasn't doing well and replacing it with a healthy one, he's been less territorial and more adventurous/ curious. However, he was mad that his basking stick wasn't in the EXACT same place so I managed to get it back and he's happy again.

 

[twinklefingers]

I don't take him out lol. I learned to work quickly and distract him with one hand while scrubbing with the other.

If I need to take him out I try to get him on a long stick and will move him to his free range area or his outdoor enclosure. If i need to be hands on with him I wear leather work gloves. He has drawn blood too many times for me to not wear gloves lol

I tried building trust with him but he never warmed up to the idea.

Woah didn't know they could draw blood.