Chameleon Clawing at Cage

lizaaards

New Member
Hi! So my panther chameleon has been crawling down to the bottom of the cage recently to claw at the screens, and I'm wondering if this is normal behavior or anything or if he needs anything I can give him. I am pretty sure it means that he wants to go out, because whenever I open the cage door afterwards he'll crawl out and explore the house immediatly. Today he's been out 4 times because he's clawed at the cage 4 times... but it's usually only around 1. But is going exploring not actually what he wants? Or is this just a cute hobby he's been keeping up with? Thanks!
-Chameleon Owner
 
How large is your cage? This behavior nearly always means that he isn't happy in his cage and wants out where he has more space. This isn't a behavior you want to encourage because his nails will get pulled out and will not grow back.
 
How large is your cage? This behavior nearly always means that he isn't happy in his cage and wants out where he has more space. This isn't a behavior you want to encourage because his nails will get pulled out and will not grow back.
My cage is 18 inches wide, 18 inches long and 36 inches tall. If he's unhappy, what can I do to change this? Should I get a larger cage?
 
Reptibreeze makes a 24x24x48. That's what I have for my veiled.

I didn't know they could lose their nails like that. That is so sad.

I saw a panther at a store once that all the staff thought it was so cute that it always clawed to get out. They let me hold it since I own a Cham and it took me off guard that it didn't have nails. I asked the guy and he said it's always been like that.

He was in a small cage that was probably only 2ft tall.
 
Reptibreeze makes a 24x24x48. That's what I have for my veiled.

I didn't know they could lose their nails like that. That is so sad.

I saw a panther at a store once that all the staff thought it was so cute that it always clawed to get out. They let me hold it since I own a Cham and it took me off guard that it didn't have nails. I asked the guy and he said it's always been like that.

He was in a small cage that was probably only 2ft tall.

I noticed right away when I first held Raistlin (panther) that his nails were almost non-existent compared to the dragon talons my veiled had. I wonder if that was the case with that cham.

Most of the time when the nail is lost it will not grow back.
 
I noticed right away when I first held Raistlin (panther) that his nails were almost non-existent compared to the dragon talons my veiled had. I wonder if that was the case with that cham.

Most of the time when the nail is lost it will not grow back.


I have read that plenty of people complain about how sharp veiled talons can be but this panther felt like no sharpness at all.

That was the only panther I have ever held so I don't have anything else to compare to. There looked like small ends on each toe but they were dull.
 
That's ok, that's why you are on here - to learn from those of us who have been there and done that. Aside from a larger cage which you really do need, you can go to Lowe's or Home Depot - they have a plastic mesh (not the word I want, but the right verbiage is escaping me at the moment), that is about 1-2" squares. This comes on a roll and I think it's really used for landscaping. However, if you have a cham who climbs after getting a larger cage, you can hang this on the insides of the cage for them to climb. It's easier on their toes and claws and doesn't tend to pull out their nails.
 
Back
Top Bottom