Chams in Australia?!

[ChameleonRave]

Well earlier this week I learned that my uncle out in Cali was offered a major construction job for his companies in Australia... My mom was talking to my grandfather and he told her about it and she is thinking of moving us to Australia instead of Minneapolis,MN (you can imagine my enjoyement getting told you might move half way around the world :/ I can stand 4 hrs away but like a whole day?! Umm NO!!!) but anyway can I have chameleons in Australia? Yes this is probably a stupid question but I heard somewhere that you can't? ( don't ask where it was allllong time ago) but is there any truth to this? And if I sadly have to move to Australia should I take my chams with me or find new homes for them?... This is just thought right now... So not completely sure... And just wanted to know about this and nothing more.... Thanks!
-Zac

 

[Lizardlover]

Well earlier this week I learned that my uncle out in Cali was offered a major construction job for his companies in Australia... My mom was talking to my grandfather and he told her about it and she is thinking of moving us to Australia instead of Minneapolis,MN (you can imagine my enjoyement getting told you might move half way around the world :/ I can stand 4 hrs away but like a whole day?! Umm NO!!!) but anyway can I have chameleons in Australia? Yes this is probably a stupid question but I heard somewhere that you can't? ( don't ask where it was allllong time ago) but is there any truth to this? And if I sadly have to move to Australia should I take my chams with me or find new homes for them?... This is just thought right now... So not completely sure... And just wanted to know about this and nothing more.... Thanks!
-Zac

No, but a quit google search would've given you the answer

By the way, did you ever get your two chameleons to the vet? I remember you saying something about that, just wondering.

 

[panthercham]

I am a born and bred Aussie...I lived there until I was 30 and moved here 8 years ago. Australia is a beautiful and wonderful place!

If you get the opportunity, then lucky you. Anybody that gets to live and experience a foreign country is lucky. The only draw back is that chams are illegal in Oz....but there are many other lizards and wild life that you can keep that are just as satisfying. I had a koala living in a gum tree in our back yard, possums in our roof, tree frogs everywhere and some sort of python living in our deck that loved dropping in at happy hour just as much as my friends.

The Magpies will swoop you in breeding season (you will think nothing of wearing a plastic ice cream container on your head, along with everyone else to stop from being pecked) if you are anywhere near their nests, not to mention the goannas but its worth it. The Wild life and critters are abundant!

I personally love all the parrots that you can train to hang around....they are real characters and have over the top personalities.

There is nothing sad about moving to Australia, you wont be able to take your chams but the experience of a new country, new friends and new wild life will far out way that. You can always get new chams if and when you get back to the US.....just make sure they go to good homes and good keepers, which when the time if and comes you can find here.

Also Aussies are very friendly and you will have a wow of a time

 

[ChameleonRave]

I am a born and bred Aussie...I lived there until I was 30 and moved here 8 years ago. Australia is a beautiful and wonderful place!

If you get the opportunity, then lucky you. Anybody that gets to live and experience a foreign country is lucky. The only draw back is that chams are illegal in Oz....but there are many other lizards and wild life that you can keep that are just as satisfying. I had a koala living in a gum tree in our back yard, possums in our roof, tree frogs everywhere and some sort of python living in our deck that loved dropping in at happy hour just as much as my friends.

The Magpies will swoop you in breeding season (you will think nothing of wearing a plastic ice cream container on your head, along with everyone else to stop from being pecked) if you are anywhere near their nests, not to mention the goannas but its worth it. The Wild life and critters are abundant!

I personally love all the parrots that you can train to hang around....they are real characters and have over the top personalities.

There is nothing sad about moving to Australia, you wont be able to take your chams but the experience of a new country, new friends and new wild life will far out way that. You can always get new chams if and when you get back to the US.....just make sure they go to good homes and good keepers, which when the time if and comes you can find here.

Also Aussies are very friendly and you will have a wow of a time

haha thanks! I'm not so sad as to moving but that's FAR! From where I live... And I honestly would rather stay if it mention giving up my chams! D: right now it's up in the clouds for my mom.. But ya never know.. Why exactly is it illegal to have chams there?

 

[Syn]

[...]Why exactly is it illegal to have chams there?

I see you don't know about cane toads.
http://www.dpi.qld.gov.au/4790_8603.htm


Parent link.
http://www.dpi.qld.gov.au/4790_8259.htm

 

[ChameleonRave]

I see you don't know about cane toads.

http://www.dpi.qld.gov.au/4790_8259.htm

Cane Toads?! D:

 

[Syn]

Cane Toads?! D:

I provided you with two links that would be good for you to read for future information. A quick search on google will tell you what cane toads are...

A search along the lines of "cane toad impact on Australian wildlife" should suffice.

 

[Montium]

haha thanks! I'm not so sad as to moving but that's FAR! From where I live... And I honestly would rather stay if it mention giving up my chams! D: right now it's up in the clouds for my mom.. But ya never know.. Why exactly is it illegal to have chams there?

It's pretty much xenophobia. As they are not toxic, it's not quite the same thing as cane toads. There are any number of easy ways to regulate the importation but rather than do it, as that would create more work, they choose to ban everything. It's the same approach Hawaii uses.

This is the same headset that would rather shotgun and poison birds than export them.

As the other poster said, Australia is an amazing country and if you get a chance to move there you really should do it. You can always move back if you don't enjoy it. The wildlife alone is worth the move, I've been there three times and have always been impressed by the people and the land.

The currency takes a bit of getting used too lol the two dollar coin is about the size of a thick dime and you end up with what you think is just a pocket full of change and it's really like thirty bucks lol.

So I'd say find some good homes for your chams if you get the chance to go. It's an experience few will get a shot at.

 

[jrtader]

As mentioned previously chams in Oz are illegall. The reason is the threat of them being introduced into Australia's eco system. Like veileds in Florida and Jacksons in Hawaii. Australia had to learn the hard way through a few retarded people that didn't stop to think things through. It's ok for me to say they were retarded, I'm an aussie and even i think it was stupid.

A couple of dozen rabbits were imported by a farmer that was bored and wanted something to use as target practice. Well, they bred like rabbits and now the Australian outback is infested with them. Camels were used to transport early settlers and explorers journey through the outback to explore the land. It wasn't uncommon for some of these people to get lost and starve to death and now there are wild herds of camels in some of the desert areas. Not to mention the cane toads that were introduced and the feral cats have spawned and are a threat to the wildlife. There are probably a couple more species that have been introduced that I can't think of off the top of my head.

 

[Lizardlover]

As mentioned previously chams in Oz are illegall. The reason is the threat of them being introduced into Australia's eco system. Like veileds in Florida and Jacksons in Hawaii. Australia had to learn the hard way through a few retarded people that didn't stop to think things through. It's ok for me to say they were retarded, I'm an aussie and even i think it was stupid.

A couple of dozen rabbits were imported by a farmer that was bored and wanted something to use as target practice. Well, they bred like rabbits and now the Australian outback is infested with them. Camels were used to transport early settlers and explorers journey through the outback to explore the land. It wasn't uncommon for some of these people to get lost and starve to death and now there are wild herds of camels in some of the desert areas. Not to mention the cane toads that were introduced and the feral cats have spawned and are a threat to the wildlife. There are probably a couple more species that have been introduced that I can't think of off the top of my head.

I believe feral pigs are a problem as well turning the Bilabongs into barren muddy land.

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl...C8gbOoviXAw&page=1&ndsp=22&ved=1t:429,r:2,s:0

 

[Thompson]

By the way, did you ever get your two chameleons to the vet? I remember you saying something about that, just wondering.

So did you ever get them to the vet

 

[joe kool]

chameleons in Australia.

I had a few chams as pets when I was a child growing up in Europe , the nature of the chameleons we had and held in our hands as they caught flies off the walls were of a placid nature. we used to have competions to see who can catch the most flies. We only onwed one cham each and after we finished we put them back in our home garden like on a grape vine and we would go back the next day and it wouldn't be too far from where we left it. The ones we had were quite slow moving and doubt it if they were a threat to any other animal except flies ! They made great pets for children as they were quite easy to care for.
I fully understand the legallities and the reasons for the restrictions for the importation of flora and fauna from overseas. But to compare these guys to rabbits, foxes, cane toads and other prolific breeders and introduced pests is totally ridicolous! Even they managed to escape or be set free into the wild by some fool, I doubt it very much if it would survive for very long before it would get eaten by a some cat, dog ,bird , snake or any another hungry predetor!
I live in Australia now and my kids would love to have one as a pet!

 

[okiroo]

haha thanks! I'm not so sad as to moving but that's FAR! From where I live... And I honestly would rather stay if it mention giving up my chams! D: right now it's up in the clouds for my mom.. But ya never know.. Why exactly is it illegal to have chams there?

i saw this show that there were alot of scary snakes and spiders there D:. otherwise its beautiful. minus the spiders.

 

[JackP308]

I know a few people in Australia with Chameleons. Cost pretty penny unless you know the right people.

 

[burnedrose]

I had a few chams as pets when I was a child growing up in Europe , the nature of the chameleons we had and held in our hands as they caught flies off the walls were of a placid nature. we used to have competions to see who can catch the most flies. We only onwed one cham each and after we finished we put them back in our home garden like on a grape vine and we would go back the next day and it wouldn't be too far from where we left it. The ones we had were quite slow moving and doubt it if they were a threat to any other animal except flies ! They made great pets for children as they were quite easy to care for.
I fully understand the legallities and the reasons for the restrictions for the importation of flora and fauna from overseas. But to compare these guys to rabbits, foxes, cane toads and other prolific breeders and introduced pests is totally ridicolous! Even they managed to escape or be set free into the wild by some fool, I doubt it very much if it would survive for very long before it would get eaten by a some cat, dog ,bird , snake or any another hungry predetor!
I live in Australia now and my kids would love to have one as a pet!

Well, in Hawaii, it's a BIG deal with the Jackson's. They eat some of the insects that help pollinate the rare shrubs that are found only in Hawaii. They also have a tendency to breed pretty quickly. The first Jackson was introduced in the 1970's and now there are chameleons everywhere, on each island.

And now a few of the islands also have issues with Veiled chameleons. I never saw a single veiled in the five years I lived there, BUT I do remember a headline about one of the rare, almost extinct bird species having been caught by a veiled on Kauai and died. I'll be honest - I'd love to see the chameleon that could eat a bird! That would be pretty epic.

But it's pretty much the same reason in Hawaii as it is for Australia. People think their pets are cute and harmless, but they don't realize that some plants are extremely rare, as are insects and even organisms in the dirt that may be killed off by fecal matter (esp in Hawaii where there are NO lizards or snakes or anything except for the introduced chameleons and the fecal matter kills a certain moss that grows on trees).

 

[fluxlizard]

The grass is always greener on the other side of the world.

There are some supercool australian lizards I wish I could keep but they are not to be found outside of australia.

How did someone find this year old thread and start it up again? LOL

 

[ckmazdaspeed3]

I know a few people in Australia with Chameleons. Cost pretty penny unless you know the right people.

I like this answer.

Op, I bet if u try really hard, you could manage to get your hands on one, just bs prepared to pay a pretty penny for it... Or whatever they use in Australia.

... Don't mambas live in Australia though? I hear they make great pets!

 

[carol5208]

Does anyone recall forum member Joe Jackson?(who incidentally has fallen off the face of the earth it seems) He had chams and was from Australia I believe.

 

[Stanly]

Does anyone recall forum member Joe Jackson?(who incidentally has fallen off the face of the earth it seems) He had chams and was from Australia I believe.

I was wondering were he's been myself, maybe "they" caught him with chams down under.... Jk I'm sure he's just busy or something.

 

[fluxlizard]

I thought Joe was a new zealander