Jeremy, There needs to be some middle ground between not acknowledging the dangers of feeder insects and having a chameleon and stick insects co-habitation in a large enclosure - that is obviously large enough to grow enough of a bramble to support multiple walking sticks. You have been here way too long to not be able to work with a sense of nuance. Me sharing a fun thing I did is not "beginner policy" and has never shown up in my advice to anyone. But, by chance, someone whose name I recognize - which means they have been around long enough to have perspective and understand where I am coming from -asks the exact question that I experimented with. Now, if you are truly concerned that this will lead someone astray, ask what species of walking stick....ask the cage set-up...where there separate perching branches from the bamble providing different areas to exist?..and, while we are at it - isn't bramble throny? Is that a good idea? So many more important things to ask before you get to the dangers of a walking stick poking his eye out in his sleep.
I did this for years in an attempt to see if it could work. There was no injury to the chameleons involved. Could there have been? Well, I had a chameleon, in a totally different situation, die from swallowing a leaf and not able to get the entire thing in. He died with the leaf half in his stomach and half still hanging out his mouth. So, shall I run around telling people about the dangers of live plants? There is always danger. The key is to be able to have perspective as to which of these dangers rise to the level of discussion.
Now, I imagine someone may argue that I was negligent because I did not give the entire story and enough details and someone may dump a bag of walking sticks in with their chameleon in their new Chameleon Kit. I will acknowledge that. But, doesn't there come a point where we can have these more nuanced discussions?
Imagine planting some bramble in your greenhouse. For the sake of your hands, get the thornless variety. Let it take over a side. Prune it so it doesn't get out of hand, And with a branch structure above the bramble how much danger do you think a chameleon would be in of getting its eyes poked out in their sleep? The danger is never zero for anything, but how worried are you? I am betting you would still be cautious. And that is fine. We will just have to have different comfort levels with the possibilities.
To answer your question - Yes, I am well aware of damage that feeder insects can have to chameleons. I have talked about it before in detail and in length.
