Finally, a cham who knows his way home!!

[Psychobunny]

Free ranging for me and my chams has always meant that I have to 'escort' them home when it's time. They are always reluctant to go back, and I have never, not even once, had a cham go back to his cage on his own.

I have tried everything to make it easy for them to find their way back to their cage; connecting a bendy vine to their basking branch, to the free range above, but they have never gotten the hang of it.

Well, now it seems I have a 'smart' panther!!

He not only goes back to his cage willingly, he also knows that's where dinner is served, and where the heat and UVB are!

So, Slinky uses his bendy vine access to freely come and go, always coming home for dinner, basking a few hours, then it's back to the free range, where he likes to climb to the highest spot to curl up and go to sleep for the night.

In the morning, he roams the free range, looking out the window, and checking things out. But he never climbs downwards to the floor, and he is consistently going back home at about the same time.

He has developed a routeen, and does the exact same thing every day!!

I even feel safe just leaving his door open all day while I'm at work.

Has anyone had this experience with a panther, or any other cham?

I have been supervising him now on the free range, and back home again now for a few weeks, and the behavior is very consistant.

Do you guyz think it's wise for me to just let him continue this while I am gone to work?
I have no other animals except my chams, no other person in the house, and nothing really for him to get into.

Any thoughts?

 

[pigglett79]

My Jackson will go in and out on his own and has never once climbed down to the floor. My panther george will not generally go back home and if you dont watch him every now and then you will find him in odd places or even in other rooms in the house. My other panther monty won't go home he just climbs to the highest point and sits there.

 

[deathdealer91]

awesome!!!!

Wish my cham would do that. but if he doesn't go anywhere or get in anything i think you should just let him/her do its thing.

 

[Psychobunny]

My Jackson will go in and out on his own and has never once climbed down to the floor. My panther george will not generally go back home and if you dont watch him every now and then you will find him in odd places or even in other rooms in the house. My other panther monty won't go home he just climbs to the highest point and sits there.

Wow! crazy, I have the opposit, my jax always finds his way to the floor, where he can get into all kinds of throuble, but my panther, and esp. my veileds always stay up high on the free range.

The only thing Slinky might get in trouble with is crawling under one of the UV fixtures and getting stuck.

I guess it's bast to be home when he is out, just in case.

It's just that, I have never had a cham do this before.

Every day, at 5pm, after he has eaten and basking, he wants out so he can go to his favorite spot for bedtime.
If I let him sleep out, that means I would either have to trust him, or collect and take him back home when I get up at 4:30am.
That would not be a fun thing to do

 

[Psychobunny]

Well, I decided to put Slinky to the test and let him sleep on the free range last night.
I have his bendy vine access road from his cage to the free range, so he can easily come and go as he pleases.
I just left him out, and he was curled up this morning, sound asleep.

Anything he could get into, or fall into, has been covered, so I think the worst thing to expect when I get home from work will be poop on the floor, or on top one of the cages, since I have my free range connected to each one.

He can go back home for basking and getting a drink, just like he has been doing.

Of course, I know how a panther's (or veiled's) personality can quickly change, esp. at his age of 5 months. So I dont know if he will continue this "open style" living arrangement.

It would be really great if I could always trust him to make his own decisions and come and go from his cage as he pleases.
Maybe I could remove the cage door completely!!??

 

[Thegreatfonz]

My panther does this but I have still not found out what makes him do it. My free range is on my lanai but there's no lights or really a source of water out there but he's got the FL sun. I'll put Ren out there for 30minutes-2hours depending on how he feels. Sometimes after 10 minutes he'll climb off the free range (it basically takes up the whole lanai too) and climb down to the sliding glass door and actually start climbing it if I dont notice him quick enough. If its not too hot out, i'll just leave the door open and he climbs back inside. Now once he's inside he either goes straight to his cage (but I have to help him back inside, the dining room table is right infront of his cage and he likes to climb chairs so instead of just attaching a vine to his cage and hopes he makes it there, I'll just put him back so I know he's back home).

He's around 1yr 4months and has done this probably since around 8-9months. For me though with my experience I wouldn't let him roam MY house alone without me there..but psycho you're free range is unlike anyone else's! If anyone could do this I'd say it's you or anyone else with paths around the house like you do. With all the green around I don't see why he'd travel off of it but those dam chams are curious!

 

[JohnDoe]

Well, I decided to put Slinky to the test and let him sleep on the free range last night.
I have his bendy vine access road from his cage to the free range, so he can easily come and go as he pleases.
I just left him out, and he was curled up this morning, sound asleep.

Anything he could get into, or fall into, has been covered, so I think the worst thing to expect when I get home from work will be poop on the floor, or on top one of the cages, since I have my free range connected to each one.

He can go back home for basking and getting a drink, just like he has been doing.

Of course, I know how a panther's (or veiled's) personality can quickly change, esp. at his age of 5 months. So I dont know if he will continue this "open style" living arrangement.

It would be really great if I could always trust him to make his own decisions and come and go from his cage as he pleases.
Maybe I could remove the cage door completely!!??

Psycho,

My male panther does this as well, and it started about 3weeks ago, and is almost 6 months old. I opened the cage door after he gets his breakfast and two mistings, and I pen the cage and he comes out. He does not just do it slowly, he bolts accross the bridge and chills the rest of the day. If he sleeps there he sleeps, but in the morning i bump the temp in the house to get him warmed up and he goes back home for food water and to poop. He has yet to poop on the free range or floor. I have been doing this everyday almost for the last 3 weeks, and it has helped us bond as well with hand feeding out of the cage

 

[Psychobunny]

Thats great that he doesnt poop on the floor, I wish Slinky would do that.

Cant wait to get home to see what he has been doing out on his own!

 

[JohnDoe]

Thats great that he doesnt poop on the floor, I wish Slinky would do that.

Cant wait to get home to see what he has been doing out on his own!

What ended up happen? Was he a Good boy or what?

 

[Psychobunny]

Yes, when I got home, he was high up on the free range with tail curled up and looking lost and confused.
I found out that he can only find his way back if he uses the bendy vine attached to his basking branch.
If I just open the door of the cage, and he climbs the screen and out, he seems to get lost and confused
I noticed he licks the attached vine as he walks on it.
I have never known why they do that, they have a crappy sense of smell, so cant be marking his territory, can he?

 

[Psychobunny]

Here is Slinky, just leaving his cage after some breakfast and a few hours of basking.
Note how he is licking the bendy vine. He does that every few inches:

 

[Psychobunny]

More pics,
first is Slinky roaming the free range.
Then, as Smidget see's that Slinky is out, he wants to come out to.
This is him 'begging' to come out.