i need help with my chameleon please!!

[oo0kl3e0oo]

so i got my chameleon about 2 weeks ago. i work at a petland and this lil guy kept gettin beat up and pooped on and i fell inlove with him and took him home. he loved me and would always be a pretty green color when i held him and he would eat out of my hand and everything! it was so awesome!!

BUTnow for some reason he hates me!!! he is always a brown color and whenever i go to hold him he hisses at me!!! i dont understand what happened!!! i told my manager about it and he told me to spray him with water so i did but then he hissed when i did that too and now even when i change the water he hides and puffs up.

can someone please help me!! i dont understand what i did wrong! i just want my lil guy to love me again!!!!

i attached a picture of how big he is.. hes jus a lil guy... thats exactly what he looks like but now hes an ugly brown color all the time

 

[LunaC]

I'm happy you have taken this little cham from an unsuitable environment. Obviously if he was being bullied by other chams or other reptiles, he should have been provided his own enclosure immediately! Chameleons should not be housed together past 2-3 months, or once aggresion/dominence becomes
evident.
However, now it's time to research, educate your co-workers and your manager and provide him a proper home. I'm not certain why your manager told you to spray him in response to a normal chameleon behavior, though.

Basic chameleon info: chams are solitary creatures. They want privacy, they want solitude, they want alone-time. They not only want that, they NEED that. Without it, they stress, which will ultimately manifest itself in physical
ailments and likely a shortened life-span. (His constant brown is probably a sign of constant stress)

You can't teach your cham to "love" you. He may learn to tolerate you, he may learn to trust you....or he may not. Hissing, gaping lunging,
attempting to bite are all inate behaviors. Some are more calm than others. Some are just plain cranky 24-7. That's just the chameleon way.

Right now the best thing you can do for him is provide a suitable enclosure, lots of foliage for his privacy and security, good gutloaded feeders, proper supplements, water, water and more water (warm, not cold) and no handling until he's comfortable. Please take some time to read up on chameleon care and educate your co-workers and prospective customers on the proper care of these special animals. All the best to you and your very pretty new cham!

 

[ChameleonsTree]

Just try and continue hand feeding him without picking him up. He may begin to have a positive association with you...he may not. Sometimes when they reach an age to realize you are a preditor they become fearful. The reaction he is having is one of fear....so don't stress him out.

 

[Jordan]

Veileds are not big fans of water. Some of these guys live in areas of Yemen that only have measurable persipation 3 days out of the year. A monsoon wind blows from Aden east heats until it hits the highlands, rises, cools and then condenses back to ground level. This is how a veiled drinks naturally every morning and if they are lucky right before the sunsets. In captivity it would be impossible to mimic this natural event. So naturally we have to mist and come up with ways to keep the humidity up in their cages. My veileds run 99% of the time when the water starts. Mine drink almost completely from the dripper. Veileds are aggressive and very solitary. You can do things such as hand feeding to start a positive relationship with your chameleon and then move from there on their terms. Spraying a veiled like that will only make him associate you in a bad light. That trick does work on a cat but domestic cat where pack animals and you are the alpha (dominant) to them. When I mist I always start on a part of the cage away from them. After they learn what you are doing they will usually hide under so thick foliage and wait until you are done. I started hand feeding by just using a cup and letting them approach, then eat a couple insects out of it. After a little while move it a little bit further away and make it to where they can see your hand they may even get on it to get a better shot. Then go to an open hand. After they get this I went to putting an empty hand in front of the hand that had the insect this way they will get on your hand completely. I have found now that my veiled will get on my hand sometimes when I am cleaning the cage I am sure they just want food but they have started approaching me. They usually stay where they are otherwise because they know I do not threaten them when I am doing mataince.