mean and easily stressed chameleon

[lando]

i've had my vieled chameleon for around a month and a half now and she gets stressed anytime i mist or even come close to the cage to look at her. is there any chance the chameleon will ever calm down enough for me to be able to handle her.

also, recently her urate has had just a little orange in it and today it had less orange but the white part was more runny than usual. i know this is supposed to be from dehydration but i watch her lick droplets of water off of the mesh usually twice a day.i was wondering if this could be from the stress and not dehydration?

 

[graydon]

How do you know the cham is stressed? If you notice your cham drinking all the time he could be too hot. What are your temps? You also might wanna fill out the ask for help form so we can critique your setup.

 

[lando]

well i figure if he puffs up really big and changes crazy patterns he's stressed. right now temp is at 75.its usually btw 75 and 85

 

[Carlton]

i've had my vieled chameleon for around a month and a half now and she gets stressed anytime i mist or even come close to the cage to look at her. is there any chance the chameleon will ever calm down enough for me to be able to handle her.

Chams vary in temperment a lot. How old is she? Many veileds go through a surly phase as adolescents when their hormones are kicking in. How much cover does she have in her cage? Chams who can get out of sight easily sometimes are calmer. How large is her cage? If it is too small or low to the ground it tends to stress them also. Can she see other pets or a lot of house activity? Watching a lot going on outside the cage can keep the stress level higher.

Some chams never do calm down much. Many don't tolerate a lot of attention. You can teach her that you are not a big funny looking predator (that can change "skin" color at any time) by hand feeding her favorite treats, keeping your activity around the cage to some sort of predictable routine.

 

[lando]

i dont know how old she is exactly.when i got her she was like the size of my finger and really scrawny. now she's getting a lot thicker and has grown at least an inch possibly more. she doesnt have much cover and her cage isnt very big but she's still fairly small. im about to fix both of those thing though. i just ordered a really nice cage online and as soon as i get it im buying lots of pplants and stuff.haha and i hate touching crickets but i guess ill do it if it might calm her down

 

[skully23]

and i hate touching crickets but i guess ill do it if it might calm her down

You don't really need to hand feed crickets. Try worms! They are alot easier to handle with hand feeding than a cricket.

Heres what I do.
I bribe my chameleon to come on my hand. I use a container and hold it up to him. He sees the crickets and gets ready for them. I slowly move my other hand infront of the container toward the ouside of the cage and I slowly move back to where he can't get them and then he comes and comes as I repeat. Finally he gets the point that he has to come on my hand to eat out of the container. After he is on my hand I let him eat then he stares at me and slowly goes back in the cage. (Note: Do not move hand or try to take the chameleon out..it will warn them that its not a good idea to walk on your hand.) I do this for every feeding of crickets and if he doesn't come on my hand (which he hasn't yet not done) then he won't get them.
I also hand feed any worms I happen to buy. I mainly buy phoenix worms. Just lay one of them on your palm and hold it up to them. After several tries they will start to get that they can eat that worm without being afriad.

If you continue on a daily bases of hand feeding then your chameleon should calm down.
Good luck