Mellers sharing a space!

[reptimom]

All you Meller owners out there, I need some advice. I absolutely love my male Mellers, Asmar, and would like to get a female. Will they be able to share the same space. I have a large corner of my guest room with a large hibiscus tree and a totem pole pothos for him. I have seen pictues posted of Mellers sharing the same space. Just want to get some input or ideas from you expert Mellers owners. Thanks

 

[Ryan Jarosek]

All you Meller owners out there, I need some advice. I absolutely love my male Mellers, Asmar, and would like to get a female. Will they be able to share the same space. I have a large corner of my guest room with a large hibiscus tree and a totem pole pothos for him. I have seen pictues posted of Mellers sharing the same space. Just want to get some input or ideas from you expert Mellers owners. Thanks

What I did when I introduced the second guy to the free range was...

Make sure there are two of everything.. (feeding cup, watering spot , two basking areas. I added another section to my free range that matched the size of the other to add some space. They need to be able to move away from each other (aka escape).

There is always the chance they will not live together and will stress. You should be prepared to separate if you need to.

 

[PardalisGirl]

Everyone else seems to be doing it!

Well, everyone else seems to be doing it. If they have enough space to separate and each have a good basking area it seems to work fine. I think they like the company. I was going to do another blog entry for my Mellers Layla this week. I've got my six Mellers in quarantine now for parasite treatment. As soon as they are done in a few weeks I plan to move five into one big enclosure and see what happens (one is too small). I don't have mine officially sexed right now. I'm hoping to see some interactive behavior that helps me figure out the sexes. Let us know what you do and post pictures!

 

[Ryan Jarosek]

https://www.chameleonforums.com/ch-mellers-moving-into-26269/

Here is the thread on when I moved in the new guy

 

[PardalisGirl]

Good Idea Ryan....

That is a good idea Ryan. When I put my five together I'm going to watch them closely and be prepared to remove anybody that is overly agressive. Mine are all wild caught and they are pretty shy with me. I take them out periodically and put them in a "play area" together to see what happens. None of them seem all that interested in other Mellers. They just hang out and watch me. I've never seen a single bob, flap, hiss, or puff from any of them towards each other. I figure that after they have been here another six months or so and get over their issues with me and captivity that they will act more Meller like with each other. The big cage I am going to use is actually a big bird aviary. It has multiple holders for food cups. They will have enough room to spread out and have their own perches and plants. I can't wait to get their parasite treatments over so I can do this!

 

[PardalisGirl]

Jealous....

I remember that thread Ryan and how jealous I was when I saw it. Did you read my post on it? I asked how much the little one weighed. You did not answer. I'd still like to know. My little one is only 20 grams compared to my Layla who is almost 400 grams. Knowing the weight of your little one will give me an idea of how it relates in size to my little one.

 

[Pure]

I can't speak on introducing new Melleri to one another, as mine were already living together when I purchased them. But from my observations the only aggression I've seen is from Lumbwi. He just doesn't like Feruzi coming into his basking spot. He will put up with it as long as she doesn't try to go past him IE get to close. The aggression isn't too bad. Their idea of fighting is really him just grabbing hold of her leg, tail, what ever. No biting or hissing has ever been observed. That's not to say it's impossible or that there is a guarantee that all Melleri will get along. There's always a chance that one will be a jerk and just hate everyone. There is also a possibility that my two will decide to really go at it. Constant observation is key, along with separate basking, feeding, and watering spots. I have a 6ft flexarium for temp housing still sitting unpacked, in case they ever need to be separated. I think being ready to house them separately is a necessity.

I've been trying to get a video of their fights but they don't do it often and have always stopped before I could get the digi out. I will post it as soon as I can get one.

 

[Julirs]

My Major Mellers refuses to let Minor Mellers move in. He even taunts him since he has the bigger better planted cage. Minor Mellers would be fine co-habitiating.

 

[Ryan Jarosek]

I remember that thread Ryan and how jealous I was when I saw it. Did you read my post on it? I asked how much the little one weighed. You did not answer. I'd still like to know. My little one is only 20 grams compared to my Layla who is almost 400 grams. Knowing the weight of your little one will give me an idea of how it relates in size to my little one.

I'm sorry I must have missed it. I have not weighed him lately but he is in the 50-60g range and Mr. Ma'am has to be over 300g

 

[reptimom]

Ryan, it was actually your post of your free range and Mellers that starting me thinking out getting another Mellers. Your setup is awesome and of course your Mellers are beautiful!

 

[PardalisGirl]

Thanks for the weights....

Thanks for the weights. That gives me a good idea of how long it will be before my little Imperiata can be with the others. She needs to triple her size before I can even imagine letting her be with the others. She looks like a snack for them right now.

 

[Pure]

My Major Mellers refuses to let Minor Mellers move in. He even taunts him since he has the bigger better planted cage. Minor Mellers would be fine co-habitiating.

LOL you have to explain that better

 

[Julirs]

LOL you have to explain that better

Well-Major came to me the day after he hatched. He has never lived with other chameleons. When he was 10-11 months old-ish, Minor Mellers, who is the same age and actually a possible sibling, came to live with us. I put their cages next to each other and a week later put Minor in with Major. Major was NOT happy. He flapped his lobes and turned dark, so out Minor came. Minor, on the other hand, lived with siblings all his life, and wants to co-habitiate. A month later I tried again. Major flapped and stressed. Out Minor came again. Recently though, Major has been coming over to the side of the cage where Minor is and acts like he wants to check him out. Maybe someday they will be OK in the same cage.

 

[Pure]

Just a thought, remove both from the current setups and intro them to a new larger enclosure with all new decor. Kinda removes the "this my house" from the picture. That's what I would try anyhow.

I guess the hanging on the cage is the taunt?

 

[Julirs]

Just a thought, remove both from the current setups and intro them to a new larger enclosure with all new decor. Kinda removes the "this my house" from the picture. That's what I would try anyhow.

I guess the hanging on the cage is the taunt?

I honestly think that is the way to do it. I am really hoping to build a mega-enlosure later this summer.

 

[Pure]

Yeah, like I said I can't really speak on introduced chams but I have introduced many territorial animals (fish) and that's usually the only way it can be done. Even then sometimes it just doesn't work.

Yay!! another massive Melleri cage owner.

The only thing that worries me about free ranging Melleri is the humidity. Kristina says on her site that Melleri need constant changes in humidity from very high to very dry for long term survival. (I'm paraphrasing) This is next to impossible to do in a room, even more so if you have AC. Sure misting raises the humidity but in an open air environment it doesn't last long enough. And if you do figure out a way to do it to make it last longer than 10 minutes, it's not the best idea for your home's sake. Most house walls are drywall and drywall allows moisture to go in behind it. This is the most common reason for mold growth in walls. IMO not something that should be allowed. My large enclosure is big enough for this to be a problem also, even with a whole room humidifier pumping fog directly into it.. To fix it (remember I only have 1 open screen side) I installed a 6 ft roll up blind that I drop down after mistings and run the humidifier for about an hr or so.