jannb
Chameleon Enthusiast
Carlton we don't lick or groom each other....we don't even French kiss
but they do get their little pecks. 
After the news I figered I'm more likely to get salmonella from eating an egg.
Most Friendliest Chameleon?
- Thread starter KClark
- Start date
Carlton we don't lick or groom each other....we don't even French kiss
but they do get their little pecks. After the news I figered I'm more likely to get salmonella from eating an egg.
kongchi
New Member
bridgofaith
Avid Member
Carlton we don't lick or groom each other....we don't even French kiss
I just about died laughing! Jann, you know I kiss my guys too. Perhaps we should get our doctors to do a fecal on us??
I have had very aggressive chams, until I began free ranging them full time. Their attitudes and aggression have changed 100% for the better. While I work on the computer or watch TV, they climb down their vines and onto my shoulder. They will do this to anyone that sits on the couch. The ones I am not able to free range due to space issues are still in cages and are extremely aggressive. This is my personal experience with both panthers and veileds.
KClark
New Member
free range sounds awsome.. do you seclude them to just one room? id like to see a picture of there area of range for some ideas.. id love to do that for my cham!
jannb
Chameleon Enthusiast
free range sounds awsome.. do you seclude them to just one room? id like to see a picture of there area of range for some ideas.. id love to do that for my cham!
My two free range too. They seems so much happier when not caged. After all they are use to living in trees in a jungle and being free not cramped in a tiny cage. What animal would be happier in a cage? That's why zoos went from cages to large habitats.
culpepperc
New Member
Ive been contemplating how to setup my free range. Quick question, how do you deal with misting/water availability in a free range setup?
bridgofaith
Avid Member
I'm sure I will be burned for this, but...
Mine do as they dang well please. They are not confined to one specific area. They come and go, wander around, whatever they want.
As for water, I take them outside daily for sun and use a mister while out there. Inside, I use a medicine dropper. Yes, they drink quite easily from it.
Mine do as they dang well please. They are not confined to one specific area. They come and go, wander around, whatever they want.
As for water, I take them outside daily for sun and use a mister while out there. Inside, I use a medicine dropper. Yes, they drink quite easily from it.
draetish
Avid Member
There are so many different ways to do it. I actually set up an enclosure without screening on to house the dripping water, catch pan, lights, etc. My chams would go in in the morning to drink, eat, poop and bask and then wonder around in the afternoon or go back and forth. The main thing is to give them everything they need so they don't wander around. Here are a few links to mine:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/rocko-chillin-45488/
https://www.chameleonforums.com/rockos-free-range-43774/
https://www.chameleonforums.com/new-melleri-enclosure-42787/
culpepperc
New Member
I really like the free range design. Thanks for the ideas, you've got a great setup.
summoner12
Avid Member
I am more concerned about people seeing this and thinking it is a good practice. I also think that the CDC has a much broader view than just one vet.
Carlton
Chameleon Enthusiast
That's the key to free ranging. Provide what a cham wants/needs and they tend to settle into a specific place well. They are creatures of habit and their little daily routines are easy to spot after a while.
That thread about your Craig's list melleri brought back memories of my first "rescue" melleri. She routinely drank for 20 minutes straight when I first got her. Eventually she learned to take water straight from a syringe dripping directly onto her lips and mouth. It was so reassuring to know just when she was actually full or not. She would even reach up to hold the syringe in place while drinking and push it away when she'd had enough. How I miss her even after 10 years!
Another rescue I had always seemed desperate for water no matter how often he drank. I'm pretty sure his kidneys had been damaged by poor pet shop care. While drinking he produced those long strings of clear saliva and could never seem to get enough. He was also a great syringe drinker.
JenniferAlicia
New Member
Depends on the chameleon, they are like people, they have such personalities.
I have been around an amazingly sweet Jackson, and a mean one...
I have had an amazingly sweet and personable Veiled, but the girl I have no is MEAN. The only way to get her out is for her to climb from a plant with no choice. Otherwise she puffs, hisses and tries to bite.
Parandrus
New Member
I very rarely post because of how things tend to go in the forums but the link to this thread was sent to me by a few members and I took a good interest in it.
I think it is a good idea to worry about any zoonotic disease when working with any species of animal. Despite them looking apparently healthy, they can be carriers and thus infect us if we are not practicing proper hygiene methods. I have to say that the concern of contracting Salmonella from chameleons is a valid one although an extremely rare one. It seems to me more of an isolated personal issue/agenda than a true concern the way it was brought to the forum.
Do I agree with kissing a chameleon? No. I think chameleons are to be treated like fish, you keep them as happy as you can and you simply observe them from afar. With that said, most chameleon owners enjoy interacting with them and chameleons will tolerate the handling in many cases. If you kiss a chameleon's cloaca, you will most likely be playing with fire. Kissing its mouth might not pose such a grave issue. Chameleons are not known to be animals that crawl in their feces or roll in them, like most terrestrial or aquatic reptiles do, so giving them a peck shouldn't be as big an issue as it is being made out here. Again, I don't recommend it and you will never see me advising to do it, but I also have to be realistic as there are just as many chances to contract several types of bacteria from allowing a dog lick your face and lips. How many people do that? A lot. A dog will lick almost every part of its body and then you get a "surprise" lick as you don't really know where that tongue has been. The risk or "surprise" is not as bad with a chameleon.
A single Veterinarian will never know as much as the whole CDC indeed. However, the CDC depends on Vets and MD's to report cases to them so the CDC won't be of much help by itself either. The reports on salmonellosis in humans caused directly from chameleons in the USA are not making the statistics, but they are listed as a potential source. Why? Here's why:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC154656/
Allowing chameleons to free roam and not keeping the environment clean can cause issues like the above. Of course this case was in the UK but it can certainly happen here in the USA. I have placed a call and email to a friend of mine that works in the Vet Med School of UGA, and also worked for the CDC, in hopes to get more actualized info on salmonellosis from chameleons so we'll see if he can get back to me on that.
So in conclusion, don't go out of your way to engage in any kind of oral contact with your chameleon if you don't have to. If you do anyway, know the risks and definitely stay away from kissing their cloaca or licking your fingers after handling them. Clean after them and keep your cages clean as well. And if you are really worried, you can take a fresh fecal sample to your Vet to have analyzed for Salmonella. The test is usually done by an idependent lab and it is not really expensive; that way you'll know if your chameleon is harboring any strain of Salmonella.
Hope this helps those who asked for my input,
Ivan Alfonso, DVM
I think it is a good idea to worry about any zoonotic disease when working with any species of animal. Despite them looking apparently healthy, they can be carriers and thus infect us if we are not practicing proper hygiene methods. I have to say that the concern of contracting Salmonella from chameleons is a valid one although an extremely rare one. It seems to me more of an isolated personal issue/agenda than a true concern the way it was brought to the forum.
Do I agree with kissing a chameleon? No. I think chameleons are to be treated like fish, you keep them as happy as you can and you simply observe them from afar. With that said, most chameleon owners enjoy interacting with them and chameleons will tolerate the handling in many cases. If you kiss a chameleon's cloaca, you will most likely be playing with fire. Kissing its mouth might not pose such a grave issue. Chameleons are not known to be animals that crawl in their feces or roll in them, like most terrestrial or aquatic reptiles do, so giving them a peck shouldn't be as big an issue as it is being made out here. Again, I don't recommend it and you will never see me advising to do it, but I also have to be realistic as there are just as many chances to contract several types of bacteria from allowing a dog lick your face and lips. How many people do that? A lot. A dog will lick almost every part of its body and then you get a "surprise" lick as you don't really know where that tongue has been. The risk or "surprise" is not as bad with a chameleon.
A single Veterinarian will never know as much as the whole CDC indeed. However, the CDC depends on Vets and MD's to report cases to them so the CDC won't be of much help by itself either. The reports on salmonellosis in humans caused directly from chameleons in the USA are not making the statistics, but they are listed as a potential source. Why? Here's why:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC154656/
Allowing chameleons to free roam and not keeping the environment clean can cause issues like the above. Of course this case was in the UK but it can certainly happen here in the USA. I have placed a call and email to a friend of mine that works in the Vet Med School of UGA, and also worked for the CDC, in hopes to get more actualized info on salmonellosis from chameleons so we'll see if he can get back to me on that.
So in conclusion, don't go out of your way to engage in any kind of oral contact with your chameleon if you don't have to. If you do anyway, know the risks and definitely stay away from kissing their cloaca or licking your fingers after handling them. Clean after them and keep your cages clean as well. And if you are really worried, you can take a fresh fecal sample to your Vet to have analyzed for Salmonella. The test is usually done by an idependent lab and it is not really expensive; that way you'll know if your chameleon is harboring any strain of Salmonella.
Hope this helps those who asked for my input,
Ivan Alfonso, DVM
Ryan Jarosek
New Member
Awesome information Dr. Alfonso
summoner12
Avid Member
Yes it is! It is nice to hear a voice of reason and common sense.
