My first chameleon

[Booty]

Hi can anyone help my daughter has been asking me for a chameleon as this will be our first reptile. We was wondering how difficult they are to keep and look after and also which one we should get as a beginner we live in the UK and hope that our climate would not be a major problem and also which enclosure would be best suited and because there are not specialist suppliers i have located weather i should build one so it suits our needs.
Many thanks Colin

 

[xanthoman]

please be sure before you commit !

i personally dont feel that chams make good childrens pets , even with adult supervision. i realize they can be incredibly cute , BUT, they can also be very hard to keep. you cant just feed an endless string of pet store crickets. keeping chams, even one, means keeping and raising bugs and also what can be fairly complicated diet , supplemental and educational issues, chams are best suited as projects rather than pets, and best left to people who are commtted to being truly dedicated. if you look further into the forums you will notice that many people who are supposedly experienced and who have supposedly done their homework are having difficult problems anyway. if you get a cham, in all likely hood most (if not all) care and educational issues will be up to you. chams often dont display any signs of illness (at least in terms of lessor experienced keepers) until it is too late and once they start going down hill they can go downhill quickly, it can be very heartbreaking especially for a young child. there is far more to keeping chams than most people realize. i would strongly suggest more research before you commit. a good place to start would be http://raisingkittytheveiledchameleon.blogspot.com/ also; https://www.chameleonforums.com/supplementation-mbd-1-a-2451/index4.html and http://www.chameleonnews.com/?page=article&id=18 final thought many chams are threatened or even endagered animals so, please be sure before you commit. jmo

 

[Julirs]

I wholeheartedly agree with everything stated above! Chameleons are NOT the reptile to start with. With a very young child you will certainly be the primary keeper as most are more work than a child even has the attention span to deal with. Chameleons are at the top of the spectrum for daily, consistent care. They do not drink from water bowls and must be misted a few times daily, so now you must consider caging AND proper drainage. They usually need quite large caging so if you are looking at one of the most common chameleons-the Veiled-you are looking at a cage that is 4 feet tall and 2 feet wide and long. Proper lighting must be attained and changed out every 6 months. Supplements must be used and tracked. Problems are not easy to cure. The reading suggested above is excellent and should help you make up your mind. I truly think that often people thing reptiles look "easy"-but they are anything but.

 

[ronnie]

[QUOTE
I truly think that often people thing reptiles look "easy"-but they are anything but.[/QUOTE]

Ditto to the above!we have just lost our first Cham after having her only 8-9 months,losing any pet is heartbreaking but losing one that needed...demanded such care and constant attention was unbelievably hard,don't get me wrong,they are rewarding and fascinating creatures to care for but a definite no no for a child/beginner.....i learned that the hard way and while i am sure that i did my best for her and her needs i will definitely do much more research before i ever consider to keep one of these stunning animals again...and as the above posts stated....they are much more of a hobby than any where close to a pet.......best of luck with your decision,i hope you make the right one

 

[skully23]

Agree all of the above. Yes you have to start somewhere with reptiles but not with any chameleons. I remember my first lizards..now that I have come experienced in reptiles I have seen that in the past those lizards I had weren't being supplemented and givin the right lighting..but they lived for 1-2years. Yes its possible to learn and become experienced but not with a chameleon. It would be like putting your daughter into college and expect her to learn it very quickly.

Depending on the age of your daughter, we all could possibly tell you what she can handle
Good luck

 

[fluxlizard]

I take a little different view.

Depends on how old the daughter is.
Depends on how involved the parent will be.
Depends on the expectation of what sort of pet a chameleon is.
Depends on what species of chameleon is aquired.

A chameleon is more like a tropical fish. Best set up in a well planted enclosure, and a lot of care can be taken to provide an attractive enclosure. Not the sort of pet you can hold and pet and play with. They don't last long if you try that sort of thing. You will need to have a no touching rule. Lots of fun to watch and feed though (especially by hand).

A chameleon has very specific care requirements that must be met or the lizard will not live long. As a parent, the chameleon will need your care and constant supervision. Unless your daughter is a teenager (you didn't say).

Ignore all the species except for Veiled. They are the easiest. Don't purchase a tiny baby. Find one around 6 or 7 inches in length. It will be much easier to start with than a tiny baby. Make sure you get a male. Much easier to care for. There are lots of websites about their care. Read all you can so you understand what you are getting into and how to properly care for the lizard. Then return here with questions.

Veileds aren't difficult, they just have very specific needs, which must be met. But it isn't difficult to meet them.

IF it's a lizard that can be handled your daughter wants- depending on her age, consider a bearded dragon or blue tongue skink...

 

[pssh]

I also agree with the first posts. I do have to say that I got my first chameleon when I was seven and did all daily care except my mom had to get the bugs and drive me to vet visits. I had only had two little anoles before that and my chameleon lived to be almost seven years old. Looking back there are a few things I wish I had done differently, but I'm glad he lived for so long.

It really depends on your daughters tendencies and ability to commit. If she normally gets things and looses interest after a month or two I would Not even consider a pet that would be 'hers.' I think it would be a good idea to buy her two simple books on the species you want to keep and see if she's committed enough to read the whole books. Quiz her, test her knowledge. That also means that you will be doing every bit of research as she is, so you will both be armed with knowledge to do what is right for the animal.

As for an easier chameleon a veiled chameleon is usually recommended because of their slight tollerance of small mistakes that a newer person may make or have.

 

[Booty]

Thankyou all so very much for all your input their is no way we would even concider getting a cham if we thought it would be in any discomfort or unhapppy we are very responsible pet owners and therefore we will look at other alterantives for a pet. Maybe one day when she becomes old enough and has had more experiance then she may well get one herself untill then thankyou all very much for your help and speak to u all soon.

 

[xanthoman]

other alternatives ?

please understand we in the cham community are not trying to be negative , just realistic, chams are more like a science project than a normal pet and to be honest (adult supervision or not) they just require more care, research and attention than 99.9% of children can realistically provide. however no need to give up on the idea entirely. if the ultimate goal is to keep a cham, then some form of reptile experience can be helpful. you may want consider a bearded dragon as a better starting point, . their care is considerably easier and less scientific, and they certainly make a better starting point where children are involved. although they can bite (so can chams) they normally dont. and many owners consider them to have quite a personality, even to the point of hanging out on your lap or shoulder while you watch tv (or so many bd owners claim). although their care is noticably different , but there are some similarities and it would be a much more realistic starting point as an introduction to the world of reptiles, it would be a better choice to test the reptile waters with (so to speak).there are many different types and they can be quite interesting, many of the cham owners started with and still keep bearded dragons . just my 2 pence worth

 

[Elizadolots]

I agree with fluxlizard that the mere fact that this is a "daughter" does not mean she cannot be a good chameleon owner.

Based on the first post, the girl might be 6 might be 16...big difference. The second post by the thread starter does suggest the child is young, but there was no evidence of that when people started posting "no way" comments.

I think quite a few in the "chameleon community" do like being negative to new people, people with questions, people with issues. Finding something wrong with how they care for their pets seems to be the raison d'etre for a fair number of people.

However, I agree that chameleons are far more difficult to care for than the pet or reptile store tells you they are and, unless there is a great deal of commitment from the adults in the house, it's not a good pet for anyone under 13 or 14.

To the original poster, if your daughter is good with a pet she can't handle much, I'd suggest looking into a frog. They are far more forgiving of owner error than chameleons, can be handled on occasion and while they are susceptible to environmental issues, they tend to adapt rather than just die. They also seem less bothered by stuff like other pets or the owner actually looking at them. They don't bite! My daughter asked for a frog when she was 9. "Hoppy" (she was 9!) died last month. My daughter will turn 15 at the end of this month.

She did well by Hoppy and Hoppy dealt with a lot of stuff that probably would have killed a chameleon.

xanthoman's suggestion of a bearded dragon is very good. The one caveat I'd offer is to be careful where you buy them from. Bearded dragons are sort of the "generic lizard" (at least here in San Diego) and places that really don't handle reptiles well sell them (maybe because they are a bit more durable). Find a reputable reptile supplier.

I think any reptile is less flexible than a frog, so I think it's probably okay to buy a frog from a mainstream pet store.

 

[pssh]

I wish my mom or dad had done some research before I got my first chameleon. They didn't know a thing about him, but I had been watching animal planet and reading books! My mom is great, but she never does research on pets so I'm left to ask for books and look online (though when I was younger the Internet was not so readily used as I didn't know how it worked... )

If the animal will not be 'hers' at all and it is your pet, then by all means, don't be discouraged!! Just do your research first because they really aren't starter lizards. If you try hard enough and do lots of research on stress signs and the like in lizards and more specifically in chameleons you can probably keep a chameleon (provided it is healthy when you buy it.) so make sure you buy a healthy one!

I can't give much advice on other lizards as I've only owned those two anoles I talked about. I think it's safe to say that if I, as a 7 year old child, could take care of a chameleon after having only a few months experience with basic lizards then a competent, willing to learn, adult can take care if a healthy bought chameleon so long as they are also willing to put to use the knowledge they learn.

If you are only discouraged because you do not want to deal with the work that comes with chameleons, then research other easier to care for animals, but don't be discouraged because of members on here if they seem at all harsh to you (which they may not actually intend for it to be.)

I hope everyone on here has helped with your choice and I hope you find a passion for whatever animal you choose that is as strong as all the members on here have towards chameleons.

 

[Julirs]

I agree with fluxlizard that the mere fact that this is a "daughter" does not mean she cannot be a good chameleon owner.

Based on the first post, the girl might be 6 might be 16...big difference. The second post by the thread starter does suggest the child is young, but there was no evidence of that when people started posting "no way" comments.

I think quite a few in the "chameleon community" do like being negative to new people, people with questions, people with issues. Finding something wrong with how they care for their pets seems to be the raison d'etre for a fair number of people.

My children have had pets since they were toddlers, and I as the parent happily accepted the fact that I would always be the primary care giver. Many, many parents however do not accept that responsibility. What we "negative" people posted gives the OP the information they need to make a decision if they want to be involved in that level of care. That being said, thre are probably some 6 year olds that take better care of pets than 16 year olds.

"Finding something wrong" saves chameleon lives and probably even saves people money by avoiding Vet bills, and saves people heartache from a dead animal. It makes me pretty angry when inexperienced people jump on a thread to say all is well when there are clearly dangerous husbandry practices ocurring.

I also wanted to add that when getting into an animal like chameleons, one has to accept the fact that they will be "tied down" due to the amount of regular, consistent, daily care they require. They certainly would not have fit into my lifestyle when my children were younger as we were constantly on the go.

 

[fluxlizard]

I wasn't trying to be positive or negative with my opinion- I was just sharing my opinion.

The experience I have to form my opinion -

I have 4 kids from kindergarten through 8th grade. So I know what kids are like.
My 8th grader has his own veiled chameleons and leopard geckos that he breeds. My 7th grader has his own dart frogs that he breeds
and red eyed tree frogs that we hope to breed soon.

Both kids require regular parental encouragement and advice and regular parental monitoring of the animals to make sure everything is ok.

I think my kindergartner and 2nd grader are too young, and I don't feel like calling something theirs and taking care of it for them.

So, I know something about kids.

I've also met other parents in our community and kids who are friends of my own kids. I know that some parents are involved with their kids and are very good about providing guidance and structure to make sure their kids succeed at whatever interests they develop and other people's idea of being a parent is to put a roof over a kid and simply make sure the kid has food and clothes and a nintendo and then sit back and watch and see how the kid turns out.

So, I know something about parents.

I also know something about lizards.

I bred my first chameleons in 1992 (veileds- rare and expensive in those days (for me) I had to pay $250 each for 3 week old babies about 3" long. Plus I had to pay shipping from the airlines and drive an hour to the nearest airport to pick them up and then held my breath that they would live- they did and bred later that year). Since that time I've breed several kinds of panthers, jacksons, quads, montiums, flapjacks, bitaeniatus, hoehneli, jeweleds(sold those and globifers which I had not bred when madagascar shut down to invest in panthers what a wrong move that was lol), 2 kinds of carpets, fischers, oustaletts, dilepis, mellers (see pics of my latest babies born december (see here for pics! https://www.chameleonforums.com/hatched-12-19-a-36267/ )), few others I can't recall off the top of my head and more than a couple dozen other non-chameleon lizard species, some difficult some easy. When I recommend bearded dragons or blue tongue skinks, it's because I've kept and bred those and found them pretty durable and hardy for a beginner.

IMO a captive bred 6 or 7 inch long veiled is no more difficult than a 5 inch bearded dragon to raise and care for properly. If someone can't raise a well started veiled, they will probably fail with a bearded dragon too. Although I will admit that an adult beardie is much more durable than an adult veiled if the owner decides to ignore care instructions and is too lazy to read or not intelligent enough to follow instructions.

Which is why I say, whether a chameleon would be right for the OP, all just depends on the circumstances.

If others disagree- I'm fine with that. I believe strongly in free exchange of opinion.

I just wanted to explain a little about how my opinon was formed since others were discussing my opinion.