New to this - Mating Behavior?

[andrearamirezo91]

Hello friends

I haven't been here in a very long time! Mango has been doing excellent and I've been extra busy with college, work, guitar classes, and all my pets lol.

So recently, one of my friends called me saying he bought a female panther, which he intends on breeding. So here are a few questions/concerns that I have since I am totally new to this:

- Obviously, the goal of breeding is making money. Since he has the female and will be caring for all the eggs I'm assuming he'll get the big cut of the money. However, if he wants to use my boy, do I get something for that or would it just be a favor? How does this work?!
- He brought her to my house today since he wanted to look at my boy in person and introduce the two (even though she still seems far too young and small - The seller told him he'd still have to wait around 3-4 months to breed her but I suspect he might have to wait longer). We placed them on a plant my boy usually basks on when it's supervised exploration time and he got very colorful but displayed dark markings on his face which usually symbolize distress. He then started bobbing his head a little and tried approaching her. I separated them quickly before he was able to get near her. Was this aggressive or mating behavior?
- My suspicions are that it was aggression because she seemed too small to be ready to mate and did not have that pinkish color that (from my understanding) means she's receptive.

So... How should I approach this? How will we know when the female is ready? I'm afraid of letting him approach her because I fear he might hurt her. I don't like doing anything until I know as much as I can about it, and this is an area that I'm completely ignorant in. And whereas he's the one that will be doing most of the work, I'd love to know what's going on for the safety and wellbeing of both chams.

Just attached a picture of his coloring as he was seeing her.

Thank you so much in advance

 

[AnamCara]

Head twitching is a mating behavior in males. I, personally, would be very wary of someone wanting to breed my chameleon, especially if this was their first time. Afraid I don't have much else to add as I have never experienced breeding.

 

[Brodybreaux25]

However, if he wants to use my boy, do I get something for that or would it just be a favor? How does this work?!

Called a stud fee, don’t know about you but I don’t work for free.

She’s ready at 1yo.

 

[Tony_S]

Very colorful cham you have there. What would someone charge as a stud fee?

 

[JacksJill]

You can either settle on a fee or you get a percentage of the hatchlings to raise and sell. Keep in mind you will be exposing your chameleon to any parasites or diseases she may have and vice versa. I would insist on her having a clean fecal and inspect her for any skin lesions prior to mating.

 

[ChamLB]

Females should be one year old before breeding but they may be receptive earlier that that. The stronger and healthier the female the healthier the eggs and babies are that you get.
10% of the babies is a standard stud fee. So 30 hatch and you get three.

 

[andrearamirezo91]

Thanks for your responses

What would be a reasonable stud fee if I don't want to keep any of the hatchlings?

@JacksJill thanks for the heads up you are totally right. We made an appointment for this Monday to get both chameleons checked. We won't be breeding them (if we even do it) for a while but he asked me to watch her over the weekend next week so I want to make sure they're both in good health before keeping her here.

Needless to say, I won't be breeding him if it doesn't feel right. I love my boy very much and have worked very hard to keep him healthy and thriving. He's become a huge part of my life and I couldn't forgive myself if anything happened to him due to carelessness on my part. That being said, I'll probably be around asking tons of questions regarding this topic while we decide

 

[Hashtag ChamLife]

I'd insist on a % cut, not flare rate. However, you may want to consider the market before deciding to breed for profit. While you see the VALUE in breeding, you don't necessarily see the time and monetary investment. On top of all that you have to have a demand in the market. It's not as simple as letting them get it on, wait for eggs and collect profit.

By no means am I here to dissuade you, just be ready for what you're getting into. Make a smart business move. It may make sense for you to take your payment in hatchlings if you get to know your local shop owners. Panthers CAN be worth hundreds..... but anything is only worth what you can actually sell it for.

Whatever you decide best of luck to you and your boy!

P.s. don't sell yourself short, a good sire is worthwhile

 

[Lennoncham]

If your friend bought their Cham with the sole intent of breeding her with your Cham (which it sounds like he did) I would 100% say no. If he’s actually serious about breeding he can do some research and go get his own male Cham.