I have had 2 female pygmy chameleons in 2 separate enclosures for 2 months now. They have been doing very well. One of them appears to be shedding her entire skin. It looks like white ruffles on her entire body. Is this normal shedding? I have been thinking about putting them together in one enclosure. How long does the shedding process last?
pygmy shedding
- Thread starter jan65
- Start date
Thanks Johnny- Interesting to hear they do better separately. I was told they like to be in groups. I take it you had some experience with chameleons. I did just find a time lapse series of photos of a pygmy shedding. The poster said the whole process took a couple of hours. Jan
Well i'm certainly no expert, i have only been keeping pygmies for just over a year or so now. But in that short time i have kept over a dozen at least, of three or four different species. I have i feel, learn't quite a lot in that short time though. Although lots of people seem to have success keeping pairs, trios etc. My results trying this, have resulted in losses. Not just of males kept together, or male & female, or even male & two females, as is often suggested. But also two females together has resulted in the loss of one. I have tried this in decent sized, heavily planted tanks (exo-terra's) too & still lost animals. Have not lost an animal housed alone to date (touch wood) yet. Have spoken with other much more experienced keepers, who have had the same. But at the same time, others have not had any problems. Just can't seem to find exactly why some can keep groups & others can't. Does seem to be lots of people lose them for no apparent reason though. The fact that most are WC & have a short lifespan, could be one reason. It's almost impossible to know the age of WC animals & at best is a guess, usually based on size. I just see mine do better when kept alone & if attempting breeding. Just introduce as & when.
The 2 pgymies I have are WC- so I do not know their age. Based on what you say, I think I'll continue to maintain them in separate enclosures. I see you live in the UK. Perhaps you have greater access to cb. I live in the US and and am new to pygmy chameleons. I'd like to find a cb supplier. If cb do you know the average life span of a pygmy chameleon?
MelissaB
Avid Member
CanvasChameleons has cb pygmy chameleons. I bought 4 females from them a little while back. They're beautiful and perfect.
Thanks Melissa- I have just been in touch with Nick! They just have males right now, but am seriously considering getting one.CanvasChameleons has cb pygmy chameleons. I bought 4 females from them a little while back. They're beautiful and perfect.
One thing that definitely stands out is CB brevs definitely seem much hardier. Maybe these are the ones that thrive better in groups? I have a reptile shop around an hours drive from me. They had a 1.2 CB breeding group for over two years, until fairly recently when they suddenly lost one of the females. Although CB brevs are available in the UK from time to time. They are still far out numbered by WC. Definitely worth taking the time & extra cost if applicable, to obtain CB. Though here in the uk, most are bred, by hobbyists, so usually sell cheaper than WC from retail outlets anyway.
I honestly don't know the true lifespan of CB pygmies, but going by the age of the ones mentioned above. I'm guessing three years for males, possibly a little longer. Probably less for regularly bred females, for obvious reasons.
