Restless Jackson

[AllieLovesCarl]

My Jackson's (Triceros) Chameleon won't calm down or go to sleep unless i hold him. I only got him today so I'm unsure of his usual behavior but I've come to see him at the pet store every day for the past week since I fell in love with him & he's been attached to me ever since. Unless I have him out of his habitat& in my hand or on my lap, he won't stay still & even attempts to climb the walls of his habitat, trting to "escape". He doesn't stop this until I pick him up, which is when he then falls asleep. How can I get him to be content on his own? This is my first Reptile & I want him to survive happily.

(I'm getting tired of standing with him in 1 hand & the heat lamp in the other)

 

[Mredhorse]

Congrats on the Jackson...

Let him walk and get use to captivity.
Is he in a screened cage or tank?
Put lots of stuff for him to hide and let him do what he does best.
Usually pet shops get wild caught Jax so he will need to settle down on his own, just make sure he eats and gets plenty of water.
Jacksons don't take heat very well so don't let him get to hot. He will show this by opening his mouth.
I am sure others will give more advice..
Keep us updated to his feeding. (they are tricky at first so different foods might be needed)
Have you seen him eat at the pet shop or since you have had him?

 

[jrath]

Just let him go, he is probably still checking out the cage and getting familiar with it.
Give him a few days and he'll calm down. When I first got my jacksons and put him in his new cage he turned black and didn't move an inch for 24 hours.

 

[little leaf]

My Jackson's (Triceros) Chameleon won't calm down or go to sleep unless i hold him. I only got him today so I'm unsure of his usual behavior but I've come to see him at the pet store every day for the past week since I fell in love with him & he's been attached to me ever since. Unless I have him out of his habitat& in my hand or on my lap, he won't stay still & even attempts to climb the walls of his habitat, trting to "escape". He doesn't stop this until I pick him up, which is when he then falls asleep. How can I get him to be content on his own? This is my first Reptile & I want him to survive happily.

(I'm getting tired of standing with him in 1 hand & the heat lamp in the other)

you need to let him alone - chameleons do not "sleep" in your hands, that is most likely a stress response - when they are stressed, and can not hide, they shut their eyes and go to a " happy place" - he may be so active due to the fact he is in a new place, and if he is wc, he has never known any type of restriction - it sounds like you really love the little guy , and show this by holding him , and the light - lol I am sure he will settle down for you, just give him some time to get used to his new home, and be sure to give him some privacy, and I think he will do fine for you - here is a care sheet to help you along https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/jacksons/
there are also many other links for feeding your feeders, and cage set ups, ect- all you need to know is in the forums
and WELCOME to the forum and the wonderful world of chams

 

[AllieLovesCarl]

Thank you for your help.
Now my lil guy is having other issues tho, so if you wanna advise on that, i would appreciate it.

 

[AllieLovesCarl]

Carl is now 5 months old. From the moment i met him at the pet store, i could tell he was an odd one. He has behavioral characteristics not normally displayed by healthy jackson chameleons but I was assured by two reptile experts (1 at a pet store & 1 friend of my father) that he was healthy. Some of the strange behaviors he displays r; hanging upside down from the ceiling of his cage, pacing the bottom floor in the front of his cage, and (as far as i can see) only drinking every other day. As of today, Jan/6/2013, he has only eaten one tomato worm in the past 3 days. Also he has 1 swollen toe (back middle toe on right side) I can't be sure what caused this but I was told to put neosporin on it & see if the swelling went down. (I did this yesterday...is it too soon to know if it's infected?) I'm not sure if he is wild caught. (I got mixed answers from the people at the pet store) In summary, this is my first chameleon & I need help understanding his needs. Any help would be much appreciated.

 

[AllieLovesCarl]

Thanks for your help. I have more questions if u have time to answer. I'll paste a copy of what ive been posting on all my forums.
My lil guy is 5 months old now. From the moment i met him at the pet store, i could tell he was an odd one. He has behavioral characteristics not normally displayed by healthy jackson chameleons but I was assured by two reptile experts (1 at a pet store & 1 friend of my father) that he was healthy. Some of the strange behaviors he displays r; hanging upside down from the ceiling of his cage, pacing the bottom floor in the front of his cage, and (as far as i can see) only drinking every other day. As of today, Jan/6/2013, he has only eaten one tomato worm in the past 3 days. Also he has 1 swollen toe (back middle toe on right side) I can't be sure what caused this but I was told to put neosporin on it & see if the swelling went down. (I did this yesterday...is it too soon to know if it's infected?) I'm not sure if he is wild caught. (I got mixed answers from the people at the pet store) In summary, this is my first chameleon & I need help understanding his needs. Any help would be much appreciated.

 

[Lathis]

Hanging upside down is not so odd, especially for a young Jax. Neither is pacing at the front of the cage. Do you let him out to free range and explore? Jax are very active climbers - my Jax is all over his cage every day and still loves time out to roam around.



He may be drinking when you are not looking. Does he have a dripper? What about misting?



The swollen toe is probably from climbing on the screen. Make sure he has tons of vines and branches all over. Definitely keep an eye on his toe and if the swelling resumes, you should take him to the vet.



Pictures of your Jax and cage would help.

 

[spottea]

My captive bred chameleon got a swollen foot within a month of getting her, last summer. I promptly took her to the vet, where he said it was most likely an injury from the mesh screen of her cage, and the most common injury he sees. He took her in the back and got some pus out of her foot, which isn't easy apparently as the pus is quite hard. Then I had to give her antibiotics for a couple of weeks. I was a basket case!
However, she recovered quickly and is doing well now. I wouldn't wait too long to get the toe seen to, as the infection can spread and it will be much more difficult to fix, and more expensive.
Just my two cents, for what it's worth.

 

[Carlton]

Carl is now 5 months old. From the moment i met him at the pet store, i could tell he was an odd one. He has behavioral characteristics not normally displayed by healthy jackson chameleons but I was assured by two reptile experts (1 at a pet store & 1 friend of my father) that he was healthy. Some of the strange behaviors he displays r; hanging upside down from the ceiling of his cage, pacing the bottom floor in the front of his cage, and (as far as i can see) only drinking every other day. As of today, Jan/6/2013, he has only eaten one tomato worm in the past 3 days. Also he has 1 swollen toe (back middle toe on right side) I can't be sure what caused this but I was told to put neosporin on it & see if the swelling went down. (I did this yesterday...is it too soon to know if it's infected?) I'm not sure if he is wild caught. (I got mixed answers from the people at the pet store) In summary, this is my first chameleon & I need help understanding his needs. Any help would be much appreciated.

He doesn't sound odd to me really. A swollen toe is most likely infected. Is the claw still there? They often lose or injure their claws by getting them caught in screen. If there isn't an open wound (or missing claw) for the Neosporin to penetrate the infection it isn't going to have much effect. Most pet store jax are wild caught but there's no way to be sure.