should i get one

[collinsm91789]

hi, im just wondering if chameleons are hard to take care of? like im deciding whether to get a chameleon or a bearded dragon. i have the time and the money to take care of them just i need to know more info about them. if i buy a chameleon can i take it out of its cage and play around with it or have it just sit on my lap? i know its a solitary lizard but does that mean it just wants to be left alone all the time? thank you for the input

 

[Julirs]

Are they hard to take care of? Well, if by that you mean expensive, time consuming, and that you will spend alot of time here getting your questions answered and then pondering if you are doing things correctly, then I would say yes-they are difficult. Then factor in that more than likely you will not be able to handle them as they do not like to be handled, could be aggressive, and get stressed easily and that all of this will make it very difficult to clean the cage etc. Now, if you are ready to invest the time and money and the larger part of the stress-zone of your brain then this is the animal for you. They are highly addicting and very rewarding. Otherwise Bearded Dragons are the way to go.

 

[Brad Ramsey]

Sounds like Bearded Dragon may be the way to go for you.

-Brad

 

[stevereecy]

hi, im just wondering if chameleons are hard to take care of? like im deciding whether to get a chameleon or a bearded dragon. i have the time and the money to take care of them just i need to know more info about them. if i buy a chameleon can i take it out of its cage and play around with it or have it just sit on my lap? i know its a solitary lizard but does that mean it just wants to be left alone all the time? thank you for the input

There's so many opinions on this that you won't get a straight answer even in this forum. It wouldn't want to stay on your lap, but maybe on your shoulder, the top of your head, or the back of the couch. Opinions vary on whether you can handle them or not, and different types of chameleons are more "handleable" or not. I have a Panther chameleon that doesn't seem to be bothered by it at all, but I once had a Veiled that I wouldn't handle without thick gloves. I know folks who had just the opposite experience. Some chameleons have a propensity to be more readily handled than others, but individuality plays a large role in it too, and just plain the way you handle it. When I weigh my chameleons, they are "mad at me" for a few days. If I handle them gently for long period, they start to forgive me.

Chameleons are not as tolerable toward handling as a Bearded dragon. Neither probably "like" to be handled. If you get a cham, don't plan on handling it for more than 10 minutes a day or so, but if its just running around on your couch or curtains, maybe 30 minutes. FWIW, I have a nasty Bearded dragon that I didn't handle for at least a couple years. Now he's "meaner" than all of my chameleons.

If you buy the right stuff, and set it up correctly, any reptile is easy to take care of. But setting up right and buying something healthy, and monitoring it for ill health is the real trick.

If you have the cash, and you decide on a chameleon, then get a Male Panther. They tend to be the less objectionable about handling, but thats not a guarantee.

Steve

 

[joefarah]

Sounds like Bearded Dragon may be the way to go for you.

-Brad

Agreed. Based on what you've said, you would probably really enjoy a bearded dragon.

 

[Kent67]

For what it's worth, I've been keeping these animals for a very long time. My experience has led me to the exact same conclusions as Steve. Just one other thing, though. Keeping chameleons involves a good amount of intuition. They are programmed to hide problems in order to avoid being eaten in the wild. If you are afraid you don't have the intuition and the initiative to do something as soon as you see a potential problem, I don't recommend chameleons. If you believe you have those qualities, a male panther will have the best chance of being a "pet" lizard.

 

[stevereecy]

For what it's worth, I've been keeping these animals for a very long time. My experience has led me to the exact same conclusions as Steve. Just one other thing, though. Keeping chameleons involves a good amount of intuition. They are programmed to hide problems in order to avoid being eaten in the wild. If you are afraid you don't have the intuition and the initiative to do something as soon as you see a potential problem, I don't recommend chameleons. If you believe you have those qualities, a male panther will have the best chance of being a "pet" lizard.

Amen. I have told people that raising chameleons is part science, part Zen. You just get a feel. My wife has never cracked a book, but in our house, she's known as the chameleon whisperer.