How do I handle a untamed 1 n half year old veild chameleon(with my hands). He has no use in being held, touched and so forth. Let me tell you about weebo he's free ranged when ever he wants. he thinks he owns the house basically lol but that needs to change. Anywho do they bite from the front or side and does it hurt. I need to know
@bridgetnshane , in a nutshell, you handle a big veiled very very carefully. Yes they can bite. Yes it hurts. Some species of chameleons bite and release, others bite and hold on like a bulldog, even sawing back and forth as they bite down. I have never been bitten by my big cranky veiled but I have seen him bite off pieces of wood from the branch I have used to get him out of his cage.
I disagree with the above poster
@rotadennis that you can build a relationship and tame chameleons. I don't believe you can build trust with a chameleon in any way we humans think of as "trust building." I don't think they can think that way.
You can habituate a chameleon to your presence. They can learn what to expect from you. This is not trust; this is an animal that is learning to operate successfully in its environment.
Chameleons have very little social interaction with other members of their own species except when breeding and fighting over territory or resources such as potential mates. If they do not have any maternal instincts or social structure, I find it very hard to imagine they would be capable of giving over their sense of self to another creature that isn't even their own species.
I think true trust requires chameleons to possess a "Theory of the Mind."
Theory of the mind is the ability to attribute thoughts, beliefs, desires, intents, etc., to another. That's very advanced, high level thinking. It is about recognizing another as unique and capable of having their own separate beliefs and knowledge. Not all humans possess this ability, even without brain damage.
There is work being done in neuroscience to locate (in the human brain) the brain structures that are involved in theory of the mind. Of course the human and mammalian brain are structured very differently from a reptilian brain. That's a given.
What happens most times when pet owners talk about "trust" is that the chameleon has learned what behavior to expect from their keeper. They make a decision of what they are prepared to risk/tolerate for some reward. A wild squirrel that takes food out of your hand doesn't trust you--the squirrel is making a risk/benefit calculation and choosing that the reward is worth the risk.
I have a large collection of wild caught chameleons, captured as adults. All except one or two hand fed shortly after import. They do no trust me. Some become fairly "tame" and in general don't appear to feel threatened or fear in my presence, even though their limited interactions with me might be quite traumatic (catching them up and medicating them, for example). Others remain very uncomfortable in my presence, even if not subjected to traumatic events such as medicating.
Tolerance of human presence often is more related to the individual temperament of the animal than anything the owner does.
I think many people mistake an animal that allows the presence of their keeper with trust. For example, I have chickens that will come running when they see me and gather around my feet hoping for goodies. They absolutely do not trust me. If I reach down to touch one, they run away from my hand. If I reach down with a goodie, they run to my hand. But, they do not trust me. They will always always always defer to their natural survival instincts. Chameleons are the same way.
Many on this forum will attack my position with suggestions that I haven't a clue about chameleon behavior or possibilities because I don't try to make them tame. They claim I am a "breeder" with a "breeder mentality" as if as a breeder I am somehow uncaring of the welfare of my own chameleons and chameleons in general. I am proud of my husbandry and the life I give my animals and take those kinds of attacks personally.
I will answer that charge by saying that what behavior one sees might not be what is actually happening internally within the chameleon.
For example, I recently took a newly imported wild caught to the vet. He was very calm and relaxed looking, sitting quietly on my hand or the edge of the travel box allowing the vet to examine him without once struggling or trying to escape. His appearance was one of being tame and unafraid. There is no possible way he could have been unafraid unless he was brain dead. Just because an animal appears calm does not mean there isn't tremendous stress happening inside the animal.
Learned helplessness is a behavior exhibited by an organism when it fails to attempt to avoid aversive stimuli. It has learned that no matter what it does, it cannot avoid the aversive. These aversive stimuli can be quite painful--you can have dogs lying quietly on a metal plate as they are being constantly shocked with electricity. They just shut down.
Remember stress kills chameleons not immediately, but by suppressing their immune system. I think it is no coincidence that many who advocate trying to make their chameleon tame and able to be handled have chameleons that live fairly short unhealthy lives. There are people on this site revered by many who can't seem to keep the vast majority of their animals alive past a few years of age despite extensive veterinary intervention.
I know my position is not popular. Most people who have their first chameleon desperately want a relationship with their chameleon. I get that, but perpetuating the myth that they can be made pets that have any kind of emotional attachment to you only hurts them in the long run.
Enjoy your feisty veiled and work around any aggression he shows but don't be disappointed if you are never able to handle him without having to set things up so you don't get hurt and he doesn't get too overwhelmed.
