Chameleons tend to be pretty shy, and you may not get one that is friendly. My first (and only) chameleon was a Jackson's. He's pretty needy in terms of care and nutrition but not insurmountably difficult if you do your research. His personality is very chill, but he's not my "pet" really. He's a lizard that lives in my house and generously allows me to feed him.
Chameleons aren't ever really going to be an "affectionate" pet that wants to be handled. The best you can hope for is one that tolerates you
That being said, it's been incredibly rewarding having a chameleon. I am madly in love with Ferdinand. A lot of people say Veileds are a bit easier to care for, and they certainly get a lot bigger - maybe 4x or more than the size of a full grown Jax. Veiled chams are likely going to be a lot more colorful, too.
Chams of any species are also VERY expensive. Just be ready for that
If you want a lizard that tolerates being handled better, have you looked into a bearded dragon? They can be very personable. I'm not trying to dissuade you, just throwing an idea out there.
Best of luck! This forum is the perfect place to ask any question. We benefit from having hundreds of years of experience with the great people here.
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That had to be hard to lose such a long-time friend.
I let him out all the time, but he'll never be the type to hang out on my shoulder.
Aw, sorry to hear about your beardie
Jacksons need a lot of water and higher humidity compared to veiled and panther chameleons, plus they like a little bit cooler temperatures. The water becomes an issue if you don't have a drainage system set up or if you don't have an automated mister to run if you are gone for long days. I go through about 2 gallons a day between the automated misting system and the dripper, which means I have to have a drainage system that can drain away about 1 gallon a day. My two biggest issues are maintaining humidity levels during the dry Midwest winters (30% in the house, ugh!) and working out his nutritional needs.
Jacksons are montane (mountainous) species and require less supplementation than is recommended for veiled and panther chameleons. It's easier to accidentally overdose them on certain vitamins like A and D3.
My most recent challenge was figuring out why he stopped using his tongue properly. I thought I was doing everything correctly, but when I switched up my gutloading and supplementation a bit, the problem corrected itself, so it must have been nutrition-related. I give him crickets, superworms, silkworms, hornworms, blue bottle flies, snails, and isopods. Jacksons generally don't eat any vegetation, but Veileds will.
I'm not sure of the dollar investment to set up a bearded dragon, but it can be pretty pricey to get everything you need for a chameleon. I'm sure I dropped over $600 getting everything, and those were just the "needs" not the "wants". But, I was starting from scratch, which you may not be.
There are some excellent caresheets and other information on this forum:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/caresheets/
Finding a vet who is knowledgeable about chameleons might be difficult, too. Beardies are much more common - even my exotics vet only has a small handful of cham patients.
Bottom line, my Jacksons is needy but not difficult. That is probably true for all chams, but maybe Jacksons are a little less forgiving than Veileds. He has the cutest personality - you can just see the little gears grinding in his head when he's about the get into trouble
Regardless of what cham you get, this is the best place to get info and help. It's been really great being part of the community here.
My Jax is currently about 55 grams and nearly 12" long from nose to tip of tail (about 6" in body). He is a little over a year old, and I expect him to reach a max of 75g and likely not to get much longer. For an adult male Veiled, there are some monsters out there - maybe 18" to 20" long for a male and 200+ grams?
Generally, the smallest recommended cage is 24" by 24" by 48" tall for any chameleon - of course if you can offer more space, that is always good. I had my Jacksons in a 24x24x48 cage and he used every bit of the space, even though he is relatively small. I have him now in a custom 24x36x72 cage, and he seems much happier. A lot of people also set up a "free range" area with vines and plants to give their chams time to be out and explore. My cham really loves free range time. They are a lot of fun to watch
A free range is just an open area outside of the cage where your chameleon can safely be. Some chameleons are very territorial about their cages and allowing them time outside of the cage seems to help them chill out.
It can be as fancy or simple as you want. I have some fake vines around a few house plants and one intertwined around a parrot ladder in the corner where my chameleon likes to hang out. I let him out for a few hours every weekend and whenever else I can because he seems to enjoy exploring. You can't trust your cham to stay in his free range area, so supervision is a must
Even with a free range, you wouldn't want a smaller enclosure, in my opinion.
