Wanting more information.....

[ellena]

I am very interested in buying a chameleon, but it would be my first reptile. I know that they are generally not beginner reptiles, but I am not interested in any others. How possible is it that I would be successful and not harm my chameleon by accident? I am looking for general information about owning a first chameleon. Also, as I live with my parents still, they are not very keen on the idea of keeping live crickets all the time, is there other options for feeding them?
Thanks!

 

[ChamDE86]

Welcome! My advice to you would be to do your research before committing. I read the https://www.chameleonforums.com/care/chameleons/ section and did months of research before I pulled the trigger on getting one. Your best bet would be a veiled or panther. Both chameleons require about the same care (caresheets can be found in link provided). To answer your question about crickets...it is best to provide a variety of feeders ranging from crickets, roaches, silkworms, superworms, mealworms, hornworms, etc so there are plenty of different bugs your parents can freak out to

 

[OldChamKeeper]

I am very interested in buying a chameleon, but it would be my first reptile. I know that they are generally not beginner reptiles, but I am not interested in any others. How possible is it that I would be successful and not harm my chameleon by accident? I am looking for general information about owning a first chameleon. Also, as I live with my parents still, they are not very keen on the idea of keeping live crickets all the time, is there other options for feeding them?
Thanks!

Some might call me grouchy, sorry if this comes off that way but I'm being honest and trying to help.

Do not buy a chameleon for your first reptile.


I have worked in the pet industry and during that time I always tried to steer a customer to the type of animal they could provide for and enjoy, not something that might be beyond their ability to care for.

Chameleons are a whole different ballgame than most other types of reptiles. So here's my suggestion.

Do the reading, then pick up a bearded dragon for your first pet. They are well suited for a beginner, personable, and they eat veggies. You can feed veggies one day and a few days later you can feed it some live items.

Easy to handle. Very hardy. Long lived.

They have equipment requirements, just like chameleons, and this experience will help you in the long run if you decide you really want to jump into the hobby of chameleons.

 

[ellena]

What makes them so different from other reptiles? I keep hearing that they are different, but what makes them that much harder that they aren't for beginners? I have researched lots about them, and nothing I have red makes it sound like they would be impossible to care for, just that there would be a steep learning curve like with all new pets.

 

[jajeanpierre]

Some might call me grouchy, sorry if this comes off that way but I'm being honest and trying to help.

Do not buy a chameleon for your first reptile.


I have worked in the pet industry and during that time I always tried to steer a customer to the type of animal they could provide for and enjoy, not something that might be beyond their ability to care for.

Chameleons are a whole different ballgame than most other types of reptiles. So here's my suggestion.

Do the reading, then pick up a bearded dragon for your first pet. They are well suited for a beginner, personable, and they eat veggies. You can feed veggies one day and a few days later you can feed it some live items.

Easy to handle. Very hardy. Long lived.

They have equipment requirements, just like chameleons, and this experience will help you in the long run if you decide you really want to jump into the hobby of chameleons.

I disagree. The OP is not interested in any other reptile. Assuming the writer will take care of it for its fairly short lifespan, why not?

You buy a healthy captive bred chameleon that is not really young and delicate, that is a forgiving species and doesn't have terribly finicky requirements, you buy the right lights and replace the bulbs every six months, you buy the right enclosure (which you furnish with live plants). You buy the right feeder insects that you feed up for a few days with really nutritious fresh food, you buy the right supplements and you make sure you are able to regulate the temps and humidity. You think long and hard about how to get water for your chameleon to drink and how not to have a stinking mess that ruins the floors or carpets.

None of this is rocket science, and all the information is available on this forum.

 

[ChamDE86]

I'd have to agree with OldCham for the most part. However, with some extensive research, anyone can gain enough knowledge to care for one. Too often, new cham owners create threads about preventable issues. Issues that could have been avoided if they took a couple of minutes to read about. In addition to my first post, I would spend the time (took me a couple of months) to research and if you still feel it is something you would like to commit to...shoot for it! We are here to help, but the best thing for a cham is a knowledgeable owner

 

[OldChamKeeper]

I disagree. The OP is not interested in any other reptile. Assuming the writer will take care of it for its fairly short lifespan, why not?

You buy a healthy captive bred chameleon that is not really young and delicate, that is a forgiving species and doesn't have terribly finicky requirements, you buy the right lights and replace the bulbs every six months, you buy the right enclosure (which you furnish with live plants). You buy the right feeder insects that you feed up for a few days with really nutritious fresh food, you buy the right supplements and you make sure you are able to regulate the temps and humidity. You think long and hard about how to get water for your chameleon to drink and how not to have a stinking mess that ruins the floors or carpets.

None of this is rocket science, and all the information is available on this forum.

You have a lot to learn and easily brushed aside over 15 years of retail experience I have in helping customers finding the right animal for their experience. You suggesting a cham can be a first reptile for a person brand new to chameleons is bad info I've seen before. "Fairly short lifespan"? wow. It will be a short one alright.

Never mind that many Chams live 5+ years easily. That's not a short lifespan when you consider that most new keepers have a hard time keeping their first chameleon beyond a year. You are also making the assumption this person will find a healthy animal off the bat. A person who has never bought a reptile before is almost always at the mercy of the place they decide to make the purchase from. If that is Petsmart..well they on average sell a healthy bearded dragon, but I think you've seen the complaints by other keepers here on these forums about how Petsmart treats chams? I'm thinking way outside the box and including averages just like that one when I hand out a little information.

Either way, this new member will either take your advice and give it a shot, might even do well too, or they will continue to do some research on this topic and come to their own conclusions.

Actually, considering how "easy" you just made it to care for a chameleon is very disturbing. That's just not correct. Look at all the individual variables you listed and think about how a brand new keeper is going to look at them. If a brand new keeper buys their first reptile and it dies, there is a high chance they will get out of the hobby completely. A bearded dragon has far less of those variables to worry about, has a higher chance of success as a result, and if the new keeper is successful they stay in this wonderful hobby.

 

[Turner1986]

i bought my first chameleon 2 weeks ago ,,,, well my first 2 (Male and female) Nosy be panther chameleons. This is not by far my first reptile however, but as long as you do the research and have the time, its not that hard. But then again everyone is different. I researched them for about 2 months before i even made a purchase. I bought mine from http://reptilepetsdirect.com/

They are located in Texas, not a sponsor on this site but i can vouch for them. My chams are looking beautiful and healthy since day 1.

 

[jajeanpierre]

You have a lot to learn and easily brushed aside over 15 years of retail experience I have in helping customers finding the right animal for their experience. You suggesting a cham can be a first reptile for a person brand new to chameleons is bad info I've seen before. "Fairly short lifespan"? wow. It will be a short one alright.

Never mind that many Chams live 5+ years easily. That's not a short lifespan when you consider that most new keepers have a hard time keeping their first chameleon beyond a year. You are also making the assumption this person will find a healthy animal off the bat. A person who has never bought a reptile before is almost always at the mercy of the place they decide to make the purchase from. If that is Petsmart..well they on average sell a healthy bearded dragon, but I think you've seen the complaints by other keepers here on these forums about how Petsmart treats chams? I'm thinking way outside the box and including averages just like that one when I hand out a little information.

Either way, this new member will either take your advice and give it a shot, might even do well too, or they will continue to do some research on this topic and come to their own conclusions.

Actually, considering how "easy" you just made it to care for a chameleon is very disturbing. That's just not correct. Look at all the individual variables you listed and think about how a brand new keeper is going to look at them. If a brand new keeper buys their first reptile and it dies, there is a high chance they will get out of the hobby completely. A bearded dragon has far less of those variables to worry about, has a higher chance of success as a result, and if the new keeper is successful they stay in this wonderful hobby.

It just isn't rocket science. Do the research, buy the right equipment, including the right chameleon, and follow the right husbandry practices.

Why shouldn't the op get what s/he wants? During the research the person might find that a chameleon is not for them.

Succeeding with a bearded dragon does not guarantee success with a chameleon.

Chameleons do have short lives--five years is a short life. Of all the common pets, I think only hamsters, mice and rats have shorter lives. Even guinea pigs, rabbits and chickens live longer. Dogs usually live 12. Cats a lot longer than dogs. Horses live to mid to late 20s. I have one parrot that is 30, and several others in their teens, and they could all live another 30, 40 or 50 years. Now, that's a long life span. So, yes, a chameleon has a short lifespan.

You know perfectly well why most chameleons don't live past six months to a year. It is all about husbandry practices, nutrition, and lighting. If those owners did a little research, bought the right equipment, housed the chameleon properly, got them out into unfiltered sunlight, fed them properly and didn't stress them to death, I think you would find those sad tales on the Health Clinic thread would be few and far between.

 

[ellena]

How is a chameleon so much harder than other reptiles? I have researched chameleons on and off for about 4 years now. I feel like I know the basics. I know the reputable breeders in my area, and would not buy anything more a gold fish from a petsmart. I know that I have to have the right type of live plants with enough other branches so they can climb and find shade to their liking, but without fine mesh so they dont hurt themselves by getting stuck. They have to be able to climb to the heat, but not have the bulb in the enclosure so they dont burn themselves. I feed them with gut loaded crickets, but I change their diet to their liking so they do not get bored and go on a hunger strike. I know I have to try and make sure that there is no standing water. I know that it is not easy, but owing any pet is not easy. If I have done extensive research and am looking for more information on how they are so much harder than other reptiles so if I was to buy one I would know what to expect. I understand that they are hard, but because I have never owned a reptile I do not know HOW they are different. When I looked at the suggestions it was all things I was already (somewhat) knowledgeable about. I came looking for more information because I felt like I was reading the same things over and over again. I am not looking to own a chameleon on a whim, I was looking to own one finally because I had spent years looking at information online and couldn't find information on how they were SO much harder than other reptiles. I know they are not beginner reptiles, but I have done research and felt comfortable in more seriously thinking about getting one because it started to feel like I might actually have an idea of what I was doing.

 

[jajeanpierre]

How is a chameleon so much harder than other reptiles? I have researched chameleons on and off for about 4 years now. I feel like I know the basics.

I suspect the biggest trick to keeping chameleons is to understand their innate nature and how stress affects them. The husbandry is just detail--you can buy and learn the detail.

Stress is a huge chameleon killer. Really try to understand the captive world from the chameleons's point of view. Captivity has a cost to the animal, a huge cost, so try to mitigate that cost.

Handling is a huge stressor for them. I like to think of them somewhat like pretty fish--look but don't touch.

Do your research and buy good equipment. The one regret I have was buying screen cages. I'm in the process of replacing them all with DragonStrand breeder cages. It keeps the water mess under control. DragonStrand is a sponsor here.

Good luck.

 

[Montium]

Expense is one of the biggest reasons why chams are different and I'm not talking about purchase price. Proper equipment, vet bills and you will have them at some point if you are serious about keeping chams. Few people will pay hundreds of dollars for a vet visit to keep a cham alive that they bought for $40. Chams are masters of concealing illness, often to the point that when an inexperienced keeper finally spots a problem, they are often too far gone to recover.

If you browse the forum you can find endless posts on " why is my chameleon_____ "

Watching such amazing creatures die is a soul crushing experience, more so when you know it was your fault. There have been a great number of things brought to the market to make keeping them easier but if you keep them long enough you will encounter all sorts of drama.

If you are thinking about a Veiled or a Panther then the odds are you could probably keep it alive through most of it's lifespan. That doesn't necessarily mean your husbandry was correct so much as they are tough chameleons and can generally take more abuse than many other chams.

Unfortunately there is no set in stone, follow these steps and your cham will live it's full lifespan. You can have a general outline that can guide you but you have to be able to adapt to your environmental situation.

Any long term keeper has many dead chams in their closet. Those that have been keeping them since before you could buy almost anything online have learned their husbandry the hard way.

Ultimately it will be your call, provided you will be the one responsible for taking it to the vet, buying all the proper equipment etc. If you will be relying on a third party for that, then in no way should you buy a cham.

 

[aeonblue00]

I recently ( within the last month) purchased my first chameleon, which might as well be my first reptile as i did own a corn snake about 10 years ago but that's it. I like you had been wanting one for awhile, did hours upon hours of reading and watching videos, and finally decided the best way to learn was to just do it.

I put a plan together, made a shopping list and dove in. For me the hardest part has been financial. My Larry is doing terrific but i have probably spent 600+, not counting the chameleon. A lot of that money probably would have been saved had i had experience about what works, so that is something to keep in mind. I also have spent many hours adjusting and monitoring the enclosure to make sure it is just right. Add in food and supplement schedule and you start to see why they are much more demanding than a typical lizard.

Having said all that, i am having a blast and look forward to spending more time with her, and haven't regretted any choices i have made.

 

[fluxlizard]

Keeping a chameleon properly is really no different than keeping other arboreal lizards properly. A cheap green anole has the same husbandry as a panther chameleon, same lifespan, requires the same environment and equipment, and has the same vet bills.

My advice is to make sure you purchase a terrarium-bred chameleon, get a male for your first, select a known hardy species and do your reading and follow instructions carefully.

 

[ellena]

Thank you! Hearing that it is actually possible is very encouraging. Possible, and not life cripplingly hard. I understand that it is going to be time consuming, and possibly very expensive. I had thought that the main expense was the live insects, so hearing that vet bills and trial-and-error are also huge expenses gives me more information to factor in. Thank you everyone for your input!

 

[kwengkynator]

It is true that it's not advised to get a chameleon as your first reptile. Although sometimes I think there can be exemptions. I was a case of that. Although I still second the idea of not having chams as first reptile.

My friend offered me her cham without any knowledge about the animal what so ever I jumped in thinking its "cool". A bit naive yes but once I acquired the animal I looked into its needs and how I can give it the best living arrangements. Now not even 5 months after I have 2 chams both from friends who couldn't take care of the anymore. Currently I have a cage almost 6 feet tall in my living room (1/2 built 1/2 purchased combo) and a 4 ft tall cage for my female (upgrading it after my first exam). A closet solely dedicated to chameleon gear and full of chameleon feeders (breeding super, mealworms, mantises and dubias) and other seasonal treats. Over all I would believe that I'm giving my chams great care and attention. I love having them.

I admit that I wasn't prepared for what was about to happen to me back then took alot of my free time and ESPECIALLY cash. Expect to spend $500 + cost of chameleon AT LEAST EASY on the first 4 months of your cham. It would go to the cage, starting up feeder colony, lighting, plants, etc. All on top of that your new friend not being as friendly as you want. Its a bit disheartening at some points but as long you're a finisher and dedicated into being the best care taker of your chameleon you should be alright. Were just saying these are not easy pets. Just make sure that once you commit to this you're in it for the long run.

I dont want to scare you away just inform you I wish someone did the same thing to me back then.

 

[jajeanpierre]

I think Montium hit the nail on the head: Expense.

Cage: Anywhere from $80 to $200. I really like the DragonStrand breeder cage series because they have solid sides to keep the spray in. I am spending a lot more money trying to make an all-screen cage relatively water tight than I would ever have spent if I had invested a little more money and bought the cage I really needed. People go on and on about chameleons absolutely needing fully screened cages and then wrap shower curtains around to deal with the water. I love that you can buy from (DragonStrand) fitted drainage trays, substrate trays (which I use to catch the water before it hits the drainage tray), and laying boxes that fit under medium-sized cage. Who wants to look at an ugly bucket or flower pot in their cage? I think there are other manufacturers that will make something similar, but my experience has been with DragonStrand cages.

Lighting: Top of the line would be something like a ZooMed Terrarium hood with UVB tube light plus LED lights in a variety of light spectrums for $100 to $150. You still need a basking light. I think the Arcadia systems are similar and might be better quality.

Misting system: If you want to go all out and buy the best, an automated misting system that won't burn out the motor if it runs dry would be a MistKing or an AquaZamp would nice. You can buy an AquaZamp for something like $125.

Furnishings: Buy live plants. I just bought a bunch of ficus that are pretty big for less than $10 from Home Depot. Two or three would pack a cage. If you have a DragonStrand Breeder series cage, there is already build in shelving. If you have another cage, buy DragonStrand ledges for maybe $30.

Supplements: Somewhere around $10 each kind.

Insects: Crickets about $.10 each depending on where and how many you buy.

A lot of people on this list expect everyone to spend hundreds of dollars on vet bills to try to save their sick chameleons. I'm not in that group. How much effort you go to to save a chameleon is always a "depends." I've spent hundreds on a $10 chicken, yet culled a young exhibition hen worth $150 without taking her to the vet when she became ill. It always depends.

You can avoid a lot of illness just by good husbandry practices.

Understand that chameleons are not a hands on pet. They are easily stressed, so their cage set up and location must be in a place that they can feel safe. Keeping the chameleon away from traffic, high above the scary 2-legged monsters, and with dense plantings of live plants all the way up to the top of the cage. Making sure they are not disturbed at night. All those things will reduce stress. Even with best husbandry practices, stress will still lower their immune systems so they will get sick and die.

Get them out into natural sunlight. Even the most experienced keepers don't have it right. If they did, I don't think chameleons would be fed so much calcium to keep MBD at bay. No chameleon in the wild eats dusted insects. We're doing something wrong, but we just don't know what it is.

Get a male, whatever you do, find a male. You will have a lot less problems with a male.

My vet made a very depressing comment when I was in having an x-ray taken of a newly imported wild caught with a leg injury that I worried was really serious. (Surprise, surprise, the skin rubs on his back became inflamed two days after going to the vet's. Maybe the stress of it all? I probably should never have taken him in.) Anyway, the vet said that it just seems that chameleons--I believe he was talking about captive bred ones--do well for about 6 months and then they start going downhill.

 

[werecat]

It seems like you are very interested and have done a bit of research already. It is good that you are on these forums where you can get input from a lot of experienced keepers. I don't necessarily believe that a chameleon cannot be a "first reptile", but it really depends on the person and their life if a chameleon is the best fit.

My biggest concern for you personally is that you are living with your parents and that you have stated they are not keen on keeping live crickets. This is a huge factor for you to consider because there is NO OTHER OPTION than to feed live insects. Chameleons require more than just crickets and so at any one time you may need to keep anywhere from two to five (or more) different kinds of live bugs! If your parents are not completely 100% on board with this, then it will end badly for you and ultimately for the chameleon.

I am speaking from personal experience. When I was in high school I got an african grey parrot. I tried to explain the care to my parents and how important it was for them to work with the bird since they would need to care for him temporarily when I went to college. They promised they would before we got him, but then they never made an effort or had much interest in him. Halfway into my first year of college my parents insisted I sell the bird as they did not want to care for him. It was heartbreaking for me and very unfair to the bird. I'm not sure I found the best situation for him and so he very well may have suffered/be suffering for the rest of his life.


I am not sure if you are still a minor living at home or if you are an adult and what your exact situation with your parents is, but if you are a minor and not fully self-sufficient then your parents will also need to be on board with all of the chameleon's needs and with the expense. I have seen young people on this forum before with sick chameleons and they can't get to the vet because either their parents won't drive them or they don't have the money and their parents won't pay.

Some things your parents will need to be on board with:
-Keeping live insects.
-Expense
-Time devoted to caring for the chameleon (I feel they take more time than other reptiles, mainly due to monitoring to make sure all the parameters are in check and feeding all those lovely bugs).
-Size of setup - chameleons require a pretty sizable enclosure which will make a big footprint in your parents' home.
-Water - chameleons need dripping water available and as mentioned the best system is a misting system. This often sprays water outside of the cage. Although there are ways to mitigate this, it is still a factor.

I wanted a chameleon for about 16 years before I was actually in a good position to get one. I'm not saying you have to wait that long, but I think you should really make sure that you are in the right position before getting one.

 

[GCash]

I think Montium hit the nail on the head: Expense.

Cage: Anywhere from $80 to $200. I really like the DragonStrand breeder cage series because they have solid sides to keep the spray in. I am spending a lot more money trying to make an all-screen cage relatively water tight than I would ever have spent if I had invested a little more money and bought the cage I really needed. People go on and on about chameleons absolutely needing fully screened cages and then wrap shower curtains around to deal with the water. I love that you can buy from (DragonStrand) fitted drainage trays, substrate trays (which I use to catch the water before it hits the drainage tray), and laying boxes that fit under medium-sized cage. Who wants to look at an ugly bucket or flower pot in their cage? I think there are other manufacturers that will make something similar, but my experience has been with DragonStrand cages.

Lighting: Top of the line would be something like a ZooMed Terrarium hood with UVB tube light plus LED lights in a variety of light spectrums for $100 to $150. You still need a basking light. I think the Arcadia systems are similar and might be better quality.

Misting system: If you want to go all out and buy the best, an automated misting system that won't burn out the motor if it runs dry would be a MistKing or an AquaZamp would nice. You can buy an AquaZamp for something like $125.

Furnishings: Buy live plants. I just bought a bunch of ficus that are pretty big for less than $10 from Home Depot. Two or three would pack a cage. If you have a DragonStrand Breeder series cage, there is already build in shelving. If you have another cage, buy DragonStrand ledges for maybe $30.

Supplements: Somewhere around $10 each kind.

Insects: Crickets about $.10 each depending on where and how many you buy.

A lot of people on this list expect everyone to spend hundreds of dollars on vet bills to try to save their sick chameleons. I'm not in that group. How much effort you go to to save a chameleon is always a "depends." I've spent hundreds on a $10 chicken, yet culled a young exhibition hen worth $150 without taking her to the vet when she became ill. It always depends.

You can avoid a lot of illness just by good husbandry practices.

Understand that chameleons are not a hands on pet. They are easily stressed, so their cage set up and location must be in a place that they can feel safe. Keeping the chameleon away from traffic, high above the scary 2-legged monsters, and with dense plantings of live plants all the way up to the top of the cage. Making sure they are not disturbed at night. All those things will reduce stress. Even with best husbandry practices, stress will still lower their immune systems so they will get sick and die.

Get them out into natural sunlight. Even the most experienced keepers don't have it right. If they did, I don't think chameleons would be fed so much calcium to keep MBD at bay. No chameleon in the wild eats dusted insects. We're doing something wrong, but we just don't know what it is.

Get a male, whatever you do, find a male. You will have a lot less problems with a male.

My vet made a very depressing comment when I was in having an x-ray taken of a newly imported wild caught with a leg injury that I worried was really serious. (Surprise, surprise, the skin rubs on his back became inflamed two days after going to the vet's. Maybe the stress of it all? I probably should never have taken him in.) Anyway, the vet said that it just seems that chameleons--I believe he was talking about captive bred ones--do well for about 6 months and then they start going downhill.

The expense is the easy part. Any person with moderate means can get and set up a chameleon, minature giraffes, or whatever. The thing that I don't see anyone mentioning is the soul drenching love for these animals that compel us to do whatever it takes to keep them healthy to the best of our abilities. The love that drives us as keepers to CONSISTANTLY ENDURE the required routine once the novelty wears off. To not only root out all information about the chameleons themselves but all the peripheral subjects as well. Nutrition, entomology, lighting and etc. have all been studied by any keeper worth their salt. The calcium supplementation you speak of is to correct an imbalance in the commercially available feeder insects (which you have to take care of as if they were pets also). If your vet was indeed speaking of captive bred when they made that statement, he/she may be no more qualified to advise on this topic than to take that x-ray that was unusable. CBB chameleons are far superior and many have lived full life expectancy. Wild-caughts are the ones that crash because the are still finding their way into the hands of novices instead of experienced breeders who know what their specialized requirements are and can give hope that their removal from the wild is not all for naught by becoming a genetic dead end.

Besides the commitment I've spoken of earlier, what makes them harder is, with so many specialized faculties, any error in nutrition or a nutritionally associated factor shows itself as a quick crash because they are so good at hiding illness and deficiencies. But the will to endure is the most challenging obstacle most people have to overcome in my opinion.

 

[laurie]

I am adding my thoughts in red

I disagree. The OP is not interested in any other reptile. Assuming the writer will take care of it for its fairly short lifespan, why not?Reason are extensive, and some listed below

You buy a healthy captive bred chameleon that is not really young and delicate,ALL chameleons are delicate - that is the nature of chameleons rather than starter reptiles, like beareded dragons, geckos, and snakes that is a forgiving species and doesn't have terribly finicky requirements, If cared for properly all chams have finicky requirements. Only people with limited time keeping chameleons can believe otherwiseyou buy the right lights and replace the bulbs every six months,Buy the correct lights and get one that is a dud - now will a new person know they are allowing the cham to develop MBD you buy the right enclosure (which you furnish with live plants). Again, what is the right enclosure? that depends on lots of factors, your location, your budget, where in your home the cham will be located, do you need to consider other pets You buy the right feeder insects that you feed up for a few days with really nutritious fresh food,The right feeder insects? really? how can you to say to a new person, buy the right feeders? Feeders are different the world over, and different chams will eat different things. Getting the right feeders and the right mix of feeders that your cham will eat, it not always easy to achieve you buy the right supplements Since very few of us use the same kinds and amounts of supplements, this is another thing that needs to be customized to the chameleon. I have 3 female quads who each handle supplements differently, that is not a clear cut, slam dunk, like people seem to think it is.and you make sure you are able to regulate the temps and humidity. First you have to learn what the temps and humidity are that will work for your cham, in your location, again this takes time and practice. If I say my chams need 90% humidity and it drops to 20% will the cham die in an hour, a day or not at all? How would you know if too much or too little humidity was harming this chameleon? Temps are also not just a temp. It is about creating locations of temps, your cham might want or need access to warmer temps than some others, and not what is "normal" for other chams - how will the new keeper reconize what the chameleon is trying to locate for a comfortable temp at different times of the day? You think long and hard about how to get water for your chameleon to drink Yes!! you do think long and hard - then your cham does not like what you think is working - how do you know and how long before you see it? before or after the cham is suffering from dehydrationand how not to have a stinking mess that ruins the floors or carpets.

None of this is rocket science, and all the information is available on this forum. You are so right, it is not rocket science, rocket science is hard and fast numbers, chameleons are live creatures. All the formulas in the world will not replace experience. The care of a chameleon IS more complicated than the care of a dragon or gecko. This is based on the number of variables. If you don't see those issues, I wish your chameleons the very best of luck - they will need it