Wild Captive Chameleons

Lady cham

New Member
In response to the breeder sites that were posted and at the risk of sounding radical- do you all support the industry of selling and importing wild chameleons?
I guess I am naive in a lot of ways. Herbie was give to me by a friend who bought him from a pet store. Which is bad enough, that we as human beings would mass breed an animal for our own pleasures.
I never gave one thought to the idea that people who had such an "interest" and "respect" for this great and mystical creature could possibly support an industry so destructive and cruel.
The last thing I would want in my life is an animal sitting in a 3x2 cage in my house, that was stollen from it's home, shipped in crate, and sold for 500 bucks.
I may have just gotten myself 86ed from this forum but I plan to do anything possible to change these events, to insure the safety and preservation of our chameleons. Any support, information, or comments are welcome.
Sincerely,
Veronica Langley
 
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I agree in many ways but, Any chameleons had to be brought here in order to captive breed them. No chameleon born in US would not be here unless someone took him from home in order to breed them here. I do agree though but, it has to be done in order for us to get them. The more and more people breed and care for chameleons, the more they won't be W/C anymore. When enough breeders can provide them there won't be a demand for them as much.
Just my opinion.
 
The reality is that every pet and animal we have domesticated since the cave dwelling days - has gone through the same thing!

The difference with some - let's select the cat as an example, is that the cat can live anywhere and can mass produce on its own.

Some chameleons are found in only one specific place (panther-Madagascar) and their natural habitat is being destroyed on a daily basis. Ever hear of the dwindling rain forests?

The chameleon is already protected by CITES, ergo only certain species can be collected and exported - and only in certain numbers. Where the real problem lies is in in the collecters and exporters in the chameleon's native countries: they have appalling facilities and methods for holding the animals for export. Since these animals stress easily, these places are usually the major fault of their downfall in health. If those conditions could change, there would be less death and illness among the freshly imported.

If endangered animals are not imported and captively bred, they will soon be lost to the world and our grandchildren will only see pictures of what used to be.

Did you know that legislature is voted on every year as to whether or not we should continue to allow wild mustang horses to run free in America???? There are those that think they are only good for dog-food.

Food for thought....

Morgana
Reptayls, Ltd.
 
Lady Cham, please do not worry about expressing your opinions here. You stated your thoughts clearly, and showed no disrespect for others. I agree with most of your thoughts on the subject. In my opinion there are two parts to this problem.

First, the natural habitats of many chameleons are shrinking by the day. Their habitat is under constant pressure by the rapidly growing human populations nearby. These human populations are poor and do not have many resources; they are forced to use the chameleon's habitat for survival. The forests that chameleons live in are being cut down and used for housing, agriculture, grazing, and can even be the only source of cooking fuel and heat that the nearby human populations have. It is very sad to see these areas destroyed; they contain many other endangered animals besides chameleons. :(

Second, the trade of wild chameleons for the pet industry. As reptayls mentioned, some of these endangered chameleon species will not survive unless captive bred. For this reason, I do support the importation of certain chameleon species in a very limited and controlled way. I do not know all the details involved in importation, but I would like to see it heavily regulated and involve only the most experienced breeders and zoos. We have no control over what the locals are doing. We can't force our wishes upon them, especially when the chameleon habitats are one of the few resources the local people have to survive. I would like to see the introduction of chameleons to new areas (jacksons in hawaii are thriving). This can hurt currently established ecosystems though, which is probably why it has not occurred elsewhere (or has it?).

The Chameleon Information Network (CIN)
is a fantastic organization dedicated to the conservation of chameleons. You can find links to CITES and other organizations there as well. They used to offer a newsletter that I subscribed to by mail years ago(sigh).
 
Brad said:
The Chameleon Information Network (CIN) is a fantastic organization dedicated to the conservation of chameleons. You can find links to CITES and other organizations there as well. They used to offer a newsletter that I subscribed to by mail years ago(sigh).

Brad,
We miss that newsletter too, but Arde just decided to go in other directions and it isn't being written anylonger. Sad.

Morgana
Reptayls, Ltd.
 
Thank you all for the info and all the replies. It's so good to know that these are issues Chameleon owners are concerned about. You three seem to be pretty knowledgeable about the situation( even more so than I :rolleyes: ) and I really have a lot of respect for you all. I am truly interested in preservation, mediation, and finding some common ground in the import industry. Any other information and support is greatly appreciated.
Thanks folks
 
I am truly interested in preservation, mediation, and finding some common ground in the import industry.
Well said. This community is still very small, but I am open to any ideas you might have now or in the future about how this site could be used to help the situation. I always want to learn more about these unique animals, especially their preservation and history. I will post here as I discover new info (atleast new to me) and hopefully some others will too. The CIN, AdCham, and ChameleonNews links are a good place to do some reading if you have not already.
 
Chams in Madagascar

If I knew their habitat was secure, and if I could afford it, I would probably ship some back, if need be.
 
Well said. This community is still very small, but I am open to any ideas you might have now or in the future about how this site could be used to help the situation. I always want to learn more about these unique animals, especially their preservation and history.

Totally agree. I would love to be able to do something to help theese beautiful creatures, especially when it comes to preservation, and their history is so important, I hope that when I have grand children and great grandchildren they can see these majestic creatures in real life and not just in history books
 
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