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#1952981
Pannyb
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New veiled owner 
Hi guys, been reading this forum and some great info, but also confused. About 3 weeks ago I walked into a reptile store and told them I have an empty tank. I inquired about a bearded dragon and they said it needed a vivarium and recommended a veiled chameleon. Not sure how old but she is smallish.
They actually gave me one more suited to me as she liked being held apparently. Their advice was to take her out of her cage every day and she will get used to me. I tried this and thought its obviously stressing her out (puffing and hissing) so I stopped, I now feed her wax worms from my hand.
I recently went back and a woman walked in with an adult female on her shoulder. She seemed very happy, (the Cham!) and she stated that she indeed held here more and more from young, and now the cham is totally tame!
So basically Im confused! Either they can be tamed or not?? Right?! But the cham looked happy as anything on her shoulder, so whats going on there?
Id love to tame my veiled, but also dont want to cause her any stress, she seems happy enough in her tank, although I do realise in a couple of months she’ll need a new larger enclosure. But then I think I might as well get a beardo that like being handled. Very confused to all the conflicting info and advice Im receiving and reading, please help, many thanks!
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02/15/09 07:33am
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#1953073
Sharron
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Message To: Pannyb In reference to Message Id: 1952981
New veiled owner
Chameleons do not enjoy being held, they may get to the point where they tolerate it. It is stressing her out that is why she is hissing, etc. I would give her time alone to adjust to her new home and then you can try to be friends with her. Start by hand feeding her favorite food. They are more of a look at pet. They should not be housed in a tank. They need a screen enclosure with plants, climbing vines, etc. Are you supplimenting her and what is your setup like? She needs uvb and a basking spot. Are you misting? How are you watering her? I want to make sure you have the correct setup for her, they can get sick easily if they don’t. They are a great pet I love mine, she may never be one you can handle alot. They each have their own personality.
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02/15/09 11:38am
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#1953250
Pannyb
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Message To: Sharron In reference to Message Id: 1953073
New veiled owner
She is in a 3ft high by 2ft wide tank, has plenty fake foliage and bamboo also for climbing. I have a heat mat at the top of the tank on the side, so it adds to ambient heat and also keeps the tank warm at night when the basking lamp is off. I also have a florescent tube light. The temperature is about 25C at night and about 35C in the day. I mist her about four times a day and have seen her licking the droplets, and she sometimes crawls into the mist when I’m spraying. I feed her 5 crickets daily and also some wax worms, which she has fed from my hand. I supplement the food with ’Nutrobal’ calcium balancer, and also feed the crickets tropical fish food, which Ive read helps supplement the chameleons diet further.
Im going to build her a much larger cage, with screen all round and live plants, which Ive researched as not to be toxic to her. I just wanted to make sure that she was being looked after properly. I am a novice with reptiles and I realised Ive taken on a bit of a challenge with a chameleon, but to be fair, I was sold it buy an obviously very unprofessional reptile store, and Im doing all I can to make sure the animal is happy and stress free. Although Im a novice, Im not stupid and I did my research as soon as I got her so although its always new and Im learning things as I go along she seems happy, bar the times ive held her. I dont now and just try and let her see that Im the dude that mists her and feeds her, but I know she probably just thinks Im a predator and see her as food.
I did want a bearded dragon because they like to be handled, but I wont be handling "Karma" (cheesy nameI know) unless I have to. I would love it if she suddenly wanted to be handled but know this wont be the case. I just want her to be as comfortable as possible, so that when I do need to handle her, she wont be aggressive when she is much larger, and of course stressed out. Any advice would be much appreciated, many thanks!
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02/15/09 05:18pm
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#1953267
Sharron
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Message To: Pannyb In reference to Message Id: 1953250
New veiled owner
Sounds pretty good for right now. Don’t feel bad most people who get chams start with the wrong info from the people who sold it to them. I would cut way back on the waxworms as they are very high in fat. Use them only as a treat. I also give my crickets cut up fresh veges along with the dry stuff. I would use the waxworms to hand feed and if she is comfortable with it try moving it further up your arm so she has to climb on you to get it. It should help her get more use to you. I was in the same spot when I started with mine. Not sure where you are but when it warms up I would take her out in the sun once in a while. I have one that is very happy to be touched and one that hates it. She does think you are a predator but it will pass. Glad you are doing research alot of people don’t. They are great to own even when they hate you. I was a novice when I got my first now I have reptiles everywhere. They are like lays potato chips. Watch her coloring that will tell you alot. If she turns brown or darkens up she is not happy. Also depending on how old she is you will need to set up a laying bin for her. Chameleon forum is only for chams and has lots of good info too.
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02/15/09 05:45pm
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#1953541
Julirs
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Message To: Sharron In reference to Message Id: 1953267
New veiled owner
Do not gutload with fish flakes-the protein is way too high and can cause edema amongst other things. Make sure you have a good digital thermometer with a probe, analog thermometers are garbage and the glass tanks can get hot fast and bake you cham or lead to URI.
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02/16/09 06:45am
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#1953543
Pannyb
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Message To: Sharron In reference to Message Id: 1953267
New veiled owner
Thanks Sharron, unfortunately Im in London so the sun doesnt come out too much! Her colouring looks healthy to me. She never turns dark , even when Ive picked her up. She only turns dark when she initially basks under the lamp in the morning to soak up rays. she normally is a healthy green, and at night she go’s a paler lime green. I also pump air into the tank and it circulates so it doesnt get stagnant in there. Thanks for the wax worm tip, I was feeding her one or two a day! How many should she be getting? She is only small and am not sure about her age, she’s about 4.5" from head to base of tail, her tail is longer than she is. She is growing fast, and has shed her skin once in the three weeks Ive had her. Yesterday she did start to dig, but did not lay anything. But she is even now going to the bottom of the tank and snooping around. I think she thinks she can escape there.
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02/16/09 06:51am
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#1953704
Sharron
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Message To: Pannyb In reference to Message Id: 1953543
New veiled owner
No problem. That explains the tank, most keepers in england have that type of setup. It sounds like a good setup and from what I have read most only do partial screen cages there so you may want to check on that before you build. Its hard to tell age from her size because they all grow at different rates but if she is digging she is probably around 6 months. If she is attempting to lay eggs which it sounds like she may be it can take several days. She will dig until she is happy with the hole and she requires privacy. If she knows you have seen her she will stop and look for another place. Do you have a laying bin or is she digging around her plants? If you google raising kitty there is a great article on keeping females and dealing with laying time. Sorry I don’t know how to link it. Only do wax worms once or twice a month and only one or two. I know it harder to get some things there but silkworms are great if you can get them and can be feed every day. Please let me know how she does.
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02/16/09 01:22pm
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#2224456
Veild help
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Message To: Sharron In reference to Message Id: 1953704
New veiled owner
oh so sad
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06/13/11 12:33am
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