Anole

[Twhit]

Perhaps odd question, but the enclosure I got had a larger chameleon in it, a fair sized veiled, and the owners got an anole to feed it, well, it didn't get eaten and is still in my terrarium, I have a tiny tiny chameleon, that won't be eating it anytime soon, if ever. My question, could my Cham be upset with the anole's presence. As I've stated before, he spends a bunch of time on the ground trying to get out, and will run for my hand when I open the enclosure.
The very top of the terrarium is where the anole hangs out, if I put the Cham up there, he finds his way down quite quickly. I guess I'm asking because I'm not relishing the idea of trying to catch the anole if I don't have to.

 

[jannb]

I would remove the Anole and put it in a separate enclosure.

 

[SaintJimmy]

The anole is adding extra stress to your chameleon, obviously, as he wants to constantly be away from the anole and wants out of the cage. He is intimidated and scared by it.

Never should you allow a non-food item to be in the chameleon's cage like that, chameleons are to be housed separately from other animals and never together.

Also, I should suggest that you notify the owner... Anoles are not really a proper food source for chameleons at all.

Proper food sources are: Silkworms, hornworms, pheonix worms, superworms, mealworms, crickets, dubia roaches, green banana roaches, hissing roaches, mantids, terrestrial isopods, the OCCASIONAL (maybe feed once every two months) pinkie (newborn) mouse (fed for a protein boost), and many more.

I assume this anole was found outside, and they decided to feed it to the poor chameleon. Wild caught feeders are usually riddled with parasites, so I don't encourage feeding wild caught animals to the chameleon. Also, anoles are lizards, just like the chameleon. Would you feed a chameleon to an anole if you found one outside? Think about it.

Rule of thumb: Never feed your chameleon anything thicker/longer than the width between their two eyes, or longer than the length from the tip of their mouth, to the corner of their mouth.

Thanks for reading.

 

[Twhit]

Thanks for the input. As I'm in Northern Canada I will wager it was not found outside, our local pet stores actually suggest anole as a food source for larger chameleons.

Tomorrow I will endeavour to catch the little pest, without completely destroying the terrarium.

 

[SaintJimmy]

I would get the anole out ASAP because it could cause harm to the chameleon.

Also, shame on the stores!

Pinkie mice are fed very sparingly for boosts in vitamins, but anoles? I understand if the chameleon was outside and happened to eat an anole, but the pet store actually sells them. That is a shocker.

Anyway good luck.

Keep my feeder list in mind. It's what everyone feeds their chams. (I just feed meal worms, super worms, dubia roaches, crickets, and I will breed hissing and banana roaches soon).


But most people stick with just crickets or dubis.