Good morning. Complete novice here I am afraid. Story so far... my 7 year old has been in love with panther chameleons for as long as I can remember. He has sold lots of his toys on ebay and saved over £100 so far to buy one. We have done all the research on its needs and I have managed to get a very large vivarium which we are getting ready to set up. We have been to numerous reptile centres - all of which have let us handle the chameleons and told us they are friendly lizards and will happily be out on you for up to 45 minutes... Until yesterday! We visited a reptile centre who told us they are very anti-social and do not like being handled and we would be better off with a chinese water dragon! As you can imagine this has really upset my little one...... and now we just don't know which way to turn...... We are not looking to get a chameleon/water dragon until September, so have plenty of time for more research..... your help would be greatly appreciated as to what to do! Many thanks
Friendly Chameleons
- Thread starter NPlant
- Start date
janjan20
Chameleon Enthusiast
Hi and welcome to the forum! As a new keeper myself I have learned that chameleon keeping is a hobby vs really having a pet to be able to bond with. Most chameleons have a look but don’t touch me kind of attitude especially veileds lol. I do not own a panther myself but from my perspective they are more docile but that doesn’t necessarily mean they like to be handled. Most chameleons “tolerate” us. I’m sure others will chime in later but these are my 2 cents. 
We also have a help form you can look at and fill out. I know you don’t have the chameleon yet but husbandry is VERY important. We will be more than happy to give you advice on the set up, supplements, lighting etc.
Chameleon Info:
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Please Note:
We also have a help form you can look at and fill out. I know you don’t have the chameleon yet but husbandry is VERY important. We will be more than happy to give you advice on the set up, supplements, lighting etc.
Chameleon Info:
- Your Chameleon - The species, sex, and age of your chameleon. How long has it been in your care?
- Handling - How often do you handle your chameleon?
- Feeding - What are you feeding your cham? What amount? What is the schedule? How are you gut-loading your feeders?
- Supplements - What brand and type of calcium and vitamin products are you dusting your feeders with and what is the schedule?
- Watering - What kind of watering technique do you use? How often and how long to you mist? Do you see your chameleon drinking?
- Fecal Description - Briefly note colors and consistency from recent droppings. Has this chameleon ever been tested for parasites?
- History - Any previous information about your cham that might be useful to others when trying to help you.
- Cage Type - Describe your cage (Glass, Screen, Combo?) What are the dimensions?
- Lighting - What brand, model, and types of lighting are you using? What is your daily lighting schedule?
- Temperature - What temp range have you created (cage floor to basking spot)? Lowest overnight temp? How do you measure these temps?
- Humidity - What are your humidity levels? How are you creating and maintaining these levels? What do you use to measure humidity?
- Plants - Are you using live plants? If so, what kind?
- Placement - Where is your cage located? Is it near any fans, air vents, or high traffic areas? At what height is the top of the cage relative to your room floor?
- Location - Where are you geographically located?
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Please Note:
- The more details you provide the better and more accurate help you will receive.
- Photos can be very helpful.
MissSkittles
Chameleon Enthusiast
Hi there. That’s very sweet that your son has such a strong interest in panther chameleons. However from one novice to another I can tell you that not only are chameleons unsociable animals that do NOT like to be handled, they have very complex and expensive needs. Sorry, but these are not animals that are good ‘pets’, especially for a young child. I’m new to reptiles so have no idea what a better choice would be to further your son’s interest in reptiles and introduce him to caring for one. I’m sure the experienced members will be better able to advise you on that. Wishing you and your son the best.
CamoChameleonsHuman
Chameleon Enthusiast
For a boy that age I would recommend a leopard gecko, crested gecko, or gargoyle gecko. Definitely not a Chinese water dragon. Possibly a bearded dragon or Cuban False Chameleon as well. Bearded Dragons will be your most social and actually trend to like being around their humans. Crested and gargoyle geckos are your cheapest and easiest to care for. All of those animals are easier to care for, tolerate handling better, and are more hardy and can tolerate a few mistakes made along the way. Where as a chameleon can not.
KobaOregonherper
Chameleon Enthusiast
Id have to agree with @CamoChameleonsHuman. The last person you talked to was absolutely correct. Chameleons are easily stressed and not necessarily the friendliest reptiles. Theres a few that can be, but thats the exception not the norm. Even still, excessive handling can and will stress your chameleon out and can and will eventually lead to their eventual death. I dont recommend chameleons as pets for kids. Kids want pets they can play with, chams are not that reptile. This guy has a wonderful youtube channel on reptiles where he rates them and has a great one for kids.
Goose502
Chameleon Enthusiast
If this is a “first” reptile for you and your son, I cannot NOT recommend a chameleon more. They may carry a low initial purchase price(veiled chameleons), but will cost thousands over the lifetime of the animal. There isn’t a pet shop in the world that can give you the advice you will find here on this forum. Not to keep you from ever owning one, but this is not a pet. Handling will most likely cause stress, and will end up costing you vet bills. I would recommend either a leopard gecko or bearded dragon as a “pet” for a 7 year old. They are both very hardy, tolerant of handling, and can be found in beautiful colors and patterns. They are also much less expensive to maintain and require much simpler husbandry. Chameleons are considered “intermediate to advanced” among seasoned keepers. Again, not saying he won’t be ready in a few years, just trying to say you need to walk before you run.
Syreptyon
Chameleon Enthusiast
Welcome to the forums! It's a good thing you came here to get out some of the confusion. Chameleons are a difficult animal to keep and misinformation is everywhere. Unfortunately, whoever told you chameleons are social animals, was lying to you or confused. I put that in bold because chameleons are notoriously anti-social and much prefer to be totally left alone and handled next to never.
Chameleons, while incredibly beautiful and interesting, are not at all a good choice of a first reptile. I think it's wonderful that your son has fallen in love with them, but I fear he is too young to really understand how expensive, time-consuming, and difficult it is to keep chameleons long term. And for all the love you put into them, they will more than likely give you absolutely nothing in return. We like to say that chameleons are not a pet; rather, they are a hobby.
I do think you should foster your son's love of reptiles, though! I'm not personally familiar with the difficulty of keeping a water dragon, but there are many reptiles that would be more suitable to initiate your family into the reptile world (bearded dragon, leopard gecko, crested gecko, etc). I think the best thing to do would be to start out with something easier and then graduate to a chameleon as he gets older and has the time to (a) make sure that's really what he wants, and (b) familiarize himself with the husbandry and prepare for the large ongoing costs of chameleon keeping
CamoChameleonsHuman
Chameleon Enthusiast
Yes but your chameleon is not the normal. Most do not care for it. However some do such as yours. Not saying they are bad with children because they are not. I have photos of my 9 yr old stepson holding my chams as well. But he doesn't take care of them. I do.
Syreptyon
Chameleon Enthusiast
This is the exception, not the norm. While there are always outliers that can be socialized, we should definitely not be encouraging the expectation that all of them are like this. Especially to people who don't know what they're getting themselves into.
jamest0o0
Chameleon Enthusiast
Some(I have had them as well) will like to crawl out and about to explore. This doesn't mean they like to be held. The bright colors show they are trying to get somewhere(contrary to the popular belief that bright colors mean happy). Also, I may be wrong, but your panther looks on the overweight side.
Also you are using "they" and then saying "he" likes to be held. So I assume your experience is with 1 chameleon? Maybe you have more? I've had 4 Panthers, 3 Male, 1 female. 2 of the males enjoyed coming out of their enclosures, 1 was indifferent, and the female didn't like it. My Parsons doesn't like being handled though.
I do agree with Panthers being among the easier going chams though.
Syreptyon
Chameleon Enthusiast
I was going to make the same comment. While those vibrant colors are absolutely incredible, they are not "relaxed" nor "I'm comfortable" colors by any means
Daesie11
Chameleon Enthusiast
While its fabulous that your cham is willing to be handled, you're just lucky. Like has already been said, it's not the norm for a cham to willingly come out of its enclosure to be held. And while it can happen, we shouldn't encourage people take on the care of a chameleon with the expectation that their cham is going to be friendly and sociable. It should just be a happy surprise if it happens. A lot of times, keepers who expect their chams to be friendly will then force handling upon their chams and stress them out.
nightanole
Chameleon Enthusiast
Have to say kids age else everyone thinks your panther can take on a parsons!
Still you can say your panther is as long as a six year olds arm
Now i see your six and seven year olds, and raise your an oust:
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JoXie411
Chameleon Enthusiast
We watch the same YouTube videos lol he’s the reason I want a tegu one day lol
KobaOregonherper
Chameleon Enthusiast
Your cham is showing extreme colors. I think your not reading their stress correctly. Regardless in general if a chameleon wants to be out of their cage it usually means the cage is not to their liking and they want out. Im not saying that this isnt the case with your cham, but I want to make sure new owners to take your situation and think its the norm, and then do this themselves, because it most certainly isnt.
Edit: I recommend listening to the chameleon breeder podcast hosted by Bill Strand if you havent. Great source of info and he has an episode specifically on reading our chams stress when holding.
KobaOregonherper
Chameleon Enthusiast
Ty lol
KobaOregonherper
Chameleon Enthusiast
Yeah hes the reason I got a hognose snake. He fuels my addiction...
Daesie11
Chameleon Enthusiast
Beautiful enclosure!
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