hmm, I find this interesting ( and breaks my heart )

[little leaf]

this is how I found Sneaks and Pit 1 this AM - some of you know , I kept a group of chams together, they all lived in a huge outdoor cage, 5 girls , and Oliver - well, ever since my going away, and losing all but these 2 of the group, things have been a mess , when Oliver passed, Olive took over the "boss" roll again, they started to follow her again, but when she passed, only a week after he did , these 2 are the only ones left from the group - they have been so unhappy, restless, really did not want to eat, no matter the cage I put them in , the big outdoor, inside, together , or separate, they will not go out of stress colors- they have been like this from the day Olive passed - they act like wild caught chams- they are nervous, dont want to eat well, hide all the time - this is not how they were before - anyone of them would be happy to hand feed, get on you ( even when you did not want them on you - lol ) and these 2, were the least 2 to hang out together - they got along, but never really seemed to " seek " each other in the boc, or rest together - I have even thought about getting out of chams all together, just because of what happened when I went away - it is still so upsetting , its like 1/2 my life died when Olive passed I loved the others also, but she was my special girl ~
anyway, I hope these girls will adjust and get back to normal - the 1st pic is Pit 1 and sneaks this AM , the 2nd, Olive and Sneaks, and the last Olive and Pit 1 - I find it sad, and happy to find them like this , but I think it is interesting this is not the first time I have found the chams sleeping like this, or just hanging out ( and there is plenty of room to get away from each other if they wanted to ) ~ I dont know if they miss " Olive" per say, but more the structure of the group ? I dont know, but their constant stress colors/level have me worried ( they even sleep in stress pattern ) - I hope this means they will now settle , and go back to normal - any ideas how to help them settle again ? its like they are not even the same animals they seem worse alone, I am just so sad about this whole deal of going away , and my chams are still paying the price

 

[d3s5]

So very heartbreaking. I am sorry this whole tragedy happened and is continuing on. I understand perfectly your feelings of wanting to get out of chams all together because things hurt so much. Time heals all wounds. Time wounds all heals. With chameleons it seems there is always heartbreak along with the triumphs. Again, so very sorry.

Deb

 

[Psychobunny]

That is a very sad story, but it is testament to debunk the idea that chams, being reptiles, are utterly devoid of social bonding and unity.

 

[Devokid]

This is interesting and makes me wonder if there is a big social difference between Jacksons and Panthers in the wild. My Jacksons have always been fine together, where as my panthers hate every other chameleon unless they are ready to mate. I know that in Hawaii, Jacksons are found in pairs or groups quite often. Does anybody know how Panthers, or other species, are in the wild?

 

[little leaf]

This is interesting and makes me wonder if there is a big social difference between Jacksons and Panthers in the wild. My Jacksons have always been fine together, where as my panthers hate every other chameleon unless they are ready to mate. I know that in Hawaii, Jacksons are found in pairs or groups quite often. Does anybody know how Panthers, or other species, are in the wild?

that is why I originally set up the group ( if you can , read " chameleons in the garden ) , but it took almost a yr of letting them see if they were " group " chams or not - not all chams like to be together - I had 2 Jax who wanted nothing to do w/ the group setting - as for my panthers- they HATE each other, and all things living ( except Max - he loves everyone ) but , each one is different - the jax seem to be more mellow- my panthers, not so much - they like ppl, except one - but the rest , as long as they could not see each other- life was good - but just one millisecond of sight of each other - fights on !! lol