How aggressive are Chameleons? Have u been bitten? Which is the least aggressive??
- Thread starter JoshuaTree
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brownie64
Avid Member
I have been raising chameleons for about twenty years now. But I have only dealt with veiled, werner's, and Jackson. I found that the Jackson, and werner's to be way more laid back. I have only been bitten once throughout the years, and it came from a 5 month veiled it cut the blood the shape of his mouth. Like was said 99% of the time their all bark, but that 1% look out it can be very painful. Now the Jackson, and werner's not so much as a hiss, but they are harder to care for.
Forestdellic
New Member
I have the two veileds, a male and a female. The female has never bitten me and generally will run away if I try to handle her (probably scared from my hand from all those med administrations). The male used to be really really chill and walk on my hand on his own, now he gets aggressive if I put my hand in his cage. He puffs up his little beard and becomes big by flattening his body, hisses really loudly and starts to try and snap my fingers. So far I have never been bitten but I have been bitten by wild chameleons before, it's not that bad, breaks the skin and you'll bleed a little but I think snake bites and other lizard bites (bearded dragons in this case) hurt more hehe
Vinyonga
Member
I've been bitten twice and no, it doesn't hurt. Today was one of the two times, and that was because I was holding two males (Jackson's) and one of them wanted to fight and bit my finger accidentally instead of the other chameleon (thank goodness). He also pushed me with his horns, and that hurt a lot more 
The chameleons I've had are never deliberately aggressive and only one or two have not liked being picked up.
The chameleons I've had are never deliberately aggressive and only one or two have not liked being picked up.
papercut2008uk
New Member
I had a vailed male for about 3 years, got bitten twice.
once was really painful because he mistook my finger for food. what happened was he was on a loose sort of branch, i went to feed him a grub on my finger, instead of the grub going to him, he came to me! he shot his tongue out and came flying forward on the branch, chomped down on my finger and began to gnaw on it.
the second time i forget what happened, but he let go pretty quick.
was very tame because i got him when he was tiny and picked him up every day, think he was an exception though,
once was really painful because he mistook my finger for food. what happened was he was on a loose sort of branch, i went to feed him a grub on my finger, instead of the grub going to him, he came to me! he shot his tongue out and came flying forward on the branch, chomped down on my finger and began to gnaw on it.
the second time i forget what happened, but he let go pretty quick.
was very tame because i got him when he was tiny and picked him up every day, think he was an exception though,
maya2
Member
I have a theory about why Veileds are considered more aggressive, but it's mostly hypothetical so please refute/add more information to this idea...
I think a lot of newer cham owners get Veileds from their local pet store as babies, myself included.
I read on the forums a while back (can't find the thread now, of course...) that chain pet stores get a bunch of eggs from the wild so they're Captive Hatched. These chameleons I have not noticed as being particularly friendly, including my own. I think this is because they're captive hatched, AND because I imagine that being in a warehouse, they probably don't get raised with people in their face all the time. Key word here being imagine.
Meanwhile, most people who get a panther get them from a smaller breeding company, and have many generations of being handled especially from a young age.
This obviously does not apply to EVERY veiled or EVERY panther, but I think it's a factor in why we see Veileds as less "friendly".
I don't have a panther, but my carpet is from one of the best carpet breeders out there and he's very friendly (both the cham and the breeder
). We take little basking breaks and hang out together in my window almost every day (the cham - not the breeder).
However, I've heard from most people that carpets are one of the most shy species around. I think this is because carpet chameleons live shorter lives, there are less breeders, and this means a lot of them are WC or the first generation of a Captive Bred project.
Ok, I'm done rambling for now, if one of the more experienced keepers/breeders is reading this, please add! It's not a very developed theory lol.
I think a lot of newer cham owners get Veileds from their local pet store as babies, myself included.
I read on the forums a while back (can't find the thread now, of course...) that chain pet stores get a bunch of eggs from the wild so they're Captive Hatched. These chameleons I have not noticed as being particularly friendly, including my own. I think this is because they're captive hatched, AND because I imagine that being in a warehouse, they probably don't get raised with people in their face all the time. Key word here being imagine.
Meanwhile, most people who get a panther get them from a smaller breeding company, and have many generations of being handled especially from a young age.
This obviously does not apply to EVERY veiled or EVERY panther, but I think it's a factor in why we see Veileds as less "friendly".
I don't have a panther, but my carpet is from one of the best carpet breeders out there and he's very friendly (both the cham and the breeder
). We take little basking breaks and hang out together in my window almost every day (the cham - not the breeder).However, I've heard from most people that carpets are one of the most shy species around. I think this is because carpet chameleons live shorter lives, there are less breeders, and this means a lot of them are WC or the first generation of a Captive Bred project.
Ok, I'm done rambling for now, if one of the more experienced keepers/breeders is reading this, please add! It's not a very developed theory lol.
Andee
Chameleon Enthusiast
Get them from a breeder, you have a more likely chance of them being calm. However most chams go through an aggressive stage in their teenage years. Whether they come out of it or not depends mostly on you. Jackson's are less likely to bite. But get stressed easier and are very shy. They are also more complicated to care for.
Chamycon2016
Member
Could anyone recommend a good treat for a Cham? I have a veiled and have had him for a month (he's three months old) and I only feed him crickets. He's a monster to get out of the cage and I have to do it once a week to clean. Any treat that would be easy to feed with tongs? I don't really like to hold bugs 
alan marz
Member
I have been bitten once by my veiled. Did not feel good but didn't hurt to bad.I've heard some (like the Veiled) are very aggressive...is that true? Does the bite hurt?
Are some less aggressive?
What are your overall thoughts on the subject?
Sorry if this seems like a silly question. I dont own a cham yet...I just want to learn as much as possible. Talking to all of you is certainly the best way. Thanks.
Chamycon2016
Member
Like...
Damicofam6
Established Member
From my understanding veileds bite the most often and panthers bite the least often but it does depend on the animal and how it was raised. I could be wrong about the veiled vs panther thing but that is what I have heard. I've never been bit and i have 2 panthers, one of them i got and a baby and he LOVES to come out and never has been aggressive towards me. My other panther i received when he was 2.5 years old and he is not a big fan of me. If i put my hand in his cage he fires up and becomes very aggressive and has only tried to bite me once though. Once i get him out of his cage he is perfectly fine and calm. It really depends on the animal and how it was raised i think.
Andee
Chameleon Enthusiast
There's tons of insects to use, various types of roaches, is opossum, wax worms on occasion, super worms on occasion, silk worms and hornworms, black soldier flies and their larvae, other types captive bred flies, stick insects, Matias. It's preferred to have 5-6 types of insects to rotate through out the week.
Sarahsarus
Member
have you ever gotten bitten? does it hurt? it worries me lol
My girl bit me one time, when she grabbed my finger instead of the cricket I was feeding her. That tongue latched on, she pulled my hand in, and chomped. There was no getting away from it without hurting her so I let her do it and knew she'd figure it out. It does not hurt. It's more startling than anything. It kinda feels like sandpaper inside their mouth, and there was actually some decent jaw pressure to her! But again, it didn't hurt. She is super friendly and 100% didn't mean to, her aim was just off!
Lizzie The Chameleon
Avid Member
My girl did the same thing, she got my nail and my finger luckily it felt like a cat scratch. She also got my hand pretty good while I was holding her
Sir Francis 222
Member
As some people have said every chaemelon is different. And some over the years can change. I have a veiled and he used to be really shy during the first year , but now he waits at the door ready to crawl on my hand he is such a sweet heart.
jajeanpierre
Chameleon Enthusiast
I've had three notable bites from two different wild caught chameleons, one a T.q.quadricornis male and the other a T.q.gracilior male.
The first "bite" can't really be called a bite. He was a little imported wild caught quad quad and I was medicating him. I used my thumb to hold his mouth open while I put the silkworms in which I do after I orally medicate anything. He didn't let go. It was funny. I carried him outside hanging from my thumb to show my husband who was out by the pool. My husband rummaged around for his phone and came up and took this picture. That little guy swung from my thumb for minutes.
The next bite from him wasn't so funny. He was full grown then and latched onto the heel of my palm and wouldn't let go. If I moved, he bit harder like a little pit bull. Any movement on my part made him tighten his grip and start sawing a bit. I honestly thought he was going to extract his pound of flesh. I was really worried I was going to lose a big chunk of skin as he slowly sawed away. I put in a female to try to distract him. He bit harder. I put in a male. He bit even harder still. Finally I just waited him out and stayed as still as I could be.
The second bite was the other day with another adult wild caught male. I had just finished giving him his antibiotic injection (for an abscess caused by injuries suffered at import) so he was pretty upset. He had been wrapped in a towel to hold him still and had just gotten an injection that was very painful. (Baytril really burns, but my vet wanted to inject rather than oral.) He's a new import, so he was a super stressed upset animal. I was taking him back to his cage. I had him against my stomach with my other hands making a cage so he wouldn't leap to escape, something this species is inclined to do. He bit my stomach and wouldn't let go. Fortunately it was through a shirt so he couldn't cut into the skin. I just lay down on the bed and waited him out. It took minutes. Yes, Ralph @OldChamKeeper , I tried waving a rubbing alcohol pad under his nose and it didn't work or I wasn't doing it right!
Neither of these two threaten to bite me except when they feel their life is in danger. I have a healthy respect for their bite, believe me.
The first "bite" can't really be called a bite. He was a little imported wild caught quad quad and I was medicating him. I used my thumb to hold his mouth open while I put the silkworms in which I do after I orally medicate anything. He didn't let go. It was funny. I carried him outside hanging from my thumb to show my husband who was out by the pool. My husband rummaged around for his phone and came up and took this picture. That little guy swung from my thumb for minutes.
The next bite from him wasn't so funny. He was full grown then and latched onto the heel of my palm and wouldn't let go. If I moved, he bit harder like a little pit bull. Any movement on my part made him tighten his grip and start sawing a bit. I honestly thought he was going to extract his pound of flesh. I was really worried I was going to lose a big chunk of skin as he slowly sawed away. I put in a female to try to distract him. He bit harder. I put in a male. He bit even harder still. Finally I just waited him out and stayed as still as I could be.
The second bite was the other day with another adult wild caught male. I had just finished giving him his antibiotic injection (for an abscess caused by injuries suffered at import) so he was pretty upset. He had been wrapped in a towel to hold him still and had just gotten an injection that was very painful. (Baytril really burns, but my vet wanted to inject rather than oral.) He's a new import, so he was a super stressed upset animal. I was taking him back to his cage. I had him against my stomach with my other hands making a cage so he wouldn't leap to escape, something this species is inclined to do. He bit my stomach and wouldn't let go. Fortunately it was through a shirt so he couldn't cut into the skin. I just lay down on the bed and waited him out. It took minutes. Yes, Ralph @OldChamKeeper , I tried waving a rubbing alcohol pad under his nose and it didn't work or I wasn't doing it right!
Neither of these two threaten to bite me except when they feel their life is in danger. I have a healthy respect for their bite, believe me.
