my panther hates me

Amberlynscott

New Member
Hello everyone my names Amber I have been a quiet follower for months now. I have a 5 1/2 month old male ambanja panther that I got from chameleonsonly in Febuary. He seems to be a perfectly happy healthy boy but he still hates me. I feed him free roaming crickets and have tried to hand feed him different kinds of worms but they dont interest him. (i dont think they move enough for him or he doesn't trust me) Ive also tried using a stick to take him out but that scares the s*!@ out of him. What can I do for him to trust me more? I take him out once maybe twice a week but its never fun every move I make he trys to bite me and puffs all up and hiss's at me then when I try to get him back in he'll reach and sometimes jump onto anything he can to get away from me. Hes starting to get bigger now and I want to fix this before he gets to big and can do damage. I guess what I am asking is what are some other things that I can hand feed him that will be appealing to him and what are someother things I can do for him to trust me.

p.s I know chameleons are not supposed to be held i'm talking about transfering him to care for him and bring him outside to the vet and clean his cage.
 
I have the exact same issue with my Ambanja. He does not like me even opening the door to his enclosure much less attempting to pick him up or move him for housekeeping purposes. I have been hand feeding (attempting) and usually he wants nothing to do with it but I attempt anyways. I do this about twice a week and I finally got him to take a cricket and a dubia yesterday from my hand.

The trick was to push up through some leaves so only my fingers were showing and make the critter wiggle. He backed off at first and then once they started wiggling he locked on and ate them after about a minute of holding them.

To move him for now I use a stick, I know you said yours hates this and so does mine, but to make it work I go very slowly until it is under his belly and then lift gently. He will usually pull up on the stick and I can relocate him to clean or what have you.
 
Hello everyone my names Amber I have been a quiet follower for months now. I have a 5 1/2 month old male ambanja panther that I got from chameleonsonly in Febuary. He seems to be a perfectly happy healthy boy but he still hates me. I feed him free roaming crickets and have tried to hand feed him different kinds of worms but they dont interest him. (i dont think they move enough for him or he doesn't trust me) Ive also tried using a stick to take him out but that scares the s*!@ out of him. What can I do for him to trust me more? I take him out once maybe twice a week but its never fun every move I make he trys to bite me and puffs all up and hiss's at me then when I try to get him back in he'll reach and sometimes jump onto anything he can to get away from me. Hes starting to get bigger now and I want to fix this before he gets to big and can do damage. I guess what I am asking is what are some other things that I can hand feed him that will be appealing to him and what are someother things I can do for him to trust me.

p.s I know chameleons are not supposed to be held i'm talking about transfering him to care for him and bring him outside to the vet and clean his cage.
For the worms you've tried to feed have you tried wax worms yet? I know mine eats them and not 20 minutes ago she snatched one straight off my hand. And my cham doesnt like me just like yours =(. Perhaps you can try hand feeding with crickets if they don't bother you. I would cripple it to the point where it can still move but it won't jump off your hand. Mine ate two crickets off my hand the other day. She has no problem hand feeding, but when there's no feeding going on she wants no part of me..
 
Ya I have same problem with my veiled. He hates everything to do with my hand but I don't force to pick him up. I always think, "If your not going to take it from me then your not getting it."
Basically if they wont take it from you then they don't get it at all. So that means starving for a day or two...so they get the point. Thats the point of "I need to trust you so you will give me food"

Use a container to feed worms and see which one he likes the best. From there you can lay your hand out flat and have the worm on your palm. It takes time and you have to keep trying. The stick..hmm don't bother with it anymore. It resembles a snake when it moves and snakes are their worst enemies.

Your cham is also in his teens. They are very unbalanced with hormones so they will be hissy and willing to bite. Some people say they will mellow out after a year but some just wont. You can't change who they really are. Its really just a size issue. They are small and feel powered. Wait until he is bigger to continuely pick him up. I am sure you don't need to clean that much or go to the vet that much.

So the best thing to do is...to leave him alone. Don't pick him up for awhile..just clean around him. Someone once pointed out that don't pick them up even if you want to...this may cause curiousity. I think if you don't force to pick them up or go at them that when they become bigger and relize your no harm..they will mellow out and curiously climb your hands.

Good luck! and I am trying the NO pick up thing. I haven't held him for a few weeks now and have tried not to let my hand get near him when I am spot cleaning the cage. Try it
 
This is my first cham and i was worried i was the only one..I am have the same thing with my veiled as u guys. She hisses and runs away when trying to clean her cage... I have been doing the "NO pick up thing" since i got her and am going to try to wait until she is bigger and more willing/ curious to be picked up...

As for hand feeding Ive just read practice practice practice and thats what i have been doing.
 
I think the agressiveness is a problem for just about everybody on this site (except for a lucky few).
Its a problem for me too.
Except not to the extreme as yours.
He doesnt mind me opening his door or feeding him.
He just hiss when I try to get him with my hand and glove. I think its the glove that scares him but Im too scared to try bare handed lol.
But the important thing to do is accpet the fact she might never want to be handled and if you want a cuddlely reptile...maybe a bearded dragon. Their more handleable (or so Ive heard).
Just never force them to be handled cuz even a 5 months their very fragile.
Only if u really need to (like going to the vet, cleaning, check ups. ect, ect.)
 
I think the agressiveness is a problem for just about everybody on this site (except for a lucky few).
Its a problem for me too.
Except not to the extreme as yours.
He doesnt mind me opening his door or feeding him.
He just hiss when I try to get him with my hand and glove. I think its the glove that scares him but Im too scared to try bare handed lol.
But the important thing to do is accpet the fact she might never want to be handled and if you want a cuddlely reptile...maybe a bearded dragon. Their more handleable (or so Ive heard).
Just never force them to be handled cuz even a 5 months their very fragile.
Only if u really need to (like going to the vet, cleaning, check ups. ect, ect.)

Don't be scared to try with your hand. Its not scary and if you got rid of the glove maybe your problem would be closer to solved?

Bearded dragons are very easy to handle if you handle them often. They are very lively and accept you easily.
 
well it feels better to know im not the only one. just out of curiosity has anyone actually gotten bit? I guess there's no training a chameleon..no showing him whos boss? (at this point he is) lol
 
I have bee bitten by my friends 6 month old ambilobe. Its more shocking than painful. It felt a bit worse than a pinch with a startle. Hope this helps
 
chameleons that hate

I have had five male and two female vieled chams and never ever had trouble with handling them. that being said, I have never had the opporotunity to handle a panther. They all seem to like wax worms, a lot. you may gain some trust with a few of those puppies, and easy to hand feed as well.
 
Im kind of on both ends of the spectrum here my 5 month old ambilobe hates to be handled. But at the same time he loves to eat from my hand and reacts very positive when i open his cage. Its just when i try to pick him up does he fire up and try to bite.

My 9 month nosy be on the other hand has to be the friendliest cham iv ever encountered. He has no problem being handled, in fact i honestly think he enjoys it.

What your cham is displaying is not a shocker.. like previously stated "except for a select few" most chams are going to fight you off as best as they know how....

Unfortunately as much as we love them they are just not cuddly creatures.
 
Hi, I'm new here with my new 2 baby Ambanjas. They are very tiny, in a plastic tub for now, eating fruit flies and 1/8" crickets. I'm starting these very differently than I did with my Veils I had about 13 yrs ago. Back then, I took everyones advice and gave them alot of privacy and stood way back when they fed, because I knew they were scared, so they grew up and didn't want their territory interrupted, consequently, as they matured, they did not willingly climb on my finger as they had as 3 inchers, and my presence near the cage was tolerated, but they did not learn to take a cricket from my hand, etc. But on the few occasions where I actually had to grab or remove them, I quickly learned that a snapping adult Veil can rip little shreds in a finger, if you flinch, so as I had learned from trying to tame birds in the past, never grab, never use gloves. Once they learn you are only entering the cage to clean or remove droppings, or arrange something but not needing to remove them, they will cautiously tolerate that, then from a distance where they cant strike and bite, just steadily hold out your hand, fingers together, or better, offer the back of your hand, and they probably wont strike a solid back of hand and if they do, they wont connect like they will with a finger or two..and if they do grab that finger, dont jerk back, and you probably wont get cut..but stop, try again the next day, dont force them. Also, just open the cage, many will want to come out to explore and climb higher if you are not close, and they are always more receptive out of the cage, but like a bird, dont handle, let them climb on your hand, hold it higher and no fingers out, and push to them, they will get on...but you have to get them trusting, to eat from your hand etc..Some will freely eat from your hand, etc if they have been doing it from early age, and if you never grab or force them out, other than gently encouraging them to move toward the door and exit on their own, then push your hand in their path, they will climb on and up, never down...so,now with these babies, when I feed them, I know there is no way they will eat or shoot to my hand or even from a long tweezer, etc, but I just stare down at them, they eye me, I dont move away, and they get use to me being close, and even putting my hand in the cage near them or arranging leaves, and they are willingly climbing on my finger, even a bit scared but they see Im not going to hurt them, so its brief, just a minute or two a day, and if they should fall down to the bottom, or something, never pick them up, but let them climb on you and up, they will. I do hold a tiny cricket if I can, but so far, they only look but dont get it, but they will eat others with my face right there close, so, I know that soon,they will eat from me, etc. but they are never going to be your shoulder pal, or like being moved around the house on your arm, etc...but just like a parrot that will strike and bite a finger, a back of hand where its flat and nothing to grab, they won't strike, but if you are patient but persistent, they learn you want them to move, etc.If mine were stubborn and backed off, but I needed them out, and they wouldnt come out on their on if I moved back and opened the door, then I used a short stick and they learned what it meant and climbed on..but if you want them out to view, they will be more comfortable if you let them off your hand and on back of chair, etc..and be calm, and little by little, its less stress, but they never really want to come out and "play", lol...but I got my male and female, where they only gave me a quick hiss or gape or a sway, but saw that I was not going to fall for their bluff..so I eventually got both those adults to take worms or crickets if they were hungry...only from the normal shooting distance and being very still and quiet and letting them concentrate on focussing both eyes on that bug, and not me. Another easy way to train, is lure them out, with a treat, like a super worm or something you dont give regulary, but save that treat for when you want them to come out on their own, then they grab the treat, and will climb on your hand, if they are outside of cage, then you can move them to another perch or comfortable place to stay while you do whatever. Several times, with that male, he did grab a fnger, I just let him hold on, they clamp down, and the little razor teeth may make some some tiny cuts, and it hurts, and scares you, but wait til they let go, and if you dont fight, they will let go, but if you try to pull it out, you will get nasty long cuts...and that stress for you and him, is bad, but they will bully you and win...but as I learned from that Parrot that wanted to kill me sometimes, or bite my finger off, and I was afraid, but the "bird Psychologist", lol, showed me that a back of a hand with no appendages flailing, they cant get that beak to clamp down, so same with the chameleon...they will respect you, but you should respect their home and not make it an "invasion", just a visit with a treat. Once my guys learned that I wasn't going to get them out all the time, or make them do something, but only was there close to feed or spray or give an ice cube or a treat, they were calm, but I didnt make them eat more than one item and only a couple times a week from me, and just let them enjoy their food as was normal. They will walk on your arm, climb up on shoulder or head, but not because they love your head or shoulder, its only to go to a "higher place, as in the wild, they always want the top perch, and should always be in cages as adults, where they are looking down at you, not you looking down a them....sorry for the "book chapter", lol, and "one sentence, bad grammar"..maybe it will help some of you having problems, but chameleons are not like puppies or even bearded dragons..but time and patience and consistency may pay off...good luck guys
 
Ronald that is one of the hardest things to read. You could have cut it up and made it way shorter. I am glad I "tried" to read it because I learned something about the back of your hand..all though you ramble alot.

Ronald is just telling you that when you get bit don't react and just wait for the cham to feel victory. Use the back of your hand and keep it in a fist to slowly work with the hissy biting cham. Never force and always keep constant. You need patience and good luck.

See how easy that was? lol I also noticed that use said "give an ice cube" Well...ice cube for a dripper is bad. The water is TOO cold
 
hope this helps amber, its helped me

Hey amber, im sure you tried many things but i got my panther to like me by this one watering trick, He had a particular bottle too that he liked drinking from the nozel (misting bottle), but hated me so i began to hold the bottle with one hand on the pump and the other by the nozel end. he continued to drink from it then i would every other time slightly touch his gullet/neck with just one finger and slowly progressed to a few fingers.......as time went on he would use my hand as a step to the nozel, and after a couple months of this practice he has become a cool mofo! takes a lot of patience but if it is a tame cham you want, then i promise this will do the trick. i now use this to tame all my chams and it works like a charm, never fails!!. good luck ;)
 
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