Need Help!!

[leela]

i bought my female veiled chameleon at 8 weeks old she is now 5 months old. she is very aggressive and gets stressed when im in the room. she has had no bad experiances. i'm really worried im going to damage her or even kill her, i dont want to do that. is it worth trading her back for a species of chameleon like the panther that wont get stressed as much. its not like i even want to do any thing amazing with her, i at least want to be able to walk in my room without her getting stressted!!!!! help me please??

 

[Nicodemayo]

Thats just the way most veileds are. Some panthers are like this too. I dont really know how anyone can help you. It sounds to me you just have a really pissy cham. Is there anything near her where she may be able to see her reflection?

 

[Sepioteuthis]

It may be something about her cage or the room that causes her to not feel safe.
How exactly does she respond to you entering the room? Does she calm down after a while once you're in the room?
How big is her cage and is the cage tall enough or raised off the ground enough for her to be able to look down on you? Chameleons feel more safe if they are higher up then we are.
Has she been like this since you got her or is this something that started recently?

- Suzanne

 

[leela]

my cage was the biggest in the shop. its massive, its at body height. i used to handle her and she was fine, its only recently she started getting angry. i made sure there was nowhere she could see herself.
When i walk in the room, she freezes and stares straight at me. if i go in the cage to feed her, she will either puff up change to bright colours hiss at me and lunge, then if that doesnt work she will just run and hide, she may even stumble and fall onto the plants below coz she runs so quick. i hate making her feel this way. i dont know if it will help putting her in my living room for her to regulary she people or what?????? nothing has changed from when she was friendly

 

[bucky]

Thats a normal veiled thing if im right. And really,this is just the personality of chams you have to deal with. I mean, love the chams for who they are

 

[leela]

i no i love her to bits, that is why i am happy for her to go to someone that is more experianced. so she can be happier!!

 

[Jordan]

The world chameleon comes for two words in latin. Chami, meaning geo (Earth) and leo meaning lion. The name is given for good reason. They have the colors of the earth and the disposition of a lion. I personally take aggression as a good sign of health. After you have a sick one you will understand what I am talking about.

The best advice I have for you is to make sure you enclosure is densly planted. Over the next couple months this may amount to you not seeing her out in the open to much. This will allow her to retreat where she can see you but you may not be able to see her. I personally have noticed increased aggression in my female veiled when she is producing eggs. On the other hand I have only ever owned one female veiled so take that for what is worth.

As far as getting her to tolerate you it is all about the food. You can attempt to hand feed her. This requires some patients and there is no guarantee that she will ever go for it. The main thing I have noticed with my chameleons is my routine has seemingly made them become tolerant of me. I use the same cup to dump their feeders in their cage everyday. They do in fact reconize the cup. As soon as they see me with it they all perk up as they know what is going on. Small things like this will win them over, over the long haul. I always use to show them the cup and talk to them when I was about to feed them so maybe trying the same thing.

With time most chameleons will become tolerant of your presence. If you really like her then give her some more time to come around. That does not mean you will never get the occassional hiss or lunge.

 

[royden]

You're describing my cham too! This is just their personality. It will either grow on you or it won't. Veileds are aggresive, territorial, and easily stressed. And they begin to develop it before they become an adult. It's literally like one day they're walking on your hand, and the next they're lunging and hissing at you.

 

[Chameleons Northwest]

Try wearing subdued clothing. I keep bland green loose fitting shirts available to slip on over my clothes when I approach our chams. Sometimes I go into the cham room to get something and don't bother to put on the green shirt. With some of the chams their response to me is like night and day. If I get close to their enclosure without the proper color on they have a strong defensive/aggressive response. They either don't recognize me, or assume that my attitude toward them has changed and that I am now an opponent or predator.

 

[leela]

she is exactly as you explained ROYDEN. i did used to hand feed her until one day (literally) she was scared of my hand. i try closing my eyes when i feed or look at her, do you think this will help?? i can understand that aggresion is a good sign of health, but constantly getting stressed out, that wont do her any good, will it??

 

[chamlover]

You have just described my female veiled. She was that way when i got her and she still is. If my hand comes to close to the queen she will huff up and show me how big and mean she is. She doesn't tolerate any handling either, she will jump right out of my hand if i'm not careful. And yet i still love her. I don't know who is crazier her or me! lol. That is just who she is. I also have a female panther who is just like her. She even bites me when i go to pick her up for any reason. I have other females panthers who are very gentle. Good luck with yours.

Debby