Need Serious Help Handling Aggressive Veiled

[paul]

OK, so my cham is about 1 yrs old. i have been trying to mist him in the shower overy couple to few weeks for hydration and so I can really clean out his cage. in the past few months, he has become very hostile and territorial. If I stick my hand in his cage slow or fast he puffs up and snaps at me. I decided to try gloves in case he did.. in which I used thick winter gloves. He lunged at my finger and through the glove it actually hurt me! I used to be able to coax him out of just waking up.. I would use one of his thick branches to ease his body onto while he was half asleep and eyes not fully open... not anymore - he went as far as attacking the branch I used to get him to grab onto, and he even head buds it with his casque.

I really want to take care of him, but i dont even know how I can get him out of the cage without hurting him or myself.

Please help!!

 

[Sang]

try a thicker leather glove, that isn't fluffy for winter...

you don't want to hurt him, try placing your hand in till he calms down.. if he continues to stress for more then a period of maybe about 2-5 mins id remove your hand, leave teh cage open, see if he will come out on his own free will.

 

[paul]

I have tried the other day for over 5-10 min to get him onto my hand or a stick. He just freaks out and attacks, puffs up, and tries to run when I approach him. As for leaving the cage open, I can try.. but I doubt he will try to come out on his own.. and if he does, he I dont see why he wont freak out like he does inside - and its more dangerous because he can fall from higher.

 

[ColorCham427]

Better him hurting you, than you hurting him..(sorry truth)

Try putting a feeder that doesn't move much (silkworm) outside of his cage set on a stick, with his cage open of course.

The "stick trick" always worked for me, I can't seem to figure out why yours won't.

You're bound to get bit again, especially if you love this lifestyle (like the rest of us).

Try putting a branch, with a fake vine with leaves wrapped around it, or a feeder on the middle of the branch.

My first "real biter" used to bit me all the time... He got used to me just holding my hand out there. If he knows you're NOT going to grab him, and you are the person he sees tossing in insects, I'm sure in short time he'll chill out.

Just don't grab him!

NOTE: When you do get him out, and into the shower, make sure he remains calm. And don't have the water directly on him.

I always have an extra cage that is almost identical to the Chameleon's cage. They don't like much change, plus you'd know for sure that he is safe!

 

[Sang]

the difference with getting him outta the cage, is that is technically no longer his territory, and his GRRR persona should settle somewhat. cause he is no longer in his SPOT..so you might have an easier time working with him once he is out, that is typically when they have personality traits from what i have seen.

 

[paul]

I will try waiting again to coax him out nicely. What if he never comes, or just hides like before..?

 

[Champhibians]

I have tried the other day for over 5-10 min to get him onto my hand or a stick. He just freaks out and attacks, puffs up, and tries to run when I approach him. As for leaving the cage open, I can try.. but I doubt he will try to come out on his own.. and if he does, he I dont see why he wont freak out like he does inside - and its more dangerous because he can fall from higher.

Give him a couple of years he will calm down. Untill then probley not.

 

[Dean Pulcini]

Don't handle him put a nice branch in there and remove the branch with him on it. With glove push him on the branch you cant let him win or you will never be able to get in his cage.

 

[Brad Ramsey]

I pick up poop every time I see it ... other than that ... chameleon cages get cleaned once or twice a year here (spring and maybe fall).

-Brad

 

[DryWater]

Ouch

Yah I have had a similar experiance with my veiled, he used to be OK with me reaching in and getting him as long as i was wearing some bright colored rubber gloves, but in the last few months he's gotten very hostile towards me and I do believe it's my fault, see what I think started all of this requires a little bit of explaining but here goes, I have the cage set up on top of a desk, the ceiling is about 4ft above the cage, for various reasons some better than others, I hung the heat lamp from the ceiling so it would be half an inch above the cage, then the cord goes to the wall and down, this leaves a small dip in the cord with just a few inches of space...
So my girlfriend opened up his cage and left it wide open and my cham REALLY likes to go exploring, I've almost lost him a few times as he ended up at the other end of my desk hanging out on my R/C boat, among other places but this particular time he decided to go up, he hung out for several hours on the cord between the two pinup points, just loving it...Then I realised he had fallen asleep, I tried everything I could think of to wake him up without touching him but did not succeed. If I had the chance to do it over I seriously would have just let him sleep up there, I pet him a few times and he still didn't wake up so I went to pick him up and that freeked him out bad, he puffed up real big and started hissing at me, i backed off and let him relax a minute but as soon as i went to get him again he lunged at me and fell off the wire, I did catch him but after that he bit my finger on the hand he didn't land on and I nearly dropped him but thanks to the rubber gloves he was able to hold on long enough for me to lean down and stick my hand in his cage...Since that day he won't let me touch him and he hardly even likes me feeding him, he'll puff up till he notices the feeder then he'll grub it and I will vacate his cage after he eats whatever I'm offering him...

 

[wheresstimpy]

when i first got my chams they attacked me when i put my hand in the cage, now i hand feed them treats every night and they really dont seem to mind me that much any more, the boy wont take his eyes off my hand cause he thinks theres food in it, rarely do i get attacked, but panthers seem to be way less aggressive than veileds, my only advise would be to hand feed him the best snack you can find as a peace offering, maybe a big hornworm or something like that? good luck