not for beginners...

beginners

I was a beginner a year and a half ago, and my lil guys are doing great. This does happen to be the best resource in the world for information on chams. I think what they mean by not for beginners, is that you really need to be dedicated to keeping a close eye on your fellas. You can't just toss in some crickets, add some dust now and then and hope they are ok. You have to watch them very carefully as they can become mortally ill practically overnight, and if you aren't aware, you will lose a fella. They are a blast to watch and provide hours of enjoyment. :)
 
I also agree that everyone has been a beginner chameleon owner at some point. I am currently one as I write this. I personally think a more appropriate statement would be, that chameleons are only for very committed and dedicated owners.

We researched this site and others before we got Memphis a month ago. We learned so much before we got him. But we still have so much more to learn. Now we are mostly focused on how to perfect his care.

One thing that I have seen over the last month is that not everyone realizes just how much initial investment is involved. We spent over $1000 in the weeks leading up to acquiring Memphis. Fortunately some of the things we got are overkill so we now plan to use them as spares (or on upcomming enclosures :D). Other things that we bought were to personalize his setup. I wanted to bottom of the cage to be open so I can have a huge planting box below allowing us to eliminate pots in the cage. This is by far not standard, but it was an expense that I happily paid for.

Another thing that we did was to locate feeders at as many local shops as we could. Even though my last round of feeders was a bulk online order, I needed to know I could get food in a pinch. And it is just nice to know that we have many options is a shortage. In doing this we found most of the Chicago land reptile stores. Then compared the advice given at each store. Not a single reptile focused store gave the same recommendations. This is not to say who, if any, gave bad information. It just seems that your care and techniques are completely dependent on the routine, effort, and investment that you plan to contribute to your cham. Above are posts with excellent beginner advice, follow what an advanced cham owner does and expand your personal choices and techniques on this proven foundation. You can't go wrong learning form others mistakes instead of trying to go through them yourself. No matter what, we all make mistakes.

I was also worried when we started this last month. But I can say, that after the last few weeks the routine has set in and it just seems to get easier and easier. The more I learn from here the easier and more enjoyable this hobby gets.
 
Anybody begins at some point. It is rather about the learning curve. Dealing with Chams is a steep one, trust me; with Tortoises e.g. is a more easy one (I would say). Doesn't mean you cannot start with a Cham. But if you don't do your research, you might end up in a lot of drawbacks.
 
OlyJenn said:
Through a lot of my research on how to care for a Chameleon, I keep seeing that Chameleon's are not good for beginners, which happens to be me.

I'm wondering if any of you have an opinion on this matter, pro/con.

With all the information available, I am confident that I can house a Chameleon properly, but I won't lie, I am nervous about getting the chameleon it's proper nutrients. Perhaps the technique of gutloading is what I need practice with, with a "beginner" lizard. Or is the concern more of the temperature, lighting, humidity aspect?

Perhaps it's a precaution breeders state so the blame is less on them if a newb kills their Cham due to lack of knowledge?

Any thoughts on the topic are respected and appreciated!
Click to expand...

Depends on what you define as a beginner.... Read and follow directions! ask questions!!!!!!
 
I have a reptile background. So the transition to Chams was smooth with minor attention to changes humidity, diet and lighting.

My wife on the other hand had ZERO experience with any pet aside from Dogs. She does a greatttttt job with our Chams, often catches any possible issues b4 i do. So that says a lot for people who WANT to learn. So i would never detur any new possible owner from Chams. Just lurk the forums ( i find reading the Health section to help a lotttttttt). You see what can go wrong from real cases and you learn from them and avoid it.

goodluck.
 
You are definitely starting out right!

This forum and it's members' experience and support are invaluable. So, by coming here you have already done the best thing you could do for both you and your future baby.

Find and have a vet on call (preferably with cham experience that you are comfortable with). Hopefully you won't need them for anything bad but if your baby gets sick, the last thing you want to do is be searching for a vet that knows what they are doing.

As far as being a "beginner", I think everyone is with each chameleon they get no matter what kind or how many they have had before. You can have the set-up and the feeding down-pat but each cham is an individual and you have to deal with their likes and dis-likes, moods and attitudes.

My advice: enjoy and keep a very close eye on them which is easy because they are so fascinating. The toughest part of being new to chameleons is not being sure of what falls in the normal range of behavior but this forum is great for that. By watching your little one very closely, you will be able to catch differences in them and how they are behaving and catch any problems early just realize they are very good at hiding their problems for as long as they can. But if you keep an eye on their poop/urates, their coloring and new lumps or bumps, and changes in the way they behave or move around, you should be able to stay on top of things.

Dive in and Good luck!
 
Have you ever had a reptile before? If you are a beginner to reptiles then I would suggest not getting a chameleon as your first. That being said, with enough research and investment into making a good habitat with correct nutrition you can be successful. However, they are more challenging and less forgiving of trial and error than some other reptiles are. And reptiles in general are very different from dogs, cats, pocket pets and birds. They have very different habitat needs, nutritional needs, metabolic needs. Some good "starter" lizards are bearded dragons and leopard geckos because they will tolerate being handled and aren't quite so picky in their husbandry needs and they can tolerate some mistakes a little better. That's not to say they can be kept in an aquarium and tossed crickets once in a while! They still have unique needs that will need to be researched and set up before purchase. So it boils down to doing the research, finding the pet that suits your expectations and lifestyle and investing in making a proper home before bringing that animal home!
 
Having reptile experience is helpful in that you will have experience keeping an enclosure's temperature and humidity regulated and handling various feeders along with being familiar with basic herpetology terms.

I personally don't like Leopard Geckos and am not fond of bearded dragons (no offence to anyone just a taste thing) and see nothing wrong with starting with a Chameleon.

To be successful without experience you need the following skills:
- Reading comprehension
- Attention to detail
- Enough humility to be wrong
- Commitment to your chameleon
- Ability to make enough money to support the chameleon.

Finally It wouldn't hurt to figure out exactly what chameleon you want, complete the set up and keep it to standards for a month. This will give practice with temp regulation and RH regulation before anyone moves in to care.
 
OlyJenn said:
Through a lot of my research on how to care for a Chameleon, I keep seeing that Chameleon's are not good for beginners, which happens to be me.

I'm wondering if any of you have an opinion on this matter, pro/con.

With all the information available, I am confident that I can house a Chameleon properly, but I won't lie, I am nervous about getting the chameleon it's proper nutrients. Perhaps the technique of gutloading is what I need practice with, with a "beginner" lizard. Or is the concern more of the temperature, lighting, humidity aspect?

Perhaps it's a precaution breeders state so the blame is less on them if a newb kills their Cham due to lack of knowledge?

Any thoughts on the topic are respected and appreciated!
Click to expand...

My question is, Where does a beginner begin??
A lot of people say, its not for beginners.... and maybe not so, but i'm sure many beginners have turned out to be great experienced keepers.
Yes you can begin with another 'easier to look after' lizard, but if your mind is set on a cham then do your research and be committed.
If you prepared to care for a Chameleon and can commit to it, then do it.
 
I know its been said already but everyone here was a beginner at some point. Getting another reptile wont help you to become a non beginner with Chameleons as they are totally different. Just continue to do your research and you'll be fine. Well done for coming here first, a lot dont and ask the questions when its too late.
 
Possibly the only thing that another reptile will teach is getting over the "bug" thing...if you're at all squeamish about bugs, you'll need to get over that because bugs are part of life...but I did all my "bug" training for a chameleon and while I was a pretty squeamish 50 year old, now, at 53 I just grab 'em with my hands like it's no big deal.....
 
As for being a beginner, the closest I have been to owning a reptile is avoiding the gardner snakes with the lawnmower.

I'm getting pretty comfortable with the responsibility and shake-up to my normal routine, but now, we are on a search to establish a lizard-sitter, we don't take overnight excursions THAT often, but we don't have anything tying us down to the house, and occasionally run away for the night.
 
When a chameleon is a healthy adult, if your lights and water is automated, you can actually leave for a few days and just not feed it and it will be fine.


I think what most people mean when they say chameleons are harder to care for isn't that they are actually hard to keep, but that they require more specialized care than the average lizard. If you are willing to put the time and effort into the care, you can keep them just fine. I got my first chameleon when I was 7 years old. Aside from the expenses, which my mother paid for, I took care of him completely. After reading the two chameleon books (cover to cover) I bought with him, we went out and got all of his supplies that we hadn't gotten before. He lived to be almost 7 years old, which is a pretty dang good age for a chameleon to make it to.
 
A consearned chameleon keeper Is more likley to be a better keeper....I think you'll do just fine.Welcome to the forums
 
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