Question about coloring

[Captyn Cron]

My oldest boy has asked me and my wife recently for a cham a fav critter of his, the main reason being because he likes how they change colors.
That said I wanted to know: for what reasons will they change colors and which species have the most drastic changes in color?
Pics would help of the same cham during different color stages if possible.

Thanx in advance!

 

[Brad Ramsey]

Chameleons change color to indicate that they are receptive to breeding, they are angry or defending territory, to absorb or reflect heat, etc.
Panther chameleons (Furcifer pardalis) are arguably the showiest of commonly kept chameleons but there are many other species that are quite impressive.
I recommend starting with a male veiled chameleon (Chamaeleo calyptratus)

-Brad

 

[Elizadolots]

My oldest boy has asked me and my wife recently for a cham a fav critter of his, the main reason being because he likes how they change colors.

As long as you and your wife are ready to take ultimate responsibility for the chameleon, then I think a chameleon is a wonderful, educational pet. However, unless your oldest boy is over 15, the chances are, you will be required to participate in taking care of this animal. You need to be ready to do that.

I think your son will learn so much about discipline, science and respect for those that are different than him when caring for a chameleon...it will be a great experience for all of you, however, chameleons are tricky and they need adults to monitor them and step in if needed.

 

[Captyn Cron]

Thanks for the response brad.

My wife and I have been leaning towards a veiled for him, mainly because of the price and other sites we have looked on recommend the species as a good starter as you have but I wanted to know a bit about the coloring of chameleons in a whole thank you for clarifying it for me.

Now for another question. Do all veiled chameleons have similar colorings to this one or is this just one of several breeds like the panther chameleon? http://www.flchams.com/inventory/NewtonVeiledWeb.jpg

And one more. What is the difference between a veiled chameleon and a veiled chameleon morph? I saw this on a CB supplier site and wondered if they were two breeds if one was preferable over the other.

 

[Captyn Cron]

Yeah we have already come to terms that we will be the primary caregivers. He's only 5 so he won't be having too much direct contact with it until he can really understand the importance. We have a red-eared slider turtle that has been thriving for more than a year after we bought it and both our boys love seeing it swim around doing its thing ya know.
My wife and I have about had it with 'normal' pets so we were happy when he wanted something different and when he asked us about a cham I for one was eager to comply.

 

[SpinyFranky]

all Veiled chameleons that come from a premium line will have different characteristics, thats simple enough to understand I hope.

For example : I know of

High Yellow Veileds
High Turquoise Veileds
High Orange Veileds
High Blue Veileds
High Black Veileds

There is also the translucent morph, though from my understanding a morph is a genetic anomaly that results in something unseen - the rest of these veileds could commonly be seen in the wild (minus the black usually) while the translucent was taken into captivity to further the morph.

Price wise all are usually the same - except translucents which will cost a pretty penny, and the black colored veiled which is highly hard to obtain and located mostly in the U.K at the moment.

From personal experience I have had both Veiled's and Panthers (keeping two panthers at the moment ) and I would take to panthers over veileds. Panthers from my personal experience have been much more docile in personality (one of mine just lazies about for most of the day, and will come out of his cage with little problem, while my other panther puts on a good show to come out). I have only ever been bitten by a veiled, though might I add it did not really hurt.

Price wise the Panther will cost more, but some will argue its because they are nicer to look at ( though I personally believe each chameleon is beautiful in its own way ).

As Eliza stated I would hope that your son is at least 16-17 years of age or older, or that you (the parents) will be assisting in care of the animal. Unlike a more common pet such as a Dog or Cat - chameleons are very specific in care requirements - and that usually does not bode well when combined with the care of a younger keeper.

Though im a believer that a chameleon can be an excellent lesson in responsibility and education, just make sure someone completely responsible is there to make sure the chameleon does not suffer as a result of this "lesson"

Julian

 

[Julirs]

Welcome, and kudos on your research. The thing you need to think about is that your chameleon will most likely turn out to be territoral and aggressive -essentially a non-handleable pet. Will your or your child's interest wane through the challenges of a high maintenance pet where a simple cage cleaning can get difficult? I personally would never have taken on chameleon when my kids were younger. The daily care really ties you down.

 

[Captyn Cron]

That cleared alot up for me thanks Frank.

This is totally going to be a 'family' pet, with me and my wife being primary caregivers. It was his idea so we both thought we would give it our best to find out all the information we could before jumping up and getting one.
In a whole are Panthers really that more docile than Veileds? even though the boys won't handle it I would like to be able to if I was to buy one who didn't seem to mind

Julirs- I gotta know as much as possible before getting into something I don't fully understand. My poor iguana learned that first hand when I was 17, that isn't happening again.
I don't think he will mind if he isn't allowed to touch it and he wouldn't for a few years yet anyways. The turtle I posted about above only comes out of the aquarium to go outside and the boys never touch her. They really enjoy looking at her swimming and eating in her tank but, she is so skittish that if you even look at her when she is sunning herself she dives back into the water,lol

 

[hallenhe]

There are comparatively docile panthers and aggressive panthers. There are comparatively docile veileds and aggressive veileds. Some people are fortunate enough to have a very laid-back chameleon (Forum member Miss Lily has many posts on her friendly veiled, Tommy, and jannb's veiled pair, Luie and Camille, are friendly; my last panther, Thaxter, appeared to enjoy climbing on me). Many chameleons are less laid-back and would prefer to be left alone. Many chameleons are very enthusiastic about food, especially once they're old enough and have been around you long enough to know that you're the source of food, and not a predator; this can be used to bribe a chameleon to climb on your hand and train them to associate you with good things. It all depends on the chameleon.
Some of the veiled morphs are more expensive than the "regular" veileds (which can be quite handsome as it is). Choose a reputable breeder (the Forum sponsors are reputable; Fauna Classifieds has a Board of Inquiry where you can check on the reputation of other breeders; or Forum members who are not professional breeders will often post chameleons for sale in the classifieds. For the latter, you can look up members' posts in the discussion, photos, breeding, etc. forums and determine whether you'd like to buy a chameleon from them). A picture of the sire/father will often give a decent impression of what the offspring might be expected to look like. An adult or young adult animal will already have much of it's colors and patterns, and you may be lucky enough to find a relatively "tame" one that's being sold by somebody who has to move or for some other reason; by and large, I favor getting them younger and watching them grow up (by three months or older a baby chameleon is well-established and ready to go to a new home; I wouldn't recommend any younger).
Welcome!

 

[OOOst16]

do your research. know what your doing. and the parents will have to be main care takers. male vield for sure as a first tiem beginer. prepare to shell out money aswell for chameleons are not cheep what so ever.

 

[jeffro]

This is the same cham

 

[Captyn Cron]

Thanks everyone for your responses. Should have know this would evolve into more than a discussion about colors,lol. Not that I mind, just wish I would have come up with a different title for the thread!

We are by no means leaping into ownership of a cham and my wife and I have already agreed to establish a habitat or buy a package deal that I have seen the sponsor sites offer.

hallenhe-That seems to be the concensus on most breeds from what I could find. We want our boys to have a pet that they will be able to enjoy whether or not they can 'play' with it and I think a cham is a good choice. Neither one of my boys is old enough to be handling anyways, I just wanted to know how likely it would be.

jeffro- thanks for those pics! My boy went nuts when I told him it was the same cham!
I started looking around for pics late last night and to tell you the truth they all just kinda started getting blurred together come 2 o' clock in the morning,lol. I jumped back online this morning and after I saw this dude.....http://www.chameleonsonly.com/el_lobo.htm..... I think we might end up with a Sambava Panther.
For any breeders in attendance--- do you find that later generations of bloodlines of more docile (both m/f) chams tend to be more tolerant of handling? I only ask because I saw this show about these guys who were studying how wolves became tame and the impact it had on later generations raised in captivity. They used wild caught foxes as they were small and easy to handle. Over several generations the foxes became more docile and even began showing variations in their fur, such as spots and colors not know in nature. J/W if captive breeding of chams have similar results in regards to docility(if thats even a word,lol)

 

[Julirs]

I have had WC chameleons be more docile than any CB chams, but I have one huge male CB Veiled that thinks he is a puppy. He is definitely the easiest to handle out of my crew! It really is luck of the draw with them. The cool thing with them is that the kids really love watching them eat, so that maybe makes up for not being able to handle them. It really all depends on your kids. No offense here-but if you have really spastic kids that jump and scream and run, probably no reptile is a good choice. But if you have the kind of kids you can tell to be still, and they will do what you say while being in awe of the animal, you can make it work. I have hooked many a family up with the second type of kid there with bearded dragons, and they really do great! They are handleable, do not stress, and are a little easier to keep. Where are you located? Maybe the best thing to do is find someone that lives close and visit. If anyone in your family is less than cool with the occasional escaped feeder, or with the way the cages look or the amount of water, time, space, etc...it will help you make a better decision.

One last thing-say you want a chameleon, just one, because it is a fascinating animal and you just really want one. Now-think 4 years down the road and now you have 40 or so reptiles because your wife has just found the greatest passion and hobby of her life-it does not matter if she never owned a reptile prior to the first cham. That would be my story!

 

[draetish]

How about a nice cuddley bearded dragon? They are people friendly and alot easier to care for than a chameleon.

 

[Captyn Cron]

LMAO Julirs.....more likely it'll be me who can't get enough! I tend to....overdo it when I get a new project into my head and this is no exception I think. I mean if you lived in a cage for the majority of your life wouldn't you want it to be just.....awesome?
When I started looking into chams I started by showing Brayden(he's the one who got his whole thing going, btw) different pictures on the net of reptiles in general to see if he wanted a cham or if he just wanted a lizard. The bearded dragon totally freaked him out! Not in the he ran away screaming way but he was not receptive to it at all. I tried to tell him it just looks kinda crazy but he was having none of it, lol.
When we got to the chams he perked up alot and loved seeing the various colors of the different breeds.
My boys are your typical boys. Yeah they can get excitable but when its time to calm down they do. We used to try and get our turtle used to us but after a few months of the same, set her down-chase her down game she just stays in her aquarium unless I put her outside for a bit.
We have already planned to have it in an area that we will be able to enjoy it but at the same time allow us to control its night/day cycle in an area that will have zero lighting at its 'bedtime'

We live in Texas btw, just a little north of Huntsville so if there is anyone here who lives close to me and is willing to show off we'd be game!