I have a male veild and female panther they both been held a lot ,at least every other day , only time they hiss and puff up is when they shedding ,,, veild is 9mths old panther 7 mths old ,,I also talk to mine all the time some say they can't hear but the male will watch me when he's basking , its getting warmer here in Louisiana and when I take them outside they kind of freak out for a few minutes then its roam roam roam ,,, have fun with him I know I enjoy my 2 chams