Roam free in the back yard?

[broderp]

This is going to sound REALLY stupid to some , but is it safe to let my cham out in the back yard to rumage and climb in the smaller brush and trees?

I mean he's not going to take off and run thru the yard at 30mph and I lose him in the woods or anything am I? Are they as slow as they seem?

Of course I would be careful about other pets, hawks, cats and such, but I was concerned that if I let him go at the base of a tree or in a tree that he isn't capable of supersonic running movement to avoid being caught. lol

It's winter now, and freezing, so this will obviously be in the summer when it's nice out.

 

[pigglett79]

They can move fast when they want to. My jackson has moved pretty quick when trying to get away, although I could catch him. I think it would be much safer to put together an outdoor enclosure as there are many possibilities for danger. You could lose sight of him and he gets away from you, a bird could snatch him etc. You can put together outdoor cages pretty cheaply and then put a decent sized plant or tree inside. Its just safer for them. Plus it will allow you to leave him outside for a much longer and more beneficial amount of time. On a nice sunny day you could then leave him out all day and not have to sit and watch the entire time.

Just a short trip outside wont do that much as far as exposure to sunshine.

 

[nightanole]

You let your cham get more then 10-15ft away from you outside you are asking for it. The birds and cats are alot faster than you. And it takes no time at all for the cham to climb 2-3ft above your head in 15 seconds and be out of your reach.

You want a free range, put them in giant potted plant next to a table and read a book.

 

[broderp]

They can move fast when they want to. My jackson has moved pretty quick when trying to get away, although I could catch him. I think it would be much safer to put together an outdoor enclosure as there are many possibilities for danger. You could lose sight of him and he gets away from you, a bird could snatch him etc. You can put together outdoor cages pretty cheaply and then put a decent sized plant or tree inside. Its just safer for them. Plus it will allow you to leave him outside for a much longer and more beneficial amount of time. On a nice sunny day you could then leave him out all day and not have to sit and watch the entire time.

Just a short trip outside wont do that much as far as exposure to sunshine.

Yes, I'll stick with an outdoor enclosure, but was also wanting to occationally let the little terror (lol) loose on the ground. (With my right next to him.)

You let your cham get more then 10-15ft away from you outside you are asking for it. The birds and cats are alot faster than you. And it takes no time at all for the cham to climb 2-3ft above your head in 15 seconds and be out of your reach.

You want a free range, put them in giant potted plant next to a table and read a book.

I don't read. (Point taken)


The jist of this is be careful, don't let him get too far away but I'm better off with an outdoor screen enclosure....or buy a plant and read a book.

 

[pigglett79]

You should watch closely if you put him on a plant as well. My jackson would climb down the plant and jump off the pot then try to run across the ground to get away. He is a crazy one. I would sit next to him and next time I checked he was booking it across the grass thinking he was home free.

 

[broderp]

You should watch closely if you put him on a plant as well. My jackson would climb down the plant and jump off the pot then try to run across the ground to get away. He is a crazy one. I would sit next to him and next time I checked he was booking it across the grass thinking he was home free.

LOL......I have this visual picture running thru my mind now. I laughed out loud here at work.....they all must think i'm crazy....

 

[pigglett79]

LOL......I have this visual picture running thru my mind now. I laughed out loud here at work.....they all must think i'm crazy....

I have pictures of it, I will post them tongiht when I am at home. LOL in one he is all pissed at me and lunges at the camera. Might even have video of it.

 

[Carlton]

This is going to sound REALLY stupid to some , but is it safe to let my cham out in the back yard to rumage and climb in the smaller brush and trees?

I mean he's not going to take off and run thru the yard at 30mph and I lose him in the woods or anything am I? Are they as slow as they seem?

Of course I would be careful about other pets, hawks, cats and such, but I was concerned that if I let him go at the base of a tree or in a tree that he isn't capable of supersonic running movement to avoid being caught. lol

It's winter now, and freezing, so this will obviously be in the summer when it's nice out.

When someone wonders about doing this the best thing for them to do (IMHO) is to read all the past forum threads from keepers who lost sight of their chams "for a few moments" and lost them. How quickly it can happen, all the anxiety it causes for the keepers, and probably the fear it creates in the chams who are basically plunked down into a completely foreign unfamiliar space, the possible hazards from all sorts of predators your cham has NO experience evading, plus the suffering and slow death from hypothermia, dehydration, starvation, and injury they may suffer.

Then, if you still want to experience all of this, by all means free range your cham outdoors without an enclosure.

 

[pigglett79]

When someone wonders about doing this the best thing for them to do (IMHO) is to read all the past forum threads from keepers who lost sight of their chams "for a few moments" and lost them. How quickly it can happen, all the anxiety it causes for the keepers, and probably the fear it creates in the chams who are basically plunked down into a completely foreign unfamiliar space, the possible hazards from all sorts of predators your cham has NO experience evading, plus the suffering and slow death from hypothermia, dehydration, starvation, and injury they may suffer.

Then, if you still want to experience all of this, by all means free range your cham outdoors without an enclosure.

I totally agree. It only took a couple times taking my Jackson outside thinking I could just keep an eye on him to realize it's just not a good idea to have them outside without an enclosure. Then reading various threads of lost chameleons or birds snatching them. We have since built outdoor enclosures so all of the boys can get plenty of sunshine time with minimal risk.

 

[Olimpia]

I've lost a 20" Meller's INSIDE my apartment, I can't imagine him outdoors loose among all the green! They certainly do blend into their surroundings wonderfully sometimes, and once you look away there's no finding them again, even if they're still in the same bush! Predators and all that aside, how often does it take us a few moments to find them inside their own cage? Imagine that outside, where you're not sure if he's still in the same bush/tree or not.

A cage is definitely safest

 

[Carlton]

I totally agree. It only took a couple times taking my Jackson outside thinking I could just keep an eye on him to realize it's just not a good idea to have them outside without an enclosure. Then reading various threads of lost chameleons or birds snatching them. We have since built outdoor enclosures so all of the boys can get plenty of sunshine time with minimal risk.

I know we want to give our chams a stimulating life, and to a human this includes the chance to explore, but to a secretive territorial cham that occasional trip outdoors may not be all that enjoyable. They probably end up feeling very exposed and vulnerable which is why they make a bee line for the nearest tall tree. But, a cham put out in a familiar outdoor enclosure is totally different.

 

[Carlton]

I've lost a 20" Meller's INSIDE my apartment, I can't imagine him outdoors loose among all the green!

Oh, don't feel bad....I've lost my 2 foot bright green and yellow striped melleri indoors too! Hard to imagine (or admit ).

 

[ataraxia]

I've lost a 20" Meller's INSIDE my apartment, I can't imagine him outdoors loose among all the green!

HAHA!

To the op: They are not fast by any means but they can/will disguise themselves in the tree/bush in a flash. Dont do it unless you want a lost chameleon.

 

[SoCal Soldier]

Lol, Ya I am building an outdoor enclosure for my Cham, I was cleaning her cage, and I placed her on my ficus tree on the chair next thing shes gone(about the end of my cleaning her cage) She jumped off and booked it to my vines on my wall I caught her with one foot on it, 10 more seconds and she would have been gone!

 

[Furcifer Brussis]

I live in south florida and catch 100's of wild veiled and Oustalets chams each year. Luckily they already lived in the woods around my place when i moved in bc i have lost about 15 of them over the years. I wouldn't worry about predators at all! Once they feel like they are home free and settled in on a branch, nothing even knows they are there and that includes you. You take your eye off of it for 10 seconds sometimes and you literally wont find him again. I know from experience and I've watched them. They run off for about 10 yards or so and then start doing that "I'm a stick in the wind" type walk and you can even lose them right there in the grass. Ive let a couple run for a bit just to see what they would do before picking them back up and thats how they do it.

 

[broderp]

Here's what REALLY happens:

Note: I grabbed this image from the Kammerflage Kreations Facebook page. So I would like to plug thier company for the picture, as well as say they have some of the BEST looking chams I have ever seen! I may be contacting them in the near future...

 

[Furcifer Brussis]

Here's what REALLY happens:

Note: I grabbed this image from the Kammerflage Kreations Facebook page. So I would like to plug thier company for the picture, as well as say they have some of the BEST looking chams I have ever seen! I may be contacting them in the near future...

That's funny right there!
Chameleons love speed, they just can't go fast without some help.

 

[spottea]

About the second time I let my cham out to free range, she walked really slowly down the branches of the small shrub I placed her on, then slowly along the fence. Next thing I know, she's fallen, or jumped off the fence onto the dirt on thenother side. By the time I got the key to the gate, and hotfooted it around to my fence, I couldn't find her. OMG! Had one of my cats picked her up and run off with her? Did I tread on her by mistake?
No, she was already half way up the damn tree trunk by the time I spotted her, little buggar, and she wasn't moving slowly either! They can move when they want to, believe me!

 

[Furcifer Brussis]

About the second time I let my cham out to free range, she walked really slowly down the branches of the small shrub I placed her on, then slowly along the fence. Next thing I know, she's fallen, or jumped off the fence onto the dirt on thenother side. By the time I got the key to the gate, and hotfooted it around to my fence, I couldn't find her. OMG! Had one of my cats picked her up and run off with her? Did I tread on her by mistake?
No, she was already half way up the damn tree trunk by the time I spotted her, little buggar, and she wasn't moving slowly either! They can move when they want to, believe me!

Ha! "Little Bugger" unintended pun.

 

[lizardstudios]

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