So i went to the pet shop! and :S :S :S :S

[chameleon18]

So i went to my local pet shop to look at a yemen cham im interested in he is 9 months old and is a very beautiful cham.

when i asked the owner if he could get it out his cage and as the owner grabbed him he hissed and fired up. this made me think will this cham always be this aggetated when being handled or isit because the owner has kept him in a small fully wooden viv for 9months! and also i would love to know can i make him a happy cham by treating him well and by moving him into a nice 2ft-2ft-4ft viv! basically can i change him into a happy CHAM!

thanks.

Luke

 

[Minihuey]

So i went to my local pet shop to look at a yemen cham im interested in he is 9 months old and is a very beautiful cham.

when i asked the owner if he could get it out his cage and as the owner grabbed him he hissed and fired up. this made me think will this cham always be this aggetated when being handled or isit because the owner has kept him in a small fully wooden viv for 9months! and also i would love to know can i make him a happy cham by treating him well and by moving him into a nice 2ft-2ft-4ft viv! basically can i change him into a happy CHAM!

thanks.

Luke

Actually, you should be glad he is aggressive. It is usually a sign he is healthy.
Veiled are not the happiest creatures and they are generally pretty mad most of the time. On some occasions people have had nice chams but having a mean one is usually a natural thing.

Good luck

 

[Lizardlover]

No, my veild has always had a spacious cage, yet he has always been extremely aggressive, some veilds are like that...no changing them.

 

[chameleonman57]

You might be able to, but probably not because of veileds, just taking him home will make him happier and his life more enjoyable.

 

[tatted1]

I just got my veiled recently.I have been feeding him superworms out of my hand to try to make him comfortable with me. I got him to come all the way out of the cage today.Im just taking it slow.Ive noticed he is alot cooler with the idea of my hand in his cage.So good luck!

 

[sandrachameleon]

Generally, they do not like to be handled. So aggressive is the natural response. If you want a lizard you can handle, get a bearded dragon.

 

[GooglezNvincent]

I have been making some headway with my veiled Lucky, He is now about 9 months old. He was always SUPER aggressive, but recently he has calmed down and not gaping or hissing at all. Its more likely to have an aggresive vieled for sure though. GL!

 

[writh]

my female veiled use to not hiss or run away as much when she was younger. even ate out of my hand but as she got older she started to get more attitude with me and stopped eating from my hand. That's OK with me least I know she is healthy

 

[LBonawitz]

chameleons are kind of like gold fish. you look but don't touch. a healthy goldfish will swim away if you try to pick it up and a healthy cham will try to threaten you away. his aggression shows he is healthy. he's worth buying. if he didn't "warn you off" it would be like buying the goldfish thats floating and lets you pet it...

 

[chameleon18]

thanks really helped x

 

[summoner12]

veileds aren't unhappy.... they are just territorial. If you go in their space they want to defend it. So yes, if he tries to fight you have, it means he is strong.

 

[Rocky]

veileds aren't unhappy.... they are just territorial. If you go in their space they want to defend it. So yes, if he tries to fight you have, it means he is strong.

I think my Veiled should of been named hercules then he's very territorial. If your hand is in his cage he thinks it deserves to be bit off.

 

[summoner12]

I think my Veiled should of been named hercules then he's very territorial. If your hand is in his cage he thinks it deserves to be bit off.

most chameleons are like that. Even Fred, my friendly nice calm veiled doesn't like a hand in his cage. He'll head butt it and bite if you let him. buuuutt... he isn't REAL aggressive about it.... I can coax him out of the cage or touch him if I don't move too fast. Jake on the other hand... no chance in hell, he'll take my hand off. When I have him on a stick he'll walk back and forth chasing my hand. If I let the stick get too close to me he'll even lunge and almost jump to get me... he just hates my ass. LOL but he is strong and good at mating.

 

[Linda]

Ha ha jip ..... So my husband naming my first hatched baby veiled male BRUTUS is perfectly appropriate. As tiny as he is he gets fired up good and proper. Mmmmm have to see what happens when he grows up.

 

[dadams3504]

chameleons and bearded dragons

i have a chameleon and a bearded dragon, there are times when bearded
dragons dont like being held, right now my female is constantly jumping out
of my hand but not trying to bite however and my little chameleon is ok with being held except early in the morning, he really fired up at me the other day
I guess he's not a morning person ........lol I do agree that most chameleons
dont like being held however, its just who they are and I for one accept them the way they are .

 

[dtown]

The more I handle my female veiled, the easier it gets bring her out. It now seems like she enjoys coming out and being handled!

 

[dtown]

This has also been true for my male, but he is moving along at a little slower pace. He is a little more reluctant, but still doesn't mind coming out. Opposed to what a lot of people think in here, I believe it is a good thing to handle them and get them use to you. Just an opinion

 

[jannb]

I'm very lucky because my two are teady bears. They both free range.......that could make a difference.

 

[Joy Leaf]

Our Mellers enjoys coming out, our Veiled on the other hand is finally getting used to the idea of my hand being in his enclosure.

 

[HairyScaryMark]

I've only had my guy a few months and I don't know if it's significant but i've generally found it easier to get my veieled out of his cage in the morning rather than later on in the day. He seems more relaxed and will settle on me rather than aimlessly try to climb. If I sit down he usually settles on my shoulder or left ear. He's only ever once properly hissed at me and that was when I kept trying to feed him a strawberry after he ran away from it twice. That time he stood on his back legs, opened his mouth wide and I was told where to stick it.

He often makes a noise that sounds like a quiet sneeze but he regularly makes that noise, just going about his everyday buisness

If you are nervous about getting this guy I would suggest you might want to try a specialist breeder who can pick out one of the more dosile creature from among their hatchlings. Of course, they may turn out a bit differnetly as adults.

There is handling videos by Screameleons set as a 'sticky' thread on one of the forum sections so that might help with your next encounter although I found I generally needed to be a bit more patient than those videos suggested.