Some newbie questions

[KingKai]

I am deciding to choose a chameleon, either a Jackson’s or Vieled Chameleons and I have questions about both?
In general which is a better pet?
I don’t intend on handling often, but are veiled Chameleons aggressive?
Should I get a baby or an adult?
Any good sources of research besides this website?
Is the FL chameleon setup a good setup.

 

[Lennoncham]

I don’t intend on handling often, but are veiled Chameleons aggressive?

they can be but any chameleon can be aggressive. They will give you tons of warning before they would ever bite you though.

Should I get a baby or an adult?

for a first time owner I would say a male at least 6 months old.

Any good sources of research besides this website?

I’m sure other can name other resources that I don’t know of but this is the best site I have found.

Is the FL chameleon setup a good setup.

don’t buy any of the chameleon kits you will be better off buying individual pieces.

 

[Tony_S]

Jackson's are more of an advanced species with more complex husbandry requirements.

I'd recommend a male veiled or panther for a first time owner.

 

[Kaizen]

Veileds are a great first time species. They have a longer life expectancy, are more tolerant of mistakes in temperature and humidity, and are easily sexable. Males are best for first time owners, as there’s no worry about eggs/lay bins, and are a large impressive species. As for aggression, I have three—each with their own personalities. One hates my guts and would love nothing more than to slit my throat. Another is generally timid, and prefers to be seen and not messed with. The last is an absolute oddity: he comes to the front of the cage as soon as he sees anything, and reaches out for anything. While cleaning his enclosure with door open, he recently reached out and made his way on to my curious Labrador. Don’t know if either knew what was happening, but it was not a negative interaction, more of a wtf situation. That being said, we try to discourage his outgoing personality, as it’s not really normal.

In short, no veiled is like another; the trick is respecting your veiled and learning to read his/her body language.

 

[Gingero]

Chameleon Breeder’s Podcast is a great resource.

I also started a YouTube channel all about chameleons: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3n4S2GRkOGfk2U8-xhaw6Q

 

[mkeBob]

For a novice I would suggest a juvenile male panther chameleon. Go to Resources section at the top of the page then to the Caresheets.

 

[Beman]

If you want a fantastic resource outside of the forum utilize the chameleon breeder podcast for accurate info. www.chameleonbreeder.com
You will find most youtube channels give 50/50 wrong and right info but being new it is hard to know what is incorrect so I would skip it all together.
Use the forum search function.

I would not do a Jackson as a first time keeper. I would do a panther over a veiled. And only get a Male. And I say this because I have a male Veiled who was always a sweetheart until he hit 13 months old and discovered that he was in fact a Male Veiled chameleon. Now he shows the typical aggressive behavior that you will see most talk about lol.

 

[KingKai]

I’ll. Research veileds and panthers more

 

[wandering_cham]

I love Jackson's chameleons, this was my first type of chameleon, but I had already had years of experience with other reptiles. I would first access what its quality of life would be and from there pick a species.