Turned here to get advice before buying our first chameleon and the advice shared was tremendously helpful. Thank you all. Purchased our guy from Kammerflage Kreations and couldn't be happier. He's five and half months old now and his colors are really starting to shine. My daughters couldn't be happier. Pascal - I know, I know, it's not an original name, it's downright commercial, but I have teenage daughters and they think it's cute - is a pretty adventurous guy. He likes to come out of his cage and crawl up my daughters arms to look over the world from the top of their heads. What's remarkable to me is how he trained my girls. His first exploration outside the cage was to climb on the top of the door of his cage when my daughter opened it to feed him. Now, when he wants out of the cage, he sits in the upper right corner, right by the door hinge, and that's how he lets my girls know he wants to go out of the cage. Unless he's in that spot, we leave him to explore the cage or to bask, depending on his mood. I admit to being blown away by how he "trained" humans to serve his wants by doing repetitive behaviors. I didn't expect a reptile to be trainable, let alone to be able to train us. He's not a fussy eater and loves to hunt. We did put in a full throttle feeder in the cage for the days when he doesn't want to chase dinner. He seems to like a gentle rub under the chin and occasionally curls up in my daughters hand and closes his eyes and just rests there. My question is will he be this friendly and responsive to human touch when he becomes an adult male? Or will he start to be more aggressive and territorial as he matures?
Thanks to all!
- Thread starter JayceOhio
- Start date
Mrjamwin
Chameleon Enthusiast
Glad to hear that your Cham is doing well and that you're enjoying him. I'll forgive you just his once for naming him Pascal but no more after this. 
What kind of Cham did you get? The species will usually determine if they will continue to be nice after they've matured. If you have a Veiled then you are screwed because they are never nice. LOL.
What kind of Cham did you get? The species will usually determine if they will continue to be nice after they've matured. If you have a Veiled then you are screwed because they are never nice. LOL.
MissSkittles
Chameleon Enthusiast
Hi! So glad that you found the forum helpful. We’d love some pics of your little guy.
Now, I really really hate to do this, but I have to.? When he curls up and closes his eyes in your daughter’s hand, I’m afraid that’s not a sign of contentment. The only times chameleons close their eyes during the day is when they are either ill or so extremely stressed that they just shut down. Since it’s while he’s being held, I’m going to say it’s from stress. Do check out Bill Strand’s podcast which will explain it so very well. (Episode #6) https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-academy-podcast/
So glad that you found the forum helpful. We’d love some pics of your little guy.Now, I really really hate to do this, but I have to.? When he curls up and closes his eyes in your daughter’s hand, I’m afraid that’s not a sign of contentment. The only times chameleons close their eyes during the day is when they are either ill or so extremely stressed that they just shut down. Since it’s while he’s being held, I’m going to say it’s from stress. Do check out Bill Strand’s podcast which will explain it so very well. (Episode #6) https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-academy-podcast/
Glad to hear that your Cham is doing well and that you're enjoying him. I'll forgive you just his once for naming him Pascal but no more after this.
To be fair, Pascal came from my daughters. They made it very clear that dad's input was not welcome. He's a panther. I emailed Kammerflage and they said his dad and many of the offspring have very similar behaviors. Apparently, there's a chameleon gene out there for mellow and friendly. Fairly sure that would NOT be useful in the wild, but it does make them fantastic companions!
Hi!
Now, I really really hate to do this, but I have to.? When he curls up and closes his eyes in your daughter’s hand, I’m afraid that’s not a sign of contentment. The only times chameleons close their eyes during the day is when they are either ill or so extremely stressed that they just shut down. Since it’s while he’s being held, I’m going to say it’s from stress. Do check out Bill Strand’s podcast which will explain it so very well. (Episode #6) https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-academy-podcast/
Okay, my bad. It's only happened a few times and the only time that it happened is at night. If he's in their hand during the day he climbs right up their arm to their heads. I realized I left that information out and that's on me. I don't know if that makes a difference, so I will definitely listen to the podcast. Thanks for the info. Obviously, we are still learning lots about how much we don't know!
MissSkittles
Chameleon Enthusiast
The pod casts are incredible for learning all about chameleons.
Hi!
Now, I really really hate to do this, but I have to.? When he curls up and closes his eyes in your daughter’s hand, I’m afraid that’s not a sign of contentment. The only times chameleons close their eyes during the day is when they are either ill or so extremely stressed that they just shut down. Since it’s while he’s being held, I’m going to say it’s from stress. Do check out Bill Strand’s podcast which will explain it so very well. (Episode #6) https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-academy-podcast/
Okay. I read through the podcast - great that they have in written form for those of us that prefer to read - and here's the quote - "Anytime your chameleon is sitting with its eyes closed and it is not dark and time for sleeping be very concerned.". Okay, each time it has been dark and time for sleeping, so I feel a little better about it now. That said, he's obviously a special guy to my girls, so the new rule will be if he's showing any of those signs, it's time to go back into the cage. I know they will comply because they really do love the little guy and want him to be happy. Again, thanks for the info and the link. Learned a lot of good info today!
MissSkittles
Chameleon Enthusiast
I’m very glad to hear it. Made me ‘awww’. ? Chameleon academy and Bill Strand’s podcasts are just incredible. Your girls (and you) might enjoy checking out Neptune the chameleon on YouTube for learning more.
My older girl loves those videos! She watched a ton of them before the chameleon arrived. I think she's secretly waiting for her boy to be fully grown so she can make a chameleon video!
