veieled chameleons from petco??

hey this is my very first thread!! i am new to this sooo..:) well i have been interested in buying a baby veiled chameleon for 5 years now. the closest petstores in my city are petco and this family run buisness. i was thinking of buying my baby chameleon from the family run buisness, because of petco rumours on the web. and when i went to the store the chameleon was pretty big probably in a 15 by 20 by 20 glass tank and looked pretty stressed out so decided to go to petco. i have bought many many pets from here and from my opinion they really care for their animals. i have bought a snake from here wich is now 5 years old and a crested gecko now 4 years old and doing great. i have never seen a sick animal here in this store! well when i was looking for the chameleons here they were in the widest longest tank they have in there.inside they had 4-6 bright reall active chameleons probably 2-3 inches long. in the tank they had a dripper thingy in the top corner, heavily dense fake plant vegetation, green soft carpet for substrate, a small mealworm bowl a feww dozen pin sized crickets inside and just a bluish long light probably uva?uvb but no basking light. temp inside read 85 degrees and humidity 70% overall they seemed quiet healthy and pretty fat lol. i am really interested in buying from petco but what do you guys think. should i really buy a chameleon from petco?? the workers really knew what they were doing . one of the assistance have been working for 15+ years! they said if for any reason it were to get sick i can get a trade back or leave the lizard back in the store and watch it closely to see if it does fine.:):)
 
I know Petco isn't always the best choice but I have to reply. I rescued a little female veiled last Saturday. I had gone in the previous Thursday and saw several things wrong with her enclosure. I was assured by the employee that I spoke to about my concerns that they would be corrected that night as soon as they finished unloading the truck. I went back Saturday with the intention of buying her if the habitat had not been corrected...surprise, everything I had issues with had been corrected. Well, they were having their Reptile Roundup and everything was marked down 50% and she was only $29.95 so I had to have her. It was late and she was asleep when we got home and she was not happy when I woke her up to take her out of the box and put her into her new home. The next morning I turned on her lights and misted her (she drank even while complaining about being misted) and put some small crickets in a small container and we left for the day. Came home and all of the crickets were gone. So far she eats like she should, drinks, her poop looks great and she is very active. She even shed yesterday. So if the veiled looks and acts healthy I say get it. Just look over it real good to make sure there are no problems that can be seen. JMHO
:D Virginia
 
I also got my veil at Petco during their reptile roundup, she is healthy and happy. If you think they are in good health and they take good care of them then get one. My advice it to ask to handle or have someone handle them all and pick the one who is the most relaxed to being held. Just like picking a new dog or cat they have different personalities.
 
We got 2 of ours from petsmart and one from petco.

The two from petsmart are complete sweethearts and HARDLY EVER display aggressive behaviors. (one male and one female) :)

The one from petco is a total jerk but we still love him. :D

All are very happy, healthy, and hearty though. I agree with making sure their condition is at best.

good luck
 
Thanx you guys for all the help!!! The lady from PETCO said the next new chameleons they will have in stock are around in 2 weeks. Ofncourse I'm getting one once they arrive I'm going to pick the healthiest most active of them all. But one thing is.. is it safe to buy one right after they get new chameleons. Or do I have to wait a week and keep an eye on them to see if there OK But the faster the better!
 
I would probably wait a bit because you never really know the conditions they were previously kept in. Unless you work for them maybe?

Where are you located?
 
Yea, since the lady said they will be here nxt week on wednesday i will probably go buy one on the week after nxt on monday. So ill probably check on them for a week then go buy.
 
Yea, since the lady said they will be here nxt week on wednesday i will probably go buy one on the week after nxt on monday. So ill probably check on them for a week then go buy.

One important thing to consider from any commercial seller is the age of the cham and what info they can offer about his breeder.

If they set their chams up correctly and seem to be treating them well, that's good. However, if this will be your first cham and the babies they offer are under a couple of months old, be very cautious. All kinds of health issues can show up in very young hatchlings for sale. It is better to choose a juvenile of 3-4 months old as most babies with congenital defects or systemic weaknesses often don't survive to reach this age. And, older juveniles are easier to acclimate, easier to feed, a little sturdier in terms of temps, humidity, etc.

Also, if you choose the most active cham of the bunch, you may end up with the most reactive individual too. That isn't always good...it could end up being a more easily stressed or aggressive adult. I think I'd watch the group and pick one that is alert, good body condition, but a little more laid back when handled.
 
I would say buy one as soon as they come in, that way you have first picks of the best one, if you wait a week then most likely someone else will buy them and you will have less to choose from. Pick the one with a best personality that is in good health.

When we bought ours I wanted the most active, my wife on the other hand wanted the calm smaller one. The more active one would turn really dark when being held, open his/her mouth and puff up, I felt it was stronger and healthier. The calmer one didn’t mind being held at all, she showed no signs of aggression and seemed to enjoy the warmth of our bodies. After reading more about chameleons on this forum I’m so glad that we got the smaller calmer one, she allows us to be more interactive with her then the other one would have been and that makes a great pet IMO. Example: Today we went outside to sun bath and hunt flies, we are making an awesome team.
 
thanx you guy sso much for all the help!! i really appreciate it. all these people on this sight are very helpful!!:):) so ok good thing you guys told me about the much active ones and will ask for age. one more thing.. can dubia roaches be a chameleons staple diet? plzz look at my other question i asked thannx!!:D:D
 
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