Reptile & Amphibian Forums

and that hurts,he is extremely antisocial and always scared when the white sheet is off the cage.So scared that I have been chasing him for 6 months now to take a pic and not managed yet.All chameleons are untisocial by nature but are not affraid to go to exposed areas sometimes.
If it were a green iguana we were talking about,that would be easy,it needs proper handling for a long time since it is tame enough to sit on your shoulder feeling comfortable.Also you should approach him slow and steady,etc,ect,ect............................
WHAT HAPPENS WITH CHAMS???Is there a procedure done by the owner to help the cham overcome his fears?
Please some help..

I'm sorry to hear that you are having such a hard time with this. The only encounter I have experienced close to this was a panther female that did not want anything to do with myself or anyone else for that matter. She had a habit of rolling over beneath the vines of her cage to make it more difficult to remove her. Sounds weird but I broke her of this habit only in about 2 weeks by using gardening gloves from the local hardware store. I purchased a pair of green rubber coated gloves in which I believe she may think my fingers are leaves. The texture of the glove is course to allow her to hold on well. I wouldn’t purchase smooth rubber. Maybe this will work for you. Green gloves, tada ! Let me know

>>and that hurts,he is extremely antisocial and always scared when the white sheet is off the cage.
>>

Without standing there, seeing the room you keep him in, I can only generally troubleshoot.

Where is the cage? Is it next to the door to the room? A window? Is there a view into a more heavy-traffic area, and this is why you use a sheet? A sheet may be a temporary solution, but there is an environmental stimulus that needs to be removed instead of just covering him continually. Chams do seem to respond positively to being able to see around them. They just don't like seeing those things >close< to them.

How high is the cage? Is it on a tabletop? After babies reach a certain age, they may prefer to be high up. I keep my subadults and adults as high as possible- indoors, only clearance for lamps to ceiling (fire safety)- outdoors, the cages are on racks. Arboreal chams that can perch well above your head are more secure; the more secure, the more they tolerate keepers.

>>WHAT HAPPENS WITH CHAMS???Is there a procedure done by the owner to help the cham overcome his fears?
>>Please some help..

Go to the link below, click on the Handling button on the menu. I second the glove suggestion, after individual testing and if appropriate. I draped the glove inside the cage, near the food bowl, so the cham becomes desensitized to perching on it before I started wearing it.

As for photos, some chams never get used to the camera. To avoid stress, you can photograph them at night, when they wear their bright roosting colors.

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Kristina Francis

www.melleridiscovery.com

My little guy was alot like that when i first had him. It was because i didnt have enough plants for him to hide in. In my first cage i had a small ficus at the bottom and that was it. Not enough.

I talked to some people at LLL Reptile and cosulted some kind breeders at IRBA and they all reccomend that the whole cage should have a good amount of foliage. Get a ficus/hibiscus/group of pothos that covers about 65% of the cage.

Im not too sure if that is the problem with your guy, but my little tyke mellowed out ALOT after i added those plants. Chams are individuals too. He could just be one of those oddballs!
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Well look at me, what do you see?
Another trophy, a living f****** dead beat
Close your eyes take a step with me
Your gone but its not not too late
Exhibiting Abnormality
Careful what you call reality
But you will always want
You want the day that you shall die
(In Your Face: Children of Bodom)

What color is your camera?

I have had chameleons that are so "mellow" that they will come right out of the cage onto my arm and even sit pawing at the door to the cage when they see me in the room . (Its likely the freedom they are anxious for, not my company.) I have had others that are absolutely frightened of me and never change...and I have had ones that will chase me down whenever I come near their cages and run after me and bite me when I put my hand in their cage. Most of them never change. All I can say is take the chameleon for what it is and do the best you can with it. You might be lucky and it will get used to you. If I have to handle one of the biters I wear a long-sleeved sweat shirt and they get a mouthful of shirt instead of me.

The second day without the sheet and he's doing fine,today he exposed himself to open space,on the top vine and bowlfeed and retreived slowly to his favourite spot.I guess the sheet was stopping him from adapting to the surrounding.We'll further on what happens.
Thanks a lot for your comments...

I know that I am far from being a "chameleon" expert. I spoke to you before of my cham being in the living room from day one. He deals with a ton of things going on and is just fine.

He doesn't like me being to close to him...but recently, on three different occassions, he has tried to eat a cricket from my hand. The first time caught me off guard! Now, every feeding I offer it. Sometimes he will, sometimes he won't.

I could imagine in their habitats, that the are faced with many different types of wildlife and stimulus. We can only do our best to copy their habitats...but still find the happy medium to enjoy them! After all, most of our chams are CB chams and only have their instincts, not their experiences to make them in to what they are. I agree that you must accept him for what he is, and enjoy that factor.

However, I am glad you took the sheet off of his cage....its time he got to experience and adapt to your world.

Kris
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