Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i just moved back to PA and my buddy just bought a spec. caiman and he is extreamly tame, he never hisses or attempts to bite, have any of you ever had such a GOOD experince with a spec. caiman? Please let me know....i have never seen or heard nothing but bad things from this spiecies. Please give me your persoanal experinces....my buddy is still not up to date with the internet!!!! Take care Alll

You don't say how large it is. Very often the small ones are exactly as you describe - but it's not a product of being tame, but rather petrified. As they get older and larger, they become more bold.
I do know of people who have relatively tolerant spec. caimans, but your buddy should not "expect" his to turn out this way as this is not common.
They are what they are.

Bill

As Bill said: It mostly depends on the size.
Few individuals are also friendly when getting older. Dr. Wermuth, a german herpetologist, had a adult male C.crocodilus, which got extremely "tame" and a real pet....And a friend of mine slept in the same bed with a 4 1/2 ft C.yacare...

I have a 4.5' Spectacled Caiman, that I took in as a rescue a few months back. It was raised by a young girl, who handled it daily, and has remained handlable, even in my care. It is about 4yrs old. However, I am not a believer in the idea of a "tame" crocodilian, as much as a tolerant one. These animals should always be treated with the respect that they could turn on you. I have always trained them to a feeding call. They learn that food only comes when they hear this noise and I only make the call when I am feeding. At other times, they are not expecting food and allow for intrusions into their enviroments, with no protests or even interest. If your friend is fortunate enough to have a handlable caiman, please tell him to always appreciate that a startled, hungry or even just annoyed crocdilian could easily give it's message loud and clear. I cringe, when I read these messages about people "sleeping with", "kissing" and "watching TV with" their crodilians. The first simple rule, when keeping these animals, is they get your full attention. They are, after all, top predators within their environments and have lived virtually unchanged for over a couple hundred million years. Here is a pic of "Tallulah".
Hope this helps.
JeffP