Reptile & Amphibian Forums

still doing my homework before getting a chameleon,, i've bought the book by de Vosjoli and i'm looking for the one by linda davison,,, anyway, i'm also searchig a crap load of stuff on the internet,,,, most sites say that good starter chameleon are either veiled or panthers,,,, what are the opinions here??
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0.0.1 Bearded Dragon (Eddie)
2.0.0 Dogs (Black German Shepherd-Nicholas, Black Lab-Cooper)
1.1.0 Budgies (Kia and Simon)
0.0.1 ?Fiddler Crab (Crusty)
0.0.25 Various Fishies (Freshwater)
2.1.0 Hubby and kids (Boy and a Girl)

I would say veileds and panthers require similar habitat's. panthers enclusures should be a little warmer. I think, and this is my opinion, that Panthers are the coolest type of chameleon. They have extremely bright colors, are more friendly, they get bigger and are very easy to find. Just make sure you buy a healthy animal, and alwasy get a stool sample from your vet after you buy it.
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1.0 Ambanja Panther
1.1 Leopard Gecko's

Both veilds and panthers are great starter chameleons. I personally like panthers because of their size, color and variety. There are several locales to choose from.

In general, I agree that panthers and veileds are the easiest to care for chameleons, although I wouldn't call ANY chameleon a 'starter' chameleon.
Depending on your location, the Jackson's Chameleon (xantholopus) can be a good choice for a first chameleon. They require cooler, more humid conditions than veileds or panthers, and generall speaking have a mellower disposition.
When I lived in San Diego, I kept my Jax outside 7/24 for 10 months out of the year. I never had issues with them, as long as I kept them outside!
Then again (my opinion here!), giving any chameleon regular exposure to fresh air and unfiltered sunshine does wonders for its health!
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Victor Gomez
gomezvi.tripod.com/sdchamkeepers/
gomezvi@yahoo.com

Well, I'm near Kingston,Ont, Canada so my guess is it'd be more of an 'indoor' type thing with outdoors for only a few hours a day in the summertime.
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0.0.1 Bearded Dragon (Eddie)
2.0.0 Dogs (Black German Shepherd-Nicholas, Black Lab-Cooper)
1.1.0 Budgies (Kia and Simon)
0.0.1 ?Fiddler Crab (Crusty)
0.0.25 Various Fishies (Freshwater)
2.1.0 Hubby and kids (Boy and a Girl)

I've never been anywhere near Ontario, but I imagine it's fairly cold. Keep in mind that Jax are a mountaine species, tolerating much lower temps than veileds or panthers. I've kept mine outside when temps dropped into the high 40's. I dunno if I'd reccommend keeping them out at this temp, but you can keep Jax outside in temps that would be too cool for veileds and panthers.
Meaning: they would get more time outside. More exposure to unfiltered natural sunlight and fresh air would mean a healthier, happier animal.
Then again, all this is moot if you have no intentions of EVER keeping them outside.
Like I said, something to consider!
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Victor Gomez
gomezvi.tripod.com/sdchamkeepers/
gomezvi@yahoo.com

Thanks, I will take that into consideration. We're currently running temps around mid 60's to 70 (on good days) but in the summer we can be looking at 80's and up. But these other chameleons,,, are they good for beginners? I'm not a complete idiot by the way,(not that anyone said i was!) I've go a grasp on things like lighting/heating/feeding/temps/humidity. I spend hours reading up on this stuff and want to be prepared before I even start looking into getting a terrarium set up. I've just read that veiled and panthers are good for someone who has never owned a chameleon. BUT, that said I'm always open to suggestions and will now have to start reading up on a different one that I hadn't considered before. (ug, good thing i've got access to high speed internet!) Thanks again,L.
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0.0.1 Bearded Dragon (Eddie)
2.0.0 Dogs (Black German Shepherd-Nicholas, Black Lab-Cooper)
1.1.0 Budgies (Kia and Simon)
0.0.1 ?Fiddler Crab (Crusty)
0.0.25 Various Fishies (Freshwater)
2.1.0 Hubby and kids (Boy and a Girl)

ALL of these have info on breeding, husbandry, baby/nursery info, nutrition, species, feeders, health, vets and MUCH more:

Chameleon News
This is a top source of current information compiled and written by “tops in their field.” Be sure to look at back issues
www.chameleonnews.com/

AdCham - go to their profiles to read up on specifics
www.adcham.com/

Chameleon Paradise – a site by one of our forum posters. He has FAQ, do’s and don’ts, cage building
http://www.chameleonparadise.com/

Chameleon Journals – www.chameleonjournals.com/

Reptayls – another site by a fellow KS poster
groups.msn.com/REPTAYLSChameleons
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0.1 veiled - Luna
0.2 green anoles Jaida & Jetta
0.1 brown anole - Jamaica the j sisters were sent to freedom last month
0.2 house geckos - Gaia & Tia (MIA
0.2 felines - Kyndra and Líta