Reptile & Amphibian Forums

im new to chameleions, i got a vield and i hear they dont like people ect...however mine (ive had him for about 8 months) gets blackspots when he dosent see people for a long piriod, you can tell he is defintly got his angry colors on. dispite this he still hisses when i put my hand in the cage and only comes out semi-reluctantly. whenever i take him out at first he gets very bright but after a moment or two of being on my hand he calms down and turns back to normal brown, so i usualy have to take him out once a day. am i hurting him more then i would be if i let him be with the black spots in the cage?
any advice would be verrrrrry helpful

Hi - Could you give us an idea of your setup? The "black spots" could be due to being cold in his cage and he warms up on your hand. If he is hissing when you go to pick him up, then don't. he is saying that he would rather you fix the temps in his cage than get on your hand

To make it easy on you go to the link below and to the Questions/Setup section and copy and paste (or however you want to do it) to make sure we get enough info as this is more likely an environmental thing than liking people. For all you know he could be a nice comfy green and as soon as he sees you the black stress spots show up! :-O

lele

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Chameleon Help & Resource Info

0.1 Veiled Chameleon - Luna. She's now hanging from her big jungle gym in the sky
1.0 Beardie - Darwin
0.2 felines - Kyndra and Lita
0.1 African Clawed Frog - Skipper
0.3 Mad. Hissers (2 died ;(
0.1 Chilean Rose Hair Tarantula - Rosa Leigh
0.1 Goliath Bird-Eater Tarantula - Natasha

His cage is about 2 deep 3 1/2 high 3 wide, hes got good heat at day and at night and proper uvb, lots of stuff to climb on, a waterfall, and some great live plants. he eats and drinks alot too and is a good size for his age. i think its just cus he used to be in the living room but sence we got a iguana we had to move him in the bedroom (he flips out when he sees it) where theres alot less traffic. so i shouldent be takeing him out? also waht do different colors on chameleons mean?

>>His cage is about 2 deep 3 1/2 high 3 wide,
How old is your chameleons, is he a male or female? by 2 deep, do you mean 2 feet in depth?
>>hes got good heat at day and at night and proper uvb, lots of stuff to climb on,
What temp is his hot spot? What EXACTLY do you mean by good heat, what are the temperature variants? What sort of UVB lights are you using, when was the last time the were replaced? What sort of 'stuff' does he have to climb on? How well planted is his environment?
>> a waterfall,
How often are you cleaning this waterfall? What is the purpose of the water being in his enclosure? Are you using this to provide water for your chameleon, are you trying to increase the humidity, or do you simply like the looks of the waterfall?
>>and some great live plants.
What sort of live plants? What are the scientific names of the plants, and are they toxic?
>>he eats and drinks alot too and is a good size for his age.
What size is he, how much does he weigh, how old is he?
>> i think its just cus he used to be in the living room but sence we got a iguana we had to move him in the bedroom (he flips out when he sees it) where theres alot less traffic.
Moving your chameleon from a familiar environment will cause a certain amount of stress. Adding a new herp to his environment will also stress your chameleon.
>>so i shouldent be takeing him out? also waht do different colors on chameleons mean?
Chameleons are anti-social in general and do not enjoy interacting with others. At the most, they might tolerate you. Coloration on a chameleon means a lot of different things, but generally dark colors indicate stress, bright intense colors could be an intimidation or display.
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Victor Gomez
gomezvi@yahoo.com

2 feet as in depth, hes about 8 mothns old and a male, over a foot from snout to tail, im not shure of the weight but hes hardy. his heat comes from a day/night heat bulb, his plant isent toxic, they look kinda like mini palm trees,the waterfall always has clean water and is cleaned itself regularly, he drinks out of it and its not just for looks. i belive his basking point is about 85/90 if he choses to go right near it and the rest of the cage is probly about 75-80 during the day. i forget the name of the uvb blub but it produces uva and uvb and i recently replaced the blub. we supliment all his food with calcium and reptile vitamens and he eats a dozen crickets 3-4 times a week. i jsut wanna know if im hurting him by takeing him out (he displays colors like bright yellow,green,baby blue, and orange at first when he comes out) and also what should normal colors be (when hes happy or at rest). he seems go to a deep forest green, dark brown, and black when hes not happy at all but most of the time is brown, or brown with a slight bit of light green. i cant find any information on what these colors mean?