Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have always thought about getting a few chams and raising them up to breed. The one thing that keeps pushing back the idea is their incubation/gestation period. What would everyone suggest, getting a few baby vieleds or panthers, raising them up and breeding them, and then waiting the 9 months for the eggs to hatch, or getting some jacksons and not deal with any eggs? Opinions please.

Thanks

Live-bearers vs egg-layers.... it's still a long time before you have most chameleon babies. Some egg-layers have shorter incubation times that 8-9 months (i.e.: pygmy chameleons; meller chameleons), but remember: you can lose eggs as easily as you can have still-births.

I don't see an advantage of one over the other. If you are expecting a "fast buck" from breeding reptiles - choose a different kind. If you love chameleons, you accept the requirements to produce more!

Just my $ .02

if I wanted a fast buck, I wouldnt be breeding monitors. Id still be breeding geckos. Chameleons are just fascinating. its sad that they take so long for incubation.

Hey there,

I would have to agree with reptayls. Wether you would choose a live-bearer (in which the eggs would be incubated inside the mother) or an egg-layer, it takes a fair ammount of time before they actually produce the babies.

If your also looking the sell the babies for the most you can, than a panther chameleon would be your best bet. But, if you just breeding them for pure enjoyment, anyone is great!

Michele

Hi,

If you are breeding chameleons to make some quick cash, you are not going to be happy. Chameleons are not the best money makers, especially compared to other reptiles. Most breeders bred them for the enjoyment of the hobby. If you can make a little bit of money on the side its great. But keep in mind that whatever species you breed, you will probably not be making money off the first clutch that you sell. It takes alot of time and patience....

Panthers lay alot of eggs, and the offspring sell for the most; and in my opinion have the prettiest colors. Veileds have even more eggs, but the offspring does not sell for that much money. I am not too sure about jacksons, but I do know that they sell for a moderate amount of money, and do not havef too many ofspring. Panthers are probably your best bet. But do not forget that you will not make profit off chameleons for quite some time. Keep chameleons for the joy of keeping chameleons; not for profit.

Ank-Inc.
Adam.

In defense of the guy that asked the question, he never said a word about money or trying to make a return on it.

Keep in mind that although panthers do lay a decent number of eggs (23-27 is typical at least for me), they generally have a lower hatch rate than something like a veiled chameleon. The reason panthers are expensive has more to do with the difficulty breeding/hatching them than the fact that they're "pretty." Everyone wants a panther, and everyone would buy them if they could afford them, but the current round of breeders can only produce so much, where something like a veiled can be mass produced relatively easy (large amounts of eggs foolproof incubation high hatch rates = flooded market = low prices). With panthers you don't have these problems (yet) since they're still trickier to get out of the egg than veileds are.

Also keep in mind that if you were to get a pair of, say, Jacksons chameleons, breed them, sit on the female for 6-8 months and wait for the drop, IF the babies were slugs or didn't make it, you'd basically be out of your 6 or 8 month wait completely and you'd be starting from scratch. If you had gone with, say, a veiled, you would probably have a second clutch incubating and halfway to hatching if your first clutch went downhill for one reason or another (so you're only out 3 months if your goal is producing babies).

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Tyler Stewart
Las Vegas NV
www.BLUEBEASTREPTILE.com

yah I dont remember saying I was breeding for money. I was wondering which species, because I love seeing hatchlings and its so hard to choose when all the species are so unique. I love jacksons mostly because of their horns I find the horns very interesting. I love pnathers, well because of their color. Who doesn't love a nice nosey be. And I was just curious if it is better to go with a live bearer or an egg layer? thanks though, and sorry for the confusion.