Female Panther Chameleons (breeding)

Here recently I have been asked about my tactics for breeding panther chameleons.  How to keep the quality of my females' lives up and have them live long lives.  Honestly the most important part of females lives are their first 6 months.  This part of their life will greatly affect their longevity.  The hard part is getting the females to not produce eggs until they are well matured and to slow down egg production after they have laid their first clutch.  I normally don't breed  my females until they are roughly 8 months old or about 75 grams.  This being said I believe the key is growing the females slow.  Because if you over feed your chameleon will grow quickly but she will also produce eggs much earlier in life, which is what we are trying to avoid.  The more clutches a female panther chameleon lays, the shorter he lifespan will be.  Basically the egg laying process is so hard on their body's that it takes it toll.  

I find if she avoids all contact with male panther chameleons and grows about an inch a month (total length) then they won't start producing eggs until they are 8 months old.  Then after the first breeding they normally double clutch (have one a month after copulation and another 2 months after copulation).  Then after that second clutch I keep my females a little bit drier (misting twice a day at most) and feed them less.  I feel like 2 good clutches a year is perfect for longevity.

Good luck and happy breeding,

Chris

Raleigh Reptile Show

We just wanted to let you know that Clean Line Chameleons will be exhibiting at the upcoming show in Raleigh, NC.  This show is put on by Gila Productions on May 2nd and 3rd.  We will bring many different blood lines of panther chameleons as well as some veiled chameleons.  If you would like us to bring a specific locale of panther chameleon please contact us and let us know what you are looking for.

Thanks and see you at the show,

Chris

Panther Chameleon (and other chameleon) Enthusiasts

Hello, I am Chris and I have been keeping chameleons for quite a few years now.  I first started keeping chameleons about 10 years ago with a pair of Jackson's Chameleons.  This was back around 1998 and I was only about 16.  At this time there was little known about the proper husbandry of chameleons.  I recall keeping my pair in a bird cage (at least we knew to keep them in a well ventilated enclosure) with a dripper and misting them twice a day.  I bought this pair for $200 and wow did I have a lot to learn.

I will continue to update this blog in hopes that some new keeper will learn a bit from my experiences and that possibly another young keeper will improve the life of their new pets.

Ahh where to begin...ok there are quite a few basics that are commonly agreed upon throughout the industry.  The first and foremost is all chameleons drink mist from leaves, they do not recognize standing water as a source (and no waterfalls are not adequate for moving water, they breed bacteria {I will go over this in later posts}).  So this means that, most chameleons, need to be misted at least two times a day.  Panther chameleons can be misted twice for about 5 minutes at a time, but I prefer to mist 3 times a day for 5 minutes per misting.  Some of the montane chameleon species: Montium Chameleons, Meller's Chameleons, Jackson's Chameleons, and Parson's Chameleons all need much more water per day.  I suggest at least 30 minutes of mistings a day accompanied by a dripper.

Another huge part of keeping a chameleon (at least a Panther Chameleon or Veiled Chameleon) is supplementation.  I named these two species because montane species do not require as much supplementation but supplementation is vital to Panther Chameleons and Veiled Chameleons.  These two species need their food to be properly gut-loaded and supplementation every week.  There are quite a few supplementation schedules out there and many gut-loads, I will go more in detail in later posts, but for now know that their food needs to be properly gut-loaded and supplemented with vitamins and minerals.

Accompanying supplementation is lighting.  UVB lighting plays a vital roll in calcium absorption.  UVB provides vitamin D to chameleons which allows for proper breakdown and absorption of Calcium.  Furthermore, chameleons should have a basking area which for adult Panther Chameleons should be about 93F (I accomplish this with a 75 watt incandescent with ambient temps of 75F) and for Veiled Chameleons should be about 96F (I accomplish this with a 100 watt incandescent with ambient temps of 75F).  This heat source helps chameleons keep their metabolism high which allows proper food breakdown.  Montane chameleons require much less heat and a lower ambient temperature. 

Another important facet of chameleon husbandry that I feel is often overlooked is the amount of food they consume.  Younger chameleons (ages 3 months to 8 months) consume about 8 to 15 feeder items a day (Panther Chameleons on the low end of the scale while Veiled Chameleons tend to be on the higher end) while adult chameleons only need about 10 feeders every other day.  Basically once a chameleon is past their growing stage they should slow down (I tend to see this around a year old) in order to maintain their weight.

Lastly for now is their enclosures.  All chameleons, except for pygmy chameleons should be kept in screen enclosures.  Think, most chameleons are arboreal where the air is constantly moving.  Many people in the past have experience difficulties keeping chameleons in glass cages because after misting, the humid air sits and stagnates (even with a screen topped cage) allowing bacteria to grow.  Many times these chameleons develop an infection in their respiratory tract (URI or LRI).  In later posts I will share what drugs have helped my chameleons and which do more harm than good. 

So, a good screen cage 16"x16"x30" for 3 month olds and 24"x24"x36" for adults should be adequate.  In general, the bigger the better except for young chameleons.  I say this because young chameleons need a great deal of food and well supplemented food.  If you keep a young chameleon in a large cage their is more time between each feeder consumed and many times these feeders rub off the supplementation or excrete what they have been gut-loaded with, which results in lower nutritional value per feeder.  

Additionally, chameleons do better (except for pygmy and possibly Meller's Chameleons) caged individually with no or little visual contact.  I let mine see each other occasionally for mental stimulation, in the wild they will come across other chameleons from time to time.

That's it for now, but next time I am planning on talking about chameleon enclosures in general and what are necessities of any chameleon enclosure.

Ambilobe

WC Ambanja

If you have any question please feel free to e-mail me at chris@cleanlinechameleons.com

Thanks and happy keeping!

-chris