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