# Pygmy chameleons



## garbonzo13

I found a couple sites that sell these cuties if anyone is interested. www.sandfiredragonranch.com and also www.LLLreptiles.com I didn't know they were available. They are cheap to.


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## Samzo

lol Cute


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## Geckospot

Hey Garbonzo. If you decide to buy some of these, buy captive bred specimens from Sandfire. I have done plenty of business with sandfire and they are top notch. I wont get started on how I feel about LLL.

www.Geckospot.com


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## Ian

Also, (leah, take note  ) Leah has some for sale!

www.wildeyereptiles.com

Cheers,

Ian


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## garbonzo13

Hey Gecko, I most likely won't go after the pygmies, but I do have a WC Scarlet Snake. I can't get it to eat crickets or mealworms. I have read it is a lizard eater...does that mean I have to catch small lizards to feed it? That is my next try for feeder. It hasn't eaten since I caught it on Sunday evening. I know nothing about snakes. I will try to get a pic up tonight after I go into town to borrow my parents camera.


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## Samzo

Maybe if you have no success you should consider letting it go, just in case you kill it... i mean it dies

:lol:


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## garbonzo13

I plan to if it seems to get weak, but it is strong so far, and I believe they can fast for a while. :wink: Wiseguy. :lol:


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## Samzo

lol :lol: Ok, got a pic of it?


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## Geckospot

Its ok. Kingsnakes can go months without eating. They are primarily lizard/snake eaters (thats why they're called kingsnakes). You'll never get it to eat bugs LOL. You can offer it anoles from your yard or try mice from the petstore. Many kingsnake keepers have problems getting their WC snakes to eat mice. Try catching a few large anoles outside and break off the tails. Put the tails in the freezer. When you're ready to feed the snake, rub the blood from the lizard tail on the mouse. This is called scenting and often works to get those stubborn snakes to eat. If you are keeping it in an outside cage, it may have gone into brumation since its gotten pretty cold here all of the sudden. You can get loads of information from the kingsnake forums at www.kingsnake.com. Let me know how it turns out.  

www.Geckospot.com


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## garbonzo13

Not yet, parent went out and cannot get ahold of them(damn party animals) so I have to wait until tomorrow. They have to come back sometime. LOL


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## Johnald Chaffinch

i read something about pygmy chameleons, arent they harder than normal to keep. like they get really stressed easily or something


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## Geckospot

They get stressed pretty easily but they're not that hard to keep. Just feed them drosophila and mist 2x a day. They are mostly ground dwelling so some leaves, bark and twigs can be used as substrate.

www.Geckospot.com


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## Johnald Chaffinch

i read they dont need any special lighting, is this true ?


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## Geckospot

Im pretty sure they can be kept at room temp although a warm basking spot is benificial. They do need UV light.

www.Geckospot.com


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## Johnald Chaffinch

it says on a Pygmy Chameleon Specialist website

'They don’t need UV light, all they need is heat and slight humidity.'

how much harder are they to look after than mantids?


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## Ian

ohhh, thankyou so muc jonald  

I have been looking for neils contact details for ages....

cheers!

Ian


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## Leah

> it says here at The Pygmy Chameleon Specialist - http://ntrickett.demonweb.co.uk/page10.html'They don’t need UV light, all they need is heat and slight humidity.'
> 
> how much harder are they to look after than mantids?


A LOT harder than mantids, and a heck of a lot more expensive. That is one of the worse sites I have ever seen for any animal, let alone a chameleon. You need to keep in mind who writes these things, and WHY. If you are trying to sell a bunch, you are going to tell people they are really easy to care for... I've been keeping chameleons (and breeding them) for 10+ years, and while pygmies are a walk in the park compared to standard chameleons, they are still a chameleon - one of the hardest animals to keep in captivity.

Here's some legitimate sites that you can find loads of info on:

www.chameleoninfo.com

www.chameleonnews.com

www.adcham.com

www.chameleonjournals.com


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## Johnald Chaffinch

i had a friend in wales that had two yemens ( one was pregnant when i saw em ) his setup was pretty basic ( but large ), they seemed perfectly content.

wouldnt a chameleon be more 'hardier' than a mantis? i mean wouldnt their mortality rate be higher... :?


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## Leah

No, a chameleon is one of the hardest animals in captivity to keep, period. Mantids are cake in comparison, even the more difficult species.

"Yemen"/Veiled chameleons are the species that takes the longest abuse - they will last years in poor conditions, but VERY few people can keep them alive their natural lifespan - 10+ years. Most of them die in 3 mos or less.


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## Johnald Chaffinch

poor fellas


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## Jwonni

what is hard about them is it stuff like temperature?

i was at the wildlife oasis a while ago and they had a cham and they said they were not going to pick it up as that can result in death is that true?


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## Leah

Its not true in that the act of picking it up will kill it immediately.. its that chameleons are extremely sensitive to stress, and picking them up stresses them. Stress kills them, so in a sense, holding them, can kill them.

Their requirements are hard to meet, but mostly, they are different than other animals and people fail to realize that and kill them. Stress is a HUGE factor, and keeping an animal that stresses from everything, stress-free is a serious challenge. Add to that most species are not captive bred, and come to you in very poor shape, and you have a recipe for disaster.

That being said, pygmy chameleons are not as fussy as true chameleons, their requirements are easier to meet, and they are easier to keep stress-free due to their size.


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## Johnald Chaffinch

i'm just baffled by this, because my friend has had two for years - in a busy environment, climb around on people regularly and they're so content that one of them's pregnant. he must just be lucky


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## Leah

As I said, "Yemen" chameleons can live for years in poor conditions, they are not typical of true chameleons in that respect. They also are very easy to breed, which is why there are so many of them...


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## Johnald Chaffinch

> it says here at The Pygmy Chameleon Specialist - http://ntrickett.demonweb.co.uk/page10.htmlpygmies are a walk in the park compared to standard chameleons' date=' they are still a chameleon - one of the hardest animals to keep in captivity. [/quote']
> 
> how long would pygmy chameleons live for ( on average ) in a stressy environment? are they easier than yemen then?
Click to expand...


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## Ian

why not look on a chameleon forum for all this??

There are loads around, that will give you loads of info, more than you would probably want to know.

Just takes a lil lookin around, and all your questions will soon be answered.

Cheers,

Ian


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## Leah

> how long would pygmy chameleons live for ( on average ) in a stressy environment? are they easier than yemen then?


Usually no more than 3-4 weeks, however, if they are only somewhat stressed, 6 mos or so. They are easier than a Yemen in some respects, but all Yemens are captive bred, and CB pygmies are hard to find.


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## Way.Of.The.Mantis

> why not look on a chameleon forum for all this??There are loads around, that will give you loads of info, more than you would probably want to know.
> 
> Just takes a lil lookin around, and all your questions will soon be answered.
> 
> Cheers,
> 
> Ian


Kill the mutineer! :evil:

but seriously, does anyone know if www.sandfiredragonranch.com ship abroad (ie about of the US)?

My friend had a yemen, cost £90, although iot climbed up a curtain and died, when its er, head cusioned its fall..


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## Ian

That sounds so bad! I have never heard of a chameleon dying from a fall. In fact, my male Yemen has fallen from his high branch before, and climbed happily back up.

I think the moral of the story is, to keep chameleons away from curtains  

Sandfire do ship abroad, they used to supply Steve Gill from Gillworthreptiles (can't remember his new site).


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