Monster The Juvenile Parson's Chameleon

You might be over doing it a bit on the feeding regiment. Could cause a problem down the road. Animal looks great though.

He is offered food 6 days a week in the middle of the week he is not fed on wednesday i leave him time to clear his system he is offered food twice a day at noon and at 3 oclock if he is hungry he will eat if not he won't as you can see from the pics this animal is extremely well hydrated and his overall physical appearnce is excellent ...

He looks great, no doubt about that and all this isn't to say youre not doing a good job. I'm thinking down the road and what over feeding does to these guys. It is pretty taxing, that whole candle burning at both ends. At the amount you're feeding, he could do a 2 days on 1 day off and still do great imo and not burn out.

That is a pretty serious feeding schedule... The animal looks great, but I've been feeding mine 3 or 4 days a week (once a day). That kinda stuff can backfire, just keep your eye on him.

hmmn 3 or 4 days a week for a young animal this i totally 100 perc do not agree with!!!! as an adult yes but for a growing juvenile they need to eat daily , i could not imagine feeding any chameleon at 9 months old 3 or 4 days a week , one thing is for sure if the animal is hungry he will eat , if he is not he wont. In Madagascar they dont have time schedules for eating once again if the animal is hungry he will eat again if not he wont , i have nevr had a problem with feeding 6 days a week in my ten years of keeping many different species of chameleons

Nick,
This really isn't to say you're a bad guy, I don't think that you are, but c'mon man. You yourself said this guy grew 15 grams in 1 week, and 32 in 15 days. You don't see that there might be something just a bit off here? At least a little?

Being on steroids isn't a good thing dude. Sure, you look great or think you look great for a time but it ruins you eventually and you end up dying early. I think where this species is at in captive husbandry, you just shouldn't be taking unnecessary risks. Especially one so blantant like this. This is an animal that lives naturally 20+ years. Animals that long lived aren't supposed to grow like that and be healthy long term. At the end of the day, you shelled out the cash for him but imo you aren't sending out the right message by gording your animal and saying it is great.

I don't expect you to agree with what I said, I can tell by your initial post that you're eager to see a 30" chameleon. Sure, they'll eat if they're hungry, or pass it up if they're not, but do you think naturally, they wake up in the morning, decide "hey, I've got a tingle of hunger inside" and a big grasshopper lands in front of their face asking to be eaten? I really doubt it, but maybe I'm wrong. I would think opening the cage 12 times a week (2 feedings each day, 6 days a week in case it's unclear) would be enough stress to do some damage, but apparently not. Again, the animal looks good, but what's the rush? Anyone that's kept a chameleon long term knows that a slow to moderate growth rate turns into a much more solid animal, and I would think this would apply even more in an animal like this. It's your animal dude, do what you want.

Nick,

Unfortunately, I think they're right. That kind of weight gain has a lot of potential to cause significant metabolic issues down the road. While most species grow quite rapidly, their life strategy is such that they need to reproduce fast and as much as possible before they die and as such, need to get big quick. Parsonii don't reach sexual maturity for 3 years and live 20 years for a reason. They're reproductive strategy is different and the type of growth you're seeing in your guy would concern me. He looks great now but I would slow him down just to avoid any potential problems in the future. I feed mine 4 or 5 days a week and they do quite well with that feeding schedule. I don't have data on weekly weight growth though on me to compare. Just my 2 cents.

Geez, I don't know why I'm bothering, but I've got a few minutes so here goes:

1. Nobody really thought you were literally pumping steroids into your chameleon.... He was just repeating what you had said, knowing it was sarcastic.

2. I never suggested that you should try to come up with grasshoppers to feed. I clearly said "naturally," meaning, in nature (they're from Madagascar in case you are going to question that too).

3. Actually, I'm gonna stop here.... I could go to about 12, but the CAPS LOCK IS GIVING ME A HEADACHE. I see where it's going and all it's gonna do is go farther into nowhere. Plus, it's your chameleon dude, do what you want LOL. I'm just trying to help you avoid heartbreak.

tyler okay , what about the feeding twice a day i guess my point makes no sense come on dude think about it , oh your right in the wild they eat all their prey items at once give me a break ..... Heartbrek later well do me a favor send me pics of your parsonii and ill send you pics of mine then we'll see who has the experience down the road ...... Feeding twice a day sensibly is the way to go this is obvious please ,you theory for feeding them all at once will bring you a heartbreak , im done with this conversation oh by the way could you send me pics of your parsoniii would love to see them and could you e mail me with there growth chart, or do you not bother to keep one .....

Nick,

I don't think anyone here is really stating that feeding two smaller feedings over the course of a day rather then a single large one is really an issue, especially with an animal that takes interaction well as you say this male does. I think more of the issue is that when you add up the entire intake over a week long period, it's becoming excesive. Its a combination of two smaller feedings a day and feeding 6 days a week. My feeling is that the animal is eating more every day with the two feedings then it would with one larger one and then doing so 6 days a week, he's ending up eating a ton and his growth rate reflects it. I wouldn't say that your logic is flawed in offering food in smaller portions twice a day over larger once a day or that your logic is flawed thinking that too many fasting days in a week is natural either. I simply think that overall the routine is a little much and you should think about cutting back some. Maybe feed him once a day every other day and twice a day on the days in between along with a fasting day somewhere in the mix or offer more silkworms then hornworms (which are higher in fat), etc. There are a number of things you could try just to slow him down a little. I simply think the growth rate you're seeing could be a problem in the long term and you wouldn't want something like fatty liver disease or something else to pop up later.

Chris

as i thought no awnser to the question of why tyler to smalll feeding s a day are better than one large one , you have no awnser because im right you really outta get out of Parsonii and stick to calyptratus or one of the beginner species i make no sense i was writing articles in the CIn in the 90's i guarantee ive been working with them as long or longer than you i leave it at this you know so much well lets see who does what with the Parsonii down the road , and stick to feeding your juveniles 3 times a week , i laugh at that, i find that funny , any time youd like to talk chams please give me a call 215 632 3782 , id love to hear all your knowledge ......

Chris the point im trying to reach here is that juveniles need to be fed obviously more often than adults this man is telling me he will feed them sometimes 3 days a week , and you agree with this jeez !!!! 3 days a week for any juvenile ive never ever heard of it in ten years of keeping chameleons , adults !!!!!! absolutely, 3 or 4 times a week especially during the winter where the Parsonii's metabloism slows down.... as far as the hornworms go obviously they are higher in fat , they are only offered as treats , silw , crcikets, and roaches are the main staple of their diet , during the winter months while wild caught prey is used during the warmer months, I guess what we'll have to see is how things work out down the road , so time will tell , im not saying im 100 perc correct about my beliefs , their is no proven science to it only theories chris , this im sure you agree with and the reason for the big weight gain once again i wrote these animals weren't in tip top they were being housed together with other parsonii which is a definite no no in my book , did anyone ever stop to think??? That just maybe they stopped stressing and gained weight quickly due to the fact they were more comfortable being housed by them selves and not with other Parsonii , Let me get out my chart , after the 1st 10 days he gained 17 grams,arrival was 72 gr, after day 10 here he was 89 gr,,okay let's move on after 17 days the animal weighed 104 grams thats a total of 32 grams in 17 days that took the animals weight to104 grams, now here is the point im getting at... After 24 days upon arrival, The animals weight was 101 grams, 3 gr weight loss from the previous weighin the week before,which would support my theory , notice how the weight is starting to pan out after 31 days ,,, which was yesterday... the animals weight was 105 grams thats a 4 gr weight gain in the last week his total weight gain in slightly over a month is 33 grams, but keeep in mind how the weight gain has signifigantly dropped and now normal weight gains are comming about, the weight gains upon arrival are in my belief that the animal was not taken care of properly due to the fact of too many animals at the facility , if there is anyone who reads this and takes weekly, bi weekly or even monthly weigh in's of their Parsonii please contact me @ nickv268@yahoo.com , i think whats best here is more frequent records being kept as in that we may learn more about these stunning animals and their growth rate in captivity ......

Nick,

No, this isn't a science and I'm not trying to say you aren't a capable keeper or that you're just wrong. All I'm trying to say is that if it were me, I would look at that type of feeding regiment and weight gain and worry about side effects down the road. I'm glad to hear though that his weight gains have decreased now that he's settling in and you could be right, he could have simply been on the thin side if he had been kept in a group environment before. I feed my parsonii 4-5 days a week and in my opinion, they grow quite well as such. I'm not trying to race to get them big and in my opinion, a slightly slower growth rate is better then one too fast (that isn't to say starve them either, by any means). These animals are long lived enough that I personally would worry about the impact of prolonged over feeding and really all I'm trying to do is caution you about it so that it's in the back of your mind as I think it could be more of an issue in the long term with this species then many others.

I think everyone should keep an open mind when it comes to raising Parsons.These majestic chameleons deserve that.Just because someone isn't using the same exact techniques as someone else is no reason to call people out about what they are doing unless it is obviously wrong.Nick sounds like he has a good head on his shoulders about chameleons. Better to possibly learn something than judge. I have been keeping,breeding chameleons for 15 years and even within the same species no two are alike so everything the same way doesn't apply.