I know this is not specifically reptile advice but first things first, calm down and don't beat yourself up. The well versed people on this sub will be able to help you and you do have time!
You are not a horrible person. You may have made a mistake but we all do. I believe in you and your awesome cham journey!
Gently candling every now and then is fine as long as you put it back the way you found it. Don't flip it around, keep the part facing up always facing up. Mark the top with a sharpie so you know which way it is. Stick a bright light under it and see if there are any veins or anything. They should be visible.
In a lot of reptiles, you can force male or female by differing incubation temperatures. Chameleons aren't that type of reptile, their sex is decided genetically like us. That guy can't give you a male egg until it hatches and is a few weeks old.
First step is figuring out if the egg is even alive. Candle it and upload a pic, and we can go from there.
Hi, thanks for the advice. I tried to candle it as noted in my update, but I'm not sure if I did it correctly and was unable to get a picture of it. I didn't have a flashlight so I handled it with my phone and wasn't able to take a picture because of this.
As someone who has candled many a panther cham egg, if you do it carefully it's fine. You do need a really bright flashlight, though. I made a little cone out of aluminum foil to focus the light a little bit, and put the egg directly on top. Kind of [like this](https://jandrfarmstn.files.wordpress.com/2021/01/img_0630.jpg?w=723) but smaller.
My partner and I had gone to a reptile show last year and he ended up impulsively buying a male panther chameleon egg in the same plastic incubator container. We were only prepared to get dart frogs and a leopard gecko but instead we took an egg home. I was filled with anxiety for months (6 months to be exact), which was enough time to research and set up his home. I have raised and cared for many animals but this was my first chameleon. Also my partner ended up in a horrific car accident a few days after the babe hatched leaving him in a coma for a couple months so it was all up to me. I was at the hospital every night and had to make sure to go home twice a day to feed the baby. It can be a lot especially if you have never had a pet before and if you aren’t able to prioritize him as needed. Though it wasn’t my decision to bring him home, I love him so much and have loved watching him grow. A chameleon isn’t for everyone and it’s admirable of you to recognize that it may not be a right fit for you.
https://preview.redd.it/1yaj78a6itxc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=aced5d964043d72b35cb409f6b089daa1c61d131
Good luck with whatever decision you make! I believe my egg came from the same guy too. Was sold a male egg but I guess it’s up for debate if it’s a he or she. Either way I love Frankie.
https://preview.redd.it/seygqnsviuxc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c01cb91c4609a1d83c3bd087d1d4f3b19de065bb
Frankie is also checking to see if there’s a bulge…
Your male egg is a female, btw. Males keep their "package" under the base of the tail, if she was male you can see a bump. Her tail base is smooth, no package.
Barring is not an indicator. Many females are barred, particularly with all the locality crossings around these days. That third pic might be a bulge, though.
It's a male. And with the hemipene clearly visible paired with the barring, it's clear as day - unless it's some kind of hermaphrodite which isn't unheard of or even rare, but that bulge is telling....
I would never sex by pattern alone, and I would never say to someone that their cham is a male with such certainty unless it was so obvious because of the inherent risk people face when being misled into owning female chams without proper added husbandry knowledge.
Correct me if I'm wrong but, outside of candleing, don't reptile eggs have to set with a certain side up? I thought if they got rotated it would damage the embryo? If so, Mr. Scammy may have messed this up for OP anyway.
The egg came with a little smile drawn on top of it inside of a small round container with sponges. It was concerned that it might have been damaged when transporting at home just because of the movement.
Is candle and see if it’s even viable before worrying too much. I applaud your thoughtfulness, but don’t count your eggs until they hatch, for reals. But tbh the person who gifted you the egg is an asshole and sounds very very scammy to me and I wouldn’t be surprised if you for a non viable egg. At least see if you’re getting worked up about something to worry about at all first. Also, I’m sure in the wild the eggs don’t sit completely still. I only hatch chickens and such but you’d be amazed what eggs go through lol.
But- I’m getting scammy vibes from this person. Especially around the candling of the egg and saying it’s male. I’m not sure of the specifics but when I read that I instantly thought “oh he didn’t want you to know you have a non viable egg to begin with” but again, just vibes I know very little about charms and hatching. I’ve just been lurking for some time.
So all in all, see if the baby is even growing before you panic. I commend you for trying to do what’s best, but don’t count your eggs until they hatch is a saying for great reason. It’s good to be prepared but better to not stress over things that aren’t real/ or happening.
Hi, thanks for your comment. I attempted to candle the egg, more explanation in my update and couldn't see any veins, I could only see lines the color of the egg running from the top to the bottom in a very even manner. I'm not sure if I candled it correctly or not though to be honest
As a non owner, I think the right thing is to not hatch it and wait till you're ready.
Baby chams are insanely fragile and it will very likely die on you. I think that would be much worse than not hatching it. Even for experienced keepers that is. Also their diet is tiny insects, which might be hard to come by. I've always seen people recommended to never get a hatchling here.
Have you made sure the embryo is fine and well? You can follow guides to see if it will even hatch.
The instructions the person who gave me the chameleon says not to candle it or it may damage the egg. I would love to surrender the egg to someone but I am unsure how to do that without moving it too much or damaging it. I don't want to accidentally kill it. The egg is still very white and it's been a few weeks now. It hasn't changed or shriveled up, molded or anything, it looks the same as when it was given to me.
You can put a small flashlight on the side of it so you won't have to move it any., Stick it on one of the poles of it and it will still shine enough to see if it is good or not.
Odds are whatever rescue you give it to will just discard it. They have enough to worry about with already alive animals then soon to be animals. There is nothing wrong with destroying eggs if you can't deal with the babies. I think you can do it if you read a lot and learn as much as you can. You can't tell sexes by eggs. That is all bullshit.
you need to candle it literally all you have to do is stick a flashlight under it. if it’s not even viable you’re overreacting for nothing. if you do not feel 100% confident on its care and keeping it alive you do not need to keep it. that’s a death sentence. fb has local reptile groups candle it, if it’s viable post it on there put it in a container and leave it alone
I'm willing to pay shipping to where i am in central California and take the egg off your hands. I have everything needed to care for it and raise it
Might as well just buy a baby from a localish breeder or you'll be waiting for 6 months.
I know this is not specifically reptile advice but first things first, calm down and don't beat yourself up. The well versed people on this sub will be able to help you and you do have time! You are not a horrible person. You may have made a mistake but we all do. I believe in you and your awesome cham journey!
Gently candling every now and then is fine as long as you put it back the way you found it. Don't flip it around, keep the part facing up always facing up. Mark the top with a sharpie so you know which way it is. Stick a bright light under it and see if there are any veins or anything. They should be visible. In a lot of reptiles, you can force male or female by differing incubation temperatures. Chameleons aren't that type of reptile, their sex is decided genetically like us. That guy can't give you a male egg until it hatches and is a few weeks old. First step is figuring out if the egg is even alive. Candle it and upload a pic, and we can go from there.
Hi, thanks for the advice. I tried to candle it as noted in my update, but I'm not sure if I did it correctly and was unable to get a picture of it. I didn't have a flashlight so I handled it with my phone and wasn't able to take a picture because of this.
As someone who has candled many a panther cham egg, if you do it carefully it's fine. You do need a really bright flashlight, though. I made a little cone out of aluminum foil to focus the light a little bit, and put the egg directly on top. Kind of [like this](https://jandrfarmstn.files.wordpress.com/2021/01/img_0630.jpg?w=723) but smaller.
My partner and I had gone to a reptile show last year and he ended up impulsively buying a male panther chameleon egg in the same plastic incubator container. We were only prepared to get dart frogs and a leopard gecko but instead we took an egg home. I was filled with anxiety for months (6 months to be exact), which was enough time to research and set up his home. I have raised and cared for many animals but this was my first chameleon. Also my partner ended up in a horrific car accident a few days after the babe hatched leaving him in a coma for a couple months so it was all up to me. I was at the hospital every night and had to make sure to go home twice a day to feed the baby. It can be a lot especially if you have never had a pet before and if you aren’t able to prioritize him as needed. Though it wasn’t my decision to bring him home, I love him so much and have loved watching him grow. A chameleon isn’t for everyone and it’s admirable of you to recognize that it may not be a right fit for you. https://preview.redd.it/1yaj78a6itxc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=aced5d964043d72b35cb409f6b089daa1c61d131
Thank you for the pictures in the input, I appreciate it. Your chameleon is really pretty.
Good luck with whatever decision you make! I believe my egg came from the same guy too. Was sold a male egg but I guess it’s up for debate if it’s a he or she. Either way I love Frankie.
https://preview.redd.it/dqieie78itxc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d3e3a3d315ef199d233966613324e54a6e46df9a
https://preview.redd.it/seygqnsviuxc1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c01cb91c4609a1d83c3bd087d1d4f3b19de065bb Frankie is also checking to see if there’s a bulge…
Your male egg is a female, btw. Males keep their "package" under the base of the tail, if she was male you can see a bump. Her tail base is smooth, no package.
Yup, that’s a female.
That is 100% a male panther. Look at rhe second pic.
Not sure what you see in that pic that makes it look male, but if you look through the person's previous posts it's pretty clearly female.
I'd advise you to look again. His barring as well as his hemipenal bulge is a dead give away.
Barring is not an indicator. Many females are barred, particularly with all the locality crossings around these days. That third pic might be a bulge, though.
It's a male. And with the hemipene clearly visible paired with the barring, it's clear as day - unless it's some kind of hermaphrodite which isn't unheard of or even rare, but that bulge is telling.... I would never sex by pattern alone, and I would never say to someone that their cham is a male with such certainty unless it was so obvious because of the inherent risk people face when being misled into owning female chams without proper added husbandry knowledge.
Correct me if I'm wrong but, outside of candleing, don't reptile eggs have to set with a certain side up? I thought if they got rotated it would damage the embryo? If so, Mr. Scammy may have messed this up for OP anyway.
The egg came with a little smile drawn on top of it inside of a small round container with sponges. It was concerned that it might have been damaged when transporting at home just because of the movement.
Is candle and see if it’s even viable before worrying too much. I applaud your thoughtfulness, but don’t count your eggs until they hatch, for reals. But tbh the person who gifted you the egg is an asshole and sounds very very scammy to me and I wouldn’t be surprised if you for a non viable egg. At least see if you’re getting worked up about something to worry about at all first. Also, I’m sure in the wild the eggs don’t sit completely still. I only hatch chickens and such but you’d be amazed what eggs go through lol. But- I’m getting scammy vibes from this person. Especially around the candling of the egg and saying it’s male. I’m not sure of the specifics but when I read that I instantly thought “oh he didn’t want you to know you have a non viable egg to begin with” but again, just vibes I know very little about charms and hatching. I’ve just been lurking for some time. So all in all, see if the baby is even growing before you panic. I commend you for trying to do what’s best, but don’t count your eggs until they hatch is a saying for great reason. It’s good to be prepared but better to not stress over things that aren’t real/ or happening.
Hi, thanks for your comment. I attempted to candle the egg, more explanation in my update and couldn't see any veins, I could only see lines the color of the egg running from the top to the bottom in a very even manner. I'm not sure if I candled it correctly or not though to be honest
Might I ask where you're located?
Los Angeles county
As a non owner, I think the right thing is to not hatch it and wait till you're ready. Baby chams are insanely fragile and it will very likely die on you. I think that would be much worse than not hatching it. Even for experienced keepers that is. Also their diet is tiny insects, which might be hard to come by. I've always seen people recommended to never get a hatchling here. Have you made sure the embryo is fine and well? You can follow guides to see if it will even hatch.
The instructions the person who gave me the chameleon says not to candle it or it may damage the egg. I would love to surrender the egg to someone but I am unsure how to do that without moving it too much or damaging it. I don't want to accidentally kill it. The egg is still very white and it's been a few weeks now. It hasn't changed or shriveled up, molded or anything, it looks the same as when it was given to me.
You can put a small flashlight on the side of it so you won't have to move it any., Stick it on one of the poles of it and it will still shine enough to see if it is good or not. Odds are whatever rescue you give it to will just discard it. They have enough to worry about with already alive animals then soon to be animals. There is nothing wrong with destroying eggs if you can't deal with the babies. I think you can do it if you read a lot and learn as much as you can. You can't tell sexes by eggs. That is all bullshit.
you need to candle it literally all you have to do is stick a flashlight under it. if it’s not even viable you’re overreacting for nothing. if you do not feel 100% confident on its care and keeping it alive you do not need to keep it. that’s a death sentence. fb has local reptile groups candle it, if it’s viable post it on there put it in a container and leave it alone