The Diet of Chameleons

There are more than 100 species of chameleons that all share a similar diet. Most are insectivores with the larger species enjoying a bird or rodent when the opportunity arises. A species few also eat plants. As pets, they are not considered easy or hardy in part because they have specific dietary needs that must be met for them to survive and be healthy. Here is a general overview of what you can feed a pet chameleon.

  1. Insects

    • The main portion of a chameleon's diet should be insects. However, just buying insects from the pet store and feeding them immediately to your pet chameleon is not healthy. Insects must first be "gut loaded" with nutrients. This is where the insects are raised eating good foods before giving them to the lizard. Essentially the stomach contents of an insect are the primary source of nutrition for the chameleon. Insects can be fed commercial food made just for them (for example cricket food for crickets can be purchased at the pet store), or a variety of dark leafy greens and cat food. Insects that you can feed include mealworms, fruit flies, waxworms and crickets.

    Rodents

    • Rodents should only be offered to the larger chameleons such as the panther chameleon. They can be fed small or pinkie mice on occasion.

    Vegetation

    • Some species such as the veiled chameleon do eat some plant matter. They can be fed flowers such as roses or trumpet vine flowers; and leafy greens, such as dandelion or kale, in addition to insects.

    How Often To Feed

    • Chameleons can be fed insects three to four times a week. For species that are omnivorous they can be given plant matter about once a week in addition to the insects. Be sure to remove the uneaten greens within 24 hours so that it does not rot in the cage.

    Vitamin Supplements

    • Insects, mice, and/or vegetables can be dusted with a reptile vitamin supplement two to three times a week.

    Water

    • Chameleons in the wild do not drink from pools of standing water. They live in the trees where they get their water from the leaves as it rains or condenses. As a pet they must have water present in a similar fashion or they will become dehydrated and die. They will not drink water out of a bowl. Instead they should be given water by misting their cage several times a day or by creating a drip system. The water must be moving for the chameleon to drink.

    Diet Tips

    • Please note that as a general overview this does not cover species-specific diets in depth. There may be minor differences for each species that should be researched before getting one as a pet.