I've had Pancake now for 2 1/2 months. We handle him almost every day (sometimes we travel on weekends and have our roommate take care of him, and he reaches in and pats him on the head). He's cool with us reaching in and petting him but then he flinches still. He seems really scared of us despite him eating out of my hand now, but even then after I feed him a few worms, his beard turns bright crayon yellow, and he looks up at me and opens his mouth and starts hissing and squeaking. I really don't know what to do, I've been having him on my shoulder or my desk almost everyday, but recently stopped because I'm moving the room around. Even then I'll take him out for a few and he has this really scared look in his eyes (pupils small, really twitchy body movements) and he'll try to run off. I'll pick him up trying to make sure he doesn't run off the desk and he clawed my arm up yesterday trying to get away.
When he does that I get a soft clean hand towel and I wrap him up in it and keep him in front of me, he then seems to start breathing hard (his whole body sucks in and puffs out) and I feel really horrible but I've been told to just keep him there in front of me for him to get used to me. I even pet him on the head once in a while and he doesn't snap or do anything then. He's never been treated badly, we all treat him with kindness and gentleness.
I've tried:
-Putting food in his mouth when he puffs and opens his mouth.
-Misting (not spraying! it's a gentle mist) him with a water bottle when he puffs up and hisses. (he flinches and stops)
-Giving him baths in lukewarm water to calm down in.
-The "burrito" technique.
-He can be successfully hand fed for a bit.
-He's stayed on my shoulder as I went through different levels of the house.
-He'll sleep on my shoulder one second then hiss the next.
He's never tried to bite us, just starts the open mouth hissing and squeaking and puffing his beard. Usually beardies have a black beard they puff out, but his is that yellow, and he barely puffs it out. Does it mean he's scared? When we approach the tank he runs to the side of the tank trying to get out but will let us pick him up and will run up onto one of our shoulders.
We DO have a dog in the house, she's small and never has bothered the lizard tank before, do you think the smell of the dog frightens him? She's honestly getting really smelly and needs a bath but we can't do anything about it since it's my fiance's brother's dog. The lizard does know she exists, he was okay coming downstairs with me on my shoulder and eating lunch with me. He sees the dog and clings hard and hides in my hair when he knows shes around, but he hasn't come into contact with her.
He's still really young, he can't be bigger than 12-13 inches. I thought he was improving getting used to people but it doesn't seem like he is. I'm feeling really down because I don't know if I'm doing anything wrong. Please give me any advice you can that will give my lizard comfort that I'm not going to hurt him.
When he does that I get a soft clean hand towel and I wrap him up in it and keep him in front of me, he then seems to start breathing hard (his whole body sucks in and puffs out) and I feel really horrible but I've been told to just keep him there in front of me for him to get used to me. I even pet him on the head once in a while and he doesn't snap or do anything then. He's never been treated badly, we all treat him with kindness and gentleness.
I've tried:
-Putting food in his mouth when he puffs and opens his mouth.
-Misting (not spraying! it's a gentle mist) him with a water bottle when he puffs up and hisses. (he flinches and stops)
-Giving him baths in lukewarm water to calm down in.
-The "burrito" technique.
-He can be successfully hand fed for a bit.
-He's stayed on my shoulder as I went through different levels of the house.
-He'll sleep on my shoulder one second then hiss the next.
He's never tried to bite us, just starts the open mouth hissing and squeaking and puffing his beard. Usually beardies have a black beard they puff out, but his is that yellow, and he barely puffs it out. Does it mean he's scared? When we approach the tank he runs to the side of the tank trying to get out but will let us pick him up and will run up onto one of our shoulders.
We DO have a dog in the house, she's small and never has bothered the lizard tank before, do you think the smell of the dog frightens him? She's honestly getting really smelly and needs a bath but we can't do anything about it since it's my fiance's brother's dog. The lizard does know she exists, he was okay coming downstairs with me on my shoulder and eating lunch with me. He sees the dog and clings hard and hides in my hair when he knows shes around, but he hasn't come into contact with her.
He's still really young, he can't be bigger than 12-13 inches. I thought he was improving getting used to people but it doesn't seem like he is. I'm feeling really down because I don't know if I'm doing anything wrong. Please give me any advice you can that will give my lizard comfort that I'm not going to hurt him.
