Tries to bite when reaching into his cage

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Terra213

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So my little guy is 6 months. Since we moved back home I've noticed a lot of behavioral changes that have me very worried, all involving biting. Nothing about his set up has changed aside from it being except for an address change. He hasn't been showing any signs of stress.
He's become what seems territorial over his cage; gaping, charging, sometimes actually making contact with whoever sticks their hand in to feed. At my apartment that was never an issue.
The other being outright signs of aggression at the sight of my dog. My dog is a 12 lb Chihuahua who's 10, and is a pretty mellow guy used to reptiles. There have been a couple times he's prevented my beardie from going under furniture and getting stuck. But most interactions it seems ends in my beardie, mouth open trying to attack my dog.
Any advice on trying to correct this? I've tried putting food in his mouth every time he gapes but so far it hasn't been much of a deterrence
 

Terra213

Member
Original Poster
Its been getting worse the last couple weeks. Today he's attacking out of the cage too. Is there anything that can help or do they just need to run their course? Also would this be a good indication to him being male? He hasn't started presenting, I've just been referring to him as a him
 

Pawfessor

New member
I’m a professional clicker trainer so I can tell you steps to work on the behavior but as to why this may be occurring as it specifically relates to BDs, I am unaware.

Start building positive associations every time you come close to his cage by simply dropping a piece of food in. Don’t stay at all, try to reach or towards or anything else. If you see ANY signs of discomfort, you worked too fast, stayed too long, reached too much into the cage, etc. As the days go in & you continue to keep your BD calm and comfortable, you reach further & further into the cage before you drop the food. Eventually you can keep your hand in for a few seconds & you build up from there.

You can look up clicker training for more information or visit www.youtube.com/PawfessorGage for a few video examples of me working with aggressive dogs and using these same steps. I hope it helps! You can also visit pawfessorgage.com
 

CooperDragon

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Hopefully this is just a phase. Don't back down when he shows aggression but don't be too forceful with him. Offering food when he does that is often a good tactic as a distraction. If this is hormonal then the phase should pass. If he is really active in his tank, let him out to run around and burn of some steam. Otherwise there isn't much to do except wait it out.
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
I second the hormonal teenage boy beardie hypothesis …. what he needs is time on the floor in a safe room where he can explore and burn off some energy each day .

I also second the in need of some "training" …. every time you go near him to lift him out of his tank , go bearing food bribes and as soon as he opens his mouth …. slip a little bit of yummy food into the open mouth (from the side - this way he's get the food and wont be able to nip your finger tips), keep on doing this til he either keeps the mouth closed (for fear of being fed til he bursts !!!) or he learns you are not going to hurt him and he associates you with all things nice and yummy.
 

Terra213

Member
Original Poster
I've been giving him plenty of run time every day, he gets a minimum of 2 hours and most days I can't get him to sit still when he's out. I've also been doing the food, but not everyone in the house has been so that's my biggest battle. But yea once he's out he's usually fine unless he sees the dog
 
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