Advice on ways to "tame" our new pet

[lindscaruso]

I have an eight year old son who had to have a Beardie. We made a deal and he saved up his money and bought his very own pet. He/she is approximately 7 months and we have had Zeus for about a month and he is proving difficult to handle. He doesn't bite or display the beard but runs and tries to avoid being picked up and when we do hold him he is very squirmy. He has jumped out of both mine my son's hand (and boy... he is fast). I keep reading that they will simply crawl onto your hand but its not happening. I have taken the reigns and decided to turn Zeus into the pet my son has been dreaming about by handling I'm daily (when the kids are at school) and attempting to hand feed him. Nothing seems to make Zues want to be our buddy....
Anyway, the point of my post is that I think my son is becoming discouraged that Zeus is less that happy to be handled and uninterested in being my son's buddy. In fact he hasn't wanted to hold him the last few days because he is afraid he'll runaway.

Your thoughts and advice on what I should/should not do would be welcome.

Lindsay

 

[popsickle18]

Zeus is 7 years old? Hmm, he may just be set in his ways. Perhaps he was not handled a lot before he came to you so he is just not used to it yet. Not to worry, that can change! Zeus just needs to trust you and your family.

The best advice I could give is to continue handling Zeus regardless of what Zeus wants. Sometimes they take a little coaxing to get used to being handled. Of course you wouldn't want to make Zeus too upset. I would try handling Zeus in his tank so no one is afraid that he will run away. Bath time was always a good bonding time for my young lizard and I. If my first lizard, Puffy, was scared he could hold onto my hand and relax there during his bath. He just needed to trust me. Within months of having him he was as trusting as ever.

On a side note, this may sound silly, but try and have confidence when holding Zeus. I find that regardless of how tame Puffy was if I handed him off to someone who was nervous to hold him or was inexperienced with reptiles he could sense that and get all anxious and antsy. Even my beardie now, Kenny, he does the same thing. I adopted him as an adult and at first he was pretty skittish. Now he is super calm!

Oh! One more thing. This is just general handling comment but make sure Zeus is properly supported in your hands. I found that during the beginning of gaining trust I needed to make sure all their limbs were completely supported in my hands. Also, if Zeus tries to get away try to adjust your hand position rather than tightening your grip. I tightened up early on because I was scared of Puffy running away and that just made him more anxious. They will feel trapped and unsafe if you grip or grab at them to hard. Also, when taking Zeus out of your tank try petting him a bit first to let him know that you are there, you are safe, and you will be picking him up soon.

This might be stuff you already know but if not hopefully some of this helps!
If you have any more questions feel free to ask! I'd love to help Zeus be your son's buddy. Puffy meant the world to me when I was growing up.

 

[Taterbug]

Neither or my dragons are the crawl on your hand type, I'm not sure how common that actually is. Let us know a little more about your Zeus so we might be able to give more specific suggestions.

If he is 7 months or 7 years makes a difference on how you would want to deal with it. Could you clarify? If he is 7 years old do you know about his previous life? Could you also have us a run down of his setup? Sometimes husbandry practices can influence behavior.

Getting him used to being touched/handled in his cage is a good, safe idea. You can also make a safe area (nothing to get behind, under, no access to holes etc) to let him run around on the floor. They are fast in bursts but if they aren't in danger you can let then run off the energy. Around lights out, when he is ready for bed and getting sleepy is a good time to take him out for some bonding time without as much struggle.

 

[lindscaruso]

WOW! You guys are fast to reply! I made a typo, Zeus is 7 months. We got him from a reputable, local reptile shop. He is about 10 inches (best guess) from head to tail. He eats well and just shed for the for the first time since we've had him.

Taterbug, you mentioned his cage.... I think its amazing. My husband built it as he is a contractor out of wood with a glass front. Its about 3 feet x 18 inches deep x 3 feet tall. We used a sand bottom as that is what he had at the shop, a nice big branch with a reptile hammock at the top and a great rock with a cave to sleep in. He actually does sleep in the cave too.... The temps are steady at 100 at the top and about 80 at the bottom. The only thing we don't do is turn the heat off at night. We put the heat on a thermostat and the lights on a timer. This was to make it easier for my son to manage (as it supposed to be his pet).

Also I never even thought to let him run off some of his engery... will do next time. As for the confidence thing, I am good but my son isn't but we will continue to work on it. I did think too that maybe he was uncomfortable in my son's hands because they were so small but he is squirmy with me too.

Thanks for the replies I got. I am interested din more and will figure out soon how to post pictures of Zeus.

Lindsay

 

[popsickle18]

Okay, 7 months that makes a difference! Haha :lol:

When they are that little they can tend to be kind of skittish anyway. We are huge compared to them. I would be a little scared too. As Zeus grows and continues to interact with you he will get more comfortable.

Also, you mentioned he had just shed. Sometimes they can be very cranky around shedding times and might not want to be handled. Because they are shedding so often when they are growing during that first year sometimes it can be hard to handle them. Keep trying! Zeus will come around.

I like that suggestion of handling him before bedtime! He should be a lot calmer then.

 

[timisimaginary]

just a few questions on his setup. 3 feet is a bit tall for a bearded dragon, how are his lights set up? what kind of UVB bulb is he using and how is it set up? with a 3 foot tall cage, you want to make sure he can get close enough to the UVB bulb to be able to get good UVB exposure, depending on the type of bulb that could be anywhere from 6-12" away. you also want to make sure the basking spot is set up close enough to get adequate warmth, the surface temp of the basking spot should be around 105-110F. you will need a temp gun or a digital thermometer with a probe to test the surface temp.

what kind of wood was his cage built out of? and was it sealed? unsealed wood can harbor bacteria so if it wasn't sealed, you will want to do that. also, i'd advise removing the sand, because it can be ingested and cause impaction and also harbor bacteria.

a month isn't that long for a beardie to grow accustomed to his new surroundings. most will acclimate in 1-2 weeks, but some can take a bit longer. routine handling is good, start with brief moments of 5-10 minutes to get him used to it and work your way up. other tips to improve handling, if you can get him to associate it with something positive, which with beardies usually means food. let him sit on your hand while hand feeding him. eventually he should start running towards you instead of away from you, though it might take time. another tip is to take him out near bedtime and let him fall asleep while laying on you. they are usually more tired and less apt to run about when they're getting ready to sleep and that can get them used to you. you can also try putting a sock or shirt or something with your smell on it into his cage that will get him used to your scent.

finally, how are you picking him up and holding him when you handle him? ideally you want to let them lay in your hand or hands and not be wrapping your hands around him. you can lay your other hand on top of him if you're worried about him jumping or bolting off, but try to restrain as little as possible and hold him low to the floor or close to something soft like a bed or sofa so if he does jump he won't hurt himself. too much restraint can make them nervous. when picking him up, try to gently scoot him onto your hand, don't reach in and grab to pick him up, he'll see your hand like a predator coming at him and that will also make him jumpy.

 

[Taterbug]

Your cage sounds nice! As long as you are able to give a good basking spot up near the light for UVB, height isn't a problem. They do like to climb especially the young ones. It's also great that you have a thermostat and timer, the convenience and safety are worth it.

Tim has some excellent handling advice, since he is young you want to make sure he associates people with positive experiences, not negative ones. (Food is good, a safe place to explore, not being restrained too much, not being dropped or harassed etc) It helps to let them feel confident in the situation, rather than fearful. I found the letting the dragon come out of the cage himself (mine is on the floor) to wander around and explore he was less scared than the times I grab him out against his will and all he wants to do is escape. Eventually they get used to coming out and having interactions and that your home and selves are safe, but it's still a big scarey world for a little critter that is a prey animal in the wild. They aren't like a kitten or puppy as babies, and can be quite skittish and fearful by instinct.

Can your son let him climb up his arm or onto his short, so he is supported by more than just his hands, so the dragon feels more stable? Legs or tails flailing is a sign they don't feel adequately supported, and it's hard to do with small hands.

Zeus may not be the dream lizard he imagined (yet), but he is young and hopefully has a long life ahead to settle in as a great pet. Energy and willfulness is actually a good sign to me that he is healthy, and I would expect him to settle in as he gets used to you and ages. It can be frustrating I know if they don't behave as we have read or want, but they are adaptable critters and do usually mellow with age. I still get a little bummed that my little guy isn't knocking down the walls to hang out with me, but it's just his personality.

 

[PhotoBug]

Another tip that I've read on here is to sit on the floor in a closed space like a bathroom and let him explore those surroundings and YOU. Or even in a bathtub. A bit of bonding may need to occur. Be persistent and I'm sure things will be just fine! Let us know!