Baby Taming

[AlexandriaNC]

Hello,
I have a fairly new baby bearded dragon. I would say about 2-3 months old.
I have had him for about a month now.
I'm trying to get him used to me handling him and am having some issues.

He tolerates me petting his head, but he flattens his body sometimes when i do.
If i flatten my hand and try to bring it near him, however he gapes at me and sometimes flicks his tail.

I've tried to avoid picking him up unless i absolutely have to (to clean). I have done this about 4 times only when his reptile carpet is dirty. He runs when i try and I feel terrible when i get him. I pet him and talk to him once i have him and when i put him back, he'll sit on my hand but still seems scared.

I just don't want to do anything to overly stress him out and make him not trust me.
I got some pheonix worms coming soon and plan on trying to hand feed him to help.

Any advice?
Anyone else have this problem?


Thanks in advance.
By the way, this is Floki

 

[GoneForLunch]

Very very pretty dragon. Personally I think that just taking it slow and talking to your dragon helps. I don't know why they enjoy it but they seem very attentive and they seem to enjoy it. Just talk to him and stay near the tank. Then just make sure he sees you as a food giver and a lover, don't come from above him, make sure he sees your hand coming. Here are some videos that may help you out :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xu8_S9a9MnI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcnS_wLrVTw

More than anything i think it's repition. Every day build trust and just work your way closer and closer to him and he will come around. Another post from a long time ago is pasted here, it may help as well :

For handling, it depends on the beardie. If your beardie is skittish, you should take your time with picking them up and waiting for them to get used to you. If your beardie just does not care if you pick him up, then go ahead and pick him up, but be careful with him getting away and hiding in a corner! Either way, you can always move your beardie before they are comfortable with you if you need to do something with them or their habitat. They won't be traumatized from you just picking them up.

(The quote is from Rampagingraptor)

 

[AlexandriaNC]

Okay, thank you.
I was worrying about traumatizing him haha

And i think he is pretty too

 

[Beardymama33]

Okay, thank you.
I was worrying about traumatizing him haha

And i think he is pretty too

when you are holding him try gently stroking from the corner of his mouth back to the frills. mine was a bit freaky when i first got him and now he practically runs up me (giving me beardie kisses every couple of inches) when hes scared or just wants cuddles. he also demands chin and frill scratches, and makes such a nice shirt pin. this is my boy his name is Draconis:

 

[AlexandriaNC]

Aw he's pretty.
I'll have to give that a try.
I would love that sort of affection instead of hisses
Thanks!

 

[Beardymama33]

Aw he's pretty.
I'll have to give that a try.
I would love that sort of affection instead of hisses
Thanks!

mine flared and tried to bite me when i reached for him at the pet shop....i just had to have him because he was most likely overlooked for being a scaredy cat. he still flares but i can talk to him sternly and point my finger at him and he sucks the beard back in, closes his mouth, does the submissive pose and then lifts his head as if to say "ok i said sorry now scratch my frills and chin"....

hes so tame i can do things like this......

and this with him now....still a brat but tame.

 

[Beardymama33]

btw i do think its cute that he put his leg out like that for his picture, you have a very cute little one.

 

[AlexandriaNC]

Thanks

By the way, Do you know how old your dragon is?
Mine is that size but i don't know his age.

 

[Rampagingraptor]

Huh, didn't realize I got quoted. I don't mind, though!
To add on to the advice given, you always want to be persistent. Eventually, as long as you treat your beardie right he will grow to at the least tolerate you. The trick really is to just show you aren't a threat and that you are more of a beneficial thing (such as a food dispenser :lol.
Size isn't always the best way to tell how big your beardie is. While it can be an indicator, you have to consider other factors including individual growth, feeding schedule, and general care.
But we can try using it as an estimate, anyways. How long is your beardie?

 

[AlexandriaNC]

I haven't been able to measure him exactly, but I wanna say he is about 7 inches

 

[GoneForLunch]

Huh, didn't realize I got quoted. I don't mind, though!

Haha I found it looking through older taming posts and thought it could help out so i just went ahead and quoted it. It was from a while back I think so. I hope taming is going well so far for you Alexandria!

 

[AlexandriaNC]

Thanks
It isn't great, but it could be worse haha.
I'll just keep at it.

 

[GoneForLunch]

Absolutely. It's almost like practice make perfect, except practice makes the beardie love you, so the outcome is equally great to perfection. Good luck with it!

 

[Rampagingraptor]

I would estimate that your dragon is most likely 6-8 weeks old. Not really an exact science without knowing all the factors, though.

 

[AlexandriaNC]

Yeah that's what i was guessing too.

Thanks guys