Holding

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sid101

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Is there an age or size to when you should hold a Beardie? I've heard that you shouldn't hold a juvenile Beardie a lot at all and wait until they get bigger. I've also heard the opposite. What is the correct age/size to hold a Beardie if there is one? Mine currently is roughly
4-5 inches long. Honestly I don't know how old she is though.
Thanks!
 

Brandonforty2

Juvie Member
Age doesn't really matter. To get your beardie used to you, let it check out your hand. Next, pet him. When you think your ready, pick him up. If he jumps off and back into the tank, try again tomorrow.
 

Lurhstaap

Juvie Member
It's probably best to be very gentle and cautious about handling very tiny babies, but I don't think there's an age where it's actually inappropriate to handle them. IMO I would think it's best to handle them as much as possible starting as early as possible so they will be friendlier as adults.
 

sid101

Member
Original Poster
Thanks for the replies, I tried being slow and gentle but whenever I got very close or touched her, she would run away to the other side of the viv... Do any of you have other possible advice so I can hold her?
Thanks!
 

Brandonforty2

Juvie Member
try holding a piece of food like a piece of collard greens or a cricket. She will probably figure out you are the one who has food. How long have you had her?
 

sid101

Member
Original Poster
Brandonforty2":1b5tm5lt said:
try holding a piece of food like a piece of collard greens or a cricket. She will probably figure out you are the one who has food. How long have you had her?
I got her just yesterday, she is still probably adjusting and all. I will try hand feeding soon. Right now though, she is glass surfing and I don't know quite why as I have read that it can be the cause of many things.
Thanks!
 

sweetpea1981

Juvie Member
mine generally do it for two reasons 1. want to come out, 2. want to be fed
it could also be tank is too hot or too cold.
 

sid101

Member
Original Poster
That's a problem for mine though, I can't pick her up as said initially to take her out haha. Again though, I will try hand feeding her soon. Thanks for the replies so far!
 

sweetpea1981

Juvie Member
also try slow, steady, movements, nothing fast, we just got a new sub adult and he is still skittish especially with fast movements, but if u move very slowly it might ease your beardies fear and nervousness and talk to him in a quiet voice, that might also help. You can also put a worn shirt (not dirty) but one that was freshly worn so it has your smell on it where he likes to lay to help get him used to your smell.
 

sid101

Member
Original Poster
I'll definitely try it slow. Right now though she isn't basking and is just running around glass surfing. I am worried about my little Sid. I think I may be overreacting though. :/
 

sid101

Member
Original Poster
Haha I suppose so. Well, I hand fed her few crickets, she was a bit scared as hand came down there and she backed up a bit, but once she saw the cricket she ate it. Even now though she still tries to run from me when I get close to her. It will take time I suppose.
 

Lurhstaap

Juvie Member
Yours is a very little baby, so it is quite normal for her (or him -- sexing them at this age is extremely difficult) to be anxious and skittish, especially because she is brand new to your home. Give her time to settle down and relax. Here are some general pieces of advice you can try, but if she is still afraid of you after about a week, I will hunt down the guide to taming wild lizards that I wrote for someone else having a similar problem and paste you the link to it. I developed this technique working with literally wild species of lizard such as Western fence lizards and Northern alligator lizards, which are much less inherently friendly and tame than the bearded dragon is, so it should work very well for you. The others I have suggested it to have told me it was helpful for them. Honestly though such an intensive procedure probably will not be necessary. First just try the following small tricks.

-- The handfeeding trick is an excellent one. Continue doing that. In fact I would encourage handfeeding every meal. This will solidify in your dragon's mind the idea that you are not a threat, but rather a protector and a source of food and nurturing.
-- Wear a clean shirt for one day. Don't get it genuinely dirty, but allow it to pick up your normal bodily scents and odors. (Yes, everyone has them, it's normal, and even if you, or other humans, aren't conscious of them, animals are.) Then take off that shirt and place it in your dragon's tank. Ideally place it near or on the place where the dragon habitually sleeps. Having the shirt in the viv will help your dragon become accustomed to your smell. This in itself reduces a LOT of the fear factor. Once your scent stops being something new and scary and becomes a familiar part of the environment, one of the major things that triggers panic in her will be neutralized.
-- Never grab at her. Always try to pick her up by flattening your hand palm up (at first; later, once she's gotten used to you, palm down works fine too, it just doesn't give you the option of taking hold of her if you need to.) Then slide it under her body from the FRONT or SIDES, never from the back. Predators grab and clutch, but if you do not act like a predator, she will be less inclined to view you as one.

Hope this helps!
 
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