Other people's reactions?

[Pushkin]

Just out of curiosity, how do other people react to your dragon/s? For me, it seems to be a mix - curiosity, but absolute refusal to get too close OR total love. The former is definitely more common, but a few people are in love with Pushkin!

 

[CooperDragon]

At first a lot of people are confused/curious or grossed out. After being around Cooper for a while everyone started to really like him. He kind of drew people in and after a while even the people who thought he was gross thought he was a pretty good dude. They tended to be the most surprised by his personality and ability to learn and think through things.

 

[Elmontare]

Most people i know think its strange to have such an animal. I think its mostly because they know nothing about them but have a preconception because they hear "reptile" and think negativly. But a brief explanation helps alot. One thing that has always stood out is when people compare a dog/cat and ask if they can have a bond with people (it makes sence to ask because thats usually why people get pets). They are quite surprised to hear it is possible. Ill admit i was biased at first too but after only a week with my Jubbah i already wanted another lol.

 

[BlueMorpho]

So many different reactions!!
Walking through a pet store a lady asked if the "thing on my shoulder" was real. I said "yep," and turned so she could see better. Striker cocked her head, and I guess that freaked her out, because she gave the most disgusted look I've ever seen on a face and quickly moved on.
Most kids seem to think they're cool, ask lots of questions, and are eager to feed and pet them.
I have a couple friends who won't visit because they're afraid of reptiles.
My best friend refers to herself as "Auntie" when talking to them, and my Mom (who still has yet to hold them) is ok petting Striker, and often asks how her "Grandlizzies" are doing when she calls.

 

[SkyfangRauss]

when I take Agni outside for a walk, the neighbor hood kids range from 'eww gross' to 'awesome!'

usually its the little girls who say its gross, and the little boys who says its awesome, but I've had a few teenage girls and boys say its gross.

the overall consensus in my neighborhood seems to be 'awesome' though

 

[BlueMorpho]

I do wonder if the "eww, gross" is a learned repsonse...
One of the little girls I looked after was freaked out and grossed out at first, especially after hearing her mom say "eww, you have lizards? That's gross and weird!" She repeated this sentiment up until she came inside, then she was fascinated! By mid day she was feeding Striker and asked if she could take her home!!!
Her mom flat out declined, lol.
I wonder if kids learn to be afraid or disgusted by reptiles, spiders, dogs, etc, simply because we (adults in general) express our fear and disgust?

 

[Pushkin]

I do wonder if the "eww, gross" is a learned repsonse...
One of the little girls I looked after was freaked out and grossed out at first, especially after hearing her mom say "eww, you have lizards? That's gross and weird!" She repeated this sentiment up until she came inside, then she was fascinated! By mid day she was feeding Striker and asked if she could take her home!!!
Her mom flat out declined, lol.
I wonder if kids learn to be afraid or disgusted by reptiles, spiders, dogs, etc, simply because we (adults in general) express our fear and disgust?

You know, I think you may be right… people grow up hearing that those animals are "gross" but many ideas that people have are completely wrong! Snakes are slimy is one that always gets me - they are actually really dry haha!

 

[KarenInCA]

LOL Opposite here. My 9 year old really, REALLY wanted one, and I was the one who thought they were weird...you know, lizards and all..creepy. We got one because she wanted one, and now I spend the most time with him, I lay on the lawn with him, and talk to him. I give him baths till he falls asleep. II feed him and put him to bed at night.
He has become very therapeutical. The blessing to being in a rental house right now, is that we are not supposed to have animals, or we would have cats and dogs. But Rin is easy enough to hide, unless we get a surprise visit from the landlord, and even then we don't have to let her inside. But without that "rule" of no animals, I would have NEVER agreed to a lizard. We have even had rats before, and they were the cutest thing, I thought. But NEVER a lizard.
Rin is sooo spoiled now, by yours truly. :roll: Today, I had the day off from work, and I gave him a bath at 10am, massaged his cheek bones and top of his head, and played tibetan healing sounds while he was in the bathtub. He got so relaxed it was crazy. Then I wrapped him up and he wanted to take another nap, but ended up having to put him back in his viv to do errands. He looked so sweet, so relaxed, and almost pruney from the bath. His spikes were going every which way.
I just love that little guy.

 

[Trouble119]

Most people are fascinated by Ngarehu. I've only had one bad reaction to him and that was from my little brother's girlfriend.

She is weak and I was surprised she survived the winter.

[no, seriously, she's a HUGE sweetheart]

Most people ask if they can pet Ngarehu, how old is he, is he friendly, what do I feed him, what kind of lizard is he, etc. I've had some people be really surprised at how big bearded dragons can get, especially when I informed them that Ngarehu is actually on the small side for a male beardie.

 

[ngerstbauer]

Most of my friends who stop by are indifferent about Julius. A couple have been amazed at his colors and growth rate. The one exception was a man who grew up with my dad. He's an old family friend and stops by my house once in a while on his motorcycle rides. The first time he came by this spring I had Julius out and riding around on my shoulder. Paul (that's mr. exception), seemed quite nervous. He had the same look in his eyes as my cat, Enzo, gets when Julius is out. And I KNOW my cat is intimidated by Julius (Enzo backs up for Julius and treads very lightly and slowly; never taking his eyes off Julius). But why would a grown man be intimidated by something so small? Paul really looked like he was worried Julius was gonna try and eat him. People are sometimes sillier than beardies.

 

[Quelaag]

Most of my family thinks that reptiles are gross and are creeped out by the fact that I have Haru. :C Though my mom is weird. She claims she hates reptiles, yet she met Haru for the first time a few weeks ago and even held her. I think she's in denial and secretly thinks Haru is a cutie. She just won't admit it yet.

As for my friends they're pretty good with Haru, but I don't think they understand my obsessiveness when it comes to caring for her.

 

[dom02]

So far most people think mine, Norbert, is really cool. Especially when I let him run around, apparently he looks funny when he runs.

My mom thinks he's interesting but is very cautious and refuses to hold him. My grandmother is scared, I think she had a bad experience with snakes and thinks of him the same way. She refuses to go to my house because of him, which considering my grandmother that's actually a good thing. Though lately when I visit her she's been asking about him and actually seemed interested.

 

[Pushkin]

To give you an idea, my sister posted this on my Facebook this morning, claiming he was my soul mate:

To which I laughed quite loudly! But yeah, I think a lot of people think I'm crazy for having a lizard. My sister loves him though. My mom can't handle him because she's going through chemo (weakened immune system and salmonella and all that), but she does buy things for his house, which I love! My dad held him and thought he was cool. My roommate makes faces at him, but refuses to even touch him with one finger!

 

[ngerstbauer]

It's amazing how varied people's reaction can be

 

[kelii]

I've noticed people either love my dragon, or absolutely hates him. Some people coo and squeal over him, another lady told how 'wrong' he was. One guy almost crashed his car staring at him while I was walking down the street :lol: