Suggestions for taming my juvenile

[sombra88]

Hi everyone -- I know this is a common topic and I have read many posts, I am just curious if anyone can offer advice from personal experience on a case similar to mine - of course we all have our own experiences to share which is what makes this forum great!

My juvenile is about 4 inches long, I think he[not sure he is a he yet] is about three months old. He was socialized at the small shop I got him from, they actually cared about their beardies. He is in a 20 gallon viv and temps are right.

He has been irritable with me when I got him, I figured this was due to relocation stress, since I have done my best to bond. He finally trusts me enough to hand feed with me and many times he will let me pick him up fine. However sometimes he flattens out or gapes heavily at me when I try. He will gape at me but not ever bite me. He does not black beard me either. He has only black bearded me one time when I let him roam and he did not want to go back to his viv.

I have been bathing him to get him used to it and he seems to be liking it, he likes to be a beardie burrito too (wrapped in a cloth) and hang out with me usually. Tonight was not a good night and he would not be me pick him up, he kept gaping at me. When he does that I don't like to forcefully pick him up. When he gapes I usually put a bit of greens in his mouth (this makes him eat greens and shows him I am not scared).

Tonight that didn't help, he ran from me, I didn't chase him. He eventually let me pick him up but then gaped at me and ran back to his viv. I am just curious if this type of behavior is normal, it seemed like our bonding was going well but then tonight happened and I feel a bit sad. Has anyone had a similar experience?

When he gapes or acts like he doesn't want to be picked up is it best to back off or to persist?

 

[kingofnobbys]

He might be too hot - check your temperatures.

or this might be him telling you the tank is HIS territory.

 

[sombra88]

He might be too hot - check your temperatures.

or this might be him telling you the tank is HIS territory.

This is funny you mention too hot, why would you think this? Is aggression caused by heat? I did notice him sitting on his rock today and gaping because of heat, I can tell but when he gaped at me it was not heat, it was him being salty with me. He is now sitting on his rock and staring at me contently, he likes to watch me and hang out.

 

[JessPets]

Hi, is 4 inches the snout to vent length or the total length with tail? Beardies are born at around 3in, so 4 seems VERY tiny. Can you post a pic? Here's how: https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ m Then use the XIMG to attach pics to your post.

You don't want to chase him around, but try picking him up near bedtime, he will probably be calmer. I'm having basically the same problems, so I'm interested in hearing other people's opinions.

 

[sombra88]

Sorry my eyeball measurement skills are not good. He is 7.5 inches from tail to snout.

 

[JessPets]

Okay, good That sounds much better

 

[sombra88]

Okay, good That sounds much better

I have made a bit of progress with him today, he is less grouchy. He gaped at me so I petted and tapped below his chin (I read this is positive for affection), he stopped gaping at me and about 10 minutes later was fine with me picking him up. There seems to be little rhyme or reason to his moods :-S

 

[BrightStar]

My Rygel is four months old and 14". I've had him since he was ten weeks old. I've been through exactly what you describe - seem to be making progress one day, and the next day he's really skittish.

I've read that babies tend to gape at things a lot, but this tends to lessen as they get older and bigger.

My experience with Rygel is that when he gapes at me, it's because he's trying to tell me something. Sometimes it's "I need to poop", other times it's "I'm cold", and sometimes I just can't figure him out. I notice Rygel gets grumpier when he's due a shed.

I try not to let him completely have his own way. If he's in his cage and seems unwilling to be held, I back off and try again later. This usually seems to work - though I do make a point of petting him briefly in his cage before I leave him alone. I like to hope this will remind him I wasn't going to hurt him. If he's out of cage and gapes, I try to look for cause - cold, scared of something, needs to poop, and fix it if I can. If I can't figure the cause out, I'll try to pet and calm him - Rygel likes to be carried around the house in my hands, being talked to gently. If that doesn't work, I'll put him back in his cage.

I know the bonding process can feel unpredictable and slow. If your experience is anything like mine with Rygel, then I can assure you it does get better. At four months, Rygel is waiting for cuddles at nighttime, and usually seems happy to be out of cage. When I first got him, I didn't know where I was at with him some days. One minute he'd be cuddling, the next gaping.

They love routine, and I can't stress enough how much that helps with bonding.