He's not getting used to us (beardie)

[kamaia]

Hi everyone,
my little bearded dragon, who is around 5 months old, is getting held daily, but he is still very flighty, and doesn't perticularly like being handled.

is it just a case of perserverance?

any feedback will be greatly apreciated.

 

[cement]

Yep persevere, we have one here that is 3 yr old and still beards up occasionally. It is going against every grain of their instinct to hang with humans.

 

[kamaia]

Ok thanks.
We will try and get him used to us....... slowly.

thanks

 

[sookie]

Pop him into a pocket on your shirt,even down in your bra,nice and warm and dark and he can hear your heartbeat.Hand feeding often helps,special favourite things.try keeping him in a high traffic area so he gets used to pple around him.and take it slow.baby steps with the little guy.have you tried giving him a tepid bath,they usually like that too,and a gentle rub off with a soft towel?
Hope some of these ideas might help with your bonding.

 

[snakelady-viper]

He will improve. Put yourself in his position if you were that small and some one large picked you up you also would be a bit flighty. When you have him in your hand, cup your hands together so he is enclosed its nice and dark plus very warm from your hands this will help him to get use to your scent and help him to trust you, to make sure he is not harmed

 

[pythons73]

Reptiles DONT like to be held however some will tolerate it.

 

[Grogshla]

Try and handle him when he is tired in the night. perhaps try and hand feed him some foods so he gets used to you
All the best champ

 

[stemschicky]

It took a good 4-5 months for mine to stop running amok on me, a good tip i got was to wrap him in a facecloth when holding him, (Beardie burrito), which keeps them warm aswell, things turned around for me within the week! now he plays with us as much as he can. his favourite thing is sitting on the window sill watching the world go by, and jumping over to us for cuddles then going back to the window sill lol. It really is true, that persistance pays off.

 

[sookie]

Pythons73 maybe you should tell that to my reps.if they don't like handling how come they all queue up at their tank doors in the morning as soon as they sense me for cuddles?and my jungle is the worst of all,followed by our beardies.and it is not for food cos they all get fed late arvo - early evening.and as soon as i pick whoever up they head for their fav rub n lovin spot on me?

 

[pythons73]

Some will tolerate being handle,maybe you have obedient reptiles that come on command..lol

 

[MD-Mummy]

I have a 2 and a half/3 month beardie Hercules and last night I cruised around the house and watched tv with him down between my boobs!! He loved it!! Nice n warm n snug!!! I have only had him approx a week but he is responding to me and I have pretty well done all of the above so with any luck your little guy will come round and be a great friend to you!! Good Luck xx

 

[SYNeR]

Reptiles DONT like to be held however some will tolerate it.

Yep. One of my 2 year old pygmy bearded dragons is still extremely flighty and doesn't like being held.
Some just never grow to tolerate it.

 

[Defective]

Pythons73 maybe you should tell that to my reps.if they don't like handling how come they all queue up at their tank doors in the morning as soon as they sense me for cuddles?and my jungle is the worst of all,followed by our beardies.and it is not for food cos they all get fed late arvo - early evening.and as soon as i pick whoever up they head for their fav rub n lovin spot on me?

i know right!!! how come yoda runs up and down his enclosure spinning.

 

[sookie]

Spinning.crazy little dude.Squish has just discovered that if i forget to lock the enclosure,he can take one humungus jump at the doors and BAM they open.from there it is just one more leap to the kitchen table and the delights there upon.and if the doors are locked then he sits there and just eyeballs me,it's a little eerie when he does that,wish i could read his mind sometimes.

 

[Silver]

thanks everyone for all that. we will try everything and hopefully having him wrapped up like a burito at the window watching the world go by....... bit like my dog really, minus the burito part. hehehe.

oops, this is still ngarrang........ thanks mum for logging me out

 

[xxMelissaxx]

Pythons73 maybe you should tell that to my reps.if they don't like handling how come they all queue up at their tank doors in the morning as soon as they sense me for cuddles?and my jungle is the worst of all,followed by our beardies.and it is not for food cos they all get fed late arvo - early evening.and as soon as i pick whoever up they head for their fav rub n lovin spot on me?

Sorry to burst yours and Lambert's bubbles, but they're certainly not queuing up for "cuddles." I suggest you learn a bit more about the animals that you keep. This will enable you to better understand the needs of your animals and thus, become a much more competent keeper.

Do you not find it odd that so many of your animals exhibit such behaviour, yet so many experienced keepers have never come across an animal that queues up for "cuddles?"

Your animals, once taken out of their enclosures, are not heading for "their fav rub n lovin spot." They are most likely simply trying to find a spot where they don't feel so vulnerable (being outside of their enclosure all).

Look up anthropomorphism.

EDIT: Oops, just realised this thread is relatively old - sorry to have resurrected. Too early in the morning for me, and I misread the dates..

 

[SYNeR]

My two year old pygmy bearded dragon (I've had him since 2 months old) definitely is flighty and a bit nasty..
A couple of days ago, I was holding the female, and he got all defensive and was biting me on the finger..

 

[longqi]

Forget anthromorphism and look at the anecdotal/circumstantial evidence that is presented every day on reptile sites all over the world

Some reptiles display emotions
Some reptiles enjoy and definitely not 'just tolerate' handling

 

[Kimberlyann]

I know my snakes love a good cuddle, they will slither around my neck and thru my hair for hours keeping warm

also my baby beardie is the same, heaps jumpy, i thought it was just a baby thing?

 

[xxMelissaxx]

Forget anthromorphism and look at the anecdotal/circumstantial evidence that is presented every day on reptile sites all over the world

Some reptiles display emotions
Some reptiles enjoy and definitely not 'just tolerate' handling

I can assure you, it would take a LOT more than a few online comments from anthropomorphic keepers to convince me that people's reptiles are queuing up for "cuddles." Ha.

"Forget anthropomorphism?" There is conclusive evidence of exactly that in this very thread (see Lambert's posts), and absolutely zero evidence of described cuddle-seeking behaviour being exhibited from reptiles.

I can accept longqi that you believe that your snakes feel emotion and love you, but let's be rational and not take every piece of online "anecdotal evidence" as fact - some of it is simply the keeper's need to feel loved by their reptiles. I will not "forget anthropomorphism" just as you will not forget your online anecdotal evidence - we clearly have differing opinions, so let us simply agree to disagree