Handling/Taming

[Bedlam]

So I have had Kush (20011 Male Extreme) for about 2 weeks. He has shown great improvement from day one as he is not as flighty. He doesn't mind my presence in the room and when I get close to the enclosure he doesn't react much except for maybe a tilt of the head. I have began moving him to a feeding bin yesterday as I was feeding him in his enclosure for acclimation. I chased him around and he threatened to bite, but I stayed committed and luckily no one bit anyone through the process. Today I did the same but he did not threaten to bite and after he was fed it was much easier to place him back.

As for my question. Is there anything else besides spot cleaning, a scented shirt, moving to and from the feeding bin and hanging in the room so he is use to my presence that will help tame him? How does handling for the sake of handling work?

 

[james.w]

If you can get him out without a fight, find a place you can sit with him and let him climb around and on you. Bathrooms/bathtubs usually work well for this. Just make sure there are no holes in the cabinets/walls he can sneak away into.

 

[JohnMatthew]

If he seems to be settling in well enough I see nothing wrong with handling and a bit of persistence/chasing to get them to feeding bin isn't bad either. What you need to steer clear of is manhandling your GU, no tight/forced grips, he'll remember longer than you might expect. Bobby showcases the "gentle" handling method in his feeding bin videos. The second link is Bobby showing us how NOT to manhandle your GU.

http://www.youtube.com/user/Varnyard#p/u/25/r6U_3NCDot8
http://www.youtube.com/user/Varnyard#p/u/24/zlWvpgYzFOE