Hello I could use some advice ...

[Kimpossible]

Let me start off with love this group . I have a 8 to 9 month old Blue female which I’ve had her about 2 months now . She wasn’t handled regularly prior so she’s a little shy but I did have her climbing onto my hand to take her out of her enclosure. My grandson who also handles her was getting her out like we both do ( let her climb onto our hand ) well she bit him drew blood. She has never acted/ showed any aggression, not even this bite do I consider out of meanness. I think she has associated our hands with food . I don’t feed her in the enclosure, or hand feed, I put her food in a plastic tote which as soon as she sees it she is scratching at the door to come out . I was sitting at her door and she came up as normal I opened it she did her tung flicking norm then opened her mouth to bite my arm . I shut her door because I’m not about to get bit lol. So do I use feeding tongs and hand feed her ? And what type of tongs do I order? I will admit I’m a little afraid of her right now . Should I use a reptile glove for a short time or would that make it worse? I had a Tegu many years ago , but he was older and never bit , he passed of old age. So I thought I would go with a young one this time.

 

[rantology]

Tongs are great. Simple "silicone tongs" from amazon work great (soft so they dont hurt themselves).... I bought blue ones cause' I read somewhere that lizards can see blue, but I don't know if thats true. You can also get a dog clicker for added emphasis (show tongs, use dog clicker = oh it's nom nom time!).

At ~9 months she may be entering puberty as well, which could explain the grouchy behavior which you will just need to ride it out until she settles back down.

 

[Kimpossible]

Thanx , I’ll order me some today lol . I read on that puberty thing, but can’t find a whole lot about it . what about gloves? I know with parrots u shouldn’t, so I don’t lol , teaches them to bite . How can you be sure she’s going thru that puberty stage? Or have I accidentally taught her a bad habit?

 

[Kimpossible]

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sorry for the multi pics , I’m not real technical lol, but this is my Blue Bell , but at the present time Ms Frumpy butt .

 

[rantology]

It is hard to find info on. From what I understand, it's a hormonal fluctuation (just like human puberty) that can start at 10-12 months of age and last for anywhere from 3-12 more months after that and can vary greatly by individual. Some don't show many signs, others will get highly aggressive and grumpy. Try to read her body language as best you can and work around the mood swings.

 

[Kimpossible]

It is hard to find info on. From what I understand, it's a hormonal fluctuation (just like human puberty) that can start at 10-12 months of age and last for anywhere from 3-12 more months after that and can vary greatly by individual. Some don't show many signs, others will get highly aggressive and grumpy. Try to read her body language as best you can and work around the mood swings.

Ok , thank you again , fingers crossed this won’t last to long .

 

[Debita]

Good advice from Rantology. I think the reason there's not much info about lizard puberty is because it varies from one to the next. My male almost lost his good home, he put me through so much!...lol. But then I got a 3 month old female (both B/W's) and she didn't even have half his issues. Everybody seems to see changes, but they can be vast in their differences. So, it is hard to define.

Take serious precautions with children - period. These animals shouldn't be expected to do anything different than what she did. She's still a baby and unpredictable. Once she's past the puberty stage, she shouldn't be expected to be any different either. She's got built-in instincts that will always be there on any day, at any time. I have an almost 5 yr old grandson that is allowed to pet one of my Tegus, only when I'm holding them. That way I can sense the animals' behavior, and even then, hope that it's a safe moment. I'm super cautious about this - sorry to preach. Your girl is only 8-9 months, and is only knocking at the door of her puberty stage. Maybe she'll be calm and very easy-going....no one knows.

I would say to look at as many threads as you can about what members here have issues with, and how things were resolved. It's pretty interesting. Good for any member to be "armed" with as much info as they can consume.



To add to Rantology's good advice - make sure your tongs are loooong!

 

[Walter1]

Rantology and Debita make good points.

Correct, no need for gloves. When she bites or is about to bite, either yell NO! or yell NO and nail her in the face with a stream of cold water from a spray bottle on fine. You are dominant.

 

[AlphaAlpha]

Just thought I'd say hi ..... not much to add here just think teenager trying to push boundaries and getting too big for their boots.