Scared or being grumpy

[Spot the tegu]

My tegu has recently escaped her cage twice and because of that she never comes out to see me like she would always would but now its the complete opposite and when she is out and i start talking to her she runs and hides should i be concerned with this strange behavior?

 

[Sean32817]

Where you rough or aggressive about returning her to her cage?

Rex will be a bit mopey when he's been bad and banished back to his home but he's never hidden or fled from me - worse he'll do is when I try to pet him he'll get up and walk away from me to let me know he's still angry.

If yours is actively hiding from you then you'll need to work to rebuild her trust and confidence in you.

Try just sitting next to her tank and reading or watching television so that she can see that you aren't a threat and then once she's kewl with you being near her again, you can start putting your hand in there and eventually earning back her trust.

 

[Spot the tegu]

I had to be rough because of the fact that she bit me the first time and it hurt pretty badly but thank you so much this has been a huge help

 

[Debita]

They try to assert their independence off and on, especially when something changes their circumstances and they assume they're in charge. Even if you have to back up as Sean was talking about, it doesn't take quite as long as the first time they settled down with you.

 

[Spot the tegu]

They try to assert their independence off and on, especially when something changes their circumstances and they assume they're in charge. Even if you have to back up as Sean was talking about, it doesn't take quite as long as the first time they settled down with you.

So just take things one step at a time and go slow?

 

[Debita]

Yes and no - I just got done writing a long post about not rewarding bad behavior. There is a balance between knowing when to back off letting the aggressiveness die down, and you giving a loud NO! or holding them tight to stop them from acting up. Any time you can effectively stop the tantrum, you should. You'll have scratches, and maybe whip marks on your back. You are wrestling a wild animal and you need to win when you choose to go for it. If instead you can calm the situation by just backing away from lunges, and spits...you should. It teaches them that there's no reason for that behavior.

It really is like a child with a tantrum. Sometimes you calm it down before it gets out of hand. No matter what, you never give them what they want. The tantrum has to stop, or else you're teaching them that this is how to get their way.

 

[Debita]

One last thing - I think sometimes people might mistake the patience and going slow thing for complete passivity. That's def not the case with a Tegu. They're smart and will take advantage of the situation if you don't set the ground rules. Lots of people compare it to raising a puppy. You don't let them pee all over the house and claim there's nothing you can do. You have to be steadfast about training and raising any animal.

Tegus want to dominate until they feel safe and secure. They're very different that way than puppies!!