Totally Confused & Lost-Needing Advice

[sclevenger08]

Okay, so im totally lost on the whole taming process. First I'll start off with I just got Haggard about 3 weeks ago and the breeder said he should go back into hibernating, he does sleep a large amount of the time, but he is out a lot, which I'll turn his light on for an hour or so and what not. When I see that he's been out more than an hour or so, I'll try to get some taming work in. My problem is, when I open the lid to his enclosure he darts :bolt like a mad man into his hide. I know that im not supposed to remove him from his hide. So where Im stuck is, how do I get him to like me :cry: ? lol. Should I just leave him alone while he's trying to regulate his hibernation or what. Im just getting so frustrated on the whole hibernation and taming thing. I just feel like :bang . Advice would be great. Thanks

Susan<3

 

[reptastic]

i am going through a similar problem i got my tegu three weeks ago from bobby hill(varnyard) and he is a handfull, i also thought when he arrived he would go back into hibernation. so far what i have done is handle him as much as possible, and i place my hand near him and let him come to me also i have tried the t-shirt method which so far has made some improvments. he is still jumpy and will run when i let him free roam but dosnt dart much when im messing around in his cage. its a process and may take time. now my female on the other hand has been calm since day one(probably because i got her at 5 wks old also a 09 varnyard baby) and is still calm and kind of friendly she just dont care to be picked up alot. but i never had to use any of the suggested methods hope all goes well with you and your gu' just try some of the taming methods that bobby posted on the main page and all should go well.

 

[d1333]

my red tegu is like that, hes about 5-6 months old, i've had him for 2 months and i've never held him becuase he is very scared for some reason, althought i have slowly made progress as he realizes i am the source of food and comes out when i am near, so far i am doing the let the hand rest in cage thing and that seems to be working out slowly... now he will lick my hand a little then lay near it but i still can't touch him or anything or he will dart away .... mine i bought as a stub tail though so that might have something to do with the shyness

 

[Jefroka]

Search "taming your tegu" on this site. What type cage do you have your gu in? One with doors are usually better for skittish gus as you're not perceived as quite the threat as you are coming in from overhead, which you have to do with an aquarium.

Are you feeding him in a seperate bin? If not, begin doing that. Picking him up & putting him back in involves two handling episodes each visit, which establishes a bond.

Lastly, they most usually mellow out as they get larger, so don't fret & try to be patient, it will happen.


...Jefroka

 

[sclevenger08]

Search "taming your tegu" on this site. What type cage do you have your gu in? One with doors are usually better for skittish gus as you're not perceived as quite the threat as you are coming in from overhead, which you have to do with an aquarium.

Are you feeding him in a seperate bin? If not, begin doing that. Picking him up & putting him back in involves two handling episodes each visit, which establishes a bond.


...Jefroka

I do have him in an aqquarium, I figured one with doors would be better, but I just don't have it at the moment.

I was told by the breeder not to feed him, because he'll go back down for hibernation, so I haven't been feeding him at all. But when I start feeding I will be feeding him in a seperate bin. Im afraid when to start though, because I would like him to hibernate, but if he doesn't Im afraid im starving him.

 

[sclevenger08]

Thanks guys, I'll try your suggestions. .

Susan

 

[mr.tegu]

the best thing to do i think is to handle the tegus as hatchlings and youngins. if you dont your tegu might end up like d1333s red at 6 months and older. you have to instill the fact your not a threat at a young age. the method i like is the one where you get in a small room such as a bathroom and just sit still and let the tegu roam around. at some point the tegu will climb on you to investigate things. dont react to this just continue to stay still, in a matter of time you and your tegu will be like best buds. i let both my male and female out and i crawl on all fours through my house and both will follow me where ever i go. my movements do not scare or bother them at all. it took time but well worth it. i know its not reccomended to bother them in hides and burrows, but if you dont then how will you get the time to tame? you wont. so a time or two a day wont hurt.

 

[sclevenger08]

I've thought about trying the bathtub or small bathroom thing. Im just worried about messing with his hibernation. Thats kinda where im lost.

 

[mr.tegu]

if your tegu comes out and basks then i doubt its hibernating.

 

[sclevenger08]

Well he hasn't been out for about 3 days, so I think he may be down for good.

 

[Chuey]

This might be totally contrary advice but we just did what we thought was right and it worked.

Our Gu was about 12inches when we got him . We actually took away his hide for 15 minutes at a time and slowly touched the Gu eventually slipping our hand while in the cage, letting our Gu just sit on our hand and not realize that we were a threat.

We also made sure that he knew that we were a food source. But this might be a diff't case as he calmed down from the git go.

 

[Guest]

I take my tegu out to feed them. Doing this seamed to make the first one pretty tame. I feed them in the kitchen. Is soon as I come to the cage he is very excited to see me. I pick him up and set him on the floor and he races to the kitchen. If there is no food he roams the house or follows me around. I just adopted a large female. We will begin the same process with her. I also think an indoor caged tegu should be aloud to roam. Unless your enclosure is say 8 foot by 8 foot, it is to small. Allowing it to roam gives it exercise and mental stimulation. Letting it roam outside is even better.

 

[Guest]

I take my tegu out to feed them. Doing this seamed to make the first one pretty tame. I feed them in the kitchen. Is soon as I come to the cage he is very excited to see me. I pick him up and set him on the floor and he races to the kitchen. If there is no food he roams the house or follows me around. I just adopted a large female. We will begin the same process with her. I also think an indoor caged tegu should be aloud to roam. Unless your enclosure is say 8 foot by 8 foot, it is to small. Allowing it to roam gives it exercise and mental stimulation. Letting it roam outside is even better.

 

[eddyjack]

I must agree with "FIREEVT". When I got my female I don't think she had been handled very much. I'm guessing that she was about 8 months old when I got her. She acted much the same way, darting and just not showing any appreciation for me reaching in to pick her up.
I have trained countless animals (dogs and horses) mostly and I don't by this point in time feel that my Tegu is much different than many other animals. In fact I believe as she and I have developed our relationship she is quite inteligent.
I went against what I have read and heard about Tegu's and gently forced her to accept me. I must say that it worked, not to say that she liked it at first but she has come around very nicely. She did not race away for more than 2 days and since then she comes to me but even now once I do pick her up she tries to show me that she is the boss but I just talk softly, holding her close to me around her body and high up on her tail and she settles in very quickly.
As far as her hide, I even went in to it when I wanted her out, now I can tap on it and she will come out to me.
I think the main thing in building a relationship is to gain the trust that whenever you are approaching it means that something good is going to happen, never anything bad and that is exactly what I wanted to teach her. We are friends and I am going to take care of you. She loves me coming in the morning because she now knows that she gets to eat all she wants (by the way she is in full shed every 6-8 days) and she gets a warm bath and gets to roam around the house for a couple hours after.
I hope this helps and I think you will be just fine once you get better aquainted.