Nervous About Picking Up My BD!

[LizziesOwner30]

hi im kirsty and i am a newbie at caring for a beardie, ive only had her afew days i brought her off a friend of mine, My Beardie is called Lizzie And She Is 2 Years Old And Very Cute And Lovely Looking, I have always wanted a BD and have done all my research got the books watched the videos but i am really nervous about picking her up, im worried im going to hurt her or if she will hurt me.!!

any tips and advice, as im really nervous lol :-[

 

[zebraflavencs]

Just slowly reach your hand in, coming from either the side, or the front, and scoop her up, supporting the whole body. You can lay her on your chest, if sitting, or just holding her on your arm/hand.
Hope this helps.

 

[staylor]

put your hand in slowly from in front of her, keep your hand flat and slid it under her belly from between her front legs. Use your other hand to make sure she doesn't fall. The most important thing to remember is support her whole body and make her feel safe. She will not hurt you and as long as you support her whole body you will not hurt her either. Just keep working at it and you will feel much better about it.

 

[LizziesOwner30]

ive always got my hands in her viv, wen fedding her and cleaning her water etc and she never attempted to "go for me" its just if she makes any sudden movements i flinch and pull back i have managed to stroke her tail but thats about it, with her old owner she got her out every day and has told me if i dont start handling her she will start to get funny and it will make it harder for me to even be able to go near her is this true????? ???
plus what makes it harder is she mostly all the time got her back to front of viv so makes it hard to go in and pick hjer up lol

 

[Beardie_Mommy3991]

If her old owner handled her as much as she said, then I'm sure Lizzie should be very friendly. Beardies generally don't bite, so don't be scared of her. Just pick her up like the others said. If your comfortable with that, then proceed to take her out and hang with her. If that still makes you nervous, just work on at least picking her up daily, until you are comfortable with that, then take the next step by taking her out.

 

[LizziesOwner30]

the old owner has also told me that if i cant find the courage to pick her up then lizzie will turn funny and then she wont let me put my hand in her viv is this also true?????

 

[Gail]

Thats not something I'd expect a tame dragon to do, ever. Sure, if you go a long time with holding her then she might get fidgety when picked up again but she should never "turn".

You really don't need to be afraid, dragons are nice and it sounds like lizzy should be no problem to hold. Just reach in and pick her up like you would a little kitten.

 

[LizziesOwner30]

cheers gail, but at mo she dont seem to good, most of yesterday she was asleep under her hide, and in the morning she like kinda had a "mad half hour" like she was trying to get out of viv, can any one suggest what could be wrong or am i gonna have to take my lil girl to the vet???

 

[zebraflavencs]

Okay, she is in a new place, with a new hesitant owner... She's most likely a bit stressed, as you are.
Take a deep breath.. Smile. Now reach in slowly, give her a head rub, then work your hand down under her..
When you have her totally supported, lift her out and bring her to your chest..
One arm supporting her against you, the other hand rubbing her head. Talk calmly, keep smiling..
Take a seat, and keep holding her.. Start with 5 minutes at a time... and extend that time as you gain confidence.

If she makes a move at any time, don't startle. Remember.. you are a whoooooooooooole lot bigger than she is.
You are in control here. Not her.
Smiling relaxes you, and she'll pick that up. Talking calmly works the same way. Make a routine, every day to sit with her on your chest. She most likely will want to explore, say climb to your shoulder..
If you were to do this routine, at her bed time, she'll most likely be less resistant. A nice towel to wrap over her will give her more calmness.


Hope this helps out.