I want to do the dirt, but to sum up the stuff I said... I would worry too much. I know that having a burrowing setup would be good, but I don't like the idea of her being able to go some place that I couldn't get to if I had to.



I have tried temporary hides (made out of boxes), but she wouldn't use them. I do still want to put hides in though so she can go to them if she wants to.



As for getting signals mixed up, I'm almost certain that I'm right about her not feeling stressed or scared, unless someone runs in the room quickly or something. At first she was nervous, but she didn't care about my presence in the room. She would still bask and eat and everything in front of me. The only time she seemed scared was when I had to take her out of her cage (to take her to the vet or clean her up a little). Now she seems very used to me and the daily tasks. I'll put food in in the morning which she'll eat up by the afternoon, and then after that I would take her out for a run around the room. Yesterday seemed like a breakthrough. All I had to do was put my hand in front of her a couple inches away and she crawled onto it and casually looked at me and the room while I set her on the floor. Then usually she'll run around for about 15 minutes, and then end up turning my floor into her own personal toilet, but I'm working on that.



I know you do this as a profesion and you are good at understanding how reptiles act, but I think I'm doing the right thing. It took a couple of days of having her out to run around and giving her food, and now she'll crawl up onto me and take food from my fingers (food is a good way to bond). The thing is, if a reptile does seem stressed out when you try to handle it, you don't just put it back in the tank (though there are exceptions). You take it out for a minute or two to let it see it's surroundings, and then each day or every other day you gradually increase the time you take them out for. I'm sure you understand what I'm talking about, whether you agree with it or not. My reptiles are my pets, so I like them to get used to me and I think I've done a pretty good job thus far.



I'll work with the dirt stuff. Maybe I could work out a burrowing setup for her, even if it makes me a little nervous. I still would like to look at and possibly try other substrates though.



Thanks for the help you've given me with the uro.



-ryan

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