Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi...i hv keep several beardies..and add one new baby sized into my collection...but this little guy is very very aggressive..he would open his big mouth while i just open the cage door...and he will rush toward my finger and bite..i were glove and let he bit everyday..wanna let he know i wont scare...but..he still the same aggressive near for a month..anyone can give me advise?

thx for u guys input~~

First of all – I would stop using gloves if I were you. That scares him even more. I don’t think he is aggressive – I think he is scared for some reason.

Try to find out why he is scared. Is the cage very “open”? If so, try to cover the sides with cloth or something.

Do you only have an opening at the top of the cage? For a dragon – threats come from above (birds etc). If you don’t have a front that you can open – try to change his cage.

Is there anything else in his area that can scare him? Pets? A big window? Try to find out if something is scaring him.

Also – try to be patient and calm when you are close to him. Don’t do any quick moves. Talk calmly and don’t stare at him – which is also a threat…

Well, that is all I can think of right now. Good luck!
/Gunilla

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I had the same problem before with one of mine, and I was just persistent with daily handling. Hold him close to your body, and talk to him softly. This did help relax mine a bit. Also to pick him up when his mouth was open like that I would put a collard green leaf in his mouth to keep him from biting my hand instead (this also got him liking his greens at an early age) and I was able to take off the gloves. It did work, and after a few months he has relaxed a lot and doesn't open his mouth or bite at all anymore. Some just go through a phase when juveniles. Keep on holding him though, and don't let him know you are scared. He will learn you will not hurt him after some time and relax. I don't know many beardies at all that carried this behavior into adulthood. Main thing is you don't want to show him fear, or that his behavior is working.
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Mystical Dragons

I went through the same thing with one of my Beardies. After about a month and everyone telling me its just a faze some go through, I decided to look closer at my setups, feeding, handling etc. to make sure I didnt overlook something. I noticed that he had a clear view of my Chinese Water Dragon (also a male). I moved the tanks around and now he cant see other herps. He has calmed down and can easily be held with no biting. I rewarded him with a mate and they just had their first clutch. It may be just a coincidence and it was a faze or maybe some are more easily scared by other herps. Try moving yours to a room away from the others and see if he calms down. Keep us posted!

thx for u guys kindly input..this beardies is housed alone and
it wont c any other herps..i think i should be more patient to
communicate with he...hope it will be a tame guy later on..

in fact...i hvnt wear any glove b4..but he become more and more aggressive and hv bite me several times...so..i wear the glove finally..i think i would try my best to take it off next time..
hope i wont be too hurt...lol......^^