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How much do you handle your uros??? I usually hold mine once a day, sometimes more, sometimes less. What is your thought on this? Do you think the uros enjoy it? Do you think it tames them anymore? Do you think it stresses them too much, and that it's a bad idea? I think it's fine to get a uro out for a minute and socialize with it, but that's just me. ;D

Its always easiest if you have a tame lizard because you can more easily enjoy handling them without fearing to stress them out too much. But I don't believe you can always tame lizards by grabbing and handling them. With uros, it is best to avoid grabbing and handling at all during the first six months or year due to the lizard's fragility. When they are larger you can handle them more. I avoid grabbing all of my lizards if I don't have to. But I still interact with them.

I really enjoy interacting with my uros by hand feeding. This helps to tame them because the interaction is on the their terms with something they want. Basically you are trying to build trust. The food associates a positive experience with my hand and my scent. Whenever I am feeding my uros I look for the ones that are out basking. If they stay out while I enter their cage I try to offer the food from my hand 1st. If they run to hide I place the food on a plate for them to eat at their leisure. With food in my hand i can lead some of my ornates all the way up to my other arm to my opposite shoulder! These are the ones that are now, obviously, the easiest to handle.

Remember, a happy lizard is better than a stressed one. Handle yours if you can do so without stressing it out. Try to associate food with your presence and with your smell. This will not work right away. For some animals it may take months or longer.

Oh, and anyone reading this that keeps monitors or snakes, in those cases ignore everything I just explained...lol...if offering those animals food from your hand you will likely get bit!

Greg
http://www.thecoloreddragon.com

Hand feeding is an excellent suggestion Greg. Even the brattiest of my lizards will take a dandelion from my hand. I will keep that in mind if we get any lizards in the future that I would like to hold. I know for a fact that handling can have a positive result, even if it's only on some lizards. Our mali, Gandalf, has been handled since he got here. At first it was the usual routine, flipping the tail, puffing up, etc. However, we've had him for a couple years, and he now tolerates being handled, even asking to come out and walking onto our hands. I've heard ornates are some of the tamest, but our biggest girl still runs into the hide, even though we've had her about a month. She hasn't tamed at all, really, and is more timid than even out male sudanese. I guess every lizard is different, and she's just not as calm as some, but just because you have an ornate doesn't mean it's the best uro to get for handling.

I think Sabriel is still scared because she was never handled like Lyra was. She has almost never been held. But then again, you are correct, ever lizard is different in their own way. Casey, you are very lucky to have Nick, he is not only a very pretty little uro, he is very calm. Anyway, I think handling is a good thing to do. As long as you don't always get you lizard out, even when it's new. You need to do it maybe do it once every other day. Greg is right, interact with you uro in a way that is not holding it.

Bahaha. I'll never tempt my monitor with food. He's snagged me once, and he's still small.... that was enough for me!!

The malis I have all deal with handling very well, and the egyptian has her moments. I handle them all on a rotating basis -- the only animals I do NOT handle regularly are the tokay geckos and the inverts -- especially the tityus stigmura!

I can't blame you at all there, Leezard. ;D I love to handle my lizards, and Reese is right, Nick is a very handleable lizard, a trait I'm very happy with. Sabriel is getting better; she'll take food from your hand now. Maybe we can make her tame. Her and all the other uros. All I meant there was just that your uro doesn't always stick to some said personality. Ornates are supposed to be calm, good natured little lizards, and here I am stuck wit h the brattiest, snottiest lizard ever, Lyra. LOL