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Baby Bearded Dragon Temperament

21 10:34:39

Question
Hi! I just recently got a bearded dragon about a week and a half ago. It is just a baby and he has been very sweet. He has a great habitat with the right lighting and doesn't have any loose substrate. He has been eating great and drinking. From the beginning he has always let me pick him up without him running away and he has been super friendly. A few days ago when I was holding him he jumped off of me and tried to get away, ever since then he seems like he is scared of me. I don't know why. His chin also turns a little black sometimes which I know can mean several things. It goes away once he is unstressed and sometimes when I hold him it goes away which confuses me because he seems stressed when I go to pick him up but then the black coloring goes away and sometimes comes back when I put him back in the cage for a few minutes.  I know they are more active when young but he is acting fearful, Nothing that I know of has changed, and he still is his healthy active self. Any suggestions as to why he is doing this? I'm thinking it's just because he is young and still adapting to his habitat.  But when I first got him he seemed completely comfortable and he was hand tamed since birth.  What should I do to build up the trust? I've even hand fed him a few crickets.  Don't get me wrong.. He will still sit on me for a bit but I can just tell he is more timid.  im sure with time he will get used to me more but any tips would be great on how to build trust. Thx!

Answer
Hey Cristie, I would just assume that it is because he is still getting use to his new surroundings. Im sure he just needs more time to get settled in and become more comfortable. When picking him up out of the enclosure make sure that he sees your hand coming in. Picking him up from behind without him noticing may startle him. Hand feeding can help with him getting use to you which is good that you have already started doing it. Just keep up with what your doing and give him time. If feeding and activeness hasn't change then  you can probably rule out any illness. Young bearded dragons can be skittish when they are younger so time is all you need right now. Good luck to you! Hope I could help!