Armadillo Lizards afraid

Question
I've recently purchased three Armadillo Lizards, because I know they're social animals. Whenever I try and hold them, or even put my hand near them to move something in the tank, they try their hardest to jump away. How would I go about getting them to be a little less afraid of me?

Answer
Dear Ian,
thank you for your question.
It's possible that the lizards are wildcaught and need some time to adapt to captivity and to you. Even when they were captivity-bred, they are not domesticated and will remain wild animals, so it's normal for them to be at least a bit shy around you. They will settle down when they learn that you don't want to harm them, but will probably never enjoy being touched, not very many lizards do. From what I've read, Armadillo lizards are known for being jumpy and for not liking ot be handled.
Don't try to hold them, just calmly change their water, food ect. so that they learn that your hand in their enclosure is nothing to be afraid of. They should learn fast that you bring them food and may begin to wait for it. Usually, an enclosure with many hiding places makes animals less shy because they know they can hide any time they want to.
I hope I was of some help to you
Jennifer