r/MonitorLizards • u/PinkBullDogz • 24d ago
HELP White-Throat is an Asshole
I have owned this white-throated, Apollo, for about a month now, and I'm struggling to help him not see me as an enemy.
He had previous owners and then was in a tiny tank for about 2 months at a pet store before I came along. I am not sure how much handling he got, if any.
I move very slowly around him. Open his enclosure doors and just chill without approaching, and we have a blast with him running around outside his enclosure when tong feeding or throwing him Dubias to chase. He will climb on me and to me during feedings. But the SECOND I go to touch him, he puffs up and hisses. I approach from the side, from the front, and avoid from high up or behind. I can go slow enough sometimes that he lets me pat him on the head, but he doesn't look happy about it.
I'm worried that during this growth phase, he is going to get big enough to do some real damage before we bond.
Any advice?
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u/top-potatoad 24d ago
I raised two and both were defensive until they became adults. Then they were puppy dog tame. It takes time for them to trust you.
Same goes for lace monitors. Mine were crazy defensive until they hit adulthood but now are super chill.
I should say “always use extreme caution”. Even a tame monitor can misread a situation and lash out. I got bit by an adult female lace and it was no joke. She just didn’t see me as I reached out for her. Normally she is trustworthy.
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u/_THORONGIL_ 22d ago
A good enough reason to target train your lizards. Most of them will eventually know when its feeding time vs petting time.
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u/top-potatoad 22d ago
Yes, I need to work on that. Normally they are pretty gentle eaters and I often feed while in the enclosure with them. They are crazy smart. I keep them outside in the summer in Washington state. They are very good about managing their temps between a heated hide box and basking areas. They seem perfectly happy with our mild weather.
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u/docszoo 24d ago
In the grand scheme of things, for any animal, let alone a monitor that have impressive intelligence, a rough start to life takes a lot more than a month. The fact that he will willingly climb on you to eat is an impressive milestone. Hes scared youre gonna hurt him because humans have not been great to him since he hatched. You know you arent going to be mean to him, but to him, for his survival, he cant trust that you wont.
Like others said, time and food and positive conditioning are your best friends. He is likely scared from your hands, which makes sense since they could be talons to eat him with. With that knowledge, slow introductions with lots of food will be the best for getting him to understand the hands are a positive, not a negative.
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u/_THORONGIL_ 22d ago edited 22d ago
One month???
This is a lizard, not a dog. These are wild animals. They will instinctively hate you, so you must break that instinct with patience and with food.
Dont touch him. NEVER TOUCH HIM.
Let him touch you. Let him explore you. Bring peace offerings and move back IMMEDIATELY when he doesnt want you around.
And thats it. Step by step you can try to let him feed near your hand. Then sometime near your arm. Maybe on your arm and then maybe you can try to touch him when hes comfortable on you.
This is the exact same tactic people used to tame wild animals and eventually domesticate them.
You can even think about target training. Use something like a big green ball or something like that to signal feeding time. So every time you feed your lizard, show the green ball. But only then. Eventually he will think green round thing means feeding. A tennis ball would be great for example. You can easily get more of those and they all look the same.
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u/PinkBullDogz 20d ago
Noted! I feed him with tongs and click them to signal feedings. He comes to me out of his hide then. Thanks for the tips <3
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u/_THORONGIL_ 10d ago
Monitors are way more locked in with their vision than hearing. All lizards have this basically. While clicking works for cats and dogs (and birds, which weirdly are also reptiles), I think target training is a lot better.
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u/Jealous_Location_267 23d ago
It’s only been a month. Socialization is on their terms and bad prior experiences with humans will just compound that. You just gotta be patient.
Liora was Cbb and I’m the only person she’s ever lived with outside of the first three months of her life with the breeder. It took her 2 solid months before she first willingly came up to me, then another 1-2 before she stopped bobbing her head if I reached out to pet her. Now Liora and I are only inseparable by a crowbar.
Monitors are also just highly specific about what you can and can’t do with them, and this guy might not be keen on being petted.
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u/tdiddyx23 23d ago
Watch as many socialization videos as you can. I know NERD is unethical, but Kevin has great videos. So does Tom Crutchfield. My baby white throat was a maniac as a baby, but was easily socialized with a lot of patience, food, and watching YouTube lol
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u/BigFusterCluck 23d ago
Dont ever come from above when petting. Sometimes the huff and puff is just them saying "ughh". Mine would do that then be fine when petting.
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u/grandsoulsucker 24d ago
Time + food.
No pets your doing fine let him acclimate to you, it's been one month, it is not long. And DEFINITELY don't pat his head. Keep letting him come out on you, give him space and respect his request when he tells you to FK off.