Hand Feeding

[Rango_TheManEater]

I’ve been avoiding hand feeding. To be honest, I was waiting until Rango got his new cage… but, now that he’s had it for a while, I’ve been trying to introduce him to hand feeding in an attempt to build trust.

Unfortunately, my veiled isn’t exactly a fan of my hand. I attempted feeding him a small horn worm today, but instead was met with a hiss and a flinch towards my hand. Of course, I set the worm onto a branch he could see, and left him alone.

Does anybody have suggestions for introducing hand feeding? Hornworms don’t really move around… could that possibly be the issue?

 

[Cacti3]

okay so, if your Cham doesn’t like hand feeding or anything, maybe this will work for your Cham but i dont know.


so, you kinda wanna wait until their behind a extremely dense plant. Like, they cant see you or anything and they just see your hand. You also want to be lower then them.

It may take a while for them to accept it. Just keep waiting.

Then, after they start taking it from behind the plant or branch or whatever, try to make it so they can sorta see your face. Don’t look at them though, just turn your head around so they just see your body and aren’t intimidated by your eyes or face.

Over time, start making it so they can slowly start seeing your eyes and face until your head is completely turned and your basically just staring at them.


After that, maybe try doing it not behind the plant if they accept it. Or make so more of their body has to come out ( ex: putting your hand farther away ).

And yeah. That’s what I did with Spyro.

 

[BleuSaphir]

You need to be consistent. Do it every feeding. It takes time and patience.

 

[LizardLurkin]

A lot of good advice here. When I first started hand feeding Spooble, he hid himself entirely, only saw his tongue shoot out and snatch the bug from my hand.
Eventually I could get him to come out a little further by moving my hand very slightly, more into view. Still not looking directly, glancing at him here and there, to make sure he was pursuing it into the new, more open area.
Eventually he started getting comfortable with our "special place" and would only take bugs from me there. Look at me like I'm crazy if I held a worm at the "treetops" of the enclosure.
But then i learned he had a particular favoritism to caterpillars, and he now very comfortably comes to my hand for the worm, stepping his two front feet onto my hand. I realize now I've had him for a bit over six months now, and it took a while to get there!