Taming My Crestie

Anyone have experience/advice on taming their Cresties?

Mine was about 2.5 inches when I got her (1 year at the end of November) so I was scared I'd hurt her if I handled her. Now she's about 4 inches and very shy but also curious. For example, this morning she saw me get out of bed and she ran up to the front of her enclosure to watch me, and stayed there just watching what I was doing for probably a good 20 minutes. But, at night when I open the cage to give her new food and she is by her food ledge, she runs away from my hand. The few times she does stay to watch what I'm doing, I put my hand a few inches from her and just stay still so she can smell me and figure out I'm good on her own terms, but I'm lucky if she just sits with my hand for more than 5 seconds. She has never so much as been bumped so I don't think she is scared of me as much as she just wasn't handled enough when she was a baby. I tried putting a clean sock that smelled like me in the enclosure with her but that didn't seem to help at all. I've also tried holding a tiny piece of fruit in an open hand (like how you'd feed a horse) and that didn't work but I haven't tried again because I don't want her to associate me with food and try to bite me when I try handling her (I heard that will happen with snakes if you only take them out to feed them so someone feel free to fact check me on that about geckos/lizards).

Any advice is appreciated just don't get on me about not handling her enough as a baby when I was afraid of squishing her. I should have started sooner but here I am now and we're working with it.

 

I totally understand why you didn’t handle her as baby, they are so little, it can be scary!

I would just spend a lot of time near the tank. I wouldn’t stick your hand into the tank until she is comfortable enough to explore her cage, with you watching her.

Then, once she was okay with you being near her tank, read her a book. That will help her associate you with your voice.

Then I recommend opening the tank. Once she is comfortable enough with you watching her (exploring and not paying attention to you) with the lid off, talk and kind of move around in front of her tank.

Then finally, just dangle your hand inside of the tank for a few minutes. Eventually she should get bored and get out of hiding, even with your hand in the tank. Do not move your hand ever when it is inside the tank.

You can then lay your hand flat on the substrate, and see if she will come sniff you.

 

Ive learned as well that baby cresties are not for beginners! My biggest mistake, there so fast and my loves to attack. She attacks and jumps out at me every time I open the door. Even though the breeder has never had one lose a tail its scary I agree. I would just le it climb and do what it wants to do. Night time is best of course to do so, put your hand in and your crestie should come explore you even if it takes mins. Ive heard you have to do this daily in order to keep them tame. Then you got a tame gecko as logn as you handle it a couple tiems a week.

 

I totally understand why you didn’t handle her as baby, they are so little, it can be scary!

I would just spend a lot of time near the tank. I wouldn’t stick your hand into the tank until she is comfortable enough to explore her cage, with you watching her.

Then, once she was okay with you being near her tank, read her a book. That will help her associate you with your voice.

Then I recommend opening the tank. Once she is comfortable enough with you watching her (exploring and not paying attention to you) with the lid off, talk and kind of move around in front of her tank.

Then finally, just dangle your hand inside of the tank for a few minutes. Eventually she should get bored and get out of hiding, even with your hand in the tank. Do not move your hand ever when it is inside the tank.

You can then lay your hand flat on the substrate, and see if she will come sniff you.

Her tank is actually on my desk which is where I spend a lot of time anyway! I have noticed her moving around when I'm focused on something else and then when my full attention is on her she stops wherever she is. I'll keep working on that until shes ready.

I want to be a teacher so I found that book idea really cute

 

That happens daily here, So far this morning ive walked by 7 times. He either stares or surprise attack jumps at me and does face first into the glass. Baby cresties are silly. As I write this he is stareing at me across the room. Boy its 11am go to bed!

 

He's probably trying to climb you! Cresteds like being high up, and you're like a big tree.

 

That happens daily here, So far this morning ive walked by 7 times. He either stares or surprise attack jumps at me and does face first into the glass. Baby cresties are silly. As I write this he is stareing at me across the room. Boy its 11am go to bed!

There was one time I was doing homework super late at night and I have a few nocturnal animals so it was just her night light and my computer light on my desk.. All of a sudden there was a bang from the cage so I looked up and she had jumped or something onto the screen and was staring at me upside down and just stayed there.. I laughed so hard I had to go do my homework somewhere else because I couldn't focus knowing she was doing that and she looked SO funny

 

He's probably trying to climb you! Cresteds like being high up, and you're like a big tree.

Honestly you're probably right.. She's just so jumpy and small that I don't trust her enough to let her do that.

 

Heres the link to my crazy crestie doing crazy things
Funny Reptiles?

 

Every crested geckonis different. Start by holding it every day for 5 minutes at a time, BUT always return it to it’s enclosure whenever it starts showing signs of stress (heavy breathing, running, tail wagging). Do not pet your gecko. They do not enjoy being petted. When they close their eyes, it’s a sign of stress and hoping you’ll go away - not comfort. I breed crested geckos, many of them are life long pets, but none of them are the same. Some of ours are so will sit on your shoulder for hours and fall asleep completely content, others will run and flee and all costs. The ones that don’t enjoy being handled simply are not handled, they’re pets to look at, not play with. Even the ones that seem to tolerate handling; we do minimal handling. They’re just not that kind of pet that’s going to get an emotional attachment to you.

And also, crested geckos are not nocturnal they’re considered Crepuscular, meaning they’re awake at dusk and dawn. So your best time for handling would be early morning or the very beginning of night.

 

Every crested geckonis different. Start by holding it every day for 5 minutes at a time, BUT always return it to it’s enclosure whenever it starts showing signs of stress (heavy breathing, running, tail wagging). /QUOTE]
Agree very much so! Then add maybe 2 more mins next week. Never have I seen tail wagging in a crested gecko! Ill research that.

 

When they wag their tail, they’re getting ready to drop it. So immediately return them to the enclosure if they ever start moving their tail in any sort of funky manner, haha.

 

Every crested geckonis different. Start by holding it every day for 5 minutes at a time, BUT always return it to it’s enclosure whenever it starts showing signs of stress (heavy breathing, running, tail wagging). Do not pet your gecko. They do not enjoy being petted. When they close their eyes, it’s a sign of stress and hoping you’ll go away - not comfort. I breed crested geckos, many of them are life long pets, but none of them are the same. Some of ours are so will sit on your shoulder for hours and fall asleep completely content, others will run and flee and all costs. The ones that don’t enjoy being handled simply are not handled, they’re pets to look at, not play with. Even the ones that seem to tolerate handling; we do minimal handling. They’re just not that kind of pet that’s going to get an emotional attachment to you.

And also, crested geckos are not nocturnal they’re considered Crepuscular, meaning they’re awake at dusk and dawn. So your best time for handling would be early morning or the very beginning of night.

What do you mean by pet? like stroke their head/body? some people just include different things in the word "pet" so I just want to make sure we're all on the same page

 

What do you mean by pet? like stroke their head/body? some people just include different things in the word "pet" so I just want to make sure we're all on the same page

Yes, exactly. Don’t be using your fingers and stuff to stroke them. They don’t like being touched or grabbed from above because they feel like a prey item.

 

Oh yes agree always grab from under the belly. Your hand looks like a scary dark shadow of a bird swooping down to get your crestie. So go under and let them crawl onto you.

 

Fun fact though, a lot of reptiles have a “third eye” called a parietal eye on the top of their heads - it allows them to see changes in light so they know if something is trying to scoop them up from above.

Crested geckos don’t have them, but just thought it would be interesting to share