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New baby boy home, but bites uncontrollably:

New baby boy home, but bites uncontrollably:

Rynsey Joey

17 Posts

Jun 16 2012 : 04:25:30 PM

So My girlfriend and I just got our baby boy Yoshi yesterday. He is absolutely adorable and we love him to death already! However in the last 24 hours I think I have been bitten about 40 times. When I try to pick him up he is very aggressive, and when i hold and try to cup him in my hands it is non stop biting. We don't think it's playful biting, and we always wash our hands first so it's not that we taste like food. I know it takes time to adjust to new surroundings, but is this much biting normal? we were shocked at him being this aggressive, at the breeder he was very calm, and was loving being handled by the breeder.

Right now our plan is to give him some space to adjust to his new home, and hand feed him a treat or two and just be around him, let him get to know our scents. But any tips from your experiences would be very helpful. I searched around on here but didn't see anything on this much biting right off the bat.

Thank you for any info!
Jason

Rynsey Joey

17 Posts

Jun 16 2012 : 04:33:24 PM

I searched again and did find some older posts on the topic. Great info but I will still welcome any help!

Omis n Kais g-ma Pouch Protector

TX, USA 7272 Posts

Jun 16 2012 : 04:40:37 PM

D you use scented soap or lotion? That could be a problem. Yea, basically time is what you need. we've had two boys for two years and I still get bitten occasionally. I have a female I've had for 2 months and she bites pretty good but not as much anymore. You need to give him time.
Where did you get him and what are you feeding him?

Rukiya Glider

USA 121 Posts

Jun 16 2012 : 05:03:13 PM

Totally off topic but he's a cutie!

htippie Starting Member TX, USA 3 Posts

Jun 16 2012 : 05:05:04 PM

Hi, Rynsey!

The information you're providing seems typical of a sugie brought home to new surroundings. Yoshi looks very young (how old is he? Maybe I missed that information), and because he is a male he is typically going to be a bit more aggressive than a female to begin with. He was probably so calm at the breeder's because he was used to the environment and the smells, especially the smell of the breeder. This usually calms down gliders considerably because they feel safe and trust whoever is allowing other "smells" to come in and say hi. Because the scents he is used to are no longer around, he is probably feeling very scared and intimidated.

This usually leads to him trying to do anything and everything to protect himself because, as of right now, he does not trust you. He will be very defensive, especially because he's male. When I got my first male sugie, he was only about 4 months out of the pouch and was VERY mean compared to the female I got. While the female would nip at me occasionally, my male would literally BITE! He would chomp down and not let go until he felt safer.

It took me quite a long time to get him used to me. What I suggest is to make him feel as non-stressed as possible. This means I would stay away from him for a bit, let him get used to his new cage and environment. Let him smell everything and become accustomed to his new home. I know this can be tiring because you just brought him home and want to give him all the love in the world, but he simply isn't ready for it.

I would NOT reccomend trying to grab him and take him out of the cage. Don't hold him period, actually. He will only become very scared and frightened and learn not to trust you because he thinks he is in trouble. Instead, every night once you see him starting to wake up, place your hand inside the cage and hold it there. You will begin to notice he will start to sniff you and perhaps nip a bit (this is them "tasting" you, but does not hurt), and will eventually come to realize you are not there to hurt or chase him. This may take a few nights, but eventually he will start to jump on your arm.

Even still, try not to chase or grab him. He will eventually become comfortable enough to poke his head out of the cage and perhaps jump onto you. I don't recommend letting him come out of the cage unless you have a play tent or somewhere completely glider-proof where he can run about and jump on you. He needs to think of you as his "safety zone", so to speak.

Gliders take a lot of patience, especially new ones. But you will come to find that the more he grows used to you, the more he will love you and want to play with you at any time. You just have to be very patient and understanding, because to him you look like a giant monster ready to snap him in half. He will be very "nasty", so to speak, for as long as it takes for him to get used to you. For my little male, Winston, it took him almost 3 months to be comfortable enough with me not to spazz. Spend as much time with him as possible. Something I do recommend after having him a couple of nights is getting a "bonding pounch" and placing him carefully inside during the day time so he can sleep and become used to your scent. It's all about making him feel safe!

I hope all that somewhat helped. If you have any other questions, feel free to ask. :)

Helen88uk Fuzzy Wuzzy

United Kingdom 1417 Posts

Jun 16 2012 : 05:17:10 PM

I think this is also one of the reasons we recommend getting a pair of gliders, he's used to being with his family. Suddenly he's taken away and put in a cage alone, it's very stressful for the little man! Males are not typically more aggressive than females, having a friend will calm him down so I do recommend getting another glider as soon as you can.

I'm getting the impression you've only had him for a day or two. It can take a long time to bond. He will have had contact with the breeder since coming OOP, he will be familiar to him, you guys are strangers. Go at his pace. If he isn't comfortable being touched for a week then don't touch him. Sit by the cage and offer him treats, he should come round pretty quickly but you do need to be prepared to wait if not. Patience is the key. If you sense you're going to fast then back off. If you think he's going to bite then back off. Just go slowly. It took me 8 months to bond with my 1st two girls and now they're the softest things ever, it really does take time x

Rynsey Joey

17 Posts

Jun 17 2012 : 12:25:35 PM

Ok so today he is a little more calm, but very crabby and likes to lunge. We have been able to get him to take little pieces of apple out of our hands, but he runs off and hides. It's going to just take time. but let me try to answer everyones questions:

We just bought uncented hand soaps today, we'll try them out tonight after I'm off work.

He is on the Pricilla Price diet, and he loves it, Doesn't seem to like meal worms though, at least not yet.

We got him from our friend Mike who is a breeder, he was well loved and was very loving and calm in his hands.

He is a little over 3 months old. Born beginning of march.

We are going to get another glider, fairly soon. I have heard from others that will calm him down too.

Thank you everyone for your help! We have a bonding pouch, I managed to get him in there with surprisingly very little stress yesterday afternoon, and he slept on my chest inside of it all day. Would any of you recommend waiting to use the pouch or should I start it as soon as possible? And Htippie, my girlfriend Taryn just about died when she read your guys name is Winston lol, so cute!!

-Jason and Taryn

houdinizeldax33 Joey

39 Posts

Jun 18 2012 : 12:25:17 PM

Is he neutered ? My boy Houdini was aggressive until we neutered him. He then turned into a sweetie pie #128522;

JRMMJONES Face Hugger

USA 405 Posts

Jun 18 2012 : 04:42:31 PM

I left ours alone when we brought them in. I would take off my shirts and hang them on the outside of the cage so they could smell me. I would shove blankies in my bra and pockets and then shove them in their pouch so they could smell me during the day. It took a while, but Shadow finally stopped trying to eat us.

Skittlebutt Glider

55 Posts

Jun 18 2012 : 05:57:29 PM

When we got our first baby (from PP) she was sooo mean. She bit non stop when she was awake, with much time and patience (months) she has become very easy to handle :)

kbolin92 Super Glider

TN, USA 240 Posts

Jun 18 2012 : 06:01:55 PM

For the next few days , ANY time you pass his cage and he acknowledges you , give him a treat , mini marshmellows work great! Unfortunately, you arent going to have a best friend in a week, and it sucks. If you'd like a more detailed "plan" just pm me, im more than happy to help

LHill Super Glider

VA, USA 347 Posts

Jun 18 2012 : 06:59:24 PM

I always kept fleece covering my fingers when Jax lunged, I would also immediately put something in his mouth.. treat, toy, ect to distract him. It took sometime but he quit biting me.. (well until this weekend but that's a different post. lol)

Also Jax is the type of glider that likes to test EVERYTHING with his mouth. If I hung a fleece pouch he chewed it, his wheel, his toys.. so I put some cork tree and apple branches in his cage and that helped. I also didn't give him a traditional pouch I put him in an open pouch and always spoke to him before opening his cage. He got to the point that he was very friendly and always wanted to climb up my arm when I was working in his cage and spent almost all of tent time sitting on my shoulder.

Time and patience will payoff.

Rynsey Joey

17 Posts

Jun 19 2012 : 03:21:24 PM

Just an update:

We still have a long way to go, but we have seen changes in his behaivior towards us already. First he doesn't lunge at us nearly as much or in such a threatening manor. This morning, he was still awake before I went to work, instead of lunging at me he leapt onto the side of the cage I was standing closly to, crabbed just a little bit, sniffed, then leapt back. He did this twice. Then I was able to hold my hand against the cage and he jumped over and sniffed me. Also he will walk over and take bits of apple out of my fingers through the cage, and he stays right there and eats it with my hand still against the cage.

Another sign of progress, yesterday afternoon when we went to get him into the bonding pouch, all i had to do was uncover him (much crabbing) but I held the pouch open and he climbed right in under his own will, and snuggled down in the bottom of it! After about 3 hours, I noticed him moving around a lot so i let him out in his cage to relieve himself, then he climbed right back in on his own!

baby steps! But we know he will be such a sweet lil dude! Thanks for everyones replys! We wanted to share progress like happy parents lol!

Jason and Taryn (and Yoshi)

Skyfire Face Hugger

AZ, USA 456 Posts

Jun 19 2012 : 04:52:26 PM

Yay for progress!!!!!! Keep at it and he will be fine!

LHill Super Glider

VA, USA 347 Posts

Jun 19 2012 : 09:14:22 PM