Posted by iZ's mom on June 30, 2000 at 21:53:14:
In Reply to: taming tips posted by Lucky on June 30, 2000 at 21:00:40:
my ig is like that too, he's friendly + easy-going and very tolerent of me, let's me pick him up with no prob if he's on one of his shelves ... but he draws the line at being picked up from the floor! *grin*
first thing you have to realize is that igs are wild animals, they will never, ever be *tame* the same as cats or dogs! (there are exceptions to this rule, but they *are* exceptions!) ... they become socialized, but never really 'tame' which implies more that they will strive to please you ... (igs won't!)
you also have to remember that in the wild, igs are food + snacks for just about everything else and the survival instinct is *very strong* in them ... that's what you're up against when you try to pick up your ig from the floor ... what registers in your ig's head is that something *very large* is looming over her and is probably gonna munch on her!
an important part of socializing any animal and especially igs, is to learn to communicate with them ... that means paying attention to what they're 'telling' you ... your ig its telling you she doesn't like it when you pick her up off the floor, it scares the crap out of her and she doesn't want you to do it ... listen to her! if you *absolutely, positively have to* pick her up from the floor, don't walk directly up to her ... get down low as you approach her and talk calmly, softly to her ... picking her up from underneath her body, as opposed to grabbing her from the top, is extremely helpful too ...
really, it sounds like you're doin' pretty good ...