In Reply to: Bitting posted by Mandy on October 26, 1999 at 20:47:11:

: I know that everyone talks about their biting phase (adolescence) nad that we are just supposed to ignore it as much as possoble, but it seems that the more I ignore it, the harder they bite. My oldest one Tamur the worst but his little girlfriend Gidget is starting too. nyway I don't mind thatthey bite, she was almost drawing blood. Should I just tough it out and bleed, or is there another path to follow?? Thanks Mandy, Tamur and Gidget

No you do not need to tough it out. That type of biting is when you first get a glider that has not been well handled and you are trying to tame it. The type of social nipping that you are discribing can be deterred. Let your gliders know that it is unacceptable. Blow in it's face when it nips you, if you are trying to spend some play time with your glider and it nips you, put it back into the cage and let it know that nipping is not acceptable behavior. If it is dinner time and you want to give your gliders a treat and they nip you instead, take the treat away and let your glider know that you will not reward unacceptable behavior. There are many ways to discourage this behavior without hitting your glider or tolerating bites to the point where they may draw blood. Gliders are very smart and will soon get the message.

Follow Ups:

• Re: Bitting michael 02:08:26 11/25/99 (0)
• Re: Bitting michael 02:08:19 11/25/99 (0)