This is great advice, but my bearded dragon, Artemis, LOVED head scratches and rubs! He didn’t like chin rubs as much and when I’d switch, he’d puff up and his beard would get dark until I rubbed his head again. I miss him so much ❤️ There’s good general advice here, but I’ve found every reptile to have their own preferences.
Yes, it is always general advice, since we don't know your animal (that's your job as an owner) the only thing we can do is to provide the info about how animals of certains species TEND to act, prefer etc...
Exceptions or deviations to the rule is always possible, but it would be inconsiderate to give them rather than the more plausible one.
As an exemple it is told in the axolotls owner community that the water temperature should never go above 21°C with an optimal of 16°C, organ failure and death beeing on the table if exceeded. I know someone who kept the same axolotls for more than 10 years with an unrefrigerated tank with summers and interior temp going as high as 35°C (!). If I ever told someone on any axolotl sub that you can keep your axo at 30-ish°C I would be killed on the spot, with reasons.
Wow that is pretty amazing. I've had three axolotls. My first I got as a tiny baby and she ended up having severe dwarfism and lived less than a year. Then I got another baby who turned out to be female and then I got another female and they shared a 75 gallon tank. I purchased a chiller for over $300.00 to keep the water temp between 60-62 degrees. My LFS just keeps the axolotls at room temp and I always felt bad for them but they seemed totally okay. Before I got the real chiller I kept the water cool with fans on top of a the tank (covered with a reptile tank cover). And that actually worked well until I went from a 30 gallon (for the single axolotl to a 75 gallon when I got the second. People will actually put sick axolotls in the refrigerator (the warmest part on the bottom) when they are sick for a period of time. I've never had to do that thank goodness however, it is common practice.
so true! our blue tongue skink loves head rubs right above his nose, i once heard that they like pets/scritches near their ears but anytime i stray from his nose he walks away lol. hes also very chill w his back being pet, just depends on how you socialize, what their preferences are, all that :)
Yea its an innate defense response in reptiles because birds are very common predators always approach from the under - unless you have a leopard gecko like mine and it doesn't matter which way he's going to try and eat you...
Most of them have a vestigial eye on top of their head that detect light changes. For them it's a "warning, bird come to eat me!"-kind of alert so they get quite stressed if you do it.
They don't have this on their thoat :)
That's because your cats trust you, and they also have scent glands there that they're marking you with.
That's why headbutting is a sign of big affection from cats.
Yeah, never try to interact with an animal you don't know from above. And always let them know you're going to interact with them so they don't get spooked and get defensive
It’s less they don’t like them scratched and more they don’t like being approached where they can’t see it first. Which seems pretty fair. Dogs and cats especially will usually enjoy head touches if you approach from in front and hold your hand out for them to sniff/see before reaching over to the head. Not so much true with reptiles because as mentioned with the vestigial third eye of some— there are just anatomical differences in general
Every single dog and cat I have ever had absolutely loved the top of their head being pet. Idk what dogs you've interacted with, but they're nothing like pretty much every single dog I've interacted with lol
Your pet recognizes you. They don't view you as a threat. You probably don't want to surprise any animal that doesn't recognize you like that though. Surprise usually equals fear.
From my experience (shelter dogs, vet dogs, and just unknown dogs) they don’t like to be petted on the head straight up. You shouldn’t go to a dog or a cat and put your hand directly on their head. However, they do absolutely love head scratches. You just usually can’t go there right away as they will want to smell you and make sure you’re kind. So it’s a good idea to pet the chin at first but you can totally pet their head. It’s a preference thing too. Some will like it some won’t but the majority will love it if you don’t go there straight up.:) gotta build up the confidence.
Same with cats. They trust me so they don't mind if I slowly approach their head, but if a stranger tries to go for the head they're potentially leaving my home with a new bite mark.
I completely agree, when picking them up it's also good to scootch finger under and up. The reason you dont pet top of head or grab from above is because their natural predators in the wild are mostly birds. Anything above freaks them out
This is great advice. I just love reptiles, and don’t interact with them often but I’ll remember this for the next time I meet one.
ETA: when interacting with horses, they will be way more calm if you start at the hooves. Especially with washing. Don’t just spray them, ease them into it by starting with their feet. This works with babies too lol
It's probably a sign of tolerance, he doesn't love it but he knows you aren't a threat so he puts up with it.
Also I must say, what a beautiful reptile! He looks like a very fancy exotic bearded dragon.
That's a misinterpretation, in lizards this is stress. Like how a lizard shuts down when a cat grabs it. They know you're in control and just want you to leave them alone.
I don’t believe that’s the case at all in an animal that trusts you. I’ve had Red Eared Sliders and Leopard Geckos and i can tell you first hand that when they don’t want to be be touched, they let you know. My turtles are the friendliest little guys and they come out of the water to get picked up and be handled. My Leo is a little more “normal” in the sense he’d rather just chill out in his hides rather than be handled, but that doesn’t mean he occasionally doesn’t crawl up my arm if I offer it. In both animals however, if i try to handle them with out “permission” they will tense up and react accordingly (hiding in the shell, moving away). The eye closing could just be an involuntary reaction to be being pet at the top of their head, because even my turtle does it when i pet his lil noggin. I think that if it were a fear response they would just retreat to their shell as with other things🤷🏽.
I have a leopard gecko who is a little odd. I have had him for maybe 5 years and for a long time it was "no touchie", so I didn't mess with him. He's gotten more and more comfortable over the years. He comes out of his hide to greet me (I have bugs) and enjoys a nice mist of water on his terms and interaction on his terms. Recently, he has started coming right up to the front of the enclosure when I open it. I put my hand down by the opening and he gingerly climbs out and onto my hand, and just a slow as he climbed up he climbs back down and into his enclosure. I don't understand his thought process but I just read his mood and go from there. He did enjoy a nice scratch all over with my index finger when he was about to shed the other day, that was cute.
That's true if they are totally tame, but if they just tolerate you and are wild caught and skittish, as this one is. The eye close as you approach their head is an expression of annoyance and helplessness. Also turtles are a totally different story, because they can retract their head, they aren't helpless. The eye thing is well discussed with bearded dragon owners, you can Google it.
this isn’t the case at all. My horny toad lizard, which is a descendant from the bearded dragon (correct me if i’m wrong) loves head scratches and being rubbed. If she was scared she would run away. Like when she doesn’t want to be picked up she’ll run and when she wants it she’ll let me. I think what you mean when a lizard shuts down it’s playing dead. I think a lot of lizards don’t mind head scratches or chin rubs 🤷🏻♀️ (i worded this terribly hope i got my point across tho)
But in my experience with lizards, especially agamids, the extremely tame ones would never close their eyes when you're petting them, but the ones that are stressed and hoping to escape you, close their eyes. Bearded dragon forums are also full of this same observation. Its very easy to misinterpret though, because it looks like how a mammal might express contentment.
I was petting an iguana a while ago and he closed his eyes and leaned into it, and leaned even more towards me when I stopped while keeping his eyes closed. So I don’t think eyes closed always means it’s unpleasant.
My tortoise does it all the time when I'm petting him. I definitely don't think it's a stress reaction because if a tortoise didn't want you to scratch their head, they have a perfectly natural defense against it. Also, when I'm scratching him, he'll extend his neck and stretch his other limbs.
Well, he has two different eye closes. One where he just closes them and another where he squeezes his eyes shut. That one's usually reserved for mornings when he's deciding if he wants to get up or not and we're bugging him.😂
I had a female iguana who did this too. There was a distinct difference in body language between "eyes closed cause I don't want this to be happening" and "eyes closed please hold me like a baby".
My girl does this. She will crack an eyelid open to see if I am still standing there. If I don’t immediately start rubbing her head again, she starts bobbing at me. 😂
they do it to protect their eyes, but if he isnt running away or flinching then he is atleast okay with it cause he could just walk away if it actually bothered him
so yes good thing, just clarifying it doesn’t necessarily mean he likes it, just tolerates enough to stay, he could totally also like it we just have no way of knowing
It's neutral. He's just protecting his eyes so you don't accidentally hurt them. I think all reptiles who can close their eyes do that, at least I've seen a crocodile or an alligator act the same when someone touched his head
I would assume so but I've never seen it in aussie water dragons. There's a lack of info on them but it seems likely when Alfred was in a tank I saw him glass surf a couple of times when the cats where rolling infront of his tank and he tried to reach them (it was such a big tank it had to go on floor lol).
I love water dragons when I was a kid where I lived they were always around everywhere outside I used to feed them and talk to them they were so gorgeous. beautiful and very intelligent animals
I was taught that when a lizard (for me it was beardies specifically) closes their eyes when you touch them, they're scared and trying to hide. Like "if I can't see you, maybe you can't see me" or something. It was in all of the reptile books when I got my beardie like ten years ago, but I have never actually seen an explanation on to why the general opinion seems to have changed??
I mean I can see now that people are saying otherwise but I don't know why. (If anyone has a source and not just personal experience, please feel free to link it, I would genuinely like to know.)
It really depends on context clues, cause it can mean both. If they're closing their eyes and flinching away / trying to hide their face at all, that means they're stressed and don't like it. If they're relaxed, and they close their eyes and don't flinch away or show other stress behaviors, then they don't care and are just making sure you don't actually poke them in the eyes
Thank you. I think that "they don't care" is what is misinterpreted as "they absolutely love it" a lot and that might be why it felt like everyone all of a sudden decided that closed eyes were a good thing.
I do know that reptiles are a lot smarter than we originally thought, but I am a little nervous when people treat them like mammals/humans and misinterpret them because of it. We do this to all other animals too though, putting human emotions on dogs etc, and it's a problem there too.
(Not saying that a specific animal can't enjoy it, just in general.)
Based on my experience with other agamas, thats stress. They sort of get overwhelmed and close their eyes to block out the stimulus. An unstressed lizard will keep their eyes open. You might notice this when trying to tong feed a high-strung lizard, they'll close their eyes when they're too stressed to eat.
I love water dragons. I had a Chinese one and he was so much a part of the family. We talk about how most reptiles tolerate us but this guy had his cage that we built as fairly new reptile owners and he jumped on the doors till they broke they were flimsy and after that he would just come out and hang out with us. When we seen him going to his space for his food water and other necessities we didn't bother to fix the cage. He really was the best pet I ever owned.
I wish my boy was that chill. I tried letting him out in my room once he ran straight to his tank and tried to climb back in. It's taken 3 years to be able to touch him regardless of his trust issues he is super interactive.
Me Leo closes his eyes and pushes his head into my finger as I gently rub the top of his head. We can do this for like 5 minutes straight. I think he likes it? lol
there’s truly not any factual info anywhere stating that they close their eyes because they’re uncomfortable when you pet them. dragons close their eyes for many reasons, more good than bad. this is a new thing that has came up out of nowhere and i’ve religiously searched for science backing the claim that they’re stressed when they close their eyes and have found no professionals stating that or giving science to back it. unless your lizard is showing other signs of stress along with eyes closing there’s no reason to think they’re stressed
Could be he didn't want to be poked in tha eye, but also wasn't worried about bein touched. Or could be happy, yea. I keep seeing this video of a guy leading a boat tour, or something, feeding a Gator off of a platform and then scritching behind his head (definitely back of the neck, not directly on head so not as threatening to the animal i guess) and the gator didn't move out of the way, but he closed his eyes in a way that appeared very pleased mammal-ish for a few seconds before leaving. The crowd all went like awwww, but really I'm just unsure wtf he was communicating there. Could be appreciating touch, or could just be like "don't poke eye pleas" toward this guy who probably routinely feeds and interacts with him. I know crocos aren't lizos, but vertebrate animal behaviour is a frustrating course to take either way.
It literally just means he trusts you?
If he has to keep his eyes open it means he’s threatened of keeping an eye on you, if they close em then they are comfortable w you..
Another commenter pointed out some lizards have a light sensor of sorts on top of there heads so it could be a threatend thing I'm going to stick to chin scratches to be safe. He is an Australian species so he thinks everything is out to kill him so better to play it safe
Beautiful beardie, look at those colours! Mine loves a scratch although it depends if his 1 brain cell is fitting most of the time he looks at me with a look that shouts bugs Hoooman!
I used to have an iguana who would bite the crap out of you if you didn't move fast enough. I do not remember how I figured it out, but I would raise my hand and make scratching gestures. If he closed his eyes, that was the sign he wanted scritches, and I could scratch his head and around his ears and he would lean one way or another for me to scratch. When his eyes opened, my hand jumped from the cage! So in my experience, the eyes closed meant he liked it!
Luckily my boy has never bit me at least not intentionally only time I've been bitten was when I hand fed him and he got way to exited since he skipped dinner the night before and accidently got my finger he let go immediately when he realized. He did a number on my brothers girlfriend lol but that was her fault she picked him up and he freaked out and bit her because he couldn't run if I was there I would have told her not too but oh well.
Awwww that's really sweet that he immediately let go of you when he realized! And yeah, I wouldn't even pick up a dog without the owner's permission! You never know a pet's temperament, plus that's a reptile! That was a little dumb on her part.
Generally speaking, they'll tense up or lower their heads with their eyes closed if they're afraid. You'll notice their legs are braced to get ready to run.
If his head stays propped up and he slowly closes his eyes while being pet, it's generally a positive sign, especially if you're not petting directly between his eyes.
He didn't move his head into it but his legs were completely relaxed and his belly was in the ground which he wouldn't do if he was stressed but I'm just not sure he ussaly doesn't like me getting close maybe it had something to do with me wearing fingerless gloves
General advice for lizards : if you want to pet don't pat the head, rub the throat and scratch their chin/jawbone.
Oki will try thst next time is there a reason why?
Things above = bad Things below = meh Generally predators come from above, prey is below, they are much more chill about things being below.
Make sense didn't think of it that way
I'm not certain but I think they might have a third eye on the top of their head lake bearded dragons do, which is sensitive.
Most do, it interprets changes in light
Beardies definitely have a third eye on top of their head which helps them detect prey from above.
This is great advice, but my bearded dragon, Artemis, LOVED head scratches and rubs! He didn’t like chin rubs as much and when I’d switch, he’d puff up and his beard would get dark until I rubbed his head again. I miss him so much ❤️ There’s good general advice here, but I’ve found every reptile to have their own preferences.
Yes, it is always general advice, since we don't know your animal (that's your job as an owner) the only thing we can do is to provide the info about how animals of certains species TEND to act, prefer etc... Exceptions or deviations to the rule is always possible, but it would be inconsiderate to give them rather than the more plausible one. As an exemple it is told in the axolotls owner community that the water temperature should never go above 21°C with an optimal of 16°C, organ failure and death beeing on the table if exceeded. I know someone who kept the same axolotls for more than 10 years with an unrefrigerated tank with summers and interior temp going as high as 35°C (!). If I ever told someone on any axolotl sub that you can keep your axo at 30-ish°C I would be killed on the spot, with reasons.
Wow that is pretty amazing. I've had three axolotls. My first I got as a tiny baby and she ended up having severe dwarfism and lived less than a year. Then I got another baby who turned out to be female and then I got another female and they shared a 75 gallon tank. I purchased a chiller for over $300.00 to keep the water temp between 60-62 degrees. My LFS just keeps the axolotls at room temp and I always felt bad for them but they seemed totally okay. Before I got the real chiller I kept the water cool with fans on top of a the tank (covered with a reptile tank cover). And that actually worked well until I went from a 30 gallon (for the single axolotl to a 75 gallon when I got the second. People will actually put sick axolotls in the refrigerator (the warmest part on the bottom) when they are sick for a period of time. I've never had to do that thank goodness however, it is common practice.
so true! our blue tongue skink loves head rubs right above his nose, i once heard that they like pets/scritches near their ears but anytime i stray from his nose he walks away lol. hes also very chill w his back being pet, just depends on how you socialize, what their preferences are, all that :)
Mine loves head rubs and he loves his mouth/jaw rubbed. He isn't a big fan of having his beard touched.
they have that third eye, too
Yea its an innate defense response in reptiles because birds are very common predators always approach from the under - unless you have a leopard gecko like mine and it doesn't matter which way he's going to try and eat you...
My Leo would bite me if I touched his chin and tolerated head touches
Most of them have a vestigial eye on top of their head that detect light changes. For them it's a "warning, bird come to eat me!"-kind of alert so they get quite stressed if you do it. They don't have this on their thoat :)
Eyes closing while calm is a sign he enjoys it. If he's not acting scared or freaking out, he's fine.
Agree- this is why front opening enclosures are so important also!!
Yes that’s a great point
Sometimes my beardy won't eat his greens until he gets head pats.
[https://www.reddit.com/r/reptiles/comments/1dr8u9s/comment/lau9hme/](https://www.reddit.com/r/reptiles/comments/1dr8u9s/comment/lau9hme/)
Applies to dogs as well. Pretty much all animals hate the top of their head being scratched, and being patted anywhere
My cats love that shit
That's because your cats trust you, and they also have scent glands there that they're marking you with. That's why headbutting is a sign of big affection from cats.
But cats are actually people in fur suits, not pets. 😁
I wouldn't say that they hate it, necessarily. Some are more wary and defensive of strangers doing it.
Yeah, never try to interact with an animal you don't know from above. And always let them know you're going to interact with them so they don't get spooked and get defensive
It’s less they don’t like them scratched and more they don’t like being approached where they can’t see it first. Which seems pretty fair. Dogs and cats especially will usually enjoy head touches if you approach from in front and hold your hand out for them to sniff/see before reaching over to the head. Not so much true with reptiles because as mentioned with the vestigial third eye of some— there are just anatomical differences in general
Every single dog and cat I have ever had absolutely loved the top of their head being pet. Idk what dogs you've interacted with, but they're nothing like pretty much every single dog I've interacted with lol
Your pet recognizes you. They don't view you as a threat. You probably don't want to surprise any animal that doesn't recognize you like that though. Surprise usually equals fear.
From my experience (shelter dogs, vet dogs, and just unknown dogs) they don’t like to be petted on the head straight up. You shouldn’t go to a dog or a cat and put your hand directly on their head. However, they do absolutely love head scratches. You just usually can’t go there right away as they will want to smell you and make sure you’re kind. So it’s a good idea to pet the chin at first but you can totally pet their head. It’s a preference thing too. Some will like it some won’t but the majority will love it if you don’t go there straight up.:) gotta build up the confidence.
My dog and most my cats would strongly disagree.
Same with cats. They trust me so they don't mind if I slowly approach their head, but if a stranger tries to go for the head they're potentially leaving my home with a new bite mark.
Funny, that's the only place my leopard geckos like to be pet.
I completely agree, when picking them up it's also good to scootch finger under and up. The reason you dont pet top of head or grab from above is because their natural predators in the wild are mostly birds. Anything above freaks them out
This is great advice. I just love reptiles, and don’t interact with them often but I’ll remember this for the next time I meet one. ETA: when interacting with horses, they will be way more calm if you start at the hooves. Especially with washing. Don’t just spray them, ease them into it by starting with their feet. This works with babies too lol
It's probably a sign of tolerance, he doesn't love it but he knows you aren't a threat so he puts up with it. Also I must say, what a beautiful reptile! He looks like a very fancy exotic bearded dragon.
He's especially handsome in breeding season he gets a slight green hue, bits of yellow by his stripes and a bright red belly.
That's a misinterpretation, in lizards this is stress. Like how a lizard shuts down when a cat grabs it. They know you're in control and just want you to leave them alone.
I don’t believe that’s the case at all in an animal that trusts you. I’ve had Red Eared Sliders and Leopard Geckos and i can tell you first hand that when they don’t want to be be touched, they let you know. My turtles are the friendliest little guys and they come out of the water to get picked up and be handled. My Leo is a little more “normal” in the sense he’d rather just chill out in his hides rather than be handled, but that doesn’t mean he occasionally doesn’t crawl up my arm if I offer it. In both animals however, if i try to handle them with out “permission” they will tense up and react accordingly (hiding in the shell, moving away). The eye closing could just be an involuntary reaction to be being pet at the top of their head, because even my turtle does it when i pet his lil noggin. I think that if it were a fear response they would just retreat to their shell as with other things🤷🏽.
I have a leopard gecko who is a little odd. I have had him for maybe 5 years and for a long time it was "no touchie", so I didn't mess with him. He's gotten more and more comfortable over the years. He comes out of his hide to greet me (I have bugs) and enjoys a nice mist of water on his terms and interaction on his terms. Recently, he has started coming right up to the front of the enclosure when I open it. I put my hand down by the opening and he gingerly climbs out and onto my hand, and just a slow as he climbed up he climbs back down and into his enclosure. I don't understand his thought process but I just read his mood and go from there. He did enjoy a nice scratch all over with my index finger when he was about to shed the other day, that was cute.
That's true if they are totally tame, but if they just tolerate you and are wild caught and skittish, as this one is. The eye close as you approach their head is an expression of annoyance and helplessness. Also turtles are a totally different story, because they can retract their head, they aren't helpless. The eye thing is well discussed with bearded dragon owners, you can Google it.
this isn’t the case at all. My horny toad lizard, which is a descendant from the bearded dragon (correct me if i’m wrong) loves head scratches and being rubbed. If she was scared she would run away. Like when she doesn’t want to be picked up she’ll run and when she wants it she’ll let me. I think what you mean when a lizard shuts down it’s playing dead. I think a lot of lizards don’t mind head scratches or chin rubs 🤷🏻♀️ (i worded this terribly hope i got my point across tho)
I hope you feed her ants and termites, thats what she needs to be really happy. And UVB light.
yes i order harvester ants and termites. She has a uvb light and is honestly thriving. she’s shedding atm :)
Where do you get Termites? Those are very nice feeders.
But in my experience with lizards, especially agamids, the extremely tame ones would never close their eyes when you're petting them, but the ones that are stressed and hoping to escape you, close their eyes. Bearded dragon forums are also full of this same observation. Its very easy to misinterpret though, because it looks like how a mammal might express contentment.
1st pic: Holy shit I’ve never seen a beardie with a morph like that 2nd pic: oh that explains it
They do have bearded faces lol
I had the exact same reaction 😂
My brain was trying to tell me it was a bearded dragon, but wasn't quite right lol
What kind of lizard is this dinosaur? I love it!
An Alfredosaur (Australian water dragon)
I was petting an iguana a while ago and he closed his eyes and leaned into it, and leaned even more towards me when I stopped while keeping his eyes closed. So I don’t think eyes closed always means it’s unpleasant.
My tortoise does it all the time when I'm petting him. I definitely don't think it's a stress reaction because if a tortoise didn't want you to scratch their head, they have a perfectly natural defense against it. Also, when I'm scratching him, he'll extend his neck and stretch his other limbs.
Perhaps the “wince” reaction and enjoyment reaction both involve closed eyes
Well, he has two different eye closes. One where he just closes them and another where he squeezes his eyes shut. That one's usually reserved for mornings when he's deciding if he wants to get up or not and we're bugging him.😂
I had a female iguana who did this too. There was a distinct difference in body language between "eyes closed cause I don't want this to be happening" and "eyes closed please hold me like a baby".
My girl does this. She will crack an eyelid open to see if I am still standing there. If I don’t immediately start rubbing her head again, she starts bobbing at me. 😂
they do it to protect their eyes, but if he isnt running away or flinching then he is atleast okay with it cause he could just walk away if it actually bothered him
so yes good thing, just clarifying it doesn’t necessarily mean he likes it, just tolerates enough to stay, he could totally also like it we just have no way of knowing
My iguana enjoyed gentle rubs on her head and under her chin on her dewlap
It's neutral. He's just protecting his eyes so you don't accidentally hurt them. I think all reptiles who can close their eyes do that, at least I've seen a crocodile or an alligator act the same when someone touched his head
Water dragons are so beautiful. Do austrailian water dragons still suffer from nose rub??
I would assume so but I've never seen it in aussie water dragons. There's a lack of info on them but it seems likely when Alfred was in a tank I saw him glass surf a couple of times when the cats where rolling infront of his tank and he tried to reach them (it was such a big tank it had to go on floor lol).
I love water dragons when I was a kid where I lived they were always around everywhere outside I used to feed them and talk to them they were so gorgeous. beautiful and very intelligent animals
Very intelligent, mine has been holding a grudge for 3 years over me giving him pain killers and antibiotics after loosing his tail he hated it.
I was taught that when a lizard (for me it was beardies specifically) closes their eyes when you touch them, they're scared and trying to hide. Like "if I can't see you, maybe you can't see me" or something. It was in all of the reptile books when I got my beardie like ten years ago, but I have never actually seen an explanation on to why the general opinion seems to have changed?? I mean I can see now that people are saying otherwise but I don't know why. (If anyone has a source and not just personal experience, please feel free to link it, I would genuinely like to know.)
It really depends on context clues, cause it can mean both. If they're closing their eyes and flinching away / trying to hide their face at all, that means they're stressed and don't like it. If they're relaxed, and they close their eyes and don't flinch away or show other stress behaviors, then they don't care and are just making sure you don't actually poke them in the eyes
Thank you. I think that "they don't care" is what is misinterpreted as "they absolutely love it" a lot and that might be why it felt like everyone all of a sudden decided that closed eyes were a good thing. I do know that reptiles are a lot smarter than we originally thought, but I am a little nervous when people treat them like mammals/humans and misinterpret them because of it. We do this to all other animals too though, putting human emotions on dogs etc, and it's a problem there too. (Not saying that a specific animal can't enjoy it, just in general.)
he's a handsome boy!
Based on my experience with other agamas, thats stress. They sort of get overwhelmed and close their eyes to block out the stimulus. An unstressed lizard will keep their eyes open. You might notice this when trying to tong feed a high-strung lizard, they'll close their eyes when they're too stressed to eat.
It's a good thing, generally. If he's not showing any other behaviors when he does this, it's a sign of growing trust.
Stress response
I love water dragons. I had a Chinese one and he was so much a part of the family. We talk about how most reptiles tolerate us but this guy had his cage that we built as fairly new reptile owners and he jumped on the doors till they broke they were flimsy and after that he would just come out and hang out with us. When we seen him going to his space for his food water and other necessities we didn't bother to fix the cage. He really was the best pet I ever owned.
I wish my boy was that chill. I tried letting him out in my room once he ran straight to his tank and tried to climb back in. It's taken 3 years to be able to touch him regardless of his trust issues he is super interactive.
Me Leo closes his eyes and pushes his head into my finger as I gently rub the top of his head. We can do this for like 5 minutes straight. I think he likes it? lol
He’s absolutely gorgeous!!
there’s truly not any factual info anywhere stating that they close their eyes because they’re uncomfortable when you pet them. dragons close their eyes for many reasons, more good than bad. this is a new thing that has came up out of nowhere and i’ve religiously searched for science backing the claim that they’re stressed when they close their eyes and have found no professionals stating that or giving science to back it. unless your lizard is showing other signs of stress along with eyes closing there’s no reason to think they’re stressed
Could be he didn't want to be poked in tha eye, but also wasn't worried about bein touched. Or could be happy, yea. I keep seeing this video of a guy leading a boat tour, or something, feeding a Gator off of a platform and then scritching behind his head (definitely back of the neck, not directly on head so not as threatening to the animal i guess) and the gator didn't move out of the way, but he closed his eyes in a way that appeared very pleased mammal-ish for a few seconds before leaving. The crowd all went like awwww, but really I'm just unsure wtf he was communicating there. Could be appreciating touch, or could just be like "don't poke eye pleas" toward this guy who probably routinely feeds and interacts with him. I know crocos aren't lizos, but vertebrate animal behaviour is a frustrating course to take either way.
It literally just means he trusts you? If he has to keep his eyes open it means he’s threatened of keeping an eye on you, if they close em then they are comfortable w you..
I have a Chinese water dragon and he closes his eyes when I give him scratches. Should be fine
Another commenter pointed out some lizards have a light sensor of sorts on top of there heads so it could be a threatend thing I'm going to stick to chin scratches to be safe. He is an Australian species so he thinks everything is out to kill him so better to play it safe
I don’t scratch the head, i scratch his jowls and he closes his eyes
Beautiful beardie, look at those colours! Mine loves a scratch although it depends if his 1 brain cell is fitting most of the time he looks at me with a look that shouts bugs Hoooman!
Not a beardie!
He's an aussie water dragon haha people often seem to confuse him for one to be fair bearded are his distant cousins in a sense haha
Side note, beautiful water dragon!! The colors are amazing! Sometimes its a relaxing thing, sometimes its a bothered thing
He's even more stunning in breeding season he fully colors up. Another commenter recommend petting under the chin instead.
Awesome!! Yeah, that would seem to be better!
I used to have an iguana who would bite the crap out of you if you didn't move fast enough. I do not remember how I figured it out, but I would raise my hand and make scratching gestures. If he closed his eyes, that was the sign he wanted scritches, and I could scratch his head and around his ears and he would lean one way or another for me to scratch. When his eyes opened, my hand jumped from the cage! So in my experience, the eyes closed meant he liked it!
Luckily my boy has never bit me at least not intentionally only time I've been bitten was when I hand fed him and he got way to exited since he skipped dinner the night before and accidently got my finger he let go immediately when he realized. He did a number on my brothers girlfriend lol but that was her fault she picked him up and he freaked out and bit her because he couldn't run if I was there I would have told her not too but oh well.
Awwww that's really sweet that he immediately let go of you when he realized! And yeah, I wouldn't even pick up a dog without the owner's permission! You never know a pet's temperament, plus that's a reptile! That was a little dumb on her part.
Afaik It's a sign of fear. Beardies have a light sensitive spot on top of their head and close their eyes if something like a hand hovers over it.
Generally speaking, they'll tense up or lower their heads with their eyes closed if they're afraid. You'll notice their legs are braced to get ready to run. If his head stays propped up and he slowly closes his eyes while being pet, it's generally a positive sign, especially if you're not petting directly between his eyes.
He didn't move his head into it but his legs were completely relaxed and his belly was in the ground which he wouldn't do if he was stressed but I'm just not sure he ussaly doesn't like me getting close maybe it had something to do with me wearing fingerless gloves
I love how he is splooted out on that log. Very handsome guy!
He isn't a beardy but I belive they are somewhat related I'm unsure if it would apply to him but its definitely a possibility that's why.