How to start holding?

[TigerPeas26]

So Loki's been here for almost 4 months now and he's our first reptile. In the first few months, I would put my hands in there and just touch the items in the cage so my scent was there. Then my boyfriend and I started laying our hands down flat on the bottom so he could just check it out or whatever. Loki bit my bf twice, but I think that was just because he was still pretty young. Now he lets my bf hold him almost every night.

My issue: I'm terrified that he's going to bite me too. I know it won't hurt and he's only doing it if he feels threatened or whatever, but I just don't want it to happen. I've been placing my hand in there, and Loki will approach it, but then I chicken out and panic, taking my hand out.
How did you approach beginning to hold your Leo? Did they bite? Were you scared? Did they jump out of your hands?

Thanks for any help. I know I'm being irrationally terrified of this but I haven't been able to get over it... and I would really like to!

 

[IrishGecko]

I have a wee juvenile who after a few months has only started to embrace my handling of her. She was skittish when I first got her. What i have done to get her use to me, is to associate something positive with handling. By nature as far as I know these animal are not very social but through breeding have become tolerant of us humans!

I throw in one mealworm at a time and then lead her to the palm of my hand. I would lead her to my palm and before long she is standing on my hand lashing back a few meal worms.

Don't worry more than likely she will come around, but you have to be relaxed also. Don't make any quick movements. She probably thinks your finger is food(a nice big juicy worm!)/or is a territorial rival! Just relax and take it easy. These animals are cold blooded and prefer isolation rather than human social interaction,..but eventually thay get use to us.

 

[MissCookie]

My first leo was very determined to not be held. So I would take him out everyday and hold him ,and at first I would only hold him inside the cage because he was a jumper. But after a while he stopped doing that , and then I would hold him out of the cage and once a week give him a wax worm on my palm. Needless to say , he came around! haha

But non of my geckos have tried to bit me nor have any "yelled" at me. But it does take time. And once I got more geckos in the same tank I noticed that he would rather be in the tank then on me.

 

[Graham_s]

taming up a gecko requires you to be firm (but not too firm) and definate with your actions, just like with snakes. If you are hesitant and flinchy, then the gecko will get in a bit of a panic because they're not sure what's going to happen to them. Also, if you can, try not to approach from above, as it would be how a predator would catch them in the wild. If you're terrified, you needn't be. If leopard geckos bite, you're almost left saying to yourself "...did he just bite me?"