Help me with this little pet store male....:(

[angllady2]

I would start with a little more food. He could be trying to make up for lost time. I've had a few that way, and not all of them were babies. My fire female is Mori. And she earned her name. When I got her she'd been starved so badly if I had let her she would have killed herself with food. With her is was nothing but " More? More? More mommy? More? more?" Hence, Mori. She'd take 6 mice one right after the other, until she was bloated from head to tail, and still snap at you wanting more food. It took time and regular meals for her to understand she did not need to stuff herself for when the food went away, because the food was always going to be there. Much like a stray cat or kitten. If you have ever dealt with one, you know they will stuff themselves to the point of choking for fear they won't get any more. odds are the little guy is just a tad bit hungry and that makes him crabbier than normal.

Otherwise, it's just normal, natural fear. They all have it to one degree or another, and patience is the only key to helping it. Go ahead and hold him, even if he does pitch a fit. Let him bite you if he needs to, it's no worse than a burr. Wait for him to ball up, even if he's breathing like an obscene phone caller. Just hold him. Try not to move him around, just hold him. Patience is the key here. After a while, he'll figure out you aren't going to eat him, and he'll stop the heavy breathing. he may even peek slyly at you with one eye. if you've got the patience and time, wait until he relaxes enough to unwind a little bit. But be warned, it could take 20 minutes or longer if he's really uptight. Usually if you can wait them out, once they start to move, they don't stop. i.e. he'll be doing his best to get away from you. Just be patient. It won't happen overnight, but if you have the patience to win him over, he'll still make someone a good pet.

Gale