Hi guys, I know I haven't been on the site in a while.
Lately Quillbert and I have been having some difficulties. His is now about half a year old and I believe that he is going through puberty. In the past few days he has become much more irritable and aggressive. He does not like to be handled at all, tries to bite, and gets much more upset at noise and/or movement than usual (huffing and puffing more than normal). I know that he is not currently quilling because I change his liners every day and watch for quill loss.
His eating, drinking, pooping, sleeping, and wheeling habits all appear to be normal. Aside from dry skin which I treated with a vitamin e oil rinse he appears to be in perfect health.
But when I try to handle him (simply pick him up from his cage) he now tries to bite me. At first I thought that it was something on my hands that was interesting to him but I made sure to wash my hands thoroughly with the same soap I have been using for months. He still tries to bite me. So far he has only managed one nip and I am continuing to handle him and discourage the biting by keeping body parts away, withdrawing when he starts to lick, and blowing in his face.
When I got him the breeder mentioned in a side comment that around puberty the boys can get a little "macho" as their hormones kick in.
Do you all think that this is normal puberty? From your experience, will he calm down once it's over and be the sweet little boy that he was before, or is the change likely permanent? How should I handle this? I want him to have everything he needs but handling him is really starting to stress both of us out.
I can take him to the vet if I have to, but as I said he appears to be in perfect health.
Lately Quillbert and I have been having some difficulties. His is now about half a year old and I believe that he is going through puberty. In the past few days he has become much more irritable and aggressive. He does not like to be handled at all, tries to bite, and gets much more upset at noise and/or movement than usual (huffing and puffing more than normal). I know that he is not currently quilling because I change his liners every day and watch for quill loss.
His eating, drinking, pooping, sleeping, and wheeling habits all appear to be normal. Aside from dry skin which I treated with a vitamin e oil rinse he appears to be in perfect health.
But when I try to handle him (simply pick him up from his cage) he now tries to bite me. At first I thought that it was something on my hands that was interesting to him but I made sure to wash my hands thoroughly with the same soap I have been using for months. He still tries to bite me. So far he has only managed one nip and I am continuing to handle him and discourage the biting by keeping body parts away, withdrawing when he starts to lick, and blowing in his face.
When I got him the breeder mentioned in a side comment that around puberty the boys can get a little "macho" as their hormones kick in.
Do you all think that this is normal puberty? From your experience, will he calm down once it's over and be the sweet little boy that he was before, or is the change likely permanent? How should I handle this? I want him to have everything he needs but handling him is really starting to stress both of us out.
I can take him to the vet if I have to, but as I said he appears to be in perfect health.