Hi there, Terri Lynn asked me to check in here. What a cutie you have, he's quite the little guy.
The arm waving is their way of communicating with us and also occurs when they see their reflection in the glass. If you think the reflection is scaring him, you could cover 1 or 2 sides of the tank with paper or cardboard to block it. It is a good idea to let them settle in before handling much but babies can get dehydrated very quickly and since very few drink out of standing water dishes, giving baths is the best way to
hydrate them. You could either put a small transparent container with a little bit of water in his tank for him to hopefully soak in or take him out &
bath him in a container of warm water, adding just enough to cover his front legs. Watch him very closely as they can drown in a small amt of water. Put a washcloth down in the bottom to help him feel more secure. You could also hold him in the palm of your hand & slowly lower it in the water but keep at least your fingers available so he can hang onto them if he wants. A 15 to 20 min soak allows for proper
hydration and I usually suggest
bathing a baby 3 to 4 times a wk. It would be a good idea to remove his water dish, especially at night to prevent an accidental drowning because they sleep very soundly and if he fell asleep in it, would be very dangerous.
I also agree with Terri Lynn about keeping the cat away from him as he doesn't need that stress right now and he can certainly seem like a threat to your little guy.
He is probably getting ready to shed, that would explain the rubbing of his head. A
bath would help with that too.
It looks like a probe thermometer in the picture. What are your basking & cool side temps? Be sure to put the probe right under the basking light & wait about 45 min for the temp to stop rising before getting the final reading. What size tank is he in & what is the wattage of the basking bulb? What brand & type of UVB are you using, ex: coil, compact or strip fluorescent bulb? How far away is the UVB from the basking site?
It looks like you're using shelf liner in the bottom of his tank, that's much safer than a loose substrate. Is the shelf liner the type WITHOUT adhesive on the back?
Did the petstore mention that you need to make sure that the crickets are no larger than the space between his eyes, otherwise it can cause impaction? Babies should be fed 2 to 3 times a day and all the crickets they can eat in a 10 to 15 min timeframe each time. And, you need to dust his crickets with calcium with D3 but phosphorus-free 5 days a wk, but only 1 feeding a day & with vitamins the other 2 days a wk, but only 1 feeding a day.
Sorry for so many questions, just trying to cover the basics. :wink: We are here to help you with any questions or concerns you have.