My dragons are very wild. I can hold them 4 a few minutes inside there cage but then they jump away. I was told its ok to hold them upside down to calm them down but as soon as I turn them back over they get all hyper again. They are about 15 and 18 inches long right now. Any advice on handling them and keeping them calm? I also got leashes for them as I would like them to get out of there viv but am afraid if unleashed n they run for it I wont be able to catch them again or our cat might catch them before I do. When I do hold them in there cage its just letting them sit on my hand or arm with the freedom to leave. on how to gain there trust but not lose them.

I'm not sure who told you to do that, but thats incorrect. The reason they calm down that way is you are putting pressure on their lungs and they stop breathing, the same as if you flip them on their backs. The only way to gain trust and get them to be easy to handle is to hold them on a daily basis. There is not miracle. You could wait till lights out when they are asleep then hold them to start out. Take your time and dont rush it.

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MARSHA

:D I'm smiling because I have no idea whats going on!

Marsha is correct. Holding them upside down is not calming them. They simply cannot breathe! They have no diaphragms to control their breathing the way we do.
The first thing you have to think about is that these are wild animals and reptiles. As far as they are concerned you look like this big scary THING that may intend to eat them.
Gaining a reptile's trust is a matter of time. And sometimes a lot of time! Just treat them gently and move slowly. Letting them sit on your arm in the cage is a good start. You could also take them into a small room like a bathroom(Make sure there is no holes or other places that they can get into and get lost!) and just sit with them letting them do their own getting used to you.
The key is patience. It doesn't happen overnight.

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Merlin,
What's Life Without A Little Magic!

Yes I will have to agree with everyone else. Hanging them upside down makes them not be able to breathe, so I wouldn't do that again. It def. takes a very long time for them to trust you. I have a male that still doesn't really like to be bothered but he's getting better and he has gotten alot better since the first day I got him.

As the others have said, the things you've been told are not right and will only cause more stress to your WDs. Behaving in this way with them will also mean that each time you take one step forward, you take two steps back - it will only serve to increase the lizards' distrust of you.

You need a lot of patience and time, and eventually your WDs should tame down. Don't expect miracles, and the odd lizard will never become your best friend - our male leopard gecko hates being handled and will never be as tame as our females, but you stand a better chance the younger your lizards are when you start handling them and the more patience you have with them.

Begin slowly - get them used to you going in their tank to feed and clean them and change their waters before you even try to pick them up. Try placing your hand near them when you have done this a few times, and then gradually move onto picking them up gently while they are in the tank. Only after a lot of time and practice should you try handling them out of the cage, as this will frighten them more, so be slow and calm.

I would also advise against the use of the leads - I've no experience of them myself, and I know others who have tried them successfully, but I've also heard a lot of horror stories about their use and they can cause injuries. Especially while the lizards are so young, I would just stick to handling them yourself, and when the time does come to handle them outside the tank, try and make sure you have an escape-proof room, with few obstacles, so that if they do freak out and run off you can easily catch them without causing too much stress.

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"If you know everything you may as well blow your brains out because the reason for existence is to learn more everyday." - Mark O'Shea, 2004

I agree with everything said above, but also consider that when you do hold them that they like to be secure. They don't like their limbs or any other part of their body (aside from tail) to dangle freely. It took me handling mine daily for a while for them to trust me. They also like to sit on heads and shoulders. You might be able to get them to sit calmly with you if you sit down and let it pick where it wants to sit though I've only tried that with older CWDs.

Another thing to remember is that if they can see their cage when you take them out of it they will most likely try to get back into it. So if you can take them to another room when you take them out of the cage it might help.

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0.1.0 Brazilian Rainbow boa (Sakura)
1.1.0 Leopard geckos (Tasuki, Sango)
2.0.0 Ball pythons (Tsume, Kenshin)

As above...I agree with all. I like to take my three girls out (one at a time), we will go into the LR to watch the tele, I'll rest them on my stomach and they begin to roam up and down my legs from my stomach to my ottoman, as soon as they appear to want to roam further I will take them back to their enclosure. (Too many places to hide if left to roam) But in the short time I've had them they are more docile and less and less wanting to roam, they will almost come to me now. Also when picking up they dont like their ribs squeezed so the best way I think is to scoop them from the belly and chest with as little pressure as possible on the ribs.

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The blind man takes your hand and says 'dont you see?'

I've be reading from several sites about water dragons because I'd like one and many of the resources say not to do that because it cuts off the air supply to their lungs. Maybe you should take a look at some sites about water dragons.

I tame my mean little devils by getting them in my hands and putting one hand over their head. It calms them right down...remember not to cruch or suffocate though! It's the darkness and enclosed space that seems to comfort them.

hehe what i've been doing with mine, when I have him out and he starts acting fidgety or jumps off my shoulder and starts to jet, i hold him with his body vertical, and his face at my eye level and I softly scold him, haha I think it's more the eye level "look of death" that keeps him in check though