So I was lucky enough to find and befriend a Beldum that was hiding at our local recycling plant. It’s in great shape now and I’ve wanted to learn how to battle for a long time so we took to training. Everything started off just fine but Beldum seems to be slowing down and getting discouraged after using Take Down. I don’t know if I’ve been caring for it improperly or what’s going on but I don’t want to push Beldum farther than I should.
Bill: Well, Take Down literally does wear a pokémon down each use. You can help your beldum recover and avoid any permanent damage by ensuring you’re giving it proper care between battles. Feed it a high-mineral snack after each battle to help it rebuild its shell, and consider including supplements to keep its energy up, reinforce its immune system, and supply it with additional iron for rebuilding its body. Moreover, always polish it using mineral oil and a soft cloth. Never use an abrasive cloth or water.
Also, as counterintuitive as this might sound, break your training up into more manageable periods. If your beldum can’t go for a full hour, pull back and train it for half-hour, twenty-minute, or other easier increments. Give it at least five-minutes (preferably more) of rest between each session, then go at it again. If you try to do the whole hour, it’s more likely that your beldum will tire out more or hurt itself in a way that isn’t quite as easy to recover from.
Finally, keep in mind that lethargy may also indicate that it’s saving energy for an oncoming evolution. While there’s not much you can do to help it evolve beyond training, creating manageable training sessions and helping it recover from each one will keep its spirits up and encourage it to keep going until it evolves.
Best of luck!
The Pokédex According to Bill 