herperjosh Posted January 3, 2010 Report Share Posted January 3, 2010 tell me what ya think and any thing that need to be improved. Want to say thanks to livingart and the mods and admins for helping me and correcting my spelling lol BLUE TONGUE SKINKS Overview Blue Tongue Skinks make great pets! They are docile, tame, and friendly and don’t cause allergies like some house hold pets. They are also easy to maintain and to setup. Tank size Blue tongue Skinks get fairly large when they reach full size. At 2 foot when fully grown they need a big enclosure. But since they grow quite slowly they can be kept in smaller enclosures to begin with. Number / Body length / Enclosure length x width x height 1-3 / Juveniles - 0mm-160mm / 600 x 300 x 300 mm 1-3 / Sub Adults - 200-300mm / 800 x 500 x 400 mm 1-2 / Adults - 300mm + / 1000 x 600 x 600 mm Setup Substrate Blue Tongue Skinks can have a wide range of substrate, what you choose depends whether you are going to be feeding your Skink in it’s enclosure. Aspen - This substrate is quite good and their burrowing habits are met and is a relatively safe substrate, the only draw back is a bit of dust, use apen not pine or cedar as this can kill your Blue Tongue Skink. Sand - Is okay but not the best if you want to feed in the enclosure since Skinks can also eat the sand, this isn't good as it can cause impaction. Don't use man made sand, I don’t agree with calcium sand as they can overload on calcium. Bark – Is a good option as it looks natural and they can burrow. Usually they can not accidentally eat it since it is too big, Artificial grass - I recommend this substrate as it is totally safe and is easy to clean and you can feed in the enclosure. Coir coconut fibber - this is a good substrate as it is digestible and Blue Tongue Skinks can burrow into it, but it is quite moist. Other substrates are clean dirt. Plants Plants make the vivarium more natural for the Blue Tongue Skinks, use fake plants as Blue Tongue Skinks tend to eat real plants and they could be poisonous or dangerous. Decore Rocks and logs look nice in your Blue Tongue Skinks vivarium but make sure they are sterile, this can be done by boiling for a few minutes, don’t use any chemicals. Make sure they are not sharp and can’t fall on your Blue Tongue Skinks. Make sure your blue tongue has a cave, have one on the cool end and the warm end. Lighting - Blue Tongue Skinks are active during the day so they must have uvb/uva light! - There are special reptile lights that mimic the sun and give out these rays, an ordinary bulb wont do! - One of the most commonly used bulbs is the “repti glow” they have a range of U.V ray wave lengths, these range from the weakest to the strongest 2.0, 5.0, 8.0 and 10.0 the higher the number the more U.V rays. - Since Blue Tongue Skinks live in the forest the 5.0 is best but it depends what type of Blue Tongue Skinks you are keeping. - UV bulbs need to be replaced once a year. - Make sure you read the manufacturers guidelines and warnings Heating - This heating section only applies to the Eastern Blue Tongue Skink. - Eastern Blue Tongue Skinks need a temperature gradient of around 29-24 c and the basking temperature 35 c - Make sure there is a cool and warm end so they can regulate their own temperature. - For heat sources you can buy special heat lamps from pet stores they get really hot they must have a ceramic fitting since they will melt an ordinary lighting fixture. - Heat mats are not necessary as they can get all their heat from their heat lamp and they can cause a serious fire hazard I had one that was sitting on a tile and it still burnt through the plastic, cracked the glass tank bottom, and turned the carpet underneath to ash. - Heat rocks aren't necessary as your Blue Tongue Skinks will get all their heat from the lamp. But they do enjoy heat rocks. Make sure the heat rock has a built in thermo stats, don't produce hot spots, and are water proof. A good one is made by “exo-terra”. Diet - Blue Tongue Skinks are omnivorous meaning they eat a variety of foods. - They aren't particularly fussy when it comes to food but they must have the right diet if they are going to grow and be happy. - A blue tongues diet should consist of 50% veggies, 40% Protein (meats and insects), and 10% fruit. - For veggies you can use puha(water cress), broccoli, tomatoes, zucchini, peas,mustard greens,grated butternut squash and dandelions (should be mixed with other veggies). - For protein foods you can use-tinned dog food, dog chow, crickets, snails (no need to take the shell off), mice (don't leave in at night or unsupervised as they are known to bite as a defence or gnaw on lethargic reptiles the same applies for crickets and locust) ,mealworms, earthworms, tiger worms, cockroaches, lean red meat, mince, and raw or boiled egg. - For fruits you can use, apples, strawberries, bananas, pear, figs, melon, plums, kiwifruit and raisins. - Don’t feed avocado as this is toxic to reptiles - Calcium supplements with vitamin d3 are great for your reptile but DO NOT OVER DOSE AS IT COULD BE FATAL! - For calcium powder sprinkle a little bit of it (just a little) on your Blue Tongue Skinks food every 3 days -Give them a vitamin supplement once a week ONLY GIVE SMALL AMOUNTS OF.CALCIUM AND VITAMIN SUPPLEMENTS TOO MUCH WILL DO MORE DAMAGE THAN NOT ENOUGH! Habits - Blue Tongue Skinks are active during the day but tend to sit in their caves a lot. You can encourage them out by removing their caves for an hour or so each day - They each have their own personalities and their own tastes and what they like and dislike. - Blue Tongue Skinks should not be kept with other reptiles, feeding habits and enclosure requirements make them incompatible. - Some like to be handled but some don't also always wash your hands before and after handling as all reptiles have the posibility to carry salmonella. - Keeping blue tongues together can be good or bad. Blue tongues in groups to me,tend to be more active alert and entertaining but there is a downside. Blue tongues skinks are solitary by nature usually only coming together to breed, thus they aren't friendly to each other two males put together can create territorial problems and they will fight. Also having mixed sized blue tongue skinks meaning the heavier,fatter and larger ones may crush small innocent blue tongues. It is really up to you but if you see any aggression i advise you separate them. Silverdollarboy2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted January 3, 2010 Report Share Posted January 3, 2010 well done Josh don't forget to thank the mods and admin as well as we all had a hand in it really good to see one of our younger members participating in the forums in a mature way Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
repto Posted January 4, 2010 Report Share Posted January 4, 2010 agreed,he will most likely end up like you?but that will be the next millenium won`t it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted January 4, 2010 Report Share Posted January 4, 2010 nah repto i am the novice you are the master Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenix44 Posted January 4, 2010 Report Share Posted January 4, 2010 tell me what ya think and any thing that need to be improved whant to say thanks to livingart and the mods and admins for helping me and correcting my spelling lol perhaps something about washing your hands after touching them, salmonella etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reptilez Posted January 4, 2010 Report Share Posted January 4, 2010 thanks that really helped Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herperjosh Posted January 6, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 6, 2010 perhaps something about washing your hands after touching them, salmonella etc. yeah i forgot to mention that will put it in! thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matto Posted March 10, 2010 Report Share Posted March 10, 2010 you said that this heating only applies to the eastern blue tongue skink so what other types are there? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herperjosh Posted March 13, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 13, 2010 you said that this heating only applies to the eastern blue tongue skink so what other types are there? northern blue tongue blotched bluetongue pgmy bluetongue and a few others but forgot Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snake kid Posted March 13, 2010 Report Share Posted March 13, 2010 The pygmy blue tongues are REALLY COOL!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herperjosh Posted March 20, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 20, 2010 The pygmy blue tongues are REALLY COOL!!! yeaha aye lol wish we could get them here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soloman5 Posted April 18, 2010 Report Share Posted April 18, 2010 What are they types of blue tongue that you can get in NZ and do they prefer to be kept at certain temperatures or are they not too worried? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herperjosh Posted April 22, 2010 Author Report Share Posted April 22, 2010 What are they types of blue tongue that you can get in NZ and do they prefer to be kept at certain temperatures or are they not too worried? only the eastern i think they are the only one i have seen i think the temp varies between species as they come from difernt parts of australia so im not 100% sure Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gatito Posted August 9, 2010 Report Share Posted August 9, 2010 That's awesome herperjosh, i'm looking at getting a bluey at some point and i found it really informative, easy to read and understand, and also very thorough without being long-winded. It would prove useful for everyone from the complete beginner, to even teaching current skink owners something new. I love how you've compared the different substrates, giving the pros for each one so the reader can make an informed decision, rather than a care sheet saying "use this, it is best, full stop". As part of your notes on behaviour, it might be interesting to mention how they interact in species groups - what the advantages and disadvantages are of having one bluey as opposed to two, or a trio, or (dare i say it) more? to all who contributed, for all the above reasons Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herperjosh Posted August 11, 2010 Author Report Share Posted August 11, 2010 That's awesome herperjosh, i'm looking at getting a bluey at some point and i found it really informative, easy to read and understand, and also very thorough without being long-winded. It would prove useful for everyone from the complete beginner, to even teaching current skink owners something new. I love how you've compared the different substrates, giving the pros for each one so the reader can make an informed decision, rather than a care sheet saying "use this, it is best, full stop". As part of your notes on behaviour, it might be interesting to mention how they interact in species groups - what the advantages and disadvantages are of having one bluey as opposed to two, or a trio, or (dare i say it) more? to all who contributed, for all the above reasons Thanks and will do! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sneaky2 Posted March 23, 2012 Report Share Posted March 23, 2012 dont forget winter night time cooldown.can be as cold as or more so than n.z(jafa climate)..was freezing nightime (literaly) last time i was in brisbane(august) apparently triggers high fertilty...and as for enclosure size,even with a frontal labotimy can you imagin living in a 4m+2m+2m world???(four foot fishtank). if scaled to human,)minus brain..have observed an inland beardie almost pop with excitment after being shifted from a 2m cube enclosure(for winter) up to a 70m cube enclosure...cant all build mega enclosures but maby can pick up the slack with day cages.....mmmmm sunlight n space...heres a cheap trick.wharehouse swimmin pool.the one with the frame, not the one thats inflatable.....stab the base many many times so it wont flood,lanscape to the max, day cage from hell....dooooo iiiiit! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Exotic Aquatics Posted October 29, 2013 Report Share Posted October 29, 2013 Awesome care sheet thanks 4 the help :gpo2: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nex Posted February 15, 2015 Report Share Posted February 15, 2015 What kind of Bark is ok to use? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted February 15, 2015 Report Share Posted February 15, 2015 The chunkier stuff doesn't stick to the food, but don't use the dyed bark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nex Posted February 15, 2015 Report Share Posted February 15, 2015 I mean what type, as in wood. or is any old bark from say Mitre 10 ok? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nex Posted February 15, 2015 Report Share Posted February 15, 2015 Also anyone used Coco chips? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingart Posted February 15, 2015 Report Share Posted February 15, 2015 Coir coconut fibre - this is a good substrate as it is digestible and Blue Tongue Skinks can burrow into it, but it is quite moist. possibly a similar product Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reptilez Posted February 15, 2015 Report Share Posted February 15, 2015 Also anyone used Coco chips? It works well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nex Posted February 16, 2015 Report Share Posted February 16, 2015 Is Pine Bark ok? Iv heard pine oil/sap is a cause of lung and liver issues in reptiles, however pine bark will have been heat treated which would get rid of the oil/sap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted February 16, 2015 Report Share Posted February 16, 2015 Why would it have been heat treated? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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