# Getting my first Blue Tongue Skink!



## artgecko (Nov 26, 2013)

I own several reptiles (10 snakes, 3 crested geckos), but have never owned a BTS before. They are pretty costly compared to other lizards due to them giving live birth and being hard to breed. 

I've been researching for a while now and finally found one that I love the look of, that is in good health, and at a price I can (shockingly) afford.. I was lucky that the seller just happened to mark his prices down recently.  It is a Merauke BTS and was farm-bred (meaning that it was bred in Indonesia and imported here). The seller has had it for 5 months now, so it has been well cared for and is healthy. 

Now all I have to do is get my enclosure setup and mix up a batch of "skink chow" (raw meat, dog food, veggies, and a small portion of fruit).

I will try to attach some pics below (these belong to the seller and were from the sales ad).


----------



## Fraido (Oct 1, 2014)

Awesome!:3 Post photos often!


----------



## artgecko (Nov 26, 2013)

I will! Once I get him / her in I will spam this thread with pics.  Apparently it's practically impossible to tell gender on these guys, so I guess I'll have to come up with a gender-neutral name. My husband suggested "chubbs" lol.


----------



## Fu-Inle (Jan 22, 2015)

Never knew they where so expensive. They're a very common lizard here in Australia. I get them in my backyard all the time


----------



## artgecko (Nov 26, 2013)

Yeah, I've heard they are much more affordable in Australia. Here in the states, a captive born and bred northern (the most common kind available) will run about $100 and up (for a normal, morphs are more), imports... either wild caught or "farmed" of the indonesian types are closer to $200 and anything unusual or any of the rarer types (non northerns) that are captive born / bred can go fo $300 and up. A guy just had an litter of eye-banded easterns here, which is apparently rare, and he is pricing them only for those interested in "investment quality" ones.. I don't know how much, but I'm assuming close to $1,000 or more. I got lucky with mine, I only paid $200.. He is farm bred, but is older and well cared for. The same seller wanted $275 a couple months back.

I feel bad for your guys in Australia, I know some reptile keepers over there that hate that they can't have any non-native reptiles. At least you guys have the beardeds, blue tongues, and carpets though.. I just got my first jag. carpet a couple months back and he is a blast.


----------



## Fu-Inle (Jan 22, 2015)

Yep, Australia is really strict when it comes to exotic pets. Even owning a pet rabbit is illegal in some states.


----------



## artgecko (Nov 26, 2013)

I got the skink in the mail yesterday! He arrived in good shape.. Plenty of hissing and huffing at me lol. No pics yet, as I don't want to disturb him while he is settling in, but I will get some once he is calmer. He is a good 3-4 inches longer than the ad said lol.. So about 15-16" instead of 12".


----------



## FallDeere (Sep 29, 2011)

Congrats on your new addition! I was looking into types of reptiles I may want eventually the other day and lots of places recommended those. They seem pretty stinkin' cool. I am excited to see pictures and hear how he works out.


----------



## artgecko (Nov 26, 2013)

Not the best pic (lighting is bad), but here he is. I think he's a good 4" longer than he was in the ad pics lol. This is a temporary tub setup and he will be getting a larger pvc cage (probably in September). He is great so far... No attempts to bite or anything. He seems very intelligent.. He doesn't just scury under his hide when I do stuff in his tub, like in this pic, he wlll stay there and "watch" me do whatever I'm doing.. As long as I don't touch him, he wants to know what's going on lol. 








He has another week to go of settling in time, then I will start trying to get him used to being handled. I've gotta say that I really like him at this point.. Much more interactive than my snakes. I will absolutely consider getting another skink and I'd like to get a baby and raise it up, but that will have to wait. I'd say the main consideration if you're thinking about getting one should be the adult enclosure size. In the pic, he is in a tub about 18" wide and close to 3' long... He will be getting a 4' x 2' x ~18" enclosure as his permanent home, but even that may end up being a bit small.. Enclosures aren't cheap, so I'll have to consider attempting to build one or save up the ~$350 or so it'll take to buy one that large. 

Diet is working out super easy so far. I mixed up a batch of skink chow from quality dog food, veggies (carrots, squash), greens (kale and spring mix), and a little fruit (bananna, apple) and froze it in ice cube trays. I now have at least 2 months worth of food in my freezer. He will get fed about 3 times per week and I'll mix vitamin / calcium powder into his food before serving. 

I'll try to have more pics of him once he settles in more and I start taking him outside.


----------

