Cleaning up after the poopingest skink in all the land

[Hijinks]

Ping has a big problem with poo. He drags his belly through it and smears it all over the place. I clean the immediate area and any affected decor with chlorhexidine.

But how do I clean the poo off of him? I have been rubbing him down with a wet paper towel, and giving him a quick rinse under the tap when it's really bad. Is there anything more I can do to safely clean him off? I feel like he's still smelly when I just use water.

Plus, when he goes on these poo-capades, it means he's dragging invisible poo particles all over the enclosure. Does this necessitate a full cage cleaning? Or is it "safe" after it has dried out?

This is the face of a deviant:

[SailleSkinklover]

Oh mY GODS I love Ping. . . I never get tired of hearing of his exploits with poop. . .

OK so what I've had to do with Chuffers when he had a similar poop experience ( He had diarrhea when we got back from vacation: found that he had been fed waaayyyyyyyy too much catfood and not enough greens, etc. What a mess! )
I use the biodegradable seventh generation dish soap. (its gentle and safe) I run the kitchen tap unitl its about body temp for me, and then I rinse Chuff to get him wet. I lather him up, staying away from his ears, make sure I get his belly and tail, then rinse it all off. Its like a "sink shower" if you will. All the pooey suds go down the drain, and voila, sweet lavender smelling skink! I do have one of the little hand-grip snake faucets on my kitchen sink, so that makes it somewhat easier to control.

He needed daily baths while being treated for parasites, and was fine. I only bathe him now when he really needs it. Did I mention that he loathes baths? ( its pretty sad but really funny, poor Skinker-Stinker!) He is never in anything deeper than a couple inches of water, (his water dish in the cage) because I don't plug the sink drain.
I then wrap him in a towel and dry him off and let him snuggle down.
Hope this helps!

Also, what are you feeding? Is Ping's diet a little too liquidy perhaps? I wonder if thats "helping" with the smear-factor. . . or you just have an artistic Skink!

[Hijinks]

Cool, thanks! I have that 7th Generation detergent (the unscented version). He's eating the standard "some kind of green/some kind of squash and veggie/some kind of meat or bug/once in a while some kind of fruit" diet, so if he leaves the poo alone it remains a neat little turd. He's just always on the move and gets to it while still fresh.

[SailleSkinklover]

Has he laid plugs yet or is he still too young for that?

[Tattoo]

Hijinks ... I think you may have to face the fact that your ping-a-ling is a frustrated artist. Maybe other people don't fess up but your boy sounds like an unusual finger painter. You might also like to try some Healthy Habitat. Good for cleaning while poo disasters and harmless to your skink. Might help with the uh ... fragrance ... issue. I find it works wonders for carpet mishaps. Here's wishing you a poo-nami free Christmas.

[Blotch]

you don't want anything with strong fragrance. You don't want your bluey trippin' out.

[Tattoo]

Hey Blotch,

Healthy Habitat is designed to remove odors but not with cover up fragrance. It is an enzyme based product. Hey ... you gonna post some new Paris pictures to please her fans?

[Drew]

Ping is lovely! funny antics indeed! gosh i miss my blueys...he is soo white..

what i use when cleaning my blueyis POvidone Iodine Betadine Skin cleanser. I only use little of this, it takews away the germs and the odor.

[Blotch]

Hey Blotch,

Healthy Habitat is designed to remove odors but not with cover up fragrance. It is an enzyme based product. Hey ... you gonna post some new Paris pictures to please her fans?

Yeah, I've got a digital Camera that does 6megapixel shots, but when they come out they are pretty crappy. No idea why, normally they are good. The other camera i can use doesn't give me good close ups. So I called my sister to see if she can hook me up with hers. Hers is a good pro one, just no Macro lens. but I'll see what i can get with it anyway.

I'll try take a few with the cams i have in the mean time.

[Kya Ajiira]

they do seem to wanna step in it just to bug you off XD it happens once in a while here but normally not lol only when im staring at him it seems -.- just waiting to see if mommy will fuss lol

[Shadowfax]

Poor Ping ---- but he's awful cute!

[aggiegirl]

Ping is one high maintenance skink! I agree with Tattoo. He is just trying to express himself artistically. You really must buy the poor guy finger paints this year---j/k! My Latte' is a painter too---food or poop. Must be a boy thing!

[ewstokes]

My bearded dragon has that same problem. I gave him an underground sandbox though and now he goes in there to poop and clean it out once a week.

[Zach]

I usually take just a bit of regular handsoap and rub in the needed area. It's so infrequent I'm not sure the type of soap matters.

[Leigh]

[quote="Hijinks"]Ping has a big problem with poo. quote]

WRONG,YOOOU, have a a big problem with Pings poooooh

[Kya Ajiira]

Ping has a big problem with poo. quote]

WRONG,YOOOU, have a a big problem with Pings poooooh

And you don't? Don't tell me you love to clean skink poo.

[SailleSkinklover]

I think Chuffie is a neat-freak, or maybe he's a Virgo, but he's very tidy and very considerate where and how he poops.(unless he's really not feeling well). He poops in the easiest place to clean it, and leaves it alone. no Smears here! When he's out, he always lets me know he's going to poo, so I can get a paper towel under his bum while he does his business.
Thank gods for that!
Maybe Ping needs some tidy-poo lessons from the Chuffalump!

By the way, Tattoo, you almost killed me with the "Poo-nami" comment! I fell out of my chair here at work. . .

[Hijinks]

Huge poo in the water dish yesterday.

Saille, no plugs yet that I have seen (7 months old). Maybe he's still too young..? But others are reporting plugs left and right from this year's babies, so I think I either have a late bloomer or a girl.

Ditto on "POO-NAMI"!

[Tattoo]

Poonami ... some of my best personal material.

Well girls ... I live to amuse. Glad to see I'm doing my job correctly.

Saille I think Chuff and Tattoo know each other. My boy is the most polite pooer I have ever seen. Never in the water, never smeared and always tells me when it's time. O.K. I admit it I am spoiled in the poo department. Don't we just love our poo stories?

[SailleSkinklover]

I'm still laughing, and Tony guffawed when I told him about it. . . Always good to have a Sig. Other who shares the amusement for poop/fart jokes/stories! Poor Ping, if only that beautiful little skink knew how he has touched all of our lives, Gotta admit, I'm glad its vicariously though!

Drew, what happened to your skinkers? Are they brumating? Is that why you miss them? I hope so.. .

See, Tattoo and Chuffers are boys and they don't stink, and they're not messy. . .