BLUE TONGUE SKINKS

Hello! About a year ago I received a Indonesian BTS from an unfortunate situation. A friend's sister was getting rid of all of her reptiles because she wanted cats instead (pretty heartless if you ask me, but I digress) so I offered to take her BTS. He was pretty rough, small enclosure, unbalanced diet, no supplements, missing some toes, a crinkly tail due to MBD, etc. Got him set up with 80+ humidity, grain free dog food with greens and veggies, UVB and supplements, a bigger enclosure, the works. He's doing much better healthwise now, but despite my best efforts he really dislikes handling. He's never tried to bite me, but when I'm misting or cleaning the enclosure he's very huffy and he loves to squirm and poop when I'm moving him to the bathtub for a soak. Unfortunately the original owner didn't remember (or care I suppose) where he was sourced from, all I know is she got him online. My main question is if there's a chance he's wild caught and will never end up becoming less adverse to handling. I don't mind at all if he's a hands-off pet, I just like to see him happy and healthy, but I'm also curious if I'm wasting my efforts on something he probably won't ever tolerate.

Indos are about 90 percent imports, but that shouldn't deter you from trying to interact. If previous owner neglected the animal chances are he'll need some time to adjust to human interaction and daily care. I have been keeping reptiles before the term "captive bred" was even heard of and have seen many imported/wc animals tame down just as well as cbb. Patience is often rewarded, and even if he (or she) doesn't respond well, bless you for taking him in! Good luck, and God bless!

I definitely agree with splashy on this one. It takes time and thr skink needs to learn to trust you. Thank you so much for rescuing it. I would try using treats to interact, speak slowly, and let it get used to you. Good luck!