BLUE TONGUE SKINKS

I was wanting to hear from those of you who received your BTS via UPS or another shipping company. I don't know how many of you have purchased from Zach & Holly or another online breeder but I am curious as to how you removed your new baby from it's box and his/her first reaction to you and it's new environment. Did you feed your new BTS, handle it right away or did you put it right into it's terrarium and give it some time to get acclimated? Any advice or do's and don'ts would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Diane

I have not been in this situation before. However, I think it would probably be best to put your skink'er in his/her enclosure with water and some food and just let him alone for a while. Give him a few days to feel comfortable in the new environment before you start handling him.

I'm getting one of their babies too! This will be my first baby but check the caresheet as I think it gave suggestions there. If it isn't there, pm me and I will send you the info. (as I know I read it somewhere!)

I got Rollie over a year ago from Ray in Florida. Ray packs his animals very well, Rollie was in a little hiding tube that was all wrapped up in a drawstring bag, then put in foam with heat packs. I simply placed the opened bag inside the already set-up vivarium, and he was out wandering around in minutes. He went right to the basking spot, I fed him a little food an hour later which he gobbled up, he took a drink after that, and explored for the rest of the day before falling asleep. These were all taken that day.













That was my personal experience, but compared to other stories I've heard, Rollie wasn't unhappy in the least, that I could tell.

KW

Mine came shipped form Ray exactly like that, and I just put him in and let him get acclimated. I fed him that day, a few hours after he arrived.

I receive Chimera from Ben Siegel in '04 and Madeira from Ray in '05. In both cases, they came in small reptile bags full of bedding packed tightly in boxes. (Ray could send a chicken egg to Siberia on a swallow and have it arrive in perfect shape.)

I gently eased the skinks out of their bags, but only held them long enough to check them out from tiny toes to teeny tails. In both cases not a scale was out of place, though the little ones would totally freeze at first. After that, they were placed in their tanks with water (but no food) and allowed to just relax for 24 hours without any human contact.

The next day, they were less timid and willing to be handled (with lots of tongue flicking). They also ate a little (I offered a smaller than average portions though). I only handled them for about an hour the second day, upping the time each day.

Kathy Love has a great care sheet for baby corn snakes. While skinks are obviously different, a lot still applies to baby reptiles in general: Care Sheet.

So glad I asked. Thanks for the input everybody. And thanks for the great pic's Kyle. I plan to take pic's when mine arrives as well.

I'll have to tie the kids up in their rooms to leave the poor skink alone till it settles in! lol

Personally, I completely judge it on the skink's behavior when you get them out. If they're calm and collected, I'll hold them in my lap a little while, maybe pet them a little bit. If they're freaked out (which is common even in tame skinks because the overnight ride can be quite the shock considering altitude on the plane, atmospheric pressure, etc) I will hold them on my lap for just a minute or two so they can adjust to the light and gather their sanity (;)) and then place them in the tank. If they're upset I don't like to just throw them in the cage because when you set them down, sometimes they can go berzerk and run headfirst into the glass or worse.

For reference, here's the info from the carepage:

Receiving
Upon receiving your package, sit in an open space away from any place a skink could run and hide. Once in a while, the skink will have wiggled his way out of the cloth bag, so when you open the box he could come running out. This is why it's important to efficiently tie off the bag. When you open your box, be gentle. Do not excitedly start fishing through the styrofoam peanuts frantically searching for the animal. It's been a rough dark ride. It's also a good idea to open the box in a dim room. Sudden bright lights can be very frightening and cause the animal to jerk violently and try to run away. Once you have the cloth bag open, peer inside and try to see how the animal is situated. He is likely very irritable and may strike. If you can rub his head outside the bag, this may help distract him while you stick your hand in to grab him from behind. If you'd like, feel free to hold him in your lap for a minute or two, but promptly place him into his new home with a pre-heated heat lamp. You want everything nice and warm before placing him inside. Leave him be, and feel free to offer food the same day/evening. It's possible he will not eat for a couple weeks so don't get paranoid; just let him get acclimated, and avoid any big surprises like dogs, sudden loud noises, etc. Try to refrain from handling for a couple days, then begin handling him every day. If he is a bit huffy, or even downright aggressive, don't fret. Regular handling will definitely tame him down. Do not however, avoid handling him because you are afraid or don't feel a bond. If you leave him alone, he will never tame down. Once again, interaction is the key!

What's that in your water bowl??

Also, your setup looks really nice. I see that you have several pieces of slate for your bluey to bask on. Did you secure them with anything or are they loose? I'm trying to find other creative and naturalistic options for my bluey's tank. Thanks!

Yeah Kyle, What is that in your water bowl???

He puts rocks at the bottom of his bowl so that it can't be tipped over and so that it wasn't to deep for the baby Rollie.

applepiebald wrote:Ray could send a chicken egg to Siberia on a swallow and have it arrive in perfect shape.

African or European? An African swallow maybe, but not a European.

When I received Sprout from Greg, he was all huffy and not amused at his journey. I took him out of his pillow case, Sprout bit me, and then proceeded to wander around for a few minutes while I took pictures of him. Then I put him in his cage and didn't bother him again for the rest of the week (except to put food and fresh water in there). He acclimated nicely after that.

NomadOfTheHills wrote:

applepiebald wrote:Ray could send a chicken egg to Siberia on a swallow and have it arrive in perfect shape.

African or European? An African swallow maybe, but not a European.

Africa of course! Although, what is the land speed of an African swallow?

Not sure, but it's more of where he grips it...

Thanks everyone!

applepiebald, I checked out the Caresheet on Kathy Love's site. Very cool. Thanks!

Rocks in the water bowl. Now that makes sense...

Dragontears, that'll be me! I have that kinda luck. But I've a pretty good idea what to do if she freaks out. Like, LEAVE HER ALONE!

By the way, Zach you are a plethera of information! Thanks again.

I opened the package on my bed and let him crawl out on his own. Then i let him on the bed for around 10 minutes and then he began eating my shorts. After that I put him in his cage. Just a little tip, open the lid while he is on the ground and not when your skink is in your hand. Element freaked out by the noise of opening the tank (sliding screen lid).

When is your baby arriving? I'm getting mine the beginning of next week. I kicked Pele' (my one year old Northern) out of my son's relatively quiet room into our living area (and his new 75 gallon tank.) This way the baby can be safeguarded in my son's room. I thought Pele' would dislike the extra noise and confusion (from the 2 kids I sit and the 3 that live here!) but he is just curious about the chaos! (It may have helped that the last of his silkworm moths keep appearing from the sky! Call them sympathy snacks! ) Let's hope both of us get brave blueys who are more inquisitive than scared of our two-legged kiddos!

aggiegirl wrote:When is your baby arriving? I'm getting mine the beginning of next week. I kicked Pele' (my one year old Northern) out of my son's relatively quiet room into our living area (and his new 75 gallon tank.) This way the baby can be safeguarded in my son's room. I thought Pele' would dislike the extra noise and confusion (from the 2 kids I sit and the 3 that live here!) but he is just curious about the chaos! (It may have helped that the last of his silkworm moths keep appearing from the sky! Call them sympathy snacks! ) Let's hope both of us get brave blueys who are more inquisitive than scared of our two-legged kiddos!

I am finding that once your skink is adapted to your home, they love to be involved in family 'chaos' LittleFoot often sits on top of his log and watch my 4 kids plus the 3 I watch play. I have also noticed that on days where we aren't home as much, it thows his routine off and he is usually cruising his tank later at night.

You know, just when I question my own sanity, it is reassuring to know that some people have it as crazy or crazier than I do! Seven kids! I'll bet your laundry mountain is almost as big as mine!
I think you are right though. Pele' is definitely watching the chaos and spends much less time hiding in his new centrally located position. He is much more active and constantly exploring. He is eager to get out with the kids and seems quite content with noises that once scared him. Our dog is the same way---he enjoys the chaos and seeks my kids out. I'm not as sure how the crested gecko feels---but it is amazing what confusion that he can sleep through! (Lucky for him that he is nocturnal and I can tell the kids it isn't fair to take him out during the day! I socialize him in the mornings before they wake! Understandably, he seems nervous and flighty when they hold him.)
I haven't decided when I'll let the kids hold the baby. My oldest kiddo (age 9) was the only one who held our first bluey (@ six months of age) until I was sure of his temperment and their holding techniques. We have strict rules about handling and hygeine. I am lucky because my kids follow the rules pretty well (except for today when my middle child let Pele' lick her on the lips!) I do think blueys are great with kids but I think you should be careful with how you let them interact---for everyone's protection. Whoops, I'm sounding like a mom so I'd better quit now!
Diane, don't forget to post lots of pictures when your tyke arrives! kathy