Intro Post & Goofy Photos

[mandu]

Hello, everyone!

I purchased a baby Northern from Donna (Captive Bred Excellence) a couple of weeks ago and I thought I'd share a few photos of Puppy the adorable goof. Although I obviously won't be able to tell the sex for a while, I've grown fond of referring to Puppy as a "her".

First meal home:

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Crawling through some of my clothes (she seems to enjoy the security of sleeves, and has fallen asleep in them a couple of times)

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Scratching at the door, possibly asking to be let out?

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More sleepy:

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I do own a couple of snakes, but Puppy is my first blue tongue skink. It's been fascinating to watch how inquisitive and active she is. She is a terrifying eater and wants to test-bite everything -- not excluding some of my fingers and toes! She doesn't huff at all when I open the cage now, and will instead crawl out easily on her own in search of a treat or to explore.

She is in a 4'x2' melamine enclosure that I made shortly before she arrived. Her substrate is a mixture of cypress mulch and shredded aspen, but I'll be monitoring what seems to keep her humidity stable and what she likes to burrow in most. I have been feeding her either dog food or boiled chicken with a mixture of dark greens and the occasional bit of fruit. I have also tried giving her mealworms and nightcrawlers, which she eats with no hesitation.

I do have a concern, though. She scratches at the plexiglass a LOT. Like, multiple times a day for at least 5 minutes each time. I've seen some threads on this forum by people with the same problem, but not sure if there were any resolved cases? I've checked her enclosure -- her temps, humidity, and space seem fine. There are no weird smells. I've tried covering the cage with a towel when she does it (which usually makes her stop, only to start again when I uncover it), putting a strip of paper at the bottom on the inside so she isn't bothered by a reflection, and putting large rocks along the edge to make it harder for her to pace there. No success so far. And she scratches and rubs her face against the plexiglass pretty hard... I'm worried that one day I'll come home to see her snout bleeding. Any advice?

If you've read this far, here is a thank you photo! Puppy being a very long and sleepy dog.

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[NickBrahz]

She is a beautiful looking skink.
For the scratching seeing you haven't had her for long she may be just trying to get out and not used to her home, for now it's nothing to worry about but if it continues then its something to look into, one of mine used to constantly scratch most days and now doesn't do it often.

[splashy07]

Congratulations on your adorable new addition, and excellent choice of breeders. I also have one from Donna that is just a bit over a year old. She produces amazing skinks. I wouldn't worry too much about the glass scratching thing, my adults sometimes even do that. Just something reptiles do, they do not understand the concept of glass. Enjoy your cute baby, they're not babies for long!

[mandu]

Thank you! That makes me a feel a little better about the scratching. She only did it twice today, which surprised me! I'm excited for a long life with her and definitely will enjoy her while she is small, haha (:

[alichamp]

"She" is awesome! Great pics