Restless Skink

[BQureshi]

I've recently got a baby northern and he's been quite restless the past couple days, walking around a lot and climbing up the glass, rubbing his nose against it (see vid). I'm worried he might be stressed and could hurt himself. He hid away a bit for the first couple days, especially after eating, but now doesn't hide much. The pet shop said he was a bit over 3 months old. He eats well, so far I've been alternating bluey buffet and cat food mixed with spring greens, feeding every other day and letting him eat as much as he wants ~ heaped teaspoon, and giving him mealworms, locusts and fruit as snacks/treats. Also has been pooping well as far as I can tell. He's in a 48'' x 18'' x 18'' wooden viv with UVB and a CHE keeping the basking bit at about 35C and humidity ~35-45%. I've handled him a couple times, just putting my hand in the viv and letting him walk onto it and then over my hands - he never seems to be afraid of me. Could he be stressed or just adventurous or hungry?


https://imgur.com/a/OVrfFA6

[BQureshi]

It seems he was hungry. So, I'm upping the food I give to him. How likely are they to overeat as my skink always seems to want food and treats?

[Janella]

When they are babies they need to be fed daily as much as they will eat. I wouldn't worry about over feeding. Look at our forums feeding chart for a reference on how and when to feed.

[Manny]

I find this part of care taking quite interesting. In my opinion there are a lot of factors that are overlooked when one thinks of feeding our pets. That being said, I strongly agree with Janelle's advice.

Other things that need to be looked at. To determine health/feeding is ...are you feeding right food and right balance of this food for the species you are keeping. Enrichment activities (reptiles are smart). How much exercise is your pet receiving. Now for exercise look at this. On the average I believe many pet keepers keep their BTS in a 1.22m (4ft) x .61 (2ft) x .61 (2ft) enclosure. Then calculate how much out of cage time they get into their exercise.

Then look at their estimated range: in the wild Avg: 40,000 m2
Range: 20,000 m2 - 110,000 m2

Interestingly enough it is different for suburban dwellers: Males: ~ 13,000 m2
Females - 5,000 m2

This is information I found on Eastern Blue Tongue Skinks.

It definitely doesn't show the whole picture. I couldn't find information on how far they range on a daily basis. I imagine it would be quite difficult to track a creature such as a BTS on a daily basis. Also those stats should not be engraved in stone. I am sure they will vary somewhat from publication to publication. I think it just helps put things into perspective.

Also don't let this info overwhelm you. The care & feeding guidelines presented both here and elsewhere are good and the advice being given by long term BTS owners/breeders is priceless!

I just find this interesting and at the end of the day no matter what size your enclosure is, how you set it up bioactive, naturlistic, simple. We are keeping them in a box and feed them items many times not part of their "natural diet". Yet as caretakers we strive to give them the best we can so they can thrive as our companions.

Have I ever mentioned, I have a tendency to ramble on sometimes?