BLOTCHED BLUE TONGUES-UPDATE

[Richard.C]

If its a future breeder id leave tail be, u want them to be kinky, lol

On a serious note,small kinks like that can often half straighten by there selves especially before the bones harden up a splint of sorts may help though

[mark_w]

Well done Kim. They look gorgeous. Keep in touch, Mark.

[ILoveMyMonsters]

These are gorgeous! I love the bright orange starting to come into their spots...and that kinked tail is too precious!

[kl]

There's good and bad news. The original 4 seem to be doing ok. They are now all going into 1st shed. Yesterday, a 2nd female gave birth to 7 babies though 2 were born dead and one other was extremely small compared to the others. Because they were just born I left in cage for a while so they could eat the placentas. They all seemed very active but only 1 day after removing them to individual cages, at least 2 are now looking bad. None are eating though they will drink water and lick the gravy off the cat food. The first group ate the following day. They definitely do not seem as active as they should be and I'm wondering if the temperatures are right. You'd think I'd know this stuff since I've been breeding these guys since 2008 but last yr for the first time, 2 babies did not survive (different mother) and now this. I'm wondering if our very hot Summer has anything to do with it.

I'll post some pictures once I'm sure any will survive.

KL

[Fatal_S]

Could you get necropsies done to establish why the babies are failing?

[Jeff]

Im glad to hear that your blotched are producing so well! Congratulations!

Hopefully, the surviving babies will come around. I have had northerns her were slow to get started, but eventually went on to thrive as well as any of the others.

I have heard that if babies are not eating well that you can sometimes stimulate the feeding response with live crickets. The other advice I got was to brain a pinky. Hopefully they will start eating on their own, but those are things I would try if they don't.

[Richard.C]

7 is a good size litter,being a day old,some arent interested in eating,drinking and licking gravy is a good sign though,if to hot during gestation normally id expect deformities,though if a heat spike late term ,perhaps not

how do they look,do they look well developed,color wise ect to,i had a female one year have a large litter containing skugs,lots of dead babies and 2 live,they appeared under developed,had a transparent look,they unfortunatly didnt make it

you havnt described that so doubt its the same,so all i can think of is they may be slow starters,every chance they will work it out and be perfectly normal

[kl]

4 of the 5 babies appear normal in size and one is very small. I took the worst 2 outside today and placed them in a cage in the fresh air and sun. They really perked up for the first couple hrs but then by the time I took them in they once again looked poor. Temperature was about 88 degrees. Should I allow them to cool down more at night as right now I'm keeping them in the 80's.

Kim

[Richard.C]

whats rough night time room temp,they should be fine cooling down more at night,gets quite cool at night in there range,even in the hotter time of the year,not sure thats the issue though,as it would affect other litter as well

maybe if possable try cooling over night,maybe in the 70,s,runts can be pretty normal,especially in larger litters,i think getting them to eat is main objective,they can be what seems picky early,just licking the food,normally if one takes a bite then the others follow suit

[Bowdoin55]

Congratulations on your success and best of luck with the slow-starters, Kim. Thank you for sharing these updates. Like everyone here, I look forward to pics once the little ones are established.

Cheers,

David

[kl]

They are being kept in the mid to upper 70's at night. It just seems like I had none of these issues the first 3 yrs as the babies were always lively. Getting them to eat was never an issue. Even my Egernia Stokesii babies had problems this yr with 3 out of 4 dying (one was badly injured by the male) within a week of being born. she gave birth very prematurely and the babies were tiny.

KL

[Katrina]

Congrats on all the babies! Hope the ones that aren't doing well turn out ok, and congrats on so many babies, that is just great!

[Richard.C]

temps should be fine then kim,plus it hasnt affected other litter nor adults,perhaps born weakened,im not totally sure,if they look developed properly,and sometimes get active,sometimes not,that doesnt sound weakened either,generally weak born look weak until they start eating,which seems to spruce them up,would love to see a pic of them if you get a chance

fingers crossed they pickup for you,and are just being slow starters

do you have any other females due to drop

oh and is this normal time of year you get babies,only asking because stokesi was premature,could be the blotchies slightly are to

[scaredofbees]

Sorry to hear about the two that didn't make it.

Have you tried whipped egg yolk with the ones that are hesitant to feed?

Though I have no experience with fussy eaters personally, I've heard that will stimulate feeding.

[Richard.C]

how are they doing now kim,any progress

[kl]

I'm currently recharging my camera battery so I can finally take some pictures. I should be able to post them later tonight or in the morning. 3 of the 5 seem ok and they have started eating though not a lot. One of those is very nasty and will bite with abandon even while being held. The 2 that were of particular concern are hanging on, still licking the juices of the cat food and they will drink but that is all. I was a little worried tonight because I put them in a plastic tub to give them a soak and I did not realize the little one may not have been able to get his head high enough above the water. I finally noticed it a couple minutes later and took him out. I did give him some food after that and he licked it so hopefully it will be alright. If this miniature skink survives, it may have some unusual coloring on the head as every scale is extremely light with none of my others having this coloration.

The original group are all now just shedding and I'll take some new pictures of them. A couple are really colorful. My final female I'm waiting for would be due anytime though I'm not that certain she's gravid as she only allowed one mating this season. She was the last one to mate so it's no surprise she would be the last to give birth.

KL

[El Lobo]

Native Highland Blotched in the Blue Mountains are typically born mid March to early April when the colder weather is beginning to set in. They go virtually from birth to brumation almost immediately. When they emerge from brumation around late September they look almost the same size as when they were born.

Mean minimum and maximum temperatures for the area in degrees C:

Mar 11.4 - 20.3
Apr 8.7 - 16.7
May 6.1 - 13.1
Jun 3.7 - 10.0
Jul 2.5 - 9.3
Aug 3.3 - 11.1
Sep 5.3 - 14.5
Oct 7.7 - 17.6
Nov 9.9 - 20.3
Dec 11.6 - 22.4
Jan 12.8 - 23.2
Feb 12.9 - 22.4

[Lea]

Oh, i think the kink will be a selling point, I'm sure it won't detract from its beauty when it grows up a bit. These little things just make them more appealing sometimes. Putting a splint on it might annoy the little one enough that he tries to bite it off- that would be less attractive than a little bit of bent up tail.

You are lucky to have them in the US, I'm sure you will be the envy of many! I hope you have them secure, keep your location secret when you sell! You don't want to lose any to some mean thieves!

[Richard.C]

buggers ate that late here in melb to norm,someti.es well into april,have to bring them in for birthing and putting condition back on the lasses when so late

sounds like progress kim,looking forward to pics,lil tyke sounds interesting color wise,licking gravy off food and drinkings a good sign,hopefully last couple start chowing it soon

[kl]

Here's a few pics of latest litter. The first picture is of the 2 that are not doing quite as well. These are now approximately a week old.

KL