BLUE TONGUE SKINKS

My skinks 6 months and 5 months . I am just wondering if I should be clipping toe nails and how often people clip their BTS nails . One of my guys just shed and a toe had some shed stuck . It's not coming off . Should I just leave it and see what happens ? He shed everyhting 3 days ago

Are the nails sharp or do they seem to be long enough to cause the skinks problems? If yes, then it's probably time for a trim.

To remove stuck toe shed give the skink a warm bath for 10-15 minutes then gently rub at the toe to get the shed off.

We did the bath just now .I think Scott got the shed off his toe is just a little red and a little swollen . He just shed 3 days ago so it shouldn't be so bad ........ I think . We've also had him out every day since the shed and just noticed the swelling today . Clipping the nails sounds scary . They don't seem long but I was just curious .

I hope his little toe is ok

other than the squirming because they hate having their feet touched, nail trimming isnt that bad. I just did it to my foster as well as my sick skink. Usually if you can get their feet to rest on you in a way that you can trim without holding their legs that helps a lot. Its a lot like trimming dog nails, only easier because it is possible to use human nippers, and the nails arent as tough. If you oops and cut it too short, it will bleed a little, but some quick stop will fix that. Just be careful, and dont clip if you arent sure if you have nail vs. toe, and you'll be fine.

I normally only trim when the nails are long enough to turn the toe at all. I mean, i trim when i get a chance, but on some skinks they grow faster than others. :

These were long enough to get trimmed, and they did.

I haven't clipped Tea Cup's nails in months because she just wears them down herself. I have a huge block of concrete in there(You can find them in old parking lots, side walks etc., but you MUST boil/bake them at a rolling boil/450 deg. F multiple times to get all of the bacteria off) and it's awesome. She also has a rough hide/basking spot, which helps as well.

I agree with WanderingChai - I have lots of hard scratchy surfaces and all my skinks have nice, trim nails. No nail trimming required. If you have the space to add in stuff like that, I highly recommend it. It also help get the shed off the toes.