BLUE TONGUE SKINKS

I Noticed that Indy has started to get a little cloudy colored around his tail and underbelly so i am assuming he will be going into shed soon and i am gonna start giving him a daily short bath or soak and was just wondering what temp should the water be when i put him in it? i have a digital infrared laser thermometer and i was just wondering if should keep it warm or cooler? 70s? 80s?90s? def not 100s but im just wondering what most people do?

When I bathe Coffee, I just dip my hand in the water to test the temp. If it feels pretty warm, I put him in. I would guess that the temperature is in the low-mid 90s.

donkeybuff wrote:When I bathe Coffee, I just dip my hand in the water to test the temp. If it feels pretty warm, I put him in. I would guess that the temperature is in the low-mid 90s.

IMO, if it feels "pretty warm" to you, then it is too hot for a skink. From my own "experiment", I have found that when the water feels neither warm or cold, the temperature of the water is in the low 90sF (about 92F per my temp gun). A "warm" to me measured around 98-102, which is the hottest you want your basking area for a skink. So I would HIGHLY recommend that everyone play with their temp guns/thermometers and check the bath water for their skinks just once to get a true idea of who hot you are making the water.

x2 what brad said,id aim for 80degrees farenhite tops,preferebly 70 to 75,tell u the truth i never actually bathe mine,if i get shedding issues i just use a damp cloth to soak the skin abit,dont find the need to bathe them,i highly doubt they enjoy it,in saying that though,they dont like the wet cloth treatment either,lol

I know it has been posted before, but I don't remember what the normal body temperature of a bts is. That is the temperature I would want to know before bathing any of my skinks (which I don't). A few degrees above or below the normal body temp is where you want to be. I would avoid 10 degrees above or below that. A infrared temp gun is definitely the best way to measure the temperature you have.

According to my reptile vet the PBT (preferred body temperature) is 32-33°C or 89.6 - 91.4°F.

I only soak one with shedding difficulties and start the water around 32°C in a steel basin which drops a couple of degrees before she is ready. The water is not deep enough to cover her above the tops of her legs. I don't think BTS really enjoy baths but she co-operates as long as the old shed is coming off.

If its warm to you, like others have said, its proabably 95 +, as we are naturally between 97 and 99 *F, and anything below that will feel cool or cold. I use 80*F water for short baths, as I dont want to over heat them, and they can always pop under their lights to warm up if needed...my skinks HATE baths! i use a temp gun to check my temps.