BLUE TONGUE SKINKS

Okay so I have had Rosie for a week and a half. I gave her a week to settle in and have started to pick her up. She is mellow and calm. She is a suck and enjoys being pet. She gets comfy easily and I can feel that she truly falls asleep when lying on me and my warm sweaters. So tonight I had her out and she was fine, no huffing or trying to get away, asleep like a baby. When she did wake up I felt that her underside was wet! So I lifted her and I was wet. I have read that it is pretty common for a skink to pee on you if they want down or are nervous but she was none of the above...Maybe a bed wetter!
Am I wrong to assume that she is enjoying her time with me? Am I stressing her out and not knowing it? I had a Northern skink a few years ago that would tense up and huff like crazy and he never once peed on me.

Cheers,
Vanessa

Some blueys just pee on you coz thats where they are when they want to pee lol. Some will just go if they need to so dont be worried about it if there were no signs of stress or discomfort. I get peed on a fair bit

I would disagree. Reptiles don't "pee" in the sense mammals urinate. When a reptile urinates it is in the firm of urates, or solid pee. This is typically excreted when they poop. From my experience when they release excess water it has always been stressed, as if it is a defense mechanism.

ReptileKing wrote:I would disagree. Reptiles don't "pee" in the sense mammals urinate. When a reptile urinates it is in the firm of urates, or solid pee. This is typically excreted when they poop. From my experience when they release excess water it has always been stressed, as if it is a defense mechanism.

Mind tend to pee a lot, even when not on me, in their enclosure even. However a tiny amount of poop at the same time. I dont see that as stress related when its obvious if a skink, or almost any animal is stressed

Rani how can u tell when animals are easily stressed?

I agree with brad,id say stressed or nervousness,a kind of stress in itself

Only time blotchies pee on me is when stressed,eg helping remove stubborn shed,and poop comes out with it,they can certainly stress with out showing it,they dont understand when u say just relax,im just lending you a hand,they get peeved

Even the best kept animals can easily get stressed

i agree that animals can easily get stressed but if you know ur animal well enough its easy to tell, they all act differently. I dont think an animal would stay sitting on someone if they were uncomfortable or stressed they would more likely move away. I do realise that they pee when stressed also, i just dont believe its the only time they pee. If something drinks, it pees. Sometimes if it is struggling to pull itself up or onto something it forces its pee out. Thats what happens sometimes to mine. Its trying to pull itself onto me and ends up peeing, yet it is curling up to me and happily sleeping. not signs of stress in my eyes. maybe if it appeared sluggish or jumpy, laboured breathing, loss of appetite, trying to get away constantly is an obvious sign. mine never try to get away from me.... Though I note down nearly all different behavioural acts of my skinks so i know when they are stressed or relaxed. I guess people see it differently but i believe if you know your animal, you should be able to at least be suss of stress

If its struggling to pull it self on to you that could be stress in itself,hence the peeing,rani you have posted recently about laboured brething in your baby,also about it stopping eating certain things,thats 2 of your signs of stress symptoms

Also some very stressed reptiles are quite lethargic,so not likely to try running away,some are like a fart in a bottle,stressed or not stressed they dont want to sit on you and stay put

Im more inclined to worry actually if they arent trying to wander off,generally reptiles arent lap dogs,take them out of there confined cages and staying put is generally the last thing on there minds

the breathing was only noticeable when very warm, and has actually stopped completely since losing a bit of weight. So its obviously not stress related thank god.
and to be honest if it is stress due to struggling to climb on something they choose to climb onto, it is nothing to be fussed over, otherwise you might as well stick you blue tongue in a soft squishy padded room. If that is the only stress in its life, then its a pretty happy skinky.
And my skinks tend to come to me, i never put them on me, i either sit them on the floor for them to do whatever it is they wish, or sit them on the couch. which they then come to me. i never make them sit on me. And an animal that is stressed around you, will NOT come to you willingly

Animals that are more prey than predator develop means of disguising any adverse state to avoid being detected by predators, including many visible signs of stress. Urinating is something difficult to avoid as it requires control of muscles. It is not technically possible to declare an animal is not stressed without knowing its blood cortisol level.

Great replies, thanks!

She is still new tp me so it is true, I can't say for sure that she isn't stressed. I am used to monitor lizards that make it pretty clear when they are stressed or displeased
I do see her very active in her enclosure ( which when I first got her she hid for the first couple days), she comes right over to the doors when the tank is open. She will move around on me until she seems to find a "comfy" spot and then she just chills out, or so it seems. The liquid was pure liquid, no urates whats so ever. No, odour, or colour either. So when I brought her home she was shedding. Her belly has been pretty peachy in colour and I assumed she just had a nice coloured belly. Is it possibly her belly is getting ready to shed, thus going through the "milky" stage like a snake?? Her whole underbelly felt wet when I lifted her.

Cheers

canadiangirl wrote:Great replies, thanks!

She is still new tp me so it is true, I can't say for sure that she isn't stressed. I am used to monitor lizards that make it pretty clear when they are stressed or displeased
I do see her very active in her enclosure ( which when I first got her she hid for the first couple days), she comes right over to the doors when the tank is open. She will move around on me until she seems to find a "comfy" spot and then she just chills out, or so it seems. The liquid was pure liquid, no urates whats so ever. No, odour, or colour either. So when I brought her home she was shedding. Her belly has been pretty peachy in colour and I assumed she just had a nice coloured belly. Is it possibly her belly is getting ready to shed, thus going through the "milky" stage like a snake?? Her whole underbelly felt wet when I lifted her.

Cheers

If you have only had her a short time, it is entirely possible that she is still becoming used to you. While she may not have been exhibiting any other "major" signs of stress, personally I'd take the urination as a sign that she was not as calm and relaxed about the encounter as you may have originally thought.

Maybe for the time being, take her out for a shorter duration and keep an eye on her and wait and see. Give her a little more time to settle in - some skinks take a little longer to get used to their new people than others!

-Jen

haha i've been "peed" on many times, mostly during outreaches. She seems to do ok, she just gets startled and "pees". We now bring multiple towels