Page 1 of 1

New BTS owner, Help?

Posted: Tue Jan 22, 2013 8:54 am
by GypsyTheWonderer
I just recently got a BTS an i just adore the girl, was just wondering if anyone could tell me what breed she is.
Also she hasn't eaten in 3 days an was wondering if thats ok?

Re: New BTS owner, Help?

Posted: Tue Jan 22, 2013 9:09 am
by jasjmm27
Appears to be a nice, chunky, silver Tanimbar (T. scincoides chimaerea).

Not eating in 3 days is fine. I would start to experiment with other foods, though...they can easily go a month without eating, but after a week or so just try to alternate food items to see if there is something else she would like...

Also, make sure that your temps are correct. Not eating can be a sign of temps being off...

Re: New BTS owner, Help?

Posted: Tue Jan 22, 2013 9:23 am
by Linnea
Hello :D

it looks like a Tanimbar island bts to me as well.

An adult BTS can go for weeks without food, so no worries at all, and your tanny seems to be in good condition, judging from the photo.
a feeding schedule for an adult usually means feeding every 3-7 days, moderating the amount to give the bts a steady weight.

go through the feeding chart you can find here on the forum to help mix together good meals. remember, 60 % veggies and 40 % protein. fruits are treats.

like jas said, check temps an extra time.

usually, a one week settle in period is recommended. this means that it is to be expected the skink is extra wary of everything and focused on looking through its new living place, rather than eating. still put in fresh water and food according to your schedule of course.

Re: New BTS owner, Help?

Posted: Tue Jan 22, 2013 12:48 pm
by GypsyTheWonderer
Her daytime temp runs around 95-97ish an at nighttime it usually runs around 77-79is, i do have an under the tank heater an using a 150watt bulb which i was told i would need. Im keeping her in cypress mulch which she seems to enjoy seeing as she's usually buried under it for most of the time. She is in a 40g tank.

I will try feeding her every 3-7 days, but with her previous owner he said she was eating about every other day.

Im not sure if the temp's are to high during the day, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated

She is about 1.5-2yrs old

Is the silver tanimbar rare or are they more common?

Re: New BTS owner, Help?

Posted: Wed Jan 23, 2013 1:00 am
by Linnea
I think you need to get a heat gun, it measures the exact temperature on the surface of, for example, the basking spot. just putting a 150 W bulb in place may not be the same in every house and enclosure. for example, i use a 100 W bulb and still achieve good basking temps. it depends on room temp, air flow, and how the lamp is placed. just a friendly tip though. :)
that way youll know your skink wont burn itself.

shes got some good hides, right?

its not dangerous or misinformed to feed that often as the previous owner did, since he/she probably had the skink while it still grew a lot. it just needs to become adult meals now to prevent obesity and leftover food ;)

Theres silver tannies and yellow tannies, that ive seen. Not really "rare", but tannies are less common to keep than some of the other species in your area. Tannies for some reason got labeled as aggressive due to how shy they are when theyre young, and theyre not as cheap for pet stores to import indonesian wild caught skinks. I think there are some other colours on tannies too.

Georg W on here has showed pictures of really pretty silver and yellow tanimbar island skinks, if you wanna see more tanny photos :)

Re: New BTS owner, Help?

Posted: Wed Jan 23, 2013 8:48 am
by GypsyTheWonderer
Thanks for the help, I am going to get a temp gun today.

She has several hides but she hardly uses them, she prefer's to bury under the cypress mulch but the hides are still their.

Re: New BTS owner, Help?

Posted: Thu Jan 24, 2013 6:20 am
by Coomassie
GypsyTheWonderer wrote:Thanks for the help, I am going to get a temp gun today.

She has several hides but she hardly uses them, she prefer's to bury under the cypress mulch but the hides are still their.


Don't worry about that. Coomassie has been know to burrow in the substrates under his hides and waterdish. It is a good thing BTS are so darn cute because they aren't always playing with a full deck of cards...

Re: New BTS owner, Help?

Posted: Thu Jan 24, 2013 10:24 am
by Scotts1au
a few sheep short in the top paddock. :-)