BLUE TONGUE SKINKS

My son has a 1 1/2 year old BTS that we/he got at 5 weeks of age. Our feeding schedule these days has be about 2 times per week. (If the skink eats ravenously, we give him a third meal in the week, just to play it safe.) He (could be she, I suppose), since reaching a relatively full grown size, has pooped approximately every 2 (or at most 3) days. But now we are going on day 6 with no excrement. Is this something we should be worried about or should we just wait a bit longer?

Thanks for any help.

Best regards,

Eric

As long as food is going in, there is not much reason to be worried.

Hello!

if it goes in, it comes out. Not pooping for a week is no problem, as theres lots of factors that play in. How much theyve basked, how active theyve been, and so on. A more active skink will be more likely to poop, whereas one that have been laying very still wont have much bowel movement
Especially before shed they can hold it in very well, and leave a bit pile afterwards happens a lot.

just to make sure, what substrate do you keep your bluey on?
does your bluey drink?
what does his diet look like?

if your skink goes for longer without pooping, and you feel more worried, i suggest feeding banana and egg. it usually does the trick within 24 hours. if this doesnt work, a lukewarm bath for 10-15 mins is great, but harder to clean up afterwards

Thanks. The beastie has Petco aspen bedding. He eats crickets (he won't touch any of the worms--we've tried and tried), Natural Balance dog food, Chicken Formula (that has veggies in it), leafy greens (arugula, beet, collard, escarole, and watercress are the usual candidates), and the occasional fruit such as mango and papaya (which he NEVER touches as far as I can tell). We also use a calcium supplement with vitamin D3. (His lighting and cage set up are correct as well.) As far as water goes, it is in his cage (refreshed every other day), and I have seen him drink from time to time, but, honestly, I am not there all the time to watch.

He has been more sluggish of late, and while eating he has been eating a bit less. So maybe he is just in slower winter mode. (The temps in the cage are good--I have monitored them.)

Thanks for the tip about banana and egg (I'm assuming I cook the egg??). And I sure hope we don't have to go the water bath way :-)

Best regards,

Eric

When ive done it, i cook the egg a little so its still a bit runny, but simple to eat, feed and not contain salmonella. i think it works either way, but i may be wrong.
id pick off the shell too.

Thanks again. We'll see whether or not we move to the egg when I inspect the cage this evening. Perhaps he will surprise us and have been productive.

Best,

Eric