My shinglebacks have arrived

[cactusboy]

Hello everyone,

I joined this forum about a week ago in preparation for my latest arrivals. Yesterday I picked up a pair of desert shinglebacks and I am very excited. The breeder says they are almost one year old and could potentially be a pair in the future. I'm not in any rush to breed them, just very excited to finally own shinglebacks.

Here is the male:

male shingleback.JPG

and the female:

Female shingleback.JPG

I am keepimg them in a 4 ft enclosure with coconut coir as substrate and they seem to love it, burying themselves in it at every opportunity. I thought I had lost them last night when I couldn't see them. The male is very inquisitive, exploring his environment when I let him roam my backyard, back porch, or the house. However the female tries to find a cozy spot to hide.

The female had a little feed as you can see in the photos but the male licked up the juices in the food mix and then continued exploring my house.

They are really adorable and I absolutey love them already. I hope to learn more from other shingle owners on this forum and I have done a lot of reading from this forum, other forms and websites and lizard and shingle books that I own. The breeder tells me that they are robust creatures, moreso than beardies which I used to own but lost when I had them outdoors during the heatwave.
I live about 3000km where these animals would natuarally occur and want to prevent any detrimental errors.

[Hazeee]

Those are some crazy looking skinks! Congrats on the new critters

Are you housing them together?

[cactusboy]

Thanks Hazzee,

I've had them for just over 24 hours and I am keeping them together in the 4ft enclosure. They bury themselves within 15mins when I put them in the enclosure especially the female. If I encounter any aggression I do have a spare 4ft thats currently unused.

[Hazeee]

I was just curious because I just got my pair and I'm keeping them together but I'll be getting a new set up so each have an individual enclosure within a few weeks. Mine do the same

[Richard.C]

Very nice,i still need to get me some of that variety,they do well in prs or groups,ive had as many as 11 in the one enclosure,curently just have a group of 4 together

Are they from a melbourne breeder

[Jeff]

Beautiful skinks! Congratulations. They should do very well as long as you keep them warm and dry.
It is important to note that there is a HUGE difference between keeping shinglebacks together and keeping most other Tiliqua together.

Shingles will almost always co-habitate peacefully as long as they have appropriate space and site barriers. Gigas and scincoides on the other hand are a real crap shoot. Some will be ok whe others will seriously injure or kill each other quickly. Still others will live together fine for awhile, then decide to kill each other after the keeper is convinced that they are compatible. It is always safest to keep other species separately, and be aware of the potential consequences if you choose to keep them together, especially in a relatively small indoor enclosure.

[cactusboy]

They are quite placid creatures and have not shown any signs of aggression. The male has peed a couple of times when I have picked him up. They are aware of heights as I have been leaving them on my back porch which is about 1metre of the ground. I leave them there for a few hours in the morning because the breeder has kept them in an outdoor enclosure since birth and I feel a bit guilty leaving them in the 4foot enclosure all day. I also want to utilise whats left of the warm whether we're experiencing in Melbourne. I can leave them there semi-unsupervised unless they work out how to climb down stairs. Hopefully next Spring I can set up an outdoor enclosure.

Richard, they came from a breeder in Whyalla. I hope to get another pair when they become available but not right now as my funds are a bit limited.

This morning they were a bit grumpy and lethargic when I dug them out of there substrate but hopefully that will change as the day warms up.

Just a question, since they are still settling in is it alright if I take them from there enclosure and let them sunbake in the morning? Or should I just leave them there to settle?
In there enclosure I never see them as they are always buried.

[Kcjames]

They are really pretty!!! The colors are beautiful.

[Katrina]

Welcome!! They are gorgeous, I love reds / oranges in shingles.

I'd give them a few days to get settled before handling too much. But that really depends on the individual skink, there is no rules as to when you should start handling or having them out once getting them home.

[anchietae]

Beautiful lizards! I see why you are so excited! As Jeff mentioned, keep them warm and dry. That's something you'll have to watch living in Melbourne!

[Lea]

They are lovely.

But you definitely don't want to leave them unsupervised near stairs! They will eventually fall, however aware they appear of their surroundings. Is it enclosed at all? Could you block the stairs off somehow if the rest of the porch is closed in? They'll need a good height, at least 18 inches, or they'll be over it as soon as they work it out. Birds might also be a hazard, or other wild animals, so you might need to rethink your outdoor time for now.

[Richard.C]

Do u have heat lights in there enclosure?

I think i know the breeder,its good to see hes built up numbers enough to sell some

[El Lobo]

They are a beautiful pair. Don't take risks with them being unattended outside.

Whenever someone suggests blueys don't climb I feel compelled to post at least one of my pictures.

DSCF0783CR.jpg

[Fatal_S]

Not only are the pretty good climbers (one of my guys managed to get onto our bathroom counter using a 1" gap between the cupboard and wall, he wedged himself in and walked up the wall), they are excellent at falling down. They are not height smart in any way shape or form. Even a skink who's looked off the edge of a table a dozen times without falling will one day decide it doesn't look like that far of a drop.

Never have your skink at any significant height unless you are holding it firmly. They do fall, and they do get hurt. Usually we get an annual cry for help here from some doofus who's had their skink on their shoulder -.-' Skinks are hardy, but falls from even a few feet can cause nasty injuries if they land badly.

I can't even imagine leaving such stunning, amazing animals unattended in an unsecure area. All it takes is a moment for one to disappear forever (they run off, or a bird/cat grabs them, etc.) Those shingles are breathtaking - keep them under lock & key.

[cactusboy]

Thanks everyone for your kinds comments and advice. I will definitely take it on board. Yesterday my girl decided to walk off the porch but fortunately landed in large pot with the plant breaking her fall. She's OK and gave me a funny embarassed look when I went to retreive her. I will definitely have to to supervise their outside time from now on and let them stroll in my loungeroom if I want them to exercise.

Their 4ft enclosure has a 75W heat lamp (flood light from bunnings) running on a thermostat which is located on the cool end, and a 2ft UV tube. The enclosure is in my garage which can get fairly warm on warm days as we are likely to experience in the next few days. Because of the warm weather we will be experiencing I have set the thermostat to 25C although the enclosure temperature will exceed that. The substrate is coconut coir, and I have a basking rock and a cave structure. The enclosures a bit empty so I trying to get ideas online but I don't want to make it too crowded.

Richard, I'm sure you know the breeder. He has an excellent reputation in Australia with breeding beardies and he shares your first name. He advertised 4 yearling desert shingles on the herptrader not so long ago and they were snapped up quick so I missed out. I only ever intended to buy one shingle but this opportunity came up and was too hard to pass. Personally, I have found any shingle hard to come by in Melbourne, and whenever they are available there is not a nice selection.

[Richard.C]

Yep thays him,i got some sand monitors off him a while back,top bloke,even rang me down the track to see how they were going,also got an adult female bells lacie off him,same thing to,he wanted to make sure she got here safely and had settled in

During the days ive been shutting loghting off,mine are in an uninsulated tin shed to and can get really hot in there,leaving lights on could cook some of them,stumpies are harder to come by in melb but theu are about,usually get snapped up quick,and its mostly the eastern australian sub species,definatly keep a close eye on yours if out of the cage,as the buggers can get away easily if not supervised,your going to enjoy keeping them,stumpies are cool,and u got the pretty type

[Lea]

Oh, dear, the poor girl. Hopefully there's no real damage and she hasn't suffered an injury. I'm pleased to hear you are rethinking the exercise plan.

Owning shinglebacks is an amazing experience. They are so unique and beautiful. You'll enjoy getting to know these two, but be warned, they are kind of addictive.

[cactusboy]

Thanks Richard, yes Rick is a very helpful and knowledgable man. He breeds a lot of uncommon reptiles that you don't really see down at the reptile shops in Melbourne. I think for the next few days I will have to turn of my lights off during the warmer parts of the day. Definitely don't want any mishaps with these guys when it comes to high temps.

Leabilby, they are becoming addictive. I want to buy some others the other day when I saw them at apet shop. They were the Eastern forms with the yellow patches on the side.

I let them loose in backyard yesterday after work and they really enjoyed the exercise. The girl opened her mouth at me when I tried to pick her up to bring her to the centre of the yard.

[RoryBreaker]

I saw these for sale a little while ago, nice pickup! I ummned and ahh'd whether to splurge.....teach me for procrastinating.

[cactusboy]

So did I Rory, but he reserved them for me for a month whilst I was away on holiday

These weren't the ones on the herptrader, those four were snapped up the day he advertised them. All to the one buyer.