New to BTS's

[MissC89]

Hi! My name is Melissa and I am new to BTS's. I am VERY interested in purchasing one in the near future (after I move into a *pet friendly* apartment building and have the proper set up for it BEFORE I buy it) and was just wondering if anyone had any pointers for a new BTS enthusiast.

Also wondering what type of BTS I should get? (I am leaning towards Northern)

What I have for my BTS so far:
40G reptile tank.

Yeah, that's it. Unfortunately. BUT there will be tons more to come!

Thanks!

Melissa.

[xxmonitorlizardxx]

Welcome Melissa!
Since you are in Canada you will find Meraukes, Irian Jayas, and Northerns the most, occasionally finding Indonesians, and you could get a Tanimbar if Fatal_S breeds her's. Meraukes, Irian Jayas, and Northern usually have the best dispositions. I would recommend(And this applies to any animal) that you get a captive bred animal.
Irian Jayas(IJs) and Meraukes are usually wild-caught though. So if your looking for a pet your best bet would probably be getting a Northern, unless you find someone breeding IJs or Meraukes(It's unlikely that you will find someone breeding Meraukes).
If I were in you position I would ask Fatal_S when she is expecting babies and go to her website or ask Katrina to see if she plans on breeding her Meraukes. There is another person on the forum who breeds skinks called P.T Monkey Skink, but I don't know much about them or if they still breed.
Information on Fatal_S:
Melanie in Manitoba:
Breeding Northerns, Irian Jayas and Tanimbars. Sold out for 2011. http://www.MelsExotics.com

I would recommend looking here for information about Blue Tongue Skink husbandry:
viewforum.php?f=24

[Pip12]

Hi fellow Canadian
I second contacting Mel (fatal_s) at melsexotics when you are ready for a bts, she is awesome and knowledgeable and often has beautiful, sweet babies! i recently purchased and amazing Northern from her .
I'm pretty new to BTS as well but my advice is to do a lot of research, read the caresheet on this site, try to purchase from somewhere reputable to ensure you're getting a healthy animal.
oh and prepared to be addicted!

[Bird_Brain]

Welcome Melissa!
Since you are in Canada you will find Meraukes, Irian Jayas, and Northerns the most, occasionally finding Indonesians, and you could get a Tanimbar if Fatal_S breeds her's. Meraukes, Irian Jayas, and Northern usually have the best dispositions. I would recommend(And this applies to any animal) that you get a captive bred animal.
Irian Jayas(IJs) and Meraukes are usually wild-caught though. So if your looking for a pet your best bet would probably be getting a Northern, unless you find someone breeding IJs or Meraukes(It's unlikely that you will find someone breeding Meraukes).
If I were in you position I would ask Fatal_S when she is expecting babies and go to her website or ask Katrina to see if she plans on breeding her Meraukes. There is another person on the forum who breeds skinks called P.T Monkey Skink, but I don't know much about them or if they still breed.
Information on Fatal_S:
Melanie in Manitoba:
Breeding Northerns, Irian Jayas and Tanimbars. Sold out for 2011. http://www.MelsExotics.com

I would recommend looking here for information about Blue Tongue Skink husbandry:
viewforum.php?f=24

woah! Slow down there ML! I know it about kills you to write more than two words in a response. Typing out that much must have really hurt! Lol

Welcome, Melissa! Gad you found the forum. Sounds like you're off to a good start. Be sure to read the care sheet and the FAQ section on the forum. If you run into any particular questions please feel free to ask. Also, in the upper right hand corner, there is a search function that you can also use to find answers.

[xxmonitorlizardxx]

woah! Slow down there ML! I know it about kills you to write more than two words in a response. Typing out that much must have really hurt! Lol

The Tourniquet is slowing down the blood loss

[MissC89]

Thanks guys and gals!

Funny enough, the reason I found this site is because I visited Fatal_S's website www.MelExotics.com and was really impressed with the fact that she can refuse to sell her BTS' to someone if she thinks that they aren't able to take proper care of their BTS when it arrives. To me, that is the sign of a breeder I want to buy from. Now I just have to wait for her to answer me back!

[MissC89]

Oh, and I am very ready to be addicted.

[Bird_Brain]

Mel eats little kids, she's not as great as she makes herself sound on her website....


Lol jk. She's a good gal.

[Spindown]

I'm totally stealing some of her terms and conditions for my site if we have bubs
I LOVE her site! (I love your site Mel!)
(I'll ask for permission first, dont worry )

[stinkyskinky]

Best thing you can do is read and re-read.the caresheet on this site. I read it for months, while talking the hubby into another reptile. Lol! It really is the best one on the web. More like a novella than a sheet. Ha ha ha!

Good luck to you. We've had ours for 3 months and adore him....even the reluctant hubby loves him!

[Katrina]

Welcome!!

[MissC89]

I have already printed out my very own version of the caresheet and I have another copy saved on my laptop just in case. And I am VERY happy to hear that your reluctant hubby loves your BTS because my boyfriend is reluctant as well but I have a funny feeling he's going to love it too!

[Dakota]

I have been reading the care-sheet on here for years! Over and over, haha. It seems everytime I read it again, I find something new, that I missed..

[Dakota]

Well, not years as in like 4-5.. more like 1-2.. ever since I found it..

[MissC89]

Well, not years as in like 4-5.. more like 1-2.. ever since I found it..

Close enough! If you had a BTS before you found this forum I'm pretty sure it was one of those "OMG how did I ever live without this!" (which I am sure is how everyone feels about their BTS ha ha!) And besides, sometimes 1-2 years can feel like a life-time, especially if you've made good friends on this website.

[Spindown]

My bf is still a bit snake phobic, but before I got my first snake (first reptile ever actually), he was totally reptile phobic. Thought they were the most disgusting things ever and told me I'd have to take a full bath every time I held it. After I got my first snake (BP), he saw a photo of a centralian bluey...we obviously didnt find a centralian, but he fell head over heals for Blueys! Now hes mostly ok with my snakes too, just not the larger ones (even my corn snake he is still afraid of lol). Guess no burms in my future, but oh well Lots of blueys!

[MissC89]

My bf is still a bit snake phobic, but before I got my first snake (first reptile ever actually), he was totally reptile phobic. Thought they were the most disgusting things ever and told me I'd have to take a full bath every time I held it. After I got my first snake (BP), he saw a photo of a centralian bluey...we obviously didnt find a centralian, but he fell head over heals for Blueys! Now hes mostly ok with my snakes too, just not the larger ones (even my corn snake he is still afraid of lol). Guess no burms in my future, but oh well Lots of blueys!

Ha ha that's awesome to hear! My bf is a little iffy abut the whole thing, but he's not a huge pet person to begin with. He seems O.K. with the idea of me getting a bluey and before he said "You aren't allowed to take them out of their cage if I'm in the same room" and that turned in to "As long as you don't make me touch it I'll be ok" so he's already getting better! Fingers crossed he eventually holds it and realizes what we already know - Blueys are AMAZING!

[stinkyskinky]

My hubby is totally not into our snake. He doesnt mind it, but wont her unless i ask him to hold her a second while I do something. The Bluey, however, he holds after the kids have gone to bedso he doesn't have to share. I think he likes that the skink just sits still and watches tv with him. ....he also enjoys making fun of his defense of "sticking his tongue out."

[MissC89]

When they stick their tongue out (just as in a quick flicker like a snake), what does that usually mean? The bluey I held at the pet store did that to me but there was no sign of aggression (no hissing or presenting of the tongue, and definitely no biting. Which was awesome for me because he hissed at the sales associate ha ha...)

[xxmonitorlizardxx]

When they stick their tongue out (just as in a quick flicker like a snake), what does that usually mean? The bluey I held at the pet store did that to me but there was no sign of aggression (no hissing or presenting of the tongue, and definitely no biting. Which was awesome for me because he hissed at the sales associate ha ha...)

They stick their tongue out quite a bit. Usually it is to smell/taste the air. Sometimes they will "flare" their tongue in defense. They also used it to drink and eat.