BLUE TONGUE SKINKS

Sorry, I just realized I forgot to post this here! They arrived Wednesday! And maaaan, they have grown! Maxx has turned into a beast! He is finally starting to get that "adult" feel, but I think he could squeeze a couple more inches in before his growth basically stops.

Here is Maxx!


Here is Riley (in shed)!


It is jut so surreal that I got these guys when they were just a speck, and now look at them! They are growing up on me. They are currently set up at school right now. Maxx is in a big 75 gallon tank, and Riley is in a 40 gallon. They have a timer set for 7am to 7pm. And let me tell you, everyone LOVES them! The whole day, I always overheard someone saying something about the "skinks".. which is kinda cool considering I got to a freaking massive school! They will be staying in Dr. Youngs room. Man, she is awesome. She probably the most excited out of everyone, she loves BTS. She had no idea they ranged outside of Australia. I'm letting her read my Bluey Bible to give her some more insight on the genus. Oh, and she said that the people that hated reptiles previously said that they wanted a BTS now because of how well Maxx and Riley are acting with everyone! Isn't that awesome? Riley is currently dropping sperm plugs, and he dropped one on the desk, Dr. Youngs took a picture, and showed everyone in all the classes. I talked to one of her classes about them, and met some Freshman reptile keepers. One guy had a Boa constrictor. I asked what locality/form it was, and he said "Uhhh, South American?" He then remembered, and said it was Colombian. I will be talking with my class (I'm in a class full of Freshman, sadly..) about them, I'm excited. Riley developed a kink in his tail while away, so I and Dr. Youngs will be taking him outside to get natural UV. When I got him (he was warmed by the heating pack), he basked under the sun for 40 minutes. For anyone that has worked with Halmaheras know that it is 10 minutes max! I think he knows he may be lacking D3 perhaps, I don't know. I'm going to start letting him bask until he starts acting like a regular Halmahera. I will be making sure I put a little extra calcium in his food, as well. Hoping the kink will straighten out. I've talked to some people about it, and we think it is where I used to supplement a few pinches ever single feeding, and Debbie didn't supplement as much, he body didn't respond well to the sudden change in calcium intake that his body was used to. But, I'm not too worried about it, it was beyond anyone's control. All I care about it is doesn't get bigger.

Oh, and Maxx measured right at 20". I believe Riley was at like 17", or maybe 18".

Very pretty skinks The colors ... and all that black pattern, mlmlmlmlml *Q*

MarcoDP wrote:Very pretty skinks The colors ... and all that black pattern, mlmlmlmlml *Q*

Thank you, I think they are very attractive. Riley usually is a lot more orange when he is not in shed. I have one other Halmahera, named Alice, and is possibly the prettiest skink I have. When she is old enough to breed, I'm going to pair her up with Maxx.

I would think if some weeks your bts is lacking in calcium supplements is what may have caused this. Picture of tail please. When I was 16-years-old I nursed my first bts that was sold to me with mbd to health.

JoshChimera wrote:I would think if some weeks your bts is lacking in calcium supplements is what may have caused this. Picture of tail please. When I was 16-years-old I nursed my first bts that was sold to me with mbd to health.

I don't think a picture would be helpful. It is a kink. I do not want to dwell on it. She supplemented, just wasn't as much as they were used to.

Dakota wrote:

JoshChimera wrote:I would think if some weeks your bts is lacking in calcium supplements is what may have caused this. Picture of tail please. When I was 16-years-old I nursed my first bts that was sold to me with mbd to health.

I don't think a picture would be helpful. It is a kink. I do not want to dwell on it. She supplemented, just wasn't as much as they were used to.

Good to hear that it is not a problem. Your bts are really brick red!

whilst tail kinks can be a tell tale sign of mbd,its not just a symptom of mbd and even if it is it could have been buildibg up long before debbie got them,just saying

Richard.C wrote:whilst tail kinks can be a tell tale sign of mbd,its not just a symptom of mbd and even if it is it could have been buildibg up long before debbie got them,just saying

I doubt that, because I raised both of them from tiny neonates, on dogfood mostly. Riley was the one with the most rapid growth. Alice wasn't eating all that much, and Maxx mainly just got fatter, with no significant bone growth. I really do not think there is a reason to point fingers anyways. I did not start this thread to discuss the kink, if I wanted to discuss it, the title would be altered. I knew I should have never mentioned it.

I want this thread to be for my excitement of me getting 2 of my skinks back after they were literally taken from me. Not a kink.

you mentioned it ,i was just saying,theu hadnt been out of uour care that long,so bewildered that all blame went elsewhere,even before a propper diagnosis

Richard.C wrote:so bewildered that all blame went elsewhere,even before a propper diagnosis

I may be missing something, but I don't believe I blamed anyone? I don't believe I mentioned it was MBD, either. I don't think anyone was at fault. Debbie gave them the same amount of calcium she gives her Merauke and Northerns. It just wasn't the amount that my Halmaheras were used to. I supplemented 1 pinch per every 2 teaspoons (2/3 tablespoon). I did this mainly because they are growing and their bodies will benefit from the calcium, in which it did, because they grow up straight as an arrow.. and I've had both of them since they were a few weeks old. With this regime, their bodies grew accustomed to the amount of calcium and D3 they received. When I sent them to Debbie's, their bodies were faced with calcium supplementation that was a lot less than what they were used to - though the amount she gave is what her skinks were used to. If I had to guess, their bodies registered this as not getting enough calcium, or enough that their bodies had grown accustomed to. Since Riley was the one that was growing the most rapidly, he was the only one that was affected. Whilst Maxx did grow a bit, he mainly grew fatter. Riley is still lean, despite he was fed an all you can eat buffet very often. He put all his food towards growth. Alice refused to eat due to the stress of shipping, thus not growing all that much. If Alice had not been so affected by shipping, I probably would have her here, too.. but apparently she doesn't take shipping very well. Debbie stated that she included more calcium in his diet, and the formation of the kink was stunted. She hypothesized that maybe this form needs more calcium, in general, than other species.. which could be possible.. but from talking with other people, we all err on the side of the first theory. I find it offensive that whilst I am not blaming anyone, you are hinting towards me. I don't have experience with kinks, but from talking to those that do, state that kinks manifest VERY quickly. The skinks have been gone for almost 2 months. I think that is plenty of time for a kink to develop. But again, Debbie is not at fault. I'm am not trying to hint towards that in any way, shape, form, or fashion. If she had not given calcium at all, then yes maybe - but she gave them what she was used to feeding her skink. This was beyond the control of anyone. If I had known my calcium supplementation amount was different than most, I would have told her. And from now on, I will - whether I am buying one, or selling one. I find it unreasonable that I had to justify myself on this matter, so I ask for the topic to be dropped.

so if i get a skink from someone that supplements its diet,there going to get mbd/tail kinks because i supplement them less,i dont even use supplements so im in strife,well should be,but none have developed kinks,some of those are decades old since i got them

dont get your knickers in a knot,was trying to hint at could be a number of issues that could cause this,including injury,there still young,no history of there parentage which were most likely imports which could have been lacking in nutrients making babies a tad weaker from get go,tons of possabilities.i doubt what your thinking is whats going on is all

Calcium intake should not be viewed in isolation, there is relevance in how much phosphorus also included in the diet. Also, over supplementing calcium can be just as potentially erroneous as under supplying through diet. It is too convenient to label every skeletal aberration as MBD.

Very beautiful skinks! Glad to hear you found a way to get them somewhat back, I'm sure there loving all the attention from the all the students

SmaugTheBluey wrote:Very beautiful skinks! Glad to hear you found a way to get them somewhat back, I'm sure there loving all the attention from the all the students

They are actually pretty chill! I figured they would have been huffy all through the day. A lot of people were putting them in their hoodie pocket which it seems they enjoy. I will be bringing superworms tomorrow to let people feed them.