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Best foods for a malnourished skink?

Posted: Tue May 30, 2017 2:47 pm
by GibbsTheSkink
Long story short we've taken a class pet that we used to take home often, but it's been a little over a year since we've done so (we're no longer at the school), and we were asked since no parents volunteered to take him home to care for him at the end of the year. We love the little guy so we went and got him. Once I got him home I noticed how much smaller he is just in the face. He's only with us for two months so I want to try and get his weight up and get him in better shape.

What are some higher nutrient food options for the little guy?

I'm going to feed him daily for the next week or two, clean him up really well also because he's got some stuck sheds and his claws are a hot mess. :sad3:

Re: Best foods for a malnourished skink?

Posted: Wed May 31, 2017 5:38 am
by splashy07
I'd go for a good quality dog food, as he most likely will not refuse that. Most high end brands contain all the nutrients they need and will put the weight on him quickly, he will probably eat a lot at first if he was deprived. I use blue buffalo beef with garden vegetables. Poor thing, you're an angel to have rescued him. Vitamin supplements twice a week couldn't hurt either. If you use feeder insects, superworms and dubias are seldom refused either, and they also add weight quickly. What type of BTS is he?

Re: Best foods for a malnourished skink?

Posted: Wed May 31, 2017 9:52 am
by SleepyCheesy
I concur with the first post but I feed my skink indoor cat food from blue buffalo. It has a lot of protein and I also mix his vegetables into the cat food in order to trick him into eating them. It works fine for me and it should work just fine for you.

Re: Best foods for a malnourished skink?

Posted: Sun Jun 04, 2017 6:14 am
by BD99
Hey Man. I NEVER have had to beef a skink up, but for my girl who is a very good weight I actually avoid dogfood. Some vets have argued that it can cause kidney damage once they are mature. IDk if that's true, but my girl isn't actually keen on doggie or kitty meals. Especially not if it has gravy in it.

For me, when I want weight on her, I SKIP dogfood and go straight for organic steak and chicken cuttings off my own food before I cook it. Since human food is better quality, arguments have been made that the fat content may actually be higher in them. ((I've heard arguments both ways, but my girl never suffered off the pricy cuttings and the vet praised her healthwise))
If not steak, just Pinkie Mice. On her greens, I did an egg yolk sauce. mixed up egg, water and calc powder and soaked my usual veggies in it.
When my girl was heading into brumation, I gave her a lot of egg to slurp too since she didn't really want to be chewing chunks of food. I found that when they don't want to eat, they'll still drink some egg.

On top of usual feedings, I also offer treats. Just some banana or berries. That could be another way to start beefing up.

Again, I've NEVER dealt with an underweight lizard. Just a fussy as heck one who started to drop weight as she went into brumation. My meals were to keep weight on, not put it on.