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What type of skink do I have and how do I help him?

Posted: Sat Oct 28, 2017 10:33 am
by Leapingleopards
Recently I purchased an extremely skinny BTS from a reptile expo. I felt for him, he was extremely skinny and nervous. However I have some clue as to what breed he is (Indonesian/iryan jaya?) but I'm not sure. His body is reddish orange with black bands, a grey tail, and blue only on the top of his tongue. He's very skittish and was definitely either WC or mistreated and is severely slinnyand malnourished. He hisses and tries to bite every time I put food in the cage. This is sort of a loaded question, but I was wondering what breed he was, how to fatten him up, and should I even keep him? I've only owned leopard geckos, bearded dragons, cresties, cornsnakes, and tortoises before.
Thanks!

Re: What type of skink do I have and how do I help him?

Posted: Sat Oct 28, 2017 8:29 pm
by Karbon
Hi and welcome to the site!

I'm almost positive that he's a Halmahera, just like my little guy.

He does look a tad skinny but not sickly. He looks alert and if he's hissing and scared that's honestly normal for a baby blue tongue.
Let him rest and hide for a while, make sure he has fresh water daily.

Please do read the info in the link here - it will answer EVERY question you have! http://bluetongueskinks.net/care.htm

He will need higher humidity, around 75% since he's from Indonesia which is more humid.

There should be two area on either side of the enclosure you have him in - one for a warmer side and one for a cooler side.
I would suggest at first getting a heat pad and putting it under the tank on the warm side and using Cypress mulch to keep humidity more stable and so he can burrow a bit.

As for food, get premium dog food with NO GRAIN and no fillers or bone meal, some escarole, green beans or collard greens. He'll need meat and greens at least once every two days once he gets settled in.
To entice him a bit, try giving him small bite sized pieces of fruit like banana in his food, just don't put fruits in his food every day.

Take a look around the forums, there's a lot of info and topics with pictures of how to setup a tank for your little guy.

Re: What type of skink do I have and how do I help him?

Posted: Sun Oct 29, 2017 5:00 am
by starscream3232
Indonesian Halmahera locale tiliqua gigas gigas. Not a breed but a species. They are 100% wild caught. They do need a vet check to clear up any parasites. Practice good quarantine because they can carry mites. They are one of the harder bts to care for due to their high humidity requirements.