BLUE TONGUE SKINKS

Hi there! I'm a new member here and I've recently taken a strong interest in Blueys again, (More specifically Northern Blueys!) and I've done hours and hours of straight research for a few weeks now because I'm determined to get my setup correct.
I've involved myself in many Facebook reptile and BTS groups and I'm loving seeing people's own gorgeous setups and experience and learning a few extra tips for myself in the process.

It's embarrassing to think some years ago I thought I knew everything about their setup and costs. Boy was I wrong...

Anyways! Down to business. I've been researching some products that look appropriate for my Northern. You'll find the list below:

1. Vivexotic repti-home in Medium-Black
(34" x 15" x 16.5") (I will upgrade to a 4 or 5 foot when I have the space)
2. Arcadia D3 UV Flood 24w Compact 12% UVB
3. Habistat Hi-Range Dimming Thermostat
4. Arcadia Basking Solar Spot Lamp 75W x 2
5. Komodo Ceramic Lamp & Bracket
6. Reptile Light and Heat Guard by Komodo-175mm
7. Aspen bedding (Not sure if it's too dusty. It's controversial...Would appreciate advice)
8. Water bowl & food bowl
9. Correct food items
10. Reptile calcium (Not sure if this is required for Blueys?)
10. Decor & hides
11. Temp gun (Does this mean I should still purchase thermometers?)

And that's all I can think of!
Would really appreciate feedback and tips. Would you change any of the listed brand items? Add something else?

Have you read through the caresheet on here? It will have lots of info to help you with your set up and husbandry.

FluffySkink wrote:Have you read through the caresheet on here? It will have lots of info to help you with your set up and husbandry.

I believe I have. It's weird viewing it on my phone as I don't go on my pc much right now.
But yes I have. I just wanted to be sure is all. Everyone's lighting setup is a little bit different so I thought I'd best be sure with more opinions.

Welcome! While I don’t have experience with all of the products (hopefully someone can give better answers!) but a few general thoughts:

1. Just a reminder that Blueys grow quickly, some are at adult size within a year (though lots of people do “grow- in” tanks, so shouldn’t be a problem). But the size you are considering seems to be under the basic recommendation for an adult.

2. Personally, we’ve had good results with Arcadia products (we chose them over others, as we heard there is less chance of eye problems). As 12% is fine for Beardies, I would presume it should be good for Northerns too?

4. Just curious, how come you list x2 lamps? I’m presuming just a backup in case one goes out?

7. Also heard it Aspen can be dusty. I’ve seen some Northerns being kept on coco-coir/coco husk, but without adding much moisture. It could be an option (although others may have more experience/ideas!).

10. Yep, get the calcium. There are a lot of sad stories of Bluey’s with MBD.

11. A temp gun is great, but personally would recommend getting additional thermometers with the gun (even if they are basic types, as it’s better to have something monitoring all the time – as even the best keepers may miss if the temperature begins to drop, as unlikely someone will be able to check consistently with just a temp gun over time)

kayla990 wrote:Welcome! While I don’t have experience with all of the products (hopefully someone can give better answers!) but a few general thoughts:

1. Just a reminder that Blueys grow quickly, some are at adult size within a year (though lots of people do “grow- in” tanks, so shouldn’t be a problem). But the size you are considering seems to be under the basic recommendation for an adult.

2. Personally, we’ve had good results with Arcadia products (we chose them over others, as we heard there is less chance of eye problems). As 12% is fine for Beardies, I would presume it should be good for Northerns too?

4. Just curious, how come you list x2 lamps? I’m presuming just a backup in case one goes out?

7. Also heard it Aspen can be dusty. I’ve seen some Northerns being kept on coco-coir/coco husk, but without adding much moisture. It could be an option (although others may have more experience/ideas!).

10. Yep, get the calcium. There are a lot of sad stories of Bluey’s with MBD.

11. A temp gun is great, but personally would recommend getting additional thermometers with the gun (even if they are basic types, as it’s better to have something monitoring all the time – as even the best keepers may miss if the temperature begins to drop, as unlikely someone will be able to check consistently with just a temp gun over time)

Really appreciate the detailed response. Gives me some nice insight. The viv i chose out is purely because I have literally no space in my room. 3' is the max I can go to right now. I'll be purchasing a baby so it should give me time to adjust the size in plenty of time even though they tend to groe pretty rapidly. I don't like using bare minimum for it but it's just temporary. I've tried making up for that with other high quality products as best I can.
The bulbs are x2 just in case one blows. Always good to have a spare eh?
Substrate wise I'll do more looking to see what people have good experience using. I only use Aspen with my Western Hognose snake right now.
I thought it might be better if I got some digi thermoters as well.

Welcome! Just a comment on the Aspen, many people successfully use it. Two of my Northerns had habitually bad sheds when I was using, and the fact that it gave me allergies too made me switch to repti-bark and similar. No more shedding issues. Plus it does not mold when you create a humid area for shedding purposes, and much easier to maintain.

splashy07 wrote:Welcome! Just a comment on the Aspen, many people successfully use it. Two of my Northerns had habitually bad sheds when I was using, and the fact that it gave me allergies too made me switch to repti-bark and similar. No more shedding issues. Plus it does not mold when you create a humid area for shedding purposes, and much easier to maintain.

Thank you. I'll take that all into consideration. Just heard a lot about the shedding issues and allergies and thought I would ask about it too. My allergies are pretty sensitive to dust and other such things.

Even my skinks would sneeze more when I used to use it! So many other more sensible things on the market, save the shavings for the rodents. Just don't like it for reptiles. Just my opinion, I'm sure others will argue. I just go with what works for me.