Need help? with new BTS

[Lanky]

I am worried about my Northern BTS. He is around 3 months old and i got him a week in half ago and i've not seen him at all sense the day i got him home i clean his water and give him food daily but he hasnt left his burrow once.

Set Up
Temp 20 gal long (Till 40 gal zoo med is ready)
2 Heat lamps in a dual pack one is Basking spot light only on during day and the other is a inferred one that is on in evening
1 WATER dish
1 long log hide that has both goes thru hot and cold sides
1 stick to get up towards a good basking spot
1 flat rock for nails and placing of food tray
1 plastic plant for secureness of pet
Closed screen top

I don't if i should wait leave him be or pop him out to check on him? any help is welcomed

[Susann]

My first question is, where did you buy him from?

Then, more important to know than what types of bulbs you use is to know what the temperatures are in the tank and how you are measuring them. A Northern should have a sizable basking area (ideally a flat place where he can spread his belly out on different places/temperatures on the area) that reaches up around 100°F at one end of the tank, and a cool side of the tank that's in the upper 60's to low 70's. which I don't believe is easy to achieve in a 20 gal tank. Ideally he should have a good hide at both ends of the tank.
He may not be moving because he is too cold. Or, if he's constantly warm then I would be worried about him not eating since his metabolism would be running all the time. Also, if he's too warm, he may only move around at night when it's a bit cooler. Generally though, skinks stay down more often when they are cool than when they are warm, and especially if they are too warm, but that's hard to say for sure when we don't know what your skink is used to and how scared he still may be.

Until you get a good, accurate reading of the temperatures, I don't know that any of us know how exactly to guide you. If you have not seen him at all since you put him in, I would definitely lift up his hide and check on him.

[mb606587]

Yes I would like to add that everything Susann told you is correct. It's good that you are upgrading to a larger tank. Maintaining a proper temperature gradient will be much easier. Now you need something to measure your temperatures and this is NOT optional. In many cases, skinks will remain in hides if your temperatures are either too hot or too cold and unless you can measure it you have no idea. Find your nearest hardware store, (I prefer home depot and lowes) and pick up an infrared heat gun. Don't use the little dials you see at the pet store. They tend not to be that accurate. We don't know what wattage bulbs you're using but you want that rock to be 100-110 and still have your cool side in the 70's. If you're not hitting that target, upgrade or downgrade your bulbs until you do. And unless your temps are dropping under 65 degrees, I'd ditch your night lights

[Lanky]

so he is still under and tomorrow ill up the watts im waaay to under my research was super off i need like 10 more degrees no wonder my lil guy is having issues his bulb is and wont be soon a 75 watt he is 90 right now in basking spot which is a flat rock and 70-73 on the cold and at night it gets 86 in the hot spot. Sense its been so long sense he ate now besides upping the watt to get that degrees what can i do because i am now truely worried about him i know he has been moving because he now has tunnels thru out his tank and he is sticking to the colder side of the tank

[kingofnobbys]

I am worried about my Northern BTS. He is around 3 months old and i got him a week in half ago and i've not seen him at all sense the day i got him home i clean his water and give him food daily but he hasnt left his burrow once.

Set Up
Temp 20 gal long (Till 40 gal zoo med is ready)
2 Heat lamps in a dual pack one is Basking spot light only on during day and the other is a inferred one that is on in evening <<< show us these two globes in photos ,
the night heat globe should NOT produce any visible light

What are the
basking spot temperature ?
the warm zone temperature ?
the cool zone temperature ?

How are you measuring these ?


1 WATER dish
1 long log hide that has both goes thru hot and cold sides
1 stick to get up towards a good basking spot
1 flat rock for nails and placing of food tray
1 plastic plant for secureness of pet
Closed screen top

<<<< no UV source ?
a Northern requires at least 10% UVB , in your set up you can get away with an Exo Terra 26W UVB200 mounted in an Exo Terra Nano Hood , which must be mounted UNDER the mesh lid and no more than 8 inches from the basking spot.

I don't if i should wait leave him be or pop him out to check on him? any help is welcomed

What substrate do have your skink on ?

[kingofnobbys]

My first question is, where did you buy him from?

Then, more important to know than what types of bulbs you use is to know what the temperatures are in the tank and how you are measuring them. A Northern should have a sizable basking area (ideally a flat place where he can spread his belly out on different places/temperatures on the area) that reaches up around 100°F at one end of the tank, and a cool side of the tank that's in the upper 60's to low 70's. which I don't believe is easy to achieve in a 20 gal tank. Ideally he should have a good hide at both ends of the tank.
He may not be moving because he is too cold. Or, if he's constantly warm then I would be worried about him not eating since his metabolism would be running all the time. Also, if he's too warm, he may only move around at night when it's a bit cooler. Generally though, skinks stay down more often when they are cool than when they are warm, and especially if they are too warm, but that's hard to say for sure when we don't know what your skink is used to and how scared he still may be.

Until you get a good, accurate reading of the temperatures, I don't know that any of us know how exactly to guide you. If you have not seen him at all since you put him in, I would definitely lift up his hide and check on him.

I suggest investment in a brace of these will be money well spent , they are cheap enough to install permanently with the probes at strategic spots in the tank so you can see the temperatures at a glance.
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/2-LCD-Digit ... 1259141696

[kingofnobbys]

so he is still under and tomorrow ill up the watts im waaay to under my research was super off i need like 10 more degrees no wonder my lil guy is having issues his bulb is and wont be soon a 75 watt he is 90 right now in basking spot which is a flat rock and 70-73 on the cold and at night it gets 86 in the hot spot. Sense its been so long sense he ate now besides upping the watt to get that degrees what can i do because i am now truely worried about him i know he has been moving because he now has tunnels thru out his tank and he is sticking to the colder side of the tank

Skinks thermoregulate by absorbing heat from their environment , the fact he's avoiding the warm zone and staying in the cool zoon indicated very clearly to me that the tank is overall too hot for him.

Prolonged overheating WILL result in a loss of the ability to thermoregulate or even to move and ultimately will kill him , you need to sort these temperatures out PRONTO , and perhaps until then invest in a heat pad (set to give 36 degC) and turn off the basking globe if it's too hot.
Check the temperatures using a thermometer like this : https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/2-LCD-Digit ... 1259141696

I use this kind of set up for my skinks to give supplementary heat 24h/day : https://www.beardeddragon.org/forums/vi ... 5&t=246355 , a 7W heatpad will be more than sufficient for even a full grown bluetongue skink , simply place half log style hide over the "slab".

[Lanky]

So here is my game plan. One swap him to his bigger tank its 40 breeder tank 2. get a better lamp 3. get a temp gun at home depot 4. get another hide for his cooler side.

TO ANSWER Q's
I can do photos as of right now
Second the lamp he uses right now is this https://www.petsmart.com/reptile/enviro ... medium=cpc

3. i was told by a lot of people uvb was needed i have near a area where sunlight touchs some of his tank but ill look more into uvb
4.Temps i use a digital probe
Basking spot durning day is 90-92
Warm zone AS of right now 87
Cold zone is 70-75 it varies

Does my plan and set seem better with what my goal plan which i can do at 10 am this morning after i go shopping to get this stuff ill do my best for this lil guy

[mb606587]

Yeah those are good temps you just listed. Digital probe is a pretty accurate way to measure those temps so I'd say is reliable. As far as uvb goes, It has not been proven to be necessary. I'd still recommend it but I don't think that's your issue. It could be possible you just have a shy skink. I have one that almost never comes out, maybe a half hour a day to bask. Your skink is still fairly new too so give it some time. But keep measuring your temperatures. I check mine everyday.

[Susann]

he is 90 right now in basking spot and 70-73 on the cold

If you've accomplished that big of a heat gradient in a 20 gal tank, then I think you're doing pretty good. Yes, your hot spot could be warmer, but honestly, 90-70 gradient is better than 100-80, in my opinion.

at night it gets 86 in the hot spot

Your hot spot sinking a bit is perfectly fine, nothing to worry about at all, as long as he still has a way to warm up should the rest of the tank get too cool for him.

Your outlined plan sounds perfect. 1) Bigger tank --good. 2) Better lamp --don't know that you need it; that'll depend on the heat gradient you achieve in your bigger tank. 3) Temp gun --YES! Rather than thermometers that stay in one place, they only tell you the temperature in THAT place. Most mounted thermometers and/or probes are not down on the ground throughout the entire tank or inside hides where our skinks spend most of their time, so they will only tell you the temp in that spot(s). They are good to have so you can see at a glance that "status quo" is upheld in the tank, but as far as knowing instantly with one sweep exactly what the temps are throughout the areas he lives in, only a temp gun will give you that. 4) Another hide --or several, perfect.

UVB is good, not a MUST, but absolutely good when done safely --i.e. follow the direction of whatever bulb you buy, NOT someone else's recommendation! UVB are rays that can be damaging or deadly, so following the recommendations that each company supplies for each bulb is imperative. Everybody has different setups with different distances, strengths, thicknesses of materials, and so forth. What one person does in his tank is NOT what you should go by. Follow the directions that come with the bulb.
Putting the tank in a sunny spot does not supply your skink with UVB as UVB rays do not travel through glass in measurable amounts --all you're doing by having the tank in a sunny spot for part of the day is raise the temps, sometimes significantly, in the tank, and in a 20 gal tank there's no way for him to get away from the heat --shade won't work.

You're doing a good job! I would suggest you read through the CARESHEET, again if you already did it; a lot of this info is described in there, and then you'll be more aware of people giving you not so stellar advice.

more important to know than what types of bulbs you use is to know what the temperatures are in the tank...........................

I suggest investment in a brace of these will be money well spent............

kingofnobbys, why are you suggesting I invest in these? Why quote my entire comment of advice to someone else if you aren't talking to me?

[Lanky]

Update he is doing good his new tank is getting cleaned this week and ready for him. he is super shy and is almost never out or unburrowed but he doesnt mind being picked up no hissing he does run tho when picked up but i feel thats normal

[mb606587]

Glad to hear the little guys is doing well. Most skinks don't enjoy being picked up so yeah is pretty normal behavior.