Handling skinks

[Basilisk]

Hi all.

I recently got a 6 month old Blue tongue. He's had almost no handling and is very aggressive. Are there any tips and tricks to teach him how to accept handling? I feel like a great big monster trying to chase him around the enclosure and lift him.

Do I just have to power through it and lift him up to teach him it's ok to be handled?

[Susann]

Lots of info to be found on how to handle and care for BTS both in the CARESHEET and in the FAQ section at the top of this forum; like these:
What to expect
How to tame
Safely picking up your skink

[kingofnobbys]

Hi all.

I recently got a 6 month old Blue tongue. He's had almost no handling and is very aggressive. Are there any tips and tricks to teach him how to accept handling? I feel like a great big monster trying to chase him around the enclosure and lift him.

Do I just have to power through it and lift him up to teach him it's ok to be handled?

Worse thing you can do to a skittish skink is chase it about it's tank with your arms and hands . This will only reinforce your young skinks fear of you as he thinks you are monster who is going to eat him.
It's unfortunate that the breeder didn't spend more time handling him , but all is not lost, he's still very young and can be befriended / tamed with a little patience , kindness and plenty of food bribes.

When ever he backs off , give him the space he wants .
Spend as much time as you can just hanging out near his tank doing your normal activities (homework, watching TV, reading, preparing his food, sorting his live feeder insects) , let him study you , he'll soon figure out that
> you are not dangerous
> you are his (human)
> you are the source of all things good (food, water)

I suggest you start off only handling when necessary for now , and maybe establishing a routine each day that is predictable (lizards like a predictable routine), maybe take him out for a few minutes each day and have a very desireable food treat for him handy to give to him (by hand) , I've found placing your hand just beyond a skinks personal space uphanded and open with a very tempting food treat on the hand ( a mealworm , a silkworm , a piece of his favuour fruit or a piece of bright coloured berry, a dandelion flower or nasturtion flower , you will soon discover his favourate foods that he finds irristable) , he'll soon overcome his distrust/fear and come up and take the food offering from your hand , then from your finger tips.

A way I find you can calm down a skittish skink is to drop a tea towel over top off him, and pick him up with the tea towel over him , place him on your tummy and let him settle there (will soon discover human bodies are nice and toasty ( and the perfect temperature for a skink ), when he's settled , slowly lift the tea towel and let him peak out while still be covered, eventually he'll crawl out and investigate you.

[Basilisk]

Hi all.

I recently got a 6 month old Blue tongue. He's had almost no handling and is very aggressive. Are there any tips and tricks to teach him how to accept handling? I feel like a great big monster trying to chase him around the enclosure and lift him.

Do I just have to power through it and lift him up to teach him it's ok to be handled?

Worse thing you can do to a skittish skink is chase it about it's tank with your arms and hands . This will only reinforce your young skinks fear of you as he thinks you are monster who is going to eat him.
It's unfortunate that the breeder didn't spend more time handling him , but all is not lost, he's still very young and can be befriended / tamed with a little patience , kindness and plenty of food bribes.

When ever he backs off , give him the space he wants .
Spend as much time as you can just hanging out near his tank doing your normal activities (homework, watching TV, reading, preparing his food, sorting his live feeder insects) , let him study you , he'll soon figure out that
> you are not dangerous
> you are his (human)
> you are the source of all things good (food, water)

I suggest you start off only handling when necessary for now , and maybe establishing a routine each day that is predictable (lizards like a predictable routine), maybe take him out for a few minutes each day and have a very desireable food treat for him handy to give to him (by hand) , I've found placing your hand just beyond a skinks personal space uphanded and open with a very tempting food treat on the hand ( a mealworm , a silkworm , a piece of his favuour fruit or a piece of bright coloured berry, a dandelion flower or nasturtion flower , you will soon discover his favourate foods that he finds irristable) , he'll soon overcome his distrust/fear and come up and take the food offering from your hand , then from your finger tips.

A way I find you can calm down a skittish skink is to drop a tea towel over top off him, and pick him up with the tea towel over him , place him on your tummy and let him settle there (will soon discover human bodies are nice and toasty ( and the perfect temperature for a skink ), when he's settled , slowly lift the tea towel and let him peak out while still be covered, eventually he'll crawl out and investigate you.

That's all fantastic advice, thank you. After re-reading the Care Sheet my fiance and I have started eating our breakfast next to his tank and I've taken to giving him a treat when I get home. I then hang about the tank until he eats the snack.

We've also worked out he's quite fond of Panic! at the Disco. Whenever we play the newest album he starts investigating his enclosure or comes out from under his hide to look around at us. I'm experimenting to see what other genres he enjoys!

[kingofnobbys]

Yep my gang (skinks and dragons) all love watching tv , action movies seem and tv series seem to be the most interesting to them.