Terrified and hissing new BTS

[airasay]

Hi there,

My boyfriend and I bought our Blue Tongue Skink Jarvis last saturday. We have a bearded dragon already so are not new to keeping reptiles but we are new to BTS. In the pet shop the one we chose was active and didn't seem to mind being held but ever since we got him home he's been hiding from us and hisses when we open the viv. He seems terrified of us and it's been a week now!

He originally hid in a big piece of bark but we moved that to try and pick him up but as he hissed we left him along - he's never been back to that bark! He's now camped out under another tunnel and only comes out when we're not at home (he poops by his water bowl and sometimes seems to have eaten a little bit of chicken or fruit). He will take live food (locusts and crickets) from us if we offer them with tweezers, even when we stressed him out by moving the bark so he's clearly a happy eater!

I know there will be some adjustment time but he hasn't improved at all in one week, is this normal? We try to talk to him when we put in food and go near the viv and we try to spend sometime showing we're not a threat but he doesn't seem to be calming down at all (we're out at work between 8.30-13.00 and 14.00-16.30 so he's not looked at constantly!). The pet shop says we need to keep handling him but we didn't at all this week as we're worried about the hissing and think he needs to be more relaxed first. He will bury himself a fair bit too, he did that right after we first tried to handle him.

Any advice much appreciated, we're worried we just picked a particularly anti-social one or something! Will he ever get to like us?!

Many thanks
p.s: he's about 8 weeks old, Australian BTS.

[Lea]

Hi, welcome to the site.

Don't worry, what you are seeing is perfectly normal behaviour and he's just settling in. Some blue tongues can take weeks, or months to settle down, so you'll need to be patient.

You are right though, giving him a bit of alone time when you first get them is not a bad idea at all. It gives them a chance to explore their new surroundings, without feeling they might be grabbed at any moment. While this approach usually works to help them settle, there will be a point when you'll want to handle him, to get to know him etc. don't be too put off by hisses and huffs, it's their way of saying back off and leave me alone, you scary big thing! He'll naturally fear you, you just have to patiently try to teach him you are not a thing to be feared.

Most of the time, after some careful handling, they will calm down, however, some will always retain a wild streak and defiantly hiss and huff. Saying that though, after you have them in a safe hold in your hands, most will calm down and be happy enough to be held.

You say you have an Australian BTS- do you know what kind? It's most likely to be a Northern blue tongue, if an Australian and generally speaking they are quicker to calm down than the Indonesian blue tongues, but it does vary. There are lots of species, so it's possible you won't have an Australian blue tongue at all!

If you post a few pictures, we can ID your skink for you and tell you what he is. A lot of pet shops call them by their wrong name and given you've been told he's Australian, which is not specific, it's unlikely that they know what they are talking about

Again, don't fret. This is normal behaviour. Give him another week or so and then quietly approach him, take a firm, but not tight hold, supporting his whole body, including the legs. They need to feel secure, so dangling limbs is a no no. Sit down and hold him close to a flat surface, so he doesn't fear falling. If they can see a solid surface, they may try and dive for it, so holding him in a small tea towel, so he feel totally secure, can help.

There is a care sheet on here with some tips on set ups and housing, as well as a diet sheet, with some suggested foods.

Enjoy learning about your little guy! You will eventually fall in love, like the rest of us!

[airasay]

Thanks so much for your reply, that's reassuring :-) we'll persevere and hopefully he'll get to like us!

You can view a pic of him here: http://tinypic.com/r/n5rh9t/5 Grateful if you could ID him.

This site is fab for advice :-) especially for us newbies!

[Susann]

You have a cute little Irian Jaya
Welcome, and good luck!

[Lea]

Yes, an irian jaya! Definitely not Australian, but still 100% blue tongue. A beauty. Can't wait to see more photos!

[airasay]

Ooh, had no idea! Really didn't get much info on him from the pet shop. Thank you!! :-)

[Fatal_S]

Is he hissing, or huffing? There is a difference.

BTS commonly make two noises - a hiss and a huff. Many new owners hear a huff and think the skink is hissing at them. Here's the difference:
A hiss is an open-mouth, angry noise. The skink is scared and is telling you it will bite if you approach. It's best to let it settle before trying again.
A huff is a closed-mouth puff of air. It's very common in even the tamest skinks, and roughly means "don't eat me" or "don't step on me". If your skink is surprised by you, you will almost certainly get a huff at least.

[awilcocks]

hi, and welcome

hissing is normal i'd like to think i've had my little girl since feb and i'm still greeted with hisses and an evil look...i think nothing of it..and she lets me pick her up either way..

[El Lobo]

Exactly what Fatal has already stated. There is a real difference between hissing and huffing. True hissing is accompanied by open mouth display and turning the body sideways ready for a strike. Huffing is just letting you know that whatever it is you are doing is not what the skink would prefer. If you persist it can sometimes turn into hissing as the skink has determined it has given a warning that is being ignored. Respect their wishes and withdraw if it is a genuine hiss.

[Dakota]

Here is an example of the body-turn display. He did hiss later on in the box, but not while I took this photo.

[Spindown]

I've never had a skink "hiss" at me...Huffing from day one, though, my first bluey was a WC Indo He's very personable now, he's come such a long way

You have a very pretty IJ

[El Lobo]

That pic is not exactly what I was describing. With a true defensive display the body is usually elevated at the front with the mouth wide open displaying the tongue. This is accompanied by a long loud hiss and sometimes a slight jerking forward motion towards the target in an aggressive display. When you see it you will know the difference between huffing and hissing. The times I have seen such has been with wild skinks, most particularly when picking them up from roads etc.

[Dakota]

Ohh-- like this.



Credit: image.google.com

[El Lobo]

Exactly!

[Lea]

Or this.

[airasay]

Thanks everyone, I'll see what it is exactly next time we approached. But I guess it's more like a huff I supposed as he's taking in air to puff himself up whilst backing rapidly away from us. He really is very scared! Today I spotted some shed skin - does that make them extra sensitive? IT's been over a week now and we've really made no progress with how happy he is with our presence - i actually think he's getting more scared! His siblings in the shop are so tame they take them out to schools to be handled! We've got a very happy Bearded Dragon so we're not scary people! And we live in a quiet flat, just the two of us.
We'll keep being patient and hopefully we'll make friends eventually!

[Linnea]

Yup, a skink that is about one week from shed will be much more prone to hide and can be quite moody it may very well have added to the frightened or more sensitive response you have gotten from your skink. The process of shedding takes a little concentration and extra energy. Imagine a lobster changing his exoskeleton, how vulnerable it feels before its new shell has hardened.

Once hes shed im certain he will be much more like himself. He might still need a little, or a lot, of work to tame down to a level you both can be satisfied with! (compromises work well!)

Another note, im not saying the petshop is not good, but very often reptiles are kept cooler or many together (not all can bask at the same time) in petshops. This means that when they are shown off to the customer they will seem mellow and tame due to being colder and sluggish. When they get home they will finally have time to adjust to their new, perfect home with readily available hides, sun and food its a big change, especially for a tiny baby!
If you visit the store during mid day when its warmest and the most possibility that all skinks have basked, they might also seem livelier.

A good thing to practice is good handling technique its nothing complicated but it can do a lot if its your first skink.
your skink will need to feel safe being carried or lifted, and you need to feel safe carrying and holding the skink. This might take a couple of tries for both of your to learn perfectly, but is a nice way to start once youve come past the first acceptance barrier. It will feel better, mostly for the humans, to know how their skinks will react and do. especially if you need to clean the tank.
Follow everyone elses taming advice before mine though. ive only worked with one moody skink, while most others here have worked with many many more skinks.

I know everone else have said this already but, welcome to the forum and congrats on the skink!
the first few weeks are always a little shaky, but im sure everything will settle very well.

[airasay]

Thanks very much, that's really helpful advice.

He is definitely snapping and hissing now - he did it yesterday when we went to his viv to get a locust out and had to move his log tunnel where he likes to hide. How long shall we leave him before we try to handle him? How long do we need to build up trust? So far we don't think there has been any improvement and it's been over a week now. He is taking food from us by tweezers and is happy to eat and he poops daily when we're not around so he seems otherwise ok, just still very scared of us.

Also, is there a good time of day to try to handle him? Perhaps at the end of the day when he's sleepy? or will that make things worse?

Many thanks :-)

[Edward]

[Fatal_S]

The ideal time to handle them is when they are out and about, looking around, seemingly curious about their world. Approach, offer a hand, and wait to see what the skink does. Ideally the skink is a bit fearful, but more curious, and comes to check out the hand. The skink then crawls onto the hand or is gently picked up, and off they go for happy explore times. This is the ideal situation.

Obviously, if the skink never seems to be curious about the world, or is completely wacko any time you approach, the ideal situation doesn't work so well. In this case it is probably best to just get the worst part over with (picking up) and hold the skink so it feels secure until it calms down. If it calms quickly and seems curious - explore time! If it still seems scared, hold it for a few minutes, gently stroke under the chin, then top of the head, and when it's peaceful put it back. Hopefully it's calm enough that it doesn't bolt the instant you put it down.

Picking up a skink is probably the hardest part for new owners. It is scary both for the skink who's thinking it might be eaten, and the person who's afraid of being bitten. But try not to hesitate. Waving your hand over it, trying to find the right time to grab, just scares the reptile more and more. Practice picking up quickly and safely on your beardie even. I like to pick up the back legs first, then put my hand under the front legs. Remember they do not like to fly - try to make it feel as secure as possible.

I believe it is best to start with shorter handling periods and work your way up to longer ones. I want my skinks to want to come out (most will 'beg' at the front of their tanks when they see me) so I try to make sure outings are generally fun for the skink. The two things most skinks love most? Exploring and treats. Most skinks relish time to check out skink-proofed areas (supervised of course). And a piece of yummy meat can go a long way to winning over a new friend. If the skink seems very shy/scared, it may prefer to be in a safe, dark area where it can peek out to watch the world, snatch a treat, and eventually maybe explore the area.