Swallowed a piece of aspen

[tayeleaf]

Hi, first post.

I was feeding a piece of banana as a treat to my bluey today, and after he got it in his mouth he pressed it against the aspen shavings I used for substrate. I saw a piece of aspen cling to the banana and rushed to pull it off, but he got it down before I could get to him. It was more of a long, thin piece. Should I immediately be terrified of impaction--or the aspen puncturing his digestinal tract because it looked pointed!--and contact a vet ASAP tomorrow? I feed on a dish, but I gave him the banana by hand. I think I'll either take him out of the tank before I do that again, or put it on a dish again first!

My skink is only three months old so I am especially worried. Is there anything I can do tonight? He just ate it 45 minutes ago.

[Dakota]

If it was just a little bit of it- don't be worried.

Blue-Tongued Skinks originate from the wild, correct? This means every once in a while, they will swallow some dirt/chips.. that is just what happens. If they died from eating a piece of Aspen, they would probably be extinct by now. That is just how I look at it.

You know what they say- they have stomachs of steel!

[donkeybuff]

I would advise you to feed banana or egg to loosen the stool, but it looks like you already did that

[tayeleaf]

Just as a treat, but I'll mix in a bit of egg with his normal meal tomorrow. Maybe give him a lukewarm water bath. I know that there's not much you can do once they've swallowed something, but I'm a VERY new owner and this guy is my baby so I just needed the reassurance. I was sooo happy to have him come up to my hand for a bit of banana...and then I just about had a heart attack when I saw the aspen clinging to it!

There are several reptile vets in the area, so I'll take him to one if he's excessively lethargic, not eating for a while, or not pooping. I was really worried about the aspen possibly piercing his digestive tract, but if they're that resilient I think I can rest relatively easy tonight. Nothing I can really do about it until he shows symptoms or passes the aspen anyway. Thank you both.

[Richard.C]

dont over panic,it should pass through normally,its when they swallow copius amounts of certain substrates that they become at risk of blockage

[critterguy]

It is best to feed out of a tray of some sort to keep this from being a regular thing. Make sure he's got a good temp gradient to insure quick passage.

I put down a couple sheets of paper to feed sticky food off of.

[Kurt]

My blueys used to give me these type of scares- they are just really messy eaters and the food ends up picking up substrate sometimes. I''ve since made the switch to repti carpet.

[Dakota]

If you go with no substrate, be sure to add a TON of hides.. them burrowing is the ultimate hide of all, IMO.

[Kurt]

If you go with no substrate, be sure to add a TON of hides.. them burrowing is the ultimate hide of all, IMO.

I agree, but most substrates I've tried my skinks won't bury in (coco bark, repti bark, etc...). My skinks buried in the moss and aspen, but those were the substrates that always got into the food. Anyhow, having a handful of hiding spots is definitely important especially if using repti carpet. I have half logs, plastic snake hides, caves, plastic foliage, cork flats, a Buddha cave and driftwood.

[Scincoides]

Your set ups look great Kurt. So do the skinks in them. That Merauke is fantastic

[Richard.C]

is a nice looking merauke,i use carpet with a few of mine as well,some even get under the carpet and use it as a hide,they like the feeling of tight low hides,hence why they burrow into substrates,most hides dont offer that tight feeling they are after

set ups look great kurt,i like your hides

[bluetonguerocks]

I guess many skinks would love to have a substrate to burrow in but repti carpet looks neater tho

[Toria Dawn]

I agree that looks sooo great. But mine just loves burrowing in aspen. I started taking him out of the tank to feed. Put the food together on a cutting board and he gobbles it down, then back in the tank to bask.

[Dakota]

Maxx is an Aspen freak. He much prefers to burrow than to go under ANY hide I put in with him.

[Kurt]

I will agree, my skinks seemed to like aspen the most. And I do feel bad about not using it. But I'm more comfortable knowing I'm not risking impaction. It is also much easier to keep clean which I think they appreciate.

[donkeybuff]

After seeing how much my Northern seems to like aspen and how much easier it is for me, I may try it for my Indo. I'm just worried about the humidity being too low.

[Toria Dawn]

I just noticed tonight that megand91 (I think was the username) has a big Tupperware container of aspen in the enclosure so he skink can go in and burrow when it wants. But it also keeps the aspen more contained. Easier to clean. You could also have a different area in the tank wherein which you feed. If a tank is big enough for that, I think it's a great idea!!

http://s743.photobucket.com/user/megand ... e.jpg.html