First BTS

[rico]

I just brought home my first blue tongue skink. He's getting used to his new tank. I seem to be having a little trouble with humidity. First it was way too high and I was having a hard time getting it down. I mixed in some kiln dried aspen chips, aired it out, etc. Today the humidity was too low, so I had to mist the tank. I'll get it figured out. Right now I'll just have to keep a close eye on it. He doesn't seem as nervous as I was afraid he'd be. He went into his hiding area for a few minutes. Now he already has his head and up to his shoulders out. He already seems very curious. Anyway, here are some pics to show him off. By the way, the spot on his face is just from the dirt.

[Edward]

Congratulations!
Looks like a nice Irian Jaya. Do you know how old he is?

[rico]

Thanks. He's right around a year and pretty good size. Given that he just came home today, I wasn't going to stress him out further just to get a length on him, but he's decent sized.

[Susann]

Awesome looking IJ. Congrats!

[splashy07]

Nice one! Congratulations!! Enjoy your new friend!

[rico]

Thanks everyone. His name is Akron. It's a short "a" like apple and the"o" sounds like ah, as in obstacle. It's easy to mispronounce, so I thought I'd clear it. I really wanted a northern and even asked the people in the shop if they could order me one. They said no problem. I held this guy and fell in love on the spot and didn't care that he wasn't a northern. I told them not to worry about it and I put the money down on him immediately. I'm sure we'll do very well together.

[rico]

It's not obvious I'm a first time BTS owner or anything. LOL I'm so excited, the day after I brought him home Akron actually ate out of my hand. He's so wonderful and yes, affectionate. I had him wandering around on the bed. As soon as he was done checking things out, he came over to my arm and fell asleep with his head on part of it. He huffs when anyone else handles him and has even left them to come to me. I'm surprised at how quickly he's adjusted to his new home. He's been eating well and is not always hiding. He's enjoyed his basking platform and slunk through his water this morning. We are going to be very close friends.

[Susann]

It's awesome to hear of new keepers that get off to a good start!

[rico]

Yeah, LOL, he's the wallpaper on my phone now too. We had a photo session this morning and some of the pics came out beautiful, at least for phone photos. I might have to upload them. If they're good enough, I know I'll have an avatar picture. I measured him yesterday too. It was impossible to get an exact length because it's not like he was straight out. He's at least 20" and a year old. Will he grow any further? The guy at the pet store said he may grow another inch or two.

[splashy07]

Awwww, so nice to hear how much you love your new pet! I know the feeling, I experience it every time I get a new one. I am still in the 'pinch me so I know it's real' stage with my recently acquired Eastern. Wishing you and your new found friend all the best.

[Susann]

He may very well grow some more, hard to say how much though --it all depends on how he was fed and kept and how healthy he was during his first year... IJ's are the shorter of the non-Aussie species; I think it's pretty rare to have one much more than ~23 inches.

[Dakota]

Ahhh, I remember bringing my first skink home. I think I was 11 or 12. I felt like I was the luckiest kid in the world. At the time, I thought no one owned them. Then I found the forum a few years later... boy was I wrong! Good luck with you new IJ. Sounds like he found a great home.

[Gao]

HE SO BIG!

[rico]

Rather blurry, but had to post one of him in the laundry.