Blue Tongue Skink Shopping List

[Argentra]

Great to hear you want to join the ranks of BTS owners. They're the best lizards ever.

Caging - As big as you can get! I made the cage for my big guy at 42x22x16 (made to fit a certain space in an old apt.) and I wish I had a larger one. I would say a minimum of 48L, 24w, and 18h. These guys are mostly burrowers, yes, but they do love to 'rear up'. For a little one, you can start them in a basic 20g long tank and move them into the adult cage once they get older.

Light/Heat - You will need a good basking bulb to get their basking rock up to 95-100. That is the most important spot in the cage heat wise. You can add a UVA/UVB bulb, especially if they don't get too much natural sun time, but it's not as important as a properly regulated basking spot. And always make sure the lamps are OUTside the cage!

Basking rock - It's important to have a decently flat, heat absorbing surface they can climb onto to bask - such as a rock or tile. I use natural slate tile for mine and it's great. Easy to clean as well.
Whatever you use, it will need to be raised up so it's close enough to the basking lamp to get the temps right.

Bedding - These guys burrow, so make sure you give them at least half the cage with bedding just a bit deeper than the thickness of their body.
Also, because they burrow, make sure that any furniture in the cage won't hurt them if it gets knocked over.

Water - A nice wide dish is the thing here. I use a pyrex pie dish for my fella and it works nicely. Too heavy and wide for him to tip over when he climbs through it.

Hiding spots - Skinks like a nice spot to chill out and hide now and then. Not as much as snakes...but still. You want to give them something they can get under totally.

This is my cage for a visual. Don't mind the cat...she was always fascinated with my big guy.



That's all I can think of at the moment. For a more complete supply list, I would go to Bluetongueskinks.net as that is the best site for BTS care ever.