Id this species? Plus questions on blue tongue skink

[Gabe Rienzo]

Ok so the other day I was surfing the net and came.across this picture of 4 or 5 "lizards" they were dark sandy brown and black lips, and the scales were kind of like layed down horns all over the body. Its body mass resembles that of a medium sized skink. I emailed her and she blatenly refused to answer my question. It was not a horned lizard or a dragon bearded.

This lady I buy my rats from offered me her blue tongued skink for $80, although iv never seen this "morph" before... Its a deep blue and grey and tame as can be, anyway can anyone give me advice on this species, its been on my wanted list but I never buy an animal untill I have done hrs of research and asked every question i can possibly think of along with having the closest thing to a prefect enclosure as u can get.
oh and yay me on 100 posts
Thanks in advance
Gabe

[Chkadii]

Could you show us the picture of either of the lizards you're asking about? I'm afraid I can't do much good with the spiny lizard ID, but I can help a bit with the skink. I'm not sure how experienced you are with them so I'll just throw the basics down; I don't mean to insult your intelligence!

Blue-tongue skinks are awesome for beginners and advanced alike. They do need a bigger cage (preferably ~50-60 gal to be comfy, and the tank should be flatter rather than tall; they're not very good climbers) and UVB lighting, which adds up to a decent start-up fee. The $80 skink might need $450 in husbandry supplies, depending on what's included in the deal you'd work out with the seller. $80 is, however, a good price for a typical type of BTS (Northern or Irian Jaya). It's hard to say what species she has based on your description, because colors and patterns vary a good degree. It could also be a "mutt" of locales.
Maintenance-wise, BTS need to be fed more often than snakes (though people's feeding schedules vary). They eat fruits, veggies, and protein. We buy most of our skinks' food at the grocery store. Each individual has preferences, so try different things.
BTS have great personalities in my experience; though it sounds like you've already seen that first-hand. Once they get a little older, they will sit on the couch with you while you watch TV. They can live around 20 years.
The two BTS's we have are the favorites of our lizards, and I highly recommend them.

http://bluetongueskinks.net/ is a great resource for caresheets.

http://www.boneclones.com/images/ctom-02-lg.jpg

Above is a shingleback skink; could that be the textured looking one?


And this is one of my two! He's an Irian Jaya named Tiberius.

If you do decide to go for a BTS, you'd better post some pics!

[Gabe Rienzo]

Could you show us the picture of either of the lizards you're asking about? I'm afraid I can't do much good with the spiny lizard ID, but I can help a bit with the skink. I'm not sure how experienced you are with them so I'll just throw the basics down; I don't mean to insult your intelligence!

Blue-tongue skinks are awesome for beginners and advanced alike. They do need a bigger cage (preferably ~50-60 gal to be comfy, and the tank should be flatter rather than tall; they're not very good climbers) and UVB lighting, which adds up to a decent start-up fee. The $80 skink might need $450 in husbandry supplies, depending on what's included in the deal you'd work out with the seller. $80 is, however, a good price for a typical type of BTS (Northern or Irian Jaya). It's hard to say what species she has based on your description, because colors and patterns vary a good degree. It could also be a "mutt" of locales.
Maintenance-wise, BTS need to be fed more often than snakes (though people's feeding schedules vary). They eat fruits, veggies, and protein. We buy most of our skinks' food at the grocery store. Each individual has preferences, so try different things.
BTS have great personalities in my experience; though it sounds like you've already seen that first-hand. Once they get a little older, they will sit on the couch with you while you watch TV. They can live around 20 years.
The two BTS's we have are the favorites of our lizards, and I highly recommend them.

http://bluetongueskinks.net/ is a great resource for caresheets.

http://www.boneclones.com/images/ctom-02-lg.jpg
Above is a shingleback skink; could that be the textured looking one?


And this is one of my two! He's an Irian Jaya named Tiberius.

If you do decide to go for a BTS, you'd better post some pics!

great info! It never hurts to read the same thing twice, if anything its goos :p im trying to get in touch with the.seller, seems she dropped off the earth. But I will deffinetly post pics, also gives me an excuse to build another viv!

[Gabe Rienzo]

ok well i picked him up today!!! $80 for croc (thats what she named him) the tank and 1 of the light fixtures, i almost feel like i rescued him cause she kept him on newspaper with just a daytime bulb and a water bowl in a 65 degree home... the cage is 36x12x18" i mounted flexwatt to 1/3 of the bottom and have that hooked upto my ranco thermo, i also had to buy a UVB bulb because she did not own 1 >.< go figure... everything is hooked up and is heating up. i have my uvb and my red heat bulb hooked upto a 12/12hr cycle allowing nighttime drop but the flexwatt will always be on. i also added some bushes and gave him a nice hide, any suggestions?! oh yeah... feeding comes tomorrow. and without further adue.




he decided to thank me by latching onto my finger and peeing on me... yay.


i cant wait to get him a bigger cage. it looks so small for him

anyway thanks!

[John1982]

Looks like a northern, nice pickup!

- - - Updated - - -

As to the mystery ID, if you could link us the picture it'd be loads easier but these are my two guesses based on the raised scales description.

http://www.google.com/search?q=croco...iw=946&bih=652

http://www.google.com/#hl=en&sclient...iw=946&bih=652

[Gabe Rienzo]

Looks like a northern, nice pickup!

- - - Updated - - -

As to the mystery ID, if you could link us the picture it'd be loads easier but these are my two guesses based on the raised scales description.

http://www.google.com/search?q=croco...iw=946&bih=652

http://www.google.com/#hl=en&sclient...iw=946&bih=652

aha!!! its an armadillo lizard!!!!! thank u! haha mystery solved!

and thank u

[Chkadii]

Congrats on both your new skink and getting the answer to your mystery lizard!

How old is Croc? He doesn't look fully grown if its him I see on top of the hide in the tank, but it's hard to tell without a reference. They get pretty big, especially if he's a Northern!
If he has been kept at 65 degrees the whole time you've interacted with him, he might be just a little bit more feisty now that he's warming up. Nothing you won't be able to handle though! Give him a day or two to settle and then start socializing him slowly over time. I used to bribe Tiberius with scrambled egg to eat out of my hand.
Congratulations again!

[Gabe Rienzo]

He is about a year old. He is ontop of a 6 quart sterallite tub... Either that or a 15qt. Hes proll 16-20" long. And thanks

[Gabe Rienzo]

I just picked up a 75 gallon tank with stand for $90. Alot cheaper than I would have spent if I built one. Hes 1 fat and happy skink now. Just doubled his floor space.

[Norsejeff]

Great lookin animal! It's always good to hear someone taking a herp and giving it a chance to thrive, rather than just survive! Good job