Baby blueys have arrived

Hello everyone,
The baby blue tongue skinks were born yesterday afternoon. She had 17 but some were compressed in utero and had cranial damage, so we had to 'take care of them'. The others are healthy, strong, and VERY active. I have been trying to post pics but they are too big. I have to figure out what I need to do to upload them for you to see.

I will now be taking $20 deposits if you are interested in purchasing one. Checks can be made out to Debbie Mandigo and sent to 1125 Valley Stream Court, Virginia Beach, VA 23464. I will not cash the check until you pick out your baby. This will just guarantee that you will get one once they are ready to go. Of course, this deposit will be forfeited should you decide you no longer wish to purchase one.

If you have any questions or would would like to come by and see them, please feel free to give me a call and let me know. In the meantime, if you would like me to email you pics off site, I am happy to do that.

Thanks for your interest everyone.

Debbie

I'm so excited!!!!

Ok guys... Here are the pics for dsteamn of her new baby blue tongue skinks:

Aww they're cute little buggersl!

Wow, they are huge! Those are very cool! What are they eating in the dish?

Actually, they only look big. They were 3 1/2 - 4 1/2 inches at birth. They are in a 10 gallon tank in these pics. To give you a little perspective, I found 5 in one of the toilet paper rolls this morning.

They are eating a high quality canned dog food mixed with water and vitamins/calcium. The first day they were licking up more water than food, but they are all eating pretty well now. I will start them on mashed peas mixed in by the end of the week and then start adding other foods. I will wait until they have their third shed to sell them to make sure everything is ok, and by that time they will be on a full diet (see the care sheet I posted).

Owners will choose them in order of the received deposits. I have a paypal account, but I have no idea how to receive money from it, only buy things with it (I'm not up on technology stuff). If someone wants to walk me through that process, I'm happy to accept payment that way as well.

If you have any questions, please let me know either here or by PM. I'm happy to share whatever information I can with you.

Thanks for posting the pics for me Larry. You're the greatest.

Oh, also, that's Daddy looking on in the background of the pics. He is quite intrigued at the babies.

Deposit sent on a caramel via PayPal.

nice!

Don wrote:

Deposit sent on a caramel via PayPal.

I want to send my deposit by PayPal if possible, can you tell me who to??? Thanks

dsteamn wrote:

Thanks for posting the pics for me Larry. You're the greatest.

No problem, sorry it took me a while, been a bit busy

dsteamn wrote:

Actually, they only look big. They were 3 1/2 - 4 1/2 inches at birth. They are in a 10 gallon tank in these pics. To give you a little perspective, I found 5 in one of the toilet paper rolls this morning.

They are eating a high quality canned dog food mixed with water and vitamins/calcium. The first day they were licking up more water than food, but they are all eating pretty well now. I will start them on mashed peas mixed in by the end of the week and then start adding other foods. I will wait until they have their third shed to sell them to make sure everything is ok, and by that time they will be on a full diet (see the care sheet I posted).

That's really cool. My perception was way off, I was thinking 10''.

Best and easiest guys to take care of. They look great Debbie. Congrats.
Our thought and prays with you guys.

10 inches would be a huuuge baby!!

Some info from Debbie regarding a couple of questions I had asked her -

I really have no preference as to males or females. The breeder said the females get quite testy when they are pregnant and giving birth but I never found that to be the case. Mine are handled a lot of times so she walked up on my hands and 'asked' to come out right up until two days before she delivered. I was picking up babies as they were being born and she never even looked sideways at me. I will tell you, though, that his skinks were NEVER handled - not even when the cages were being cleaned. He had a couple that were quite nasty, so I understand why he said what he did. Mine are all big babies and actually love to come out and interact with me. If you ever get another one and happen to have two males, you will have a lot of dominance issues and they will try and kill each other, But if you only have one that won't be a problem either.

As far as sexing them, you can't even do that until they are around a year old. You cannot probe them like snakes (although some people will tell you they can - WRONG!!!!). You have to wait until they mature. Males present hemipenes when they go to the bathroom - but not always. They say the only way to PROVE it is a female is through breeding. I don't know if that is completely true, but it worked for me . So its really going to be a crapshoot what you get unless you buy a proven adult.

I use cypress mulch since that is what they can find in the wild in Australia where they are from. You definitely want some kind of bedding as they like to dig down into it on the cooler side of the tank. I keep my tanks at 75-95 degrees. Some people use under tank heaters. I have always used heat lamps. Of course, mine are outside in the summer time so they get what nature gives them. I'll show you my habitat when you come. It is 12x18 feet. They love it.

They are really easy to care for. As long as they have a water bowl large enough to get in and something to dig down into or hide away in, they're pretty happy pets. I use large pyrex dishes like what you make casseroles in. I keep them on the warm side of the tank as they like to bask in them occasionally. It also helps them move their bowels as they tend to poop in water at times (the only thing I hate about them). I use baskets or even flower pots for them to crawl into. They like to burrow down in cloth scraps in those.

Ahhhaaaa...I burst out laughing at the pics of so many skinks...quite hilarious looking...they seem ravenous.

Debbie, I sent a deposit on a caramel. My wife keeps asking when we come get the new baby. Do you have an ETA? She is very impatient.

DaganGecko wrote:

Ahhhaaaa...I burst out laughing at the pics of so many skinks...quite hilarious looking...they seem ravenous.

agreed!, imagine being a cricket or something in there with all those. it would seem like jurassic park!

I am so sorry I have not gotten back to any of you. My partner's brother was in a motorcycle accident on Saturday. He suffered a traumatic injury to his brain and brain stem. They discontinued life support Sunday morning. We are on our way to Wisconsin now. The funeral is on Friday and we should be home Sunday. The babies have been left in the very capable hands of a friend of mine.

A couple of you have asked when the babies will be ready to go. I like to keep them until they have completed their third shed to make sure there are no problems wirh growth, development, toes, and sheds. That also gives me time to get them on a full diet and properly socialize them. They should be ready to go between four to six weeks of age. I know a couple of you are chomping at the bit to get your baby but please be patient. You will be thrilled when you get your little one who will be healthy, happy, and wanting to be handled and played with.

Debbie I'm so sorry to hear about the accident. Your family is in our prayers.

Just some FYI stuff about Mamma and babies in case you're interested:

Mom's original weight - 630g

weight two days before babies born - 728g

weight two days after birth - 450g

total baby birth weight - 278g

Mom's actual total weight lost - 180g

(Needless to say, she feels kind of hollow right now)

Babies were 3 1/2 - 4 3/4 inches long at birth.

Breeding cycle this year was 110 - 127 days. Based on the size and time compared to last year (120 - 130 day cycle), she probably should have kept them a few more days. However, she was carrying three more so she probably just ran out of room.

All babies are doing well and going to the food on their own. They have been started on a mix of minced/mashed carrots, egg plant and spinach mixed in with their dog food. They will be started on beef, chicken and eggs when I get home.

We had quite a few biters and nippers in this batch. A few are still a tiny bit skiddish but not feeling so threatened they feel the need to clamp down on me. (I try to make sure all of that is worked out when they are little. They can pack a bit of a punch as adults. I had a bruise that lasted over two weeks from a rescue I worked with last year.)

We will be home on Sunday night. I will be home most of the week next week. Please feel free to give me a call if you'd like to come over and see the babies. We are quite excited about our little breeding project and would love to show them to you if you are interested. If deposits are made, you can pick out your baby at that time if you like too.

More updates to follow as I receive them from home.

Thanks for the update Debbie. Please travel safely. I've been looking for a day trip for my wife and I on the Harley and may just have to come out to take a look.

Don wrote:

Debbie I'm so sorry to hear about the accident. Your family is in our prayers.

definitely keeping that in mind

We are back from our trip.

I am happy to say that the babies have almost doubled in size since they were born. They are all eating well with the exception of one (the runt). They will probably be doing their second shed in a week. They are not eating:

Protein: egg, chicken liver, boiled chicken, dog food

veggies: egg plant, kale, carrots, beets, collards

fruit: banana, blueberries

They are handling everything very well and have had no runny stools yet, so we are adding new foods daily. If they keep progressing like this, I would feel comfortable with the people on the site who have reptiles and know what they are doing to get their babies July 1. That would make them exactly one month old. I just want to get them on a full diet before they go and tame them up a bit. Most of them were pretty snappy when they were born, but with the exception of three, they have all calmed down pretty well and don't mind being handled now. (They are learning that the hand brings treats).

Thank you for your continued support. Pass the word to your friends that the little ones will be ready soon.

How much were you asking for them? I'm not sure if I missed it.

I thought it was just me too but i havent seen a final price either.

Sorry, I put it up before but not sure which post. The saddle tans are $75.00. The dad in the background of a couple of the pics is saddle tan. The caramels (like the mother - not pictured) are $100.00.