Blue Tongue Skink Feeding Suggestions

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Currently I am feeding my blue tongue skink a mixture of wet dog food and raw fruits and veggies since her previous owner had her on raw turkey which I heard can lead to a fatty liver. I wanted to try reptilinks but they are super expensive for little quantity. Is she okay to stay on grain free etc dog food or should she be on something else
 

VenusAndSaturn

Sub-Adult Member
This is what I personally feed my own bts,

Insects - Dubia roaches, turkish/red runner roaches, crickets, superworms, mealworms, black soldier fly larvae, hornworms.
Greens - Endive, collard greens, mustard greens, turnip greens, and kale.
Fruit - Blackberries, strawberries, banana, mango, red raspberries, kiwi and blueberries.
Pre-made food - Repashy omnivore mix bluey buffet, and then VERY, VERY rarely ever dog food or cat food (never dry, always wet).
Dog food and cat food really isn't even good for dogs or cats so I would barely trust it with a reptile, and the times I do offer this is if she needs her weight up or as a treat.


Occasionally I also offer a mixture of ground rabbit, ground pheasant, ground sardines, ground salmon, ground chicken feet, a ground venison beef bone blend, ground tripe with spleen, and ground turkey (all have organs and bones in them), also chicken gizzards and hearts. On the rare occasion, I may also offer some chicken liver with some blood mixed in.

A rough estimate of the percentages of her diet.
5% raw meat, 20% Bluey buffet, 20% insects, 1% wet cat/dog food, 5% fruit, 49% greens.


It should be noted that this is just what I do personally and I am not an expert by any means.
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
NO DOG FOOD or CAT FOOD for your BTS , NEVER EVER....

Follow this and you will have a healthy BTS : https://www.completecritter.com/blue-tongue-skink.html

I give my skinks some live insects each day ….
BTS (adults)
>>> large gut loaded and dusted crickets = staple
>>> large silkworms (usually 2 each) = staple
>>> superworms occasionally
>>> live cooking snails (LARGE) as treats (EXPENSIVE)
>>> BSFL (my skinks are not keen on them but will eat them if I give by hand)

Add
>>> occasionally boiled lean chicken mince
>>> occasionally softened RepCal adult bearded dragon pellets
>>> occasionally Vetafarm lizard pellets (softened)
>>> occasionally boiled egg , they also love raw chichen eggs

Add same veg and greens as I give my beardies.

Add occasionally I'll share berries.

I think Repashi GrubPie, VeggieBurger and Skink Omnivore mix will be fine as a supplement.
 

Babybeardie3

Member
Original Poster
So they are okay to have raw meat in small portions? The only reason I use wet dog food is because of a blue tongue food chart here https://bluetongueskinks.net/foodchart.html
I’ve tried bluely buffet (in fact I have a thing of it in my reptile room) but she’s wary to eat it on its own so I just mix the powder into the dog food

Also would snails be a good option (canned ones)
and she also have a tendency to refuse live food (she either ignores it completely or they die in her cage because she doesn’t eat them) And she will not eat cooked meat (at least not ground turkey) but I’ll try chicken I guess. She is extremely picky. Any way I can change this?

And I did some looking in on a reptilinks website and I found that they sell about 74g which is about 2.6oz for 90 something dollars plus shipping ($19) which totals out at about 110ish. I just feel like I’m spending a ton of money on very little food. Let me know if I’m wrong.

Thank you for the previous advice and I appreciated any future guidance!
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Babybeardie3":opf692k8 said:
So they are okay to have raw meat in small portions? The only reason I use wet dog food is because of a blue tongue food chart here https://bluetongueskinks.net/foodchart.html
I’ve tried bluely buffet (in fact I have a thing of it in my reptile room) but she’s wary to eat it on its own so I just mix the powder into the dog food

<<<< dog food has been given to BTs and other lizards for a long time , this doesn't mean the product is appropriate or even healthy in the long term for them to eat , it's mostly used because it's cheap ,easy to get , many skink keepers also have dogs (so convenient for them) , and it's a tradition established mostly overseas (outside Australia) by keepers and breeders who were told by someone else ( so much so it became standard husbandry practice) , and because they no different and there was no information available to the contrary.

I try with all my pet lizards to keep their diet close as I can to the mix of proteins and leafy stuff they are likely to encounter and utilize in the wild , and so I think the chart you refer to has some errors (I've pointed this out at that board too) , and I've been referring people to the Pyramid above for BTs.
This is reinforced by books I have and scientific (herpetological/zoological) studies of the contents of wild skinks stomachs.

Also would snails be a good option (canned ones)
<<<< good luck coaxing a skink to eat them …. I buy food grade snails (punnets of 12) from http://www.snails.com.au/ about 100km away who I found who cultivates "organically" special snails for the restraunts , he sells them live to me ,I just email him and he pops them in the express post , he also sells them as bulk orders but frozen.

I know skink breeders and keepers who collect garden snails and use these after gutloading and purging them for a couple of weeks (ensures no nasties or toxins) …. but I know the jerk next door uses poisons on his lawn and "garden" and I know snails move about and will much on dog poo (and pick up parasites that way including some nasty ones, and he has a lots of dogs which poo everywhere in his front and back yards) so I don't / wont risk it.

and she also have a tendency to refuse live food (she either ignores it completely or they die in her cage because she doesn’t eat them) And she will not eat cooked meat (at least not ground turkey) but I’ll try chicken I guess. She is extremely picky. Any way I can change this?

Try handfeeding some of the chosen live insects so she learns these are food and develops a taste for them , she's probably never had insects given to her even as a baby if she's only had veg and dog or cat food until now.
I find worms like superworms in a dish , or mealworms , or large white BSFL , or silkworms are usually winners with lizards.


And I did some looking in on a reptilinks website and I found that they sell about 74g which is about 2.6oz for 90 something dollars plus shipping ($19) which totals out at about 110ish. I just feel like I’m spending a ton of money on very little food. Let me know if I’m wrong.

Thank you for the previous advice and I appreciated any future guidance!

I spoil my pet skinks and dragons (and the resident wild ones too) , and spare no expense to ensure they get the best live food and best of everything.
 

Babybeardie3

Member
Original Poster
I wish I had the freedom to spend my money on whatever I want. I have the money to spare but the thing is I have a super strict mom who wants me to only put my money towards my car insurance an nothing else. So I have to find a cost effective plan that she is willing to compromise on. That’s why she is against the whole reptilinks thing which I personally think would be a good choice for food (correct me if I’m wrong) thank you again for your help.

*Side note: I live in America and where I live they don’t necessarily have snails readily available which is why I asked about the canned reptile ones
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Babybeardie3":3eq6g9uh said:
I wish I had the freedom to spend my money on whatever I want. I have the money to spare but the thing is I have a super strict mom who wants me to only put my money towards my car insurance an nothing else. So I have to find a cost effective plan that she is willing to compromise on. That’s why she is against the whole reptilinks thing which I personally think would be a good choice for food (correct me if I’m wrong) thank you again for your help.

<<< I had to look up Reptilinks products ---
https://reptilinks.com/collections/cased-whole-prey-links-ground-prey/products/50-50-omnivore-blend-for-bearded-dragons-blue-tongued-skinks
sorry but they are TOTALLY inadequate as a staple food for ANY LIZARD. The stuff is made using rabbit meat …. they do not give details about the nutritional content ….wonder why ?
Rabbit meat is very high in phosphorus , which binds calcium making it unavailable biologically.


*Side note: I live in America and where I live they don’t necessarily have snails readily available which is why I asked about the canned reptile ones
 
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