Fire Skink bedding

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illuminis

Hatchling Member
I recently got a fire skink and I think "he's" doing good. He's out and about some days but mostly he hides in the bedding. Which is where my problem lies. Because we're getting into the summer months and the humidity inside is not high and with a basking light and uvb drying the bedding a lot (i'm misting 2-4 xday). I was wondering if there is another type of bedding or mixture that would hold the humidity a little better. At the moment I'm using straight ECO-EARTH. I was looking at http://www.petsmart.com/reptile/sub...al-mix-reptile-bedding-24574.html?cgid=500120 but wasn't sure if that would be good or if I should find jungle earth which I was told doesn't dry fast.
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AHBD

BD.org Sicko
Hi there, how deep is your substrate and can you post a few pics of his set up ? I can't really see the depth in that pic, but your little guy looks cute. :) What's his name ? Is that a real plant in there ? All of the products that you mentioned are fine. What I do is pour about a cup of water throughout the tank every other day. You can judge for yourself when it gets too dry and pouring the water in is the best way to keep it from drying out too much. Misting is O.K for the top layer, just once a day will do if you use water like I suggested.

How are you enjoying him > These guys are really cool and very easy to feed....you can use earthworms along with other insects and even a few pieces of scrambled egg. I microwave an egg for a minute [ no oil of course ] You just use a few pieces , not the whole thing.
 

illuminis

Hatchling Member
Original Poster
I haven't tried anything besides crickets and a few supers. I didn't realize the other worms or the eggs until I had read another post you made with someone else. I am using the 40g breeder I had originally bought for my BD but never used because someone gave me a 50g front opening tank.
A majority of the tank is about 2-3 inches deep a little deeper in the back corners where I have the plants (fake, didn't want to take chances). I've been reading and people are saying that I should have it 4-6 deep.

I love watching him WHEN he decides to come out. Every other day or so, mainly if he's hungry. Too afraid to leave crickets in too long. I try to get pictures when he does come out but usually he's hiding under the hide or the leaves so you can't see him too well in them.

almost forgot the pictures....lol
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I had started to turn off the lights so only the uvb was still on.
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
That's a very nice set up + the depth of substrate is fine. :) Just go ahead + pour about a cup of water throughout the tank every 1-2 days, you need to in order for it not to get dry + dusty. I've done that way for all the fireskinks I've owned + it works well.

These guys are SUPER easy to care for. As for crickets, just give them to him when he's out. He will come out when he's hungry so then is when to drop the crickets in. They don't eat large amounts of insects [ although as adults they can eat pretty large insects, 1 nightcrawler or medium/large hornworm will fill them up ] so depending on his size, 4-5 appropriate sized crickets at a time will do. If my guy has a huge meal he may skip a day + sometimes 2 days , so I know they don't eat lots of bugs like beardies do. They don't need much because they don't expend much energy + you don't want a fat lizard.
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
Sure, maybe just a small one so it's easier to handle and not accidentally dump too much water in.
 

illuminis

Hatchling Member
Original Poster
We ended up getting the watering can and the jungle bedding. I blocked a few of the holes so it's more like rain and the floor humidity is staying a lot nicer (about 62-68%)
I actually had another question. Is there a way to tell if its a male or female with only having one? Not having another to compare it to. Or would it have to be vet checked for that.
I actually got it at a pet store, discounted, because they had it so long.
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
Sounds like a good watering system. :) As for sexing, it really is difficult. Some say the males have a wider head [ as with many lizards ] but that doesn't help if you have nothing to compare it to. I had a pair about 23 yrs. ago that I got as adults, I never saw them mate but I found eggs in the tank which I incubated + hatched. Those babies are some of the cutest things EVER, with bright blue tails. But even then I didn't know which one from my adult pair was female. If your vet can safely check , it's up to you. I feel squeamish about the thought of having it done with a probe, but I guess some vets know how. I'd want to be in the room to make sure they know what they're doing. The vet may have never even seen a fireskink.
 
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