Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 3: Providing a good hiding place
• Part 2 of 3: Feeding your skink
• Part 3 of 3: Getting your skink to socialize
• Tips
• Warnings

Skinks are medium-sized reptiles that many like to keep as pets. With proper care, a skink can make an excellent pet. Make sure your skink has a comfortable terrarium with plenty of room to forage and hide. Feed your skink food rich in the nutrients the animal needs to function properly. Be careful when handling your skink. As long as they are treated with respect, skinks can be very social.

To step

Part 1 of 3: Providing a good hiding place

1. Get the right size terrarium for your skink. When it comes to a skink's terrarium, bigger is always better. Skinks need a lot of space to roam so they are healthy and happy. Newly hatched hatchlings can feel comfortable in a 40 to 75 liter terrarium. If you have a larger skink, make sure the terrarium is at least 110 to 150 liters. If you have the space or money for a larger terrarium, it is always nice for a skink to have extra room to roam.
2. Fill the terrarium with substrate. Substrate is the substance used to fill the bottom of a terrarium. It is important to use a substrate that is comfortable for your skink. At least 6 inches (15 cm) of high-quality substrate is required for your skink.
   • A mixture of soil, sand, and wood chips is usually a good choice. If you have a nearby pet store that sells reptiles, you may be able to find a special skink substrate there.
   • Make sure the substrate stays moist. The substrate should not be soaking wet, but it should contain some moisture. Skinks need a slightly moist environment.
3. Keep the right temperature in the terrarium. Skinks need both a warm and a cool side in their terrarium. Reptiles keep their bodies warm and cold by switching between two different environments.
   • One part of the terrarium should be slightly above room temperature. A few UV lights on the cooler side should keep the terrarium warm enough. Make sure the terrarium is not located anywhere in your house where it gets very cold or very hot at certain times of the day.
   • Another part should be around 32 ° C. You can purchase an under-terrarium heating device, which you can purchase at a pet store. You can also use a heating lamp for the top of the terrarium. If you use both, turn the heating light off at night.
4. Provide adequate humidity. The terrarium does not need to be extremely moist, nor does it need to be misted regularly like other reptile terrariums. The moist substrate must be able to keep the terrarium moist, but you should also give your skink a water bowl. Buy a shallow water bowl for the terrarium that is large enough for your skink to lie in it.
5. Give your skink plenty of room to dig and hide. Skinks get bored or anxious if they don't have hiding places in their terrarium. Stop by the pet store and get things like shelters and other enclosures. Place these in the terrarium so that your skink has shelter when it wants privacy.
   • Make sure the substrate is 15 cm deep. This gives your skink a chance to hide whenever it wants.

Part 2 of 3: Feeding your skink

1. Feed your skink on insects. Skinks mainly eat insects. You can buy insects from a pet store. If there isn't a pet store nearby that focuses on reptiles, see if you can buy insects online.
   • Insects and crickets should be the main part of your skink's diet. Kingworms and mealworms are suitable for occasional feeding to your skink.
   • Make sure the prey is alive. Skinks don't eat insects they don't have to stalk.
2. Supplement your skink's diet with fruits and vegetables. In addition to eating insects, skinks love a variety of fruits and vegetables. This allows you to supplement your skink's diet by adding some extra nutrients.
   • Brussels sprouts, carrots, vegetables, and peas are good vegetables to give to your skink.
   • Fruits that skinks like are blueberries, mangoes, raspberries, papayas, melons, strawberries and figs.
3. Avoid certain products. Always read the nutritional information before feeding your skink. Skinks should not be fed food that has been treated with pesticides. Also, don't feed your skink any food with artificial coloring. Food that contains byproducts, such as chicken, meat and bone meal, should not be fed to a skink.
4. Replace the water in your skinks every day. Skinks tend to put a lot of sand and dirt in their water. You should have a water bowl in your skink's terrarium that will not tip over easily. Because it often gets dirty, you have to change the water in this container every day.

Part 3 of 3: Getting your skink to socialize

1. In general, don't give a skink any cage mates. Skinks don't usually do well with a cage mate. Stick to one skink per terrarium. Skinks are quite territorial.When you introduce a cage mate, one or both skinks may end up with bite wounds or missing limbs.
2. Only bring conspecifics into the terrarium if they are the same size. If you've set your sights on a second skink, be extremely careful. Make sure the mate is the same size as your current skink. Skinks attack smaller skinks.
   • If the skinks start to fight, then you have to accept keeping them in separate terrariums.
   • Fire skinks are often very territorial, so if you have one, it is not a good idea to include a cage mate.
3. Handle your skink with care. Skinks can learn to be social, but this requires proper handling. When you handle your skink, make sure to treat it with respect. Incorrect handling can cause your skink to bite and become aggressive.
   • Never pick up a skink when it is not expecting it, especially when it is sleeping. Make sure the skink knows you are there before you try to pet or pick it up.
   • Make sure to support a skink's body weight when you hold it.
   • Don't turn a skink upside down. This causes discomfort.
   • Do not make abrupt movements when handling a skink.
4. Make sure the kids know how to handle a skink safely. Talk to the kids about proper rules for handling a skink. Make sure they understand that they must handle the skinks with care and not do anything that might frighten them. Avoid allowing very young children to interact with a skink, as they may not understand how to control themselves around an animal.

Tips

• Don't worry if you can't find your skink as they are hiding underground.
• If the skinks and lizards are fighting, it is probably a good idea to move them to separate enclosures.
• Do not buy a skink from a regular pet store. Instead, find local breeders or go to reptile fairs.
• Make sure to do further research on the type of skink you want. There are many different types of skinks, and some have different grooming needs.

Warnings

• The skink is sometimes very protective of itself and its territory. If he feels threatened or if you pick him up the wrong way, he will bite. If he does bite you, wash your hands immediately.