Blue tongue skinks originate throughout much of New Guinea and Australia. As pets, they rank high on the list as a result of their gentile demeanour, appearance, and ease of care. They can grow up to 14-18 inches depending on species and sex..

An average life span of a blue-tongue skink is around 20 years

Housing
Vivariums:
Ideally the rule for blue tongue’s is the more space the better, although you wont need as much space for a juvenile’s than you do an adult but you will need to upgrade at some point as they grow quite quickly within the 1^st 18months or so. Skinks love to borough, so a deep layer of substrate should be used. Although they are not natural climbers a few thick branches or bark should be placed in the vivarium to climb on and under. 

Temperature:
Skinks seem to like it best at 100-110f under the spotlight, with a gradient of 80-90f in the centre and 70-75f at the cool end. It is absolutely vital that you have a gradient, if you do not have somewhere for your animal to cool down it will eventually die of heat exhaustion, due to not be able to regulate their own body temperature. Night temperature can be dropped a maximum of half what it is in the day. Thermometers at each end of the Vivarium can be placed to monitor the temperature range. The overall temperature can be controlled by a thermostat which will keep the tank at a consent temperature.

Lighting:
All diurnal lizards require  UV light from the sun, in order to produce vitamin d3 which they require to metabolise calcium, therefore a UVB light tube should be provided with a minimum of 5.0UVB and left on for around 12 hours a day. It should be replaced yearly even if the bulb itself still works.

Cleaning:
Remove faeces and uneaten food daily. Food and water bowls should be washed and dried each time fresh is put in. Vivariums should be totally cleaned out every couple of months or so with pet-safe disinfectant.

Feeding And Water
Blue tongues are omnivorous, which means they eat both meat and vegetables/fruit. Provide a varied diet of things such as crickets, locust mealworms and wax worms, with at least twice a week a dish of fruit/ vegetables such as kiwi, grape, carrot and most greens. Also add a vitamin supplement to the food a couple of times a week.

Fresh Water should always be available.

Handling
It is important to handle your skink regularly to help build up a good relationship with him.

When you first get your lizard home, leave him/her to settle in for 24hours before you start trying to handle it.

As with most animals the more you handle them the friendlier they will become.

General Care
Signs of a healthy Blue-Tongue Skink:

•  The skink should be alert, active and not looking lethargic.
• The lizards eyes, nose and mouth should be clean and discharge free.
• Check that they Have been eating and drinking normally.
• Another good indication of a healthy skink is its tail,If the tail has fat stores then the lizard is probably healthy. If the lizard’s tail is bony and has no fat stores, they probably are malnourished or even dehydrated.

Some reptiles carry a form of salmonella, but is usually contacted by ingestion. Good hygiene and washing your hands after handling or cleaning out your lizard should be good enough to prevent any risk of infection. 

Shopping List

• Vivarium
• Heat Bulb/heat mat
• UVB bulb and starter unit
• Thermometers x2
• Food and water bowL
• Thermostat
• Substrate
• Pet-Safe Disinfectant
• Vitamin supplement
• Environmental enrichment