Our water skink is acting strange - very "horny" lately.

[kingofnobbys]

Our water skink is acting strange - very "horny" lately.

I now am not sure if Wriggles if a boy or a girl, been getting what looks like a "hard-on" when ever I have "her" out .

I've not seen what a water skink's penis looks like so I am not entirely sure what I am seeing - and hoping it's not that something is wrong with "her" (she is quite old - about 5-6 years old (I think) and it is "the season") .

I can't recall "her" behaving similarly in the past, "she's" never had another with her since "she" was a baby and I was told Wriggles was a girl when I bought "her" .

I'll try to get a photo for the more experienced keepers to see this intermittent protrusion from the vent looks like. (Wriggles can withdraw it almost as fast as it "develops").

- - - Updated - - -

Checked on Wriggles while I was giving the BTs and beardies their salad/greens and softened pellets , found the "object" on Wriggles' bedding (looks like a plug of yellow dry urates (is still moist in the centre), I'm guessing it's some kind of kidney stone (do skinks get kidney stones ?????) and she's a lot more frisky this afternoon now she's got rid of that (she's been trying to pass it for a few days - that's how long I've noticed it) and it must have been very unconfortable / painful for her to pass.

She seems a lot happier now.

Can't understand how she managed to develop such a big stone in her since she drinks copiously and only gets the best 5star diet (crickets, mealworm pupae and silkworms when I have them, and I never give her whole live mealworm lavae (I take their heads off and squeeze out the soft stuff to let her get them as a treat without the hard exoskeleton to worry about).

Will post a photo of the plug of "urates" she passed, I guess there might be some more to come now the plug is out.

So I guess Wriggles is indeed a girl ..... I had thought overnight that she had developed an unfertilised slug (after meeting - from a distance - the water skink that has coming inside for visits) .

 

[Shotta]

Water skink's are Live bearers (unless you mean developing eggs...). it might be easier to determine what it is with pictures(hopefully).what sized foods do you feed it?

 

[kingofnobbys]

She's been trying to pass it for a few days, and off her food, and was even trying to bite it.


Found it this afternoon on her bedding in her tub, and she's been very much happier and back to old self since offloading it.
No more trying "to pass a brick" and back to her smoogy affectionate self.

Here are two pictures of the lump ( has hardened to be like a stone now , was still soft and moist when I found it , and damp in the centre ).

Never seen anything like it before, she has a 5 Star diet of small - medium crickets, mealworm pupae , mealworm beetles, and softened juvi beardie and lizard pellets and some grated veg (not her fav but she does nibble on some occasionally).



Her apetite was back with a vengeance tonight and I treated her to 8 mealworms (the soft stuff inside them) - that she lapped up like and seemed to really enjoy.

 

[GBWhite]

Lizards do suffer from both kidney and faecal stones and these look to me like they are cloacaliths (stone like formations of urates). They block the cloaca and prevent waist from passing. What you observed prior to their passing was probably a prolapse of the colon and was a result of the lizard's attempt to clear itself of the blockage.

I believe that Cloacoliths are usually a result of overfeeding a combination of high protein food items such as crickets, mealworm pupae and beetles and lizard pellets. If it doesn't like vegies (which is not uncommon for Water Skinks) try it on some fruit or vegie pulp or juices and see how it goes.

Cheers,

George.

 

[cement]

Also watch that it doesn't get too much insect with the hard exoskeleton like beetles, it can impact if they feed on a lot.

 

[kingofnobbys]

Lizards do suffer from both kidney and faecal stones and these look to me like they are cloacaliths (stone like formations of urates). They block the cloaca and prevent waist from passing. What you observed prior to their passing was probably a prolapse of the colon and was a result of the lizard's attempt to clear itself of the blockage.

I believe that Cloacoliths are usually a result of overfeeding a combination of high protein food items such as crickets, mealworm pupae and beetles and lizard pellets. If it doesn't like vegies (which is not uncommon for Water Skinks) try it on some fruit or vegie pulp or juices and see how it goes.

Cheers,

George.

I've started squeezing out the inside of mealworm lavae and pupae and crickets and hand feeding these to her for now , as well as offering her grated carrot and some soft berries (bits of raspberries, blackberries, strawberries and even cutting blueberries up for her (while these are in season and we can get them fresh)) ,so very little insect exoskeleton is going into her.

The softened pellets are off the diet for now.

Have some CalciVet on order, since I wont be able to easily get powdered calcium into her for now. I'll either give it orally using a syringe and plastic catheter tube or by adding it to her drinking water (she loves drinking water and splashing about in her water dish).


Very tedious and fiddly and messy handfeeding the insect inards , but she's loving it and when she's done she lets me know my rubbing her snout and sides of mouth into my shirt and fingers .... seems to enjoy a good nose and side of mouth rub.

Been eating an average of 8 mealworms and a couple of medium crickets or a few mealworm pupae per day and some of the carrot seems to have disappeared each day.

Up to now her staple has been small and medium crickets , mealworms (lavae, pupae and beetles) were given as treats. Also offered softened mixed jivi beardie pellets and vetafarm lizard pellets daily.
I've noticed the local resident wild water skinks are very opportunistic feeders (taking insects mainly, and I've seen them raiding the dog and cat food bowls next door (a very risky thing to do), never seen them grazing on wild greens, but they will take some bits if berry or cooked corn if I offer them some.

I have a bunch of small-medium (mealworm sized) silkworms coming to me Tuesday/Wednesday (ordered for the two baby beardies, but some will go to Wriggles too and I expect she'll really enjoy them (she did when we raising Rex and Puff as hatchlings 3 years ago). No hard exoskeleton on silkworms and they contain near perfect Ca/P and beneficial enzymes.

I'll try her on some of the beardie and bluetongue grated and mashed chopped veg and greens mix , and see how she goes , she's never been keen on her veg and greens , but since she's taking some grated carrot , maybe she'll take other vegs now too.


She's been back to normal for the last few days and seems to be pooing and peeing normally without any straining , I have been keeping a close eye on this when she does a pee or a poo while being be fed or having dad time. (Loves crawling and climbing all over me and the coffee table and the lounge next to me and gets out time every day).

She is getting quite old ( I think she's about 6- 7 years old ) so I guess we need to expect some geriactric skink conditions despite how well I care for her and provide for her needs.

- - - Updated - - -

She just passed another one, this time I helped her by getting her out, placing her on my tummy ontop a piece of scot-towel and gently irrigating the area with water from a 1ml needleless syringe that I had ready for such an occasion , and gently pushing what was hanging off her cloaca , it came away very easily in a few pieces. All up about same volume of material as the first one.

(Yes most nights she wakes up about 1 or 2am as I see her get up to have a drink , and or midnight raid , and she usually does a pee and or poo while up and moves to the cooler end of her 10L bed tub , and often comes out for a snuggle on me before I go to bed . just all part of her routine ).

I'm pretty sure she's been peeing OK, and I've even spotted a few dried little poos on her bedding in the last few days ( a big improvement on last week before the first "stone" was passed).