Virgin birth - help needed!

[Saxon_Aus]

so my male blue tongue who I got before Christmas has just given birth to 2 cute-as babies! apart from calling the vatican to report a miracle, has anyone got any advice on how to handle/feed and care for baby eastern blue tongues?

Also they seem to be crawling with mites, which I'm positive the adult didn't have before (or maybe I just didn't see them?) what's the best way to deal with mites?
cheers

 

[MesseNoire]

Well..... Definitely not a male and certainly not a virgin. She would have been housed with another male before you got her.
Feed the babies like you would an adult but more frequently and house them independently away from your adult.
Mites can be treated with various sprays/ chemicals, there's a great thread on here I will see if I can find it.

 

[reptalica]

There is a product called Top of Descent (???) or similar but others more in the know may be able to offer up a better product.

 

[Saxon_Aus]

thanks for the responses - I went to my local herp shop and picked up a mite spray. I've treated everyone, gutted the enclosure (including hand made feature wall ) and sprayed everything. I'd already separated the bubs so hopefully they'll start eating.

- - - Updated - - -

there's now 6 babies instead of 2!

 

[Bushman]

Congrats.

Re: husbandry, they are easy to care for. Provide food, water and warmth.
They are omnivorous, so eat a wide range of foods that are readily available. They love various fruits. If mixed with cat food (Whiskas Jellymeat is a good choice) they will also generally eat vegies, like peas, carrot and corn (available frozen in supermarkets).
Juveniles are also partly insectivorous, so try medium sized crickets and/or woodies.

Do some research online or buy some books and you will find heaps of information on how to care for blue-tongues.

Make sure that you get rid of the mites, because if left untreated they will die.

 

[Saxon_Aus]

Congrats.

Re: husbandry, they are easy to care for. Provide food, water and warmth.
They are omnivorous, so eat a wide range of foods that are readily available. They love various fruits. If mixed with cat food (Whiskas Jellymeat is a good choice) they will also generally eat vegies, like peas, carrot and corn (available frozen in supermarkets).
Juveniles are also partly insectivorous, so try medium sized crickets and/or woodies.

Do some research online or buy some books and you will find heaps of information on how to care for blue-tongues.

Make sure that you get rid of the mites, because if left untreated they will die.

thanks for that - do they start eating straight away? or should I expect them to work into it over time?

 

[RoryBreaker]

thanks for that - do they start eating straight away? or should I expect them to work into it over time?

They'll start to pick at food within 24-48hrs post birth. Their real appetitie won't arrive until after the first slough, 10-15 days post birth. Turn the dog/cat food into a slurry with calcium added. Give the veges a miss until they are powering along. They require a high % of protein when young, the veges will slow them up (but that's just my opinion). FEED DAILY. Offer a shallow water bowl, eg like a jar lid. A newspaper substrate will show you how they are doing, eg. Bowel motions etc..
Provide plenty of hides, dark coloured upturned saucers with an entry cut into the side work a treat, also easy to wash (they will get filthy).
Heating can be provided via a reflector globe, an under floor heat mat/tape. All depends on what sort of enclosure you intend to use.
I like 45lt plastic tubs with a mesh lid. A 12volt 35watt dichroic light does the job for me here in SEQld, may require 50watts in the southern states. Make sure the globes are of the 60degrees of spread, the 30degree ones will melt plastic. I provide heat only during the daylight hours , but when we get closer to winter I give youngsters heat longer into the night.

After a few sloughs, change the substrate over to sugar cane mulch or similar. Nice and deep, 6inches plus. It will help in reducing the chances of fighting if they are being housed together.

Infrequent feeding of young blueys is the fastest way to sunken backs and MBD.

And internet rules......pics or it didn't happen

 

[kingofnobbys]

Congrats.

Re: husbandry, they are easy to care for. Provide food, water and warmth.
They are omnivorous, so eat a wide range of foods that are readily available. They love various fruits. If mixed with cat food (Whiskas Jellymeat is a good choice) they will also generally eat vegies, like peas, carrot and corn (available frozen in supermarkets).
Juveniles are also partly insectivorous, so try medium sized crickets and/or woodies.

Do some research online or buy some books and you will find heaps of information on how to care for blue-tongues.

Make sure that you get rid of the mites, because if left untreated they will die.

You might want to chill the crickets in the fridge prior to offering to the baby BTs so they are still twitching and mobile enough to be attractive but not too frisky/jumpy else the baby BTs will have hard time catching them.