Hi, I have a 1 year old shingleback that I recently purchased from a reputable breeder a week ago. He has been doing great, however I have noticed some weird symptoms he is displaying (I am in no way a shingleback expert so I am unfamiliar with classic shingleback behaviour and temperate and could really use some help).
He scratches at the floor a couple of times a day and nudges at the walls of his enclosure with his head as if he is trying to burrow through it.
He occasionally sneezes aswell (I have heard this is common through some lizards however he does it around 6 times a day). And he occasionally mouth gapes throughout the day, also sleeping with his mouth slightly open. Could it possibly be a respiratory infection? He has no clear mucous or discharge and he isn't wheezing but I have been wondering if thats a probable cause. Would he just be settling in?
He does eat great and basks when he needs too (settled the basking area to 35 degrees), then goes to bed at around 6pm.
Any opinions, help and comments would be great
I don't think you have much to worry about unless it's too hot in the tank on those hot days .
Otherwise the skink is just testing the tank and exploring it , two of my three eastern water skinks do these scratching / digging behaviours -- trying to dig the corner of the 120L tubs they are currently housed in . I had to separate the juvenile male from the two adult females as one the females was giving him very hard time and very any piece .
The gaping most likely means the skink is too hot , unless of cause it's only doing this when you are near ==> a defensive threat display , don't come close as I'm a big nasty lizards and will attack you bluff .
I think you should definitely get hold of a brace of digital thermometers and monitor the following temperatures
> basking spot air and surface temperatures ( suggest PBT + 5 degC )
> warm zone air temperature ( suggest about the same as the skink's PBT )
> cool zone air temperature
> mid level substrate temperature
Very likely the behavior ( it's been very hot lately in most parts of Queensland ) is the skink trying to thermoregulate , turn off the basking globe for a day or two and watch to see if the behavior that worries you stops.
PBT = preferred body temperature = 33 degC for a shingleback skink
ref
https://nswfmpa.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Reptiles.-Shingleback-Lizard-2007AT.pdf
Similar to as explained here :
"escape / avoid thermoregulatory" behavior because entire tank is too hot.
45 degC is the critical thermal maximum for a shingleback.
If you leave the basking globe on during a heatwave (and it's very hot in the room) , the temperature can easily be driven higher than 45 degC in the entire tank , people have come home on hot days to find their pet reptile dead or near dead and immobile due to overheating.
Very good idea to not run the basking globe in your skink's tank if it's likely to be a hot day and warmer than 30 degC in the room or set up a automatic dimming thermostat to manage the output of the basking globe thusly :
Check the relative humidity too , but unlikely to be an issue unless you are somewhere like Cairns , if the skink has access to a nice big shallow water dish and maybe a moist hide it should be fine.
These are arid zone reptiles .
I'd make the substrate a bit thicker , I don't have a shingle back , but I do have eastern bluetongues , and they love being able to tunnel through their loose substrate and even bury themselves in it.
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I'm in the state of Queensland, Australia so it gets pretty hot and humid here. And yeah I will get a temp gun and digital hygrometer as soon as possible.
My heat bulb is 75watts and is just a daylight heat bulb, it does not admit UVB as I have a separate UVB bulb next to it.
The heatbulb is 35cm away from the shingleback.
Thermometers I recommend are these :
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/4X-LCD-DIGITAL-THERMOMETER-for-Fridge-Freezer-Aquarium-FISH-TANK-Temperature-AU/193081111800?_trkparms=aid=333200&algo=COMP.MBE&ao=1&asc=20140723144413&meid=25252f8d77694a23b2d6c6ff2e135679&pid=100275&rk=2&rkt=4&sd=113828050750&itm=193081111800&pmt=1&noa=1&pg=2060778&_trksid=p2060778.c100275.m3474
I've got several of these in each of my tanks at strategic spots and can see my temperatures anytime as a glance.
Can you tell us what brand , type , wattage and UVB rating the UVB bulb is , and if it's mounted in a dome reflector or reflector hood , and how far it's from the basking spot and from "floor" ( top of the substrate ).
"shop brands" of compacts and T8 and T5 UVB tubes are very poor quality. If it not an Exo Terra , or Zoo Med , or an Arcadia Reptile , it's doing more harm than good.
Just a side comment : an Exo Terra 26W UVB200 globe mounted in a Exo Terra Nano-hood is a very option for a tank about 40cm tall , works extremely well in my 120L rearing tubs and the same size converted tubs my 3 water skinks currently live in ( the skinks can climb within 20cm of the globe and are often seen basking for short periods each day ).
I think you should be trying get about 160 microW UVB / sq-cm at the basking , and 100 microW UVB / sq-cm on the top of the substrate for a shingleback skink.
I'm not saying you need to splash out on a Solarmeter model 6.2 or 6.5 ( UV-index version ) , a very good instrument to have in your kit none-the-less and worth buying.
This is a chart I cobbled together a while ago that will help you work out the distance to get any desired UVB flux for a range different commonly used UVB sources :
and a more recent one I put together for Arcadia's T5 UVB tubes :
Ignore the reference to P.vitticeps.
Your tank is 50cm tall, THERE IS NO COMPACT UVB globe that will give your skink sufficient UVA and UVB at that distance even mounted in reflector dome.
If the compact is a 26W UVB200 or equiv , it needs the dome to dangled from the tank's lid so the tube is not more than 20cm from the basking spot and 30cm from the top of the bedding.