Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I really don't know if it's even a female, but I got it this last Sept and it has gotten really fat lately and for the first time (at least the first time I've observed it doing so) it is lying at the bottom of its cage in and out of its water dish. It pooped and it's very watery and almost looked like there was some blood (but it could have just been brown). I hope this isn't something bad. It is eating OK and seems alert and strong. Any ideas? Has anyone observed behavior prior to giving birth? Thanks, Mike.

Hey Mike, can you get a picture of your skink from the top of him/her from head to tail so we can see how wide she is from the top, from the side him/her does resemble a gravid female MTS(Big skink). Although you cant be sure from looking at a picture what sex a MTS is, I would tend to say that, that is a female MTS in my guest-a-ment. Are you feeding your MTS pothos because this can turns their urine a reddish color. When you bought the skink do you know if it was in with any other
MTS'S. Their pregnancy duration is usually 6-8 months, Sept to Sept sounds a little long, but from the pick you have supplied it does resemble a gravid female!!!!!!

OK. I'll get one posted in a few days. It does have a steady supply of pothos and eats it about every other day to three eating bananna, kiwi and other fruits with a bit of romain between then. When do they get knocked-up (couldn't figure how to spell pregnat?) in the wild. This was a W/C that came in around Aug. 03. Thanks, Mike

They seem to breed year-round in the wild. Gravid females are common in shipments throughout the year. Sounds like you may have one.

-Z

My PTS female(s) become 'bottom dwellers' for a week- 2 weeks before giving birth. Consistently the gravid state has been 7-8 months. I set up birth areas on the bottom when mom starts to get close with a heating pad, hide, and small food bowls so mom and baby can be warm, hide, and mom can continue to eat if she wants to. This has worked well for 6 PTS babies born at my house.

If you really want to know if she is gravid (pregnant) or not, find out whether there is one or two- bring her to your vet. Since this is a wild caught animal, having a fecal checked for parasites is also important.

I would recommend working on her diet- it sounds very heavy on the fruit and too light on leafy greens. They are vegetarians/herbivores- not fruit eaters. Just because they like it, does not mean it is the best or an appropriate diet. Pothos is a nice supplement, but I don't think any one green should be the staple. Lettuce has very minimal nutrition, and does not count in my book as a leafy green. Try to get more dark leafy greens into her (mine get about 75%). Good greens suggestions: Kale, Mustard greens, collards, radish and carrot tops, dandelion, chard, mulberry. Also start grating or finely chopping other veggies into her food such as squashes, yams or sweet potato, carrot, green beans, peas, corn ect. I use fruit to sweeten the mix (squeezing kiwi, mango, apple or banana up) and mixing it in with their vitamin/calcium supplements. You also should be regularly supplementing her food with a quality vitamin D3/Calcium powder. UVB light is also a good idea (mercury vapor lamp or fluorescent tube).
Cheers, jess b