Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey there,

After a week or so of hiding my BTS has shed. The only problem is is that her head doesn't seem to have shed at all, the skin looks really dull, when I first got her I noticed that the skin on her head was a lot duller than the rest of her body. Could there be a build up of unshed skin there? Is there anything I can do to help?

Baths and soaks are an important part of my skink maintenance program. When my skinks start the shedding process I put them in a plastic container filled with 2 inches of luke warm water, and allow them to soak for anywhere from 15 minutes up to 2 hours. This helps loosen the old skin, and it saves me from having to clean the messy shed out of the cage. When soaking your blue-tongue, it is important to soak it in a container with a lid to prevent escape, and holes to allow for ventilation. When Blue-tongues are kept too dry, they often seem to be in a continual state of shed in that before they are finished with one shed, they begin another shed. This can cause shed to build up (especially in problem areas like toes and ears) and cause potential problems. Blue-tongued Skinks are a bit messy at times, occasionally coming in contact with their own feces. On these occasions it is not inappropriate to give the skink a quick bath. This is easily accomplished by applying some liquid antibacterial hand soap to the skink, and proceeding as if washing your own hands while taking care not to get soap in the skinks mouth nose or eyes. When bathing blue-tongues, use only slightly warm water, and rinse thoroughly.

Hi Terry
I also recently found with my BTS that her head was the last part of her body to shed...at least, she shed the rest of her skin in a day, but her head took a little longer. I managed to fix the problem by soaking the area with a damp cotton ball,(or the plastic container idea is good) then VERY GENTLY lifting the old dry scales Only do this if they come away easily - do NOT pull, as it can hurt and damage your bluey. The head has such large scales on top, I found they lifted away under my fingernail very easily. I also had to gently lift away the skin on the side of her face under her eyes.

As James said, toes can be a problem. Once my bluey had trouble shedding the skin from one foot...giving the bizarre appearance of 5 little toes growing off the end of her right big toe!! I soaked her foot and eased off the wierd appendage by gently rolling it bewteen thumb and forefinger (not before taking a photo though!) Also check the tail, elbows and shoulders, as tight rings of old skin can remain which inhibit the circulation.
Good luck, and let us know how your bluey does.
Susan