The Blue Tongue Skink is a diurnal lizard, meaning it is active during daylight, and it gets its name from, yes, you guessed it, its blue tongue. Native to both Australia and New Guinea, as pets, they are considered low maintenance making them ideal for children and beginners in lizard ownership.
Although relatively easy to take care of, you have to remember that they can grow to a somewhat larger size than other lizards, up to 24 inches in length, which is something you should take into consideration before taking ownership of one.
Because of the Skinks appetite for slugs and snails, these lizards are firm favorites among Australian gardeners. A lizard with built-in pest control if you like. Slugs and snails aside, what else would you feed your Blue Tongue Skink?
Are Blue Tongue Skinks Meat Eaters?
As they are omnivores, a Blue Tongue Skink diet is varied and consists of various plant and animal origin foods. Fruit, vegetables, and meat items should all be part of your Skinks diet, with a balance of around 60% fruit/vegetable and 40% meat being the ideal split.
What Vegetables Should You Feed A Blue Tongued Skink?
Before feeding your Skink any fruit or vegetable, be sure to wash it first to remove any possible pesticides. Also, always remember to remove any uneaten food from the enclosure at the end of the day.
A Blue Tongue Skink diet will consist of various vegetables including, green beans, summer or winter squash, carrots, and parsnips. Dark green leafy vegetables are also essential, and your lizard will benefit significantly from consuming such greens as kale, collard greens, and red-tipped lettuce.
Certain green leafy vegetables are high in oxalates and should be avoided as they can lead to calcium deficiencies. These include spinach and broccoli. Iceberg lettuce is another green you should give a miss as it lacks any significant nutritional content.
Some Blue Tongue Skinks may be reluctant when it comes to eating certain leafy green vegetables. If you happen to be the owner of one of these fussy eaters, you can still ensure they get all the goodness from these leafy vegetables by shredding or pureeing them into the meat part of your lizard’s diet.
Blue Tongue Skinks can also feed on plants, but only as treats generally. Your garden can also be a haven of nutritional benefit to your Skink. Dandelion greens, hibiscus, gloxinia, rose, dead nettle, plantain, and bramble leaf are just some of the many items you might find in your own garden or while out on a walk.
Can Blue Tongued Skinks Eat Fruit?
Blue Tongue Skinks will happily eat fruits such as blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, raspberries, and bananas. Also on the list of nutritional fruits that your Skink will enjoy are peaches, cherries, pears, apples, and nectarines.
Always ensure you wash any fruit before giving it to your lizard, and make sure it’s cut up into small enough chunks for your pet Skink to handle. Avoid feeding citrus, rhubarb, seeds, and pits.
Do Blue Tongued Skinks Munch On Insects?
Oh absolutely! Crickets and mealworms are among the favorite food items that Blue Tongue Skinks enjoy, but avoid feeding any live ones that you have caught in the wild as they are likely to contain diseases. Always buy your insects from a reputable dealer.
Remember, nearly half of a Blue Tongue Skink diet should consist of protein, and there is plenty of other variety of insects that your lizard will happily dine on to ensure its dietary needs are met.
As well as crickets and mealworms, these easy-going lizards will gladly eat silkworms, hornworms, earthworms, and grasshoppers. Dubai roaches, red runner roaches, discord roaches,, and fresh, canned snails, are other items of food that your Skink will welcome.
Another favorite of Blue Tongue Skinks is the superworm, but these should only be given occasionally as a treat due to their high-fat content. What not to feed is just as important, so on that note, don’t feed your Skink scorpions, lightning bugs, and, as previously mentioned, any live caught bugs.
Can A Skink Eat Meat?
As well as getting their protein from insects, another great source of this macronutrient is meat, and it might come as a surprise to some exactly what type of meat. You won’t ever hear your Blue Tongue Skink purr or let out a bark when the mailman arrives, but that’s not to say he or she won’t enjoy a small helpings of dog and cat food now and then.
Dog food makes up a good diet, especially if mixed with some vegetables. Although you can use kibble if it’s mixed with water, it’s preferable to use canned food and avoid formulas that contain artificial colors or flavors and fish. Some owners add a little calcium powder to the food.
Don’t feed dog food to younger skinks. Instead; you can provide them with cat food up to the age of one as it contains more protein. Once they reach twelve months, they can move onto the dog food. Of course, dog food and cat food shouldn’t be the only meat they eat. There are plenty of other varieties that they will gladly devour.
Ground turkey, duck, chicken, rabbit, lean beef, venison, and lamb are just some of the meats that your Blue Tongue Skink will enjoy. Although they will eat the meat raw, it’s better if it’s cooked as it renders the fat in the flesh, making it a healthier option for your lizard and lessening the chances of obesity.
Organ meats such as liver, heart, and gizzard are also acceptable sources of protein, as are live or frozen pinky rats (thawed, of course) and fuzzy mice, but only has a treat. Small whole fish or chunks, if too big, can also be given, but once again, sparingly and as a special treat.
Clean Water.
Always ensure your Skink has access to clean water, making sure it’s changed daily and supplied in an appropriate container. It would help if you also remembered; Blue Tongue Skinks are not great swimmers. For this reason, make certain whichever container you use to put the water in is not too deep and is easy for your Skink to exit from when he’s finished.
Timetable.
Like any lizard’s nutritional needs, a Blue Tongue Skink diet will change as they grow. Your Skink will need various fruit and vegetables and meat in their diet if you want them to remain in good health. As a guideline, a serving would be about the size of your lizard’s head or 1-2 tbsp.
How often you feed your Blue Tongue Skink depends on its age. Young Skinks up to the age of around three months should be provided for on a daily basis. You should expect to be feeding those between three and eght months three times a week and adults eight months plus two or three times a week. Its worth being aware that if you provide more food than needed in its habitat, the skink will invariably eat it all. For that, its worth knowing some obvious signs of the Blue Tongue Skink being overweight.
Conclusion.
There you have it. As you can see, because Blue Tongue Skinks are omnivores, they eat a large variety of different foods and insects and as long as you provide them with all the nutrients they need in a well balanced diet, you can expect to have many years of fascinating enjoyment from your Blue Tongue Skink. Up to twenty years of enjoyment in fact, so get on and enjoy it, and make sure that your feed yourself well too!
