Blue tongue help

[Danieljohn96]

Ok so my brother got his hands on a blue tongue skink from a breeder in the area, he is 14 and lives with my mum, as I don't live with him when he came over today I asked him questions about his set up and he told me he was using dirt from the backyard which didn't sound like a good idea to me.. He hasn't researched or checked with the breeder to se if it was fine.. I was wondering is it ok to use regular dirt from the backyard as a bedding?
any help would be great thanks.

 

[CantBeatALBINOS]

i know they like do dig abit but my mum uses newspaper.. had hers for 5 months almost since he was 2 days old and yeah he's fine, you just need to clean a fair bit cause they poo alot): hahah

 

[bohdi13]

they could be parasites or any sort of chemicals that the dirt might contain, he should be using something like fake grass or aspen. please make him read and learn more about keeping blue tongues. :?

 

[mad_at_arms]

they could be parasites or any sort of chemicals that the dirt might contain, he should be using something like fake grass or aspen. please make him read and learn more about keeping blue tongues. :?

Unless there is a colony of parasite infested blue tongues living in his backyard the risk of parasites from the dirt is infinitesimal.
The risk of fertilisers/pesticides is possible but he only has to ask his parents if they have used any in the yard recently.

 

[Bushman]

Garden soil is far from ideal as a blue-tongue substrate. It's too hard to keep a clean, healthy environment for a lizard such as a blue-tongue. Once it becomes soiled with faeces or becomes wet, it stays damp and harmful pathogens multiply to potentially harmful levels. If kept bone dry it's often too dusty which wouldn't be much good either. I would certainly recommend that he use a substrate that can be changed frequently like newspaper and washable flat rocks to help keep their toe-nails short.

 

[osiris]

I've kept Blue Tongues for 12 years. Have them inside and on newspaper as they tend to make a mess and it is easier to clean up. I believe that a clean animal will always be healthier than a dirty one. I wouldn't recommend dirt in an enclosure, ok outside because the environment is self cleaning. There are lots of books available on how to keep lizards. If the breeder didn't give advice has he got things like heaters and thermostats and information about feeding? Hope this helps.

 

[bohdi13]

Unless there is a colony of parasite infested blue tongues living in his backyard the risk of parasites from the dirt is infinitesimal.
The risk of fertilisers/pesticides is possible but he only has to ask his parents if they have used any in the yard recently.

i understand where you are coming from but when i introduced a piece of wood once i had a mite problem a week or so later. i only gave the wood a rough water down which was a mistake. i guess i am exagerrating but hopefully he listens.