Meet Bruce the Bobtail

We have a new, unexpected arrival in our family.  On Monday I received a PM (private message) on an internet forum that I frequent that is full of very helpful people and a wealth of information about reptile keeping with a strong focus on Bearded Dragons.  If you get a chance, check out the Australian Bearded Dragon Forum.  Follow that link or the one here in the links section.  But I digress.

I received a message with a request for help.  It was in relation to a young Shingleback Lizard (Tiliqua rugosa) in the care of someone on the forum who was not in a position to give it the required attention once its original owner had moved overseas and passed it on to him.  He’d had it for about 4 days and it had arrived to him obviously in need of some TLC as it looked under fed and was quite irritable, most likely through a long period of less than ideal care.  He asked if I could take and care for the lizard as he did not feel like he could give it the attention it needed to come back to proper health.

I was very pleased to be asked and also just very pleased to help!  Yesterday, I met Dylan , or Fractal man as he is known on the forum who, with the care of the animal in mind had contacted me.  We spoke briefly about the beautiful looking Shingleback and then I brought him home.  These fantastic creatures are also sometimes called Bobtails amongst other nicknames and are a species of blue-tongued lizard.  Blue-tongues are actually skinks, but are grouped into the lizards.  After a brief discussion amongst the family, he is now affectionately known as Bruce the Bobtail.  You can see him here on the right with his tongue just on the way back into his mouth.  I just missed it!

I am pleased to report that Bruce had a really good drink yesterday.  The moment I put him into what has now become the hospital tank again, he ran straight for the hide and disappeared for several hours.  Late in the day, I pulled out the hide and started dropping water on his head, which, he started taking straight away.  After a few minutes of him licking water off the glass side of the enclosure, I put in the big water dish that you see in the picture and placed his front half in.  Shortly after he began one of several long drinks and then moved off to bask a little under the light\heat source, not before coming over to poke his nose out of the front of the open enclosure to check me out and offer a look as if to say ‘Thanks’.

Today, I put in some chicken mince to go with the veggies that I left in there for him yesterday.  Whilst Bruce did not take any from the food dish, he did take 3 pieces from outside the door of the hide.  Small, but pleasing progress.  I also took Bruce to a wonderful local vet to get a health check and I am exceptionally pleased to report that besides needing some TLC, sustained attention to his eating and putting on weight, Bruce is in good health.  No mites or other parasites or respiratory infection that can be quite common in the species.

So there you have it.  That is the story of how Bruce the Bobtail came to be with us.  I am not sure how long he will be here.  It will hopefully be at least as long as it takes to ensure he is in tip top condition.  The hospital tank is not a suitable long term home for him as it is not big enough.  He is appears to be less than a year old and most likely from this season’s litter.  All going to plan he will regain good health and be ready for something bigger in the coming months.  In between now and then I will have to build something more suitable for him, or find a welcoming home.  Although I am not sure I will be able to give him up at that point!

It saddens me somewhat to think that his original ‘owner’ could lose interest in something so beautiful in such a short time as it would have taken for Bruce, given his age, to go from new and fascinating pet, to discarded and malnourished burden.  Thankfully someone like Dylan had care enough for Bruce to ask for help even if it meant giving up such a wonderful creature so new to him.  For now, Bruce has a home for as long as he needs and has already won the hearts of his new adopted family.