Scaled Stories: June Monthly Blog

As spring turned into summer, the weather warmed, bringing its own unique challenges. Despite what most people think, reptiles have ideal temperatures, and for some, like us, it got a little too warm.  

Animals Birthday

16^th June – Gimli the Gargoyle Gecko. Gimli came to the rescue in 2019, before we officially made the rescue. He came as he fought with his tank mate, and kept biting the owner. He arrived with very little decoration or substrate, and we quickly found out that despite having sticky feet, he doesn’t stick to glass. There is nothing physically wrong with his feet. We adapt his viv to his unique needs and understand his shyness. Gimli now explores his viv and seems a lot more settled, he has never bitten but is not handleable.  

23^rd June – Squirtle the Chinese Pond Turtle. Squirtle came to the rescue in 2024, as she struggled to lay eggs, and her previous owners worried about her health and were concerned they were unable to meet her needs. Squirtle was an escape artist to begin with, using her egg box as a way to climb over her tank. However, since we updated and adapted the tank, she hasn’t found another way out yet.

Animals who came into the rescue: After a few adoptions and a passing, we were left with three empty vivariums, which didn’t last a day. We offered these to the animals that we had previously turned away due to space. If we received no response within 24 hours, we moved on to the next one, as there is always a message requesting help. All the animals, minus Monty, are in quarantine, where we will monitor their health and behaviour. After this time, they will be available for adoption.

5^th June, Monty the Storr’s Dwarf monitor. Monty is around fifteen, which is an amazing age for this type of monitor. Due to this, the rescue will be Monty’s retirement home. Monty came to the rescue when his previous owner was downsizing homes and their own collection. 18^th June – Colin the King Snake. Colin is around three years old. Colin’s previous owners found themselves unable to provide him with the care and time he needed, so they asked us to take him in.

22^nd June - Perdy the Leopard Gecko. Perdy is around five years old and was a family pet. Perdy came to the rescue due to their owner being told about the risk of Samuella. Despite their best effort, their own anxiety and disability, they were unable to see the animal they loved, only the risk of becoming ill.

22^nd June – Sebastian, a little baby corn snake that was hatched in December. Their previous owner was moving to a new home and was unable to have animals there.

Other animals we were asked to take in, but we had to turn away due to space.

• 10 Snakes

• 4 Turtles

• 5 Leopard Geckos

• 1 Bearded Dragon

• 1 Ackie Monitor

  
  

We were also asked to help relocate three snakes and one turtle found in people's gardens.

Adoptions

This month, we celebrated the successful adoption of,

1^st June – George the cheeky Crested Gecko. While we miss his silly nature, we are so happy for him.

9^th June – Jango the Leopard Gecko. Jango was a fun little Leo who didn’t mind attention or being picked up, so we were pleased when a family who would give him all the love he deserved adopted him.

14^th June—Blizzy the Corn Snake. Blizzy had been at the rescue for over a year, so when she was adopted, we were overjoyed that it was finally her turn.  

29^th June – Bruce the bearded dragon. Bruce loved attention, but didn’t like that we housed other dragons, so we were very delighted when he was adopted by a household where he was the only dragon.

Rainbow bridge

Callum, the 23-year-old King Snake, passed away on June 13th. Callum arrived with a lump at the back end, which could have been caused by a few things; he was under the vet's care. Callum had recently had an enema, hoping this would help. However, as we monitored, the lump became more swollen and felt like a rock. We booked another appointment, and an ultrasound confirmed he had cancer. Callum could not be fed and didn't pass anything due to the location, and the scan showed it was spreading. The decision was made to help him cross the rainbow bridge.  Callum was unique; his previous owners had only asked us to take him in because they had to go abroad for work and wanted to ensure he went to a place that could meet his care needs. They had also asked if they could adopt him on their return. We had kept them informed about his health and called them on the 13^th before any decisions were made.

Reptile of the Month:

Each month, we will feature one of our residents to help raise awareness about the diversity

and beauty of reptiles. June’s resident is Artoria, a Leopard Gecko. Artoria, nicknamed Arty, is a very special gecko. She was here before the rescue was even a thought. Arty arrived on 17th September 2016 and was Matt and Shelly's first-ever reptile. Arty needed a new home because her previous owners had other pets under medical care, and they often forgot about Arty and did not feel that they had provided her with the right care. We didn’t pay any money for Arty; she was dropped off, and throughout the almost nine years we have owned her, we have learnt so much, and many things have changed in that time. Including Arty herself, she arrived with a few toes missing, and we were told she was male. After she laid eggs, we discovered she was indeed female. Arty is healthy and has come so far from the gecko she arrived as.

• Species: Eublepharis maculariu

• Diet: insectivores, which means that she eats bugs. Arty loves a range of bugs, including Locusts, Waxworms and Morio Worms.

• Fun fact: Their chunky tails aren't just cute—they’re fat reservoirs, helping them survive when food is scarce.

  
  
  
  

Animals available for adoption

Snakes	Crested Geckos	Tortoise	Other
Gnocchi - Royal Python 3 years old	Ducky - 3 years old	Cyril - 11 years old	Clone Army - Musk turtles’ range of age.
Odin - Corn Snake 5 years old	Banana Bean - 2 years old	Donald - 11 years old
Angelina - Corn Snake 8 years old		George - 12 years old
Merlot - Corn Snake Unknown age.