Question: Are CFBN largely inactive?

[Starfleet]

Hi!

My name is Scott and I am new to caring for Chinese Fire Belly Newts and to posting on Forums, so if I don't do things right please let me know.

I have 2 CFBN that I believe to be juveniles. I don't know their sexes. I have them in a 5 gal. tank that is about 3/4 full with lots of plants (silk and plastic) and a platform just out of the water. I use frozen bottles with purified water to keep the temp between 58 - 68 F. The water is being filtered by a Power Filter to which I have added a piece of filter material to the output so that the return stream goes into the tank softly. I regularly check the water with an ammonia test kit and a 5-in-1 test kit and the water has been fine.

These 2 Newts stay right together like brothers and they stay on the platform. They are pretty inactive and don't move around much. I haven't seen them in the water since I got them about 2 weeks ago. I tried flooding the platform per one of the FAQ's, but they stayed on the platform even though it was underwater. After a few days I lowered the water level back to where the platform is just out of the water. Is this normal behavior for Newts? I have seen one of them eat the Bloodworms I've put in there and have cleaned-up poop twice. I just want to be sure whether or not the inactivity is normal.

Thanks for the help.

Scott

 

[Greatwtehunter]

How big are they since you think they are juveniles? Orientalis go through a terrestrial stage for about 2-3 years as youngsters before becoming aquatic.

When you flooded the platform how long did you leave it like that?

 

[Azhael]

Souns like a problem with water quality and over-all stress.
The animals are hugely stressed due to the whole imporatation and neglect, so they really need perfect conditions in order to recover. That means adequate water quality, the right temps, and no stress. Although temps sound fine, the ice method is not really the way to go. It makes temperature fluctuate a lot which causes stress. Also the powerhead...in such a small volume i´m assuming it creates quite a lot of current. These are still water newts and strong current will stress them to the point of leaving water.
The biggest issue however is probably water quality. 5 gallons is rather small..and the smaller the volume of water the faster it fouls. You need to cycle the tank so that it can deal with amonia and nitrites by itself. Until it is cycled, daily partial water changes of 20% of the volume are a must.

Also, if the newts really are juveniles, they should be terrestrial. Please let us know their exact size.

 

[vistajpdf]

I agree with the others. They are either truly juveniles and in a terrestrial phase or stressed over their journey (usually a bad one if wild caught and shipped over here to pet stores) or there is an issue with the water.

The depth of water you describe is dangerous if they are juveniles as they can drown in even very shallow water during this time. Since you've been checking the water quality, it may be something with cycling the tank. My pair was exclusively huddled up on the land portion of their tank for months under a little hut after I got them. I doubt they were juveniles as they reproduced 11 months later. I think it was stress. Since returning to the water, they don't venture onto land anymore that I've seen.

I fed mine frozen and thawed bloodworms until they reproduced and I found this site. I'd put them in a bowl w/ frozen and thawed bloodworms, separately, back in the beginning. It isn't good to handle them, however, so I started just putting the food in the water and encouraging the newts to follow which they did, but would quickly return to land. They now have a nice combination of white and blackworms, bloodworms, etc. With my juveniles, I've had no luck with any worms since they've morphed. It's fruit flies and springtails. I'm trying an occasional wax worm, but so far, they're too big. I'm going to try pinhead crickets as they get larger.

Good luck,
Dana

 

[jplee3]

I agree... I think one of my juvies died to possible drowning and stress due to the 1/8th-1/4th inches of water I put in my critter keeper upon receiving them because I was stupid and knew no better. The best way to house them is to use a damp paper towel as a substrate and to let the newts roam around on it. Provide a small 'feeding' dish and other places to hide. I had to leave the remaining one alone for a day or two before it would start eating. They were already in horrible condition upon receiving them. At this point I'm able to hand feed the little guy chopped up wax worms or tiny portions of brine shrimp and bloodworms. Not sure how much he likes the brine shrimp. I think I'll keep to feeding him chopped up wax worms though as those are the most substantial.

 

[Starfleet]

The Newts are about 2 inches long from their nose to the base of their tail (doesn't include the tail) and their body is about 1/2 inch wide. The way I have the Powerfilter set up the output stream goes into the water very gently. When I flooded the platform I left it that way for about 2 days.
Scott

 

[vistajpdf]

My adults are twice that size. I'd say these are still juveniles but Azhael or Jennewt will hopefully chime in and confirm. I have some juveniles that are 1.5 inches and nowhere near ready for the water. Mine only began morphing in mid-June. I've only had one or two of the 30 morphs actually venture into the shallow water dish I have though I've heard of someone here (SludgeMunkey?) who had a few take swims for a few days after morphing. Nonetheless, they sound too small to be aquatic again. I agree w/ the substrate of plain white wet paper towels. It has served mine well thus far.

I'd dump the water and save the filter for much later. Maybe post some pics? These members are great at giving more information with pictures. Also, is their skin slightly rough and dry looking or smooth in appearance?

Dana

 

[vistajpdf]

Just for your information, I measured "Newty" today, our first morpher, and he is right at 2" tail to nose. If yours is about that, I'd say get rid of the water right away and get a terrestrial set-up. They can't be adults and shouldn't be housed around all of that water. I'm using plain paper towels changed several times per week. Keep them moist. Some use Bed-A-Beast/Coco fiber brick stuff from the pet store. I was cautioned about ingestion of this so only used it for a few days. The paper towels are easy to maintain and to see the newts. Newty morphed on 6/20, so he's less than 2 1/2 months into this juvenile stage.

Dana

 

[Azhael]

With that size my opinion is that they are adults. 5cm from snout to cloaca is about the normal distance for an adult. Plus another 3-4 cm of tail, it´s 8-9cm total, which is the fully adult size.

5 gallons is way too little for these animals. If you want your newts to be active and healthy, provide them with everything they need. Take a look at this caresheet in case you haven´t already:
http://www.caudata.org/cc/species/Cynops/C_orientalis.shtml

 

[Starfleet]

Okay. I am currently looking for a bigger tank. Per your suggestion I am doing a 20% water change everyday. I have taken some pictures but I don't know how to post them. Do I need a seperate website or can I post them here, if so, how?

 

[SludgeMunkey]

Okay. I am currently looking for a bigger tank. Per your suggestion I am doing a 20% water change everyday. I have taken some pictures but I don't know how to post them. Do I need a seperate website or can I post them here, if so, how?

There are stickies that instruct you how to post pictures and video in the Photography section of the forums.

 

[vistajpdf]

Sorry, I thought yours were 2" total, missed the whole "tail" part being more. Yes, they are adults. Bigger quarters are a must. Good for you for caring about this species!

Dana