Chubby newt :B

[ButtercupSaiyan]

My little notophthalmus viridescens is getting a bit of a chubby belly, if you know what I mean ... (this sounds silly with all the "my newts not eating" or "skinny newt" threads ... ) should I reduce feeding amounts to help her work off the extra weight she's carrying on her plump little tummy?

She gets fed a cube of bloodworms every other day and is the primary eater of them—a truly dedicated forager—but she also scarfs down other newts bits of earthworm as she can find them when they're full and don't eat all of it ...

Or is it a sign of a healthy and well-adjusted newt, and I should let her stay the way she is for the summer? When she is cooled in the winter, will she become thinner?

 

[Blackhawk IV]

hi,
what kind of substrate do you have in your tank? it may be that she has swallowed some gravel. in which case it will take a while for her to pass it. once she does though she will return to normal size.

Blackhawk

 

[Kaysie]

Chubby is fine, but grossly overweight isn't. If she's stealing food from the other animals, it's usually worth removing the aggressive one while feeding the others.

 

[Jennewt]

During winter cooling, animals don't usually become thinner. If anything, they fatten up because they expend less energy but still continue to eat.

It would help to see a photo, but your newt is probably healthy and well-adjusted. The main problem is that the others may not be getting enough. Removing fatso from the tank during some of the feedings would probably be a good idea for the health of the others in the tank.

 

[ButtercupSaiyan]

So many boxes from moving ... can't find my camera. And we do have a small gravel substrate, but they are small enough to pass. After watching her eat for a few days, I've concluded that she merely stuffs herself until she can't POSSIBLY eat any more and then becomes slimmer over the course of two-three days as it digests. She mostly back to her prior weight now between feedings. So, I will leave her to her foraging devices, and have my fiance move her to the other side of the tank while he's feeding the other newts ...

Hmm, she's not lethargic or anything, but she has a slow little, almost skipping, crawl in the water. I wish I had my camera so I could show you. Do they all move that cutely, or is it their tiny legs and small size that make them look so ... delicate?

When she has to be taken out of the water, she moves like my gecko: immediate walking-whereever-it-may-take-me mode ... usually up my arm or something. I find it interesting that she actually moves faster out of the water than in—the reverse of most newts. Truly a relaxed breed.

 

[Otterwoman]

I have notos and they are all embarassingly chubby even though I've tried to cut back on their food, and removed the guppies (and therefore their food as well) from the tank. They've gotten a little smaller but not much.

 

[slowfoot]

My notos would eat forever if they could - it is their only joy in life

They do have chubby little newt bellies, but I think they look fairly healthy. Just for a comparison, I feed my 3 newts one cube of worms every three days or so.