Question: Help..

[bluegrass26]

About three days ago my b/f brought in a salamander.. he was covered in cat hair and dirt, dry and moving really slow.. i thought he was going to die.. so instead of letting him go out side to be eaten my the cats or some thing else i put him in a tank.. well now hes pretty active.. and i dont think he will die.. my problem is he is a wild salamander and our outside temps have dropped to the point of freezing again.. when we found him we was having some abnormaly warm days.. so i dont want to put him out to freeze.. i believe he is still pretty young.. hes a long toed salamander his yellow stripe is just starting to come in... so i would like some advise on what to do with him.. he hasnt eaten since i got him (3days) and i am scared to turn him loose in the temps we are having.. please help

 

[bluegrass26]

i have tried feeding him little crickets like what i feed my fire bellied toads.. earth worms whole and pieces from a pair of tweezers.. i even put a few of my guppy fry in with him and he still wont eat.. can some one please help.. should i turn him out with the snow storm on its way? will it starve its self to death if i keep it in the tank? i really would like some advise on what to do with it

 

[pete]

Since you found him in such a state and just took him in. He's probably understandably quite stressed at the moment, and it can sometimes take a while for a wild caught animal to feel comfortable to eat. If you want him to eat, then I think you'll have to be gently persistent. Keep him in a dark cool undisturbed location and try feeding him once or twice a day. Don't leave his food in with him for extended periods if he's not eating. They'll probably just jump/crawl on it and annoy it.

If you plan to release it. Perhaps consider putting it in a tupperware with some moist debris/leaves from outside and keep it in your refrigerator or a cool basement until conditions improve (a week or two), and release it in a rock or log pile, etc. where he can seek refuge.

 

[bluegrass26]

i would like to release him after the weather gets good again.. i think he would be happier that way then in a tank since he was born in the wild.. so he would be ok in my frig? this is going to sound stupid.. but do i need air holes in the container.. he seems to like the watery part of the tank best should i put a little water in the container with the leaves and stuff? if i left him in the tank would he starve him self? or will he eat when he gets use to things.. we are going to have some bad weather for a few weeks from what the news says.. i just dont want him to die while in my "care".. hes a pretty cool little creature.. and thanks for the advise you gave

 

[Kaysie]

If you found the salamander terrestrially, I don't think keeping it aquatic is a good idea. This species isn't known for its swimming ability.

Go outside, get a big ol' handful of dirt and leaves and such. Put him in that in a big tupperware (with some air holes) and spritz it with water occasionally. Leave it in a cool area of the house, and when the weather warms up to above freezing, let him go. Salamanders can be surprisingly active even when it's really cold. This genus is known to breed even under ice!

They can also go a long time without food. A few days isn't going to be a matter of life and death. If you do use the leaf-litter method, there will be a variety of crawlies in that already, and you can put in some small worms too.

Best of luck! Let us know how he does!

 

[bluegrass26]

we found him on our porch.. we think he may have came from the drainage ditch in front of our house.. the tank i have him in is part water part land and he hangs out in the water part.. just so his head is out of the water.. right now its snowing but the news said that after wensday the snow should stop and the rain will start.. i think i am going to let him out then.. and i will let you all know how he is... so it sounds like he will be just fine till then.. i was really worried that he would starve.. but if they can go a while with out food he will be ok till wensday.. i am sure he will be happy to be out in the wild again.. i will make sure when i turn him loose its far from the house.. i think the cats may have brought him to the porch the night we found.. and i dont want them bothering him.. thanks alot for the info

 

[Kaysie]

If you live near any woods (within 1/2 a mile or so), take him to the woods, and let him go next to a log.

That sounds like an excellent time to let him go. Many salamander migrate in the rain. In fact, s/he may have been migrating to the drainage to lay eggs.

 

[vistajpdf]

I agree with Kaysie and I wouldn't be too concerned about him not eating. These animals can go extremely long periods of time without food. With him being stressed, it's no surprise.

Good luck - glad you could rescue him.
Dana

 

[bluegrass26]

today warmed up to 45 and was misting pretty good all day..the news says things should start looking good as far as the temps and stuff.. so i brought him out and turned him loose.. near a place with good shelter and water and moss. i went back out there two hours later to see if he was still there and he moved on his way.. so i am glad to say that sal the salamander is free and happy.. thanks for all your help.. and the advise given.. helped me out alot i was very worried about that to do with him... thanks again..

 

[Kaysie]

That's good news!

Glad it all worked out well for you. You're a gold-star steward of the land!