New amphibian owner need quick help.

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jfollmer2011

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I recently obtained a tiger salamander I think it's an eastern but I'm not sure. Story goes my buddy moved out for college and got rid of his pets,and dumped this salamander on me and I have no knowledge of amphibians in the slightest since I deal with redtails,carpet pythons.and tree boas. Right now I have the little thing in a small plastic cage until I can clean up a tank,I'm using paper towels for substrate since it holds moisture,and a water dish.I need some set-up pointers for one of these guys I can pick up some coco fiber tomorrow and throw some hydroballs underneath to hold moisture,do they need a semi-aquatic terrarium? Small body of water or waterfall? Also what do they eat I'm guessing something along the lines of mealworms?
 
You could try a simple google search. Right now your main priority is keeping the salamander moist and not stressing it out. And don't use any tapwater without treating it with dechlorinator first to get rid of all the chemicals and chlorine. And mealworms are VERY bad for animals. You should never use mealworms. Crickets and nightcrawlers/earthworms are a good diet. This page tells you everything else you need to know-

http://www.caudata.org/cc/species/Ambystoma/A_tigrinum.shtml

They're generally easy to care for, but all amphibians are very delicate creatures.
 
Last edited:
CheeseyDean said:
You could try a simple google search. Right now your main priority is keeping the salamander moist and not stressing it out. And don't use any tapwater without treating it with dechlorinator first to get rid of all the chemicals and chlorine. And mealworms are VERY bad for animals. You should never use mealworms. Crickets and nightcrawlers/earthworms are a good diet. This page tells you everything else you need to know-

Caudata Culture Species Entry - Tiger salamander

They're generally easy to care for, but all amphibians are very delicate creatures.
Click to expand...

Operating off my phone for the time being,and like I said I only own mainly arboreal snakes so I have no clue what to feed him,where would I be able to get nightcrawlers besides going out to my chicken coop and pulling them from the ground?, also its very young has to be a hatchling of the year since its roughly 4 inches with tail included.I'm going to see if I can find it a new home since I have my hands full already with my snakes. But thanks for the care sheet I'll check it out and see what I can do.
 
Only 4 inches WITH the tail? That's extremely small, especially for a tiger. Are you sure it's a tiger salamander?

And you can buy earthworms/nightcrawlers from Walmart. But before you feed them to your animal, you'll need to grasp the middle of the worm with two fingers and slide them down, pushing the poop out of their body. It sounds gross but it's really not. The reason for this is because the nasty black stuff they've been eating from the container they're kept in isn't good for the salamander. And you'll need to cut them into small pieces since it's so small.
 
I'm figuring cocoa fiber and a sphagnum moss layer up top and a fogger.
 
Cocoa fiber is fine for the substrate. While a fogger wouldn't hurt, it's not necessary.

And I probably don't need to tell you this, but just in case- you'll need a large water dish as well.
 
CheeseyDean said:
Cocoa fiber is fine for the substrate. While a fogger wouldn't hurt, it's not necessary.

And I probably don't need to tell you this, but just in case- you'll need a large water dish as well.
Click to expand...

Well I have a few spare small ones from when my amazon tree boas were babies so I'll set one up I just want to make sure the little guy stays hydrated when I'm at work,I would take a picture of him out of the tank but I'm afraid to handle him because of the super sensitive skin they have. And yes there's a water dish in there.
 
That's DEFINITELY a marbled salamander, not a tiger. It won't get much bigger than that. Read this for their care-

Caudata Culture Species Entry - Ambystoma opacum

The same basic care for tigers applies to them as well, but they're more delicate and NEED places to hide, or they'll be extremely stressed out. They're a shy species.

Also, make sure those paper towels are moist.
 
There are folds of paper towel he's under and there not too thick so he doesn't get stuck under it,and the fogger is going as we speak.
 
Be careful with foggers. Salamanders may or may not be stressed out with the ultrasonic vibrations.

Use a 50/50 mix of organic topsoil and coco fiber. It holds moisture better, and gives structure to soil burrows, so they're more durable. A good setup is a 10 gallon tank with a screen lid, 4-5 inches of soil/coco fiber, a small water dish, and a good layer of leaf-litter. Feed it about 1/2 a large nightcrawler 2-3 times a week.

Also, your salamander's a female. So give her a nice girly name!
 
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