New build for salamander

[schoozoo]

I am fairly new to keeping amphibians so I'm looking for as much advise as I can. I've recently added a tiger salamander to the living displays in my classroom. The when I acquired the salamander I was also given the tank for it. I am currently building a new habitat for it - The existing one is a 10 gallon, had moss (I've changed out most of that with Exo terra plantation soil) a plastic log, small dog dish for water and a plastic cave to hide in.
The tank that I'm going to use is a 25 gallon (30 inches long by 12 wide and 16 high). To make our maintenance easier (my students do 90% of it) I am thinking of having a small pond separated from the land part by stones and great stuff pond. The first picture is what I'm thinking with the larger part being the land part. I want to add a stream type feature so the water is circulated and filtered. I am thinking to make the stream out of plastic egg create and the great stuff pond. I'm also going to replace the plastic log with a piece of birch or poplar log that is hollowed out.
I want this tank to be/look as natural as possible, mimicking its natural habitat. I believe that it was wild caught from its original owner. Any suggestions?

 

[Kaysie]

Tigers don't really need a big water feature in their tank. A small puddle for soaking is plenty adequate. If you made it removable, it would be the easiest to wash (which is why most people use dog dishes!). You could still make it out of great stuff, but make it more bowl-like instead of an integral part of the tank. Then you can take it out and wash it.

For substrate, I prefer a 50/50 mix of coco fiber and top soil. I find this mix superior, as it holds moisture and structure (burrows) better than either substrate does on it's own.

 

[schoozoo]

Thanks for the feedback, I was leaning towards the pond idea, because I was going to add a couple of fish to it too. I was thinking of using a canister style filter. Given that my students will be doing most of the work, it would be easier to clean a filter, as opposed to daily taking the dish out, given that I don't have a sink in my room.

 

[frogman]

My tigers love water. Especially my female recently. The water is about 2 inches deep with degree on the bottom. He male stays in his cave half buried in the dirt.

 

[Jan]

I would advise against building a semi-aquatic setup. There is anecdotal evidence which suggests that tiger salamanders kept in semi-aquatic setups are more prone to disease. I would also advise against placing fish in an environment shared by a tiger salamander due to different temperature requirements, pathogen exposure, waste accumulation from fish, potential ingestion hazards for the salamander, etc. As you are new to keeping tiger salamanders, please review these informative articles from our Caudata Culture section:

Caudata Culture Articles - Tiger Salamander 101

Caudata Culture Articles - Fish with Caudates

Caudata Culture Articles - Species Mixing Disasters

Caudata Culture Articles - Wood in Vivaria

For the animal and its health, simplistic setups that can be cleaned regularly, provide appropriate substrate material at an adequate depth for a fossorial species and maintained at proper temperatures are optimal.

 

[schoozoo]

Thank-you for sharing the articles - some great information there. :happy: I will stay away from the logs that I was going to use - I would have never thought that birch, pine and spruce would have been an issue since they are found in the salamanders natural habitat around here. I will make sure that the log that I do use is a poplar or aspen one. The fish that I was going to use was guppies or the white clouds. I'll hold off on the fish for a while to make sure that he isn't stressed out, and if I do use a white cloud I'll be sure to quaritine it first for a long time.

I would like to still make his water dish/pond one that is circulated - but perhaps I can make it shallow enough so he can easily get out by making it a false bottom - make a platform, cover it with large rocks so waste material can fall down to be sucked up by a filter, but not the salamander.

The tank is just going to have a screen top - so lots of ventilation and the substrate shouldn't become saturated.

Are there any plants that I should stay away from if I want to plant anything in the soil part?

 

[schoozoo]

Quick question that I haven't come across the answer to in all of the reading that I've done. My salamander appears to be breathing fairly hard - the lower part of the throat moves a fair amount, and its whole head bobs up and down. I don't think that its stress as it does it if the room has a class in it or not, and if its in its cave, under the soil or sitting in its water dish.
My room is on the cooler side, and its tank is by the window.
Any guesses why? Is this something that I should be concerned about, or is it just how they are?

 

[jasper408]

Does it look anything like this? Animal Attack! "Deadly" Tiger Salamander on the Hunt - YouTube

If so, it's perfectly fine.

 

[daedae]

I'd stay away for dried sphagnum moss, it can cause impaction if eaten. You might want to place a layer of rocks or clay balls on the bottom of the tank with a fine mesh on top, for drainage. This will help the substrate stay dry and not soggy.

 

[Jan]

Some throat movement is normal. I would not keep the enclosure next to a window if there is exposure to direct sunlight.

 

[schoozoo]

Thanks jasper - yes it looks like that.

I am slowing taking the dried moss out and replacing it with the "plantation soil" from exo terra. I didn't do it all at once as I didn't want to stress the salamander out too much all at once. I think that I now have 90% of the moss out. I am feeding by hand to make sure that it doesn't eat the moss.

There is no direct sunlight that comes in the window - I put the tank there for a couple of resaons (I thought that it would be cooler and its where it naturally fit several other tanks are lining the other walls of my classroom)

I should have its new tank ready by the end of the week. :happy:

 

[schoozoo]

I have the rock wall almost finished, the next step is to fill the holes with the great stuff pond. Hopefully I will have between 4 and 6 inches of substrate for him to dig through. I built the wall with "steps" so that it should be easier for him to climb out of the water should he go all the way in, or that he can only partly go into the water. I'm going to put a piece of wood in also that he can climb up and down on. (I have some poplar that I'm going to use). In the wild around here there are several small streams that go into rocky ponds. That's what I'm trying to create for him.

I've also decided that to make sure my substrate doesn't become water logged I'm going to silicon in a piece of plexi just behind the rocks. I found a small canister filter that will power the small stream (I'll build that this evening with the great stuff pond). I'll hide the intake on the bottom under some rocks.

Yesterday the salamander spent a large part of our lunch break, and afternoon wandering around his small tank, digging tunnels and then reappearing in a different spot.