Question: New Firebelly Newt Questions!!

[Sway]

Hey all! I just bought a firebelly newt about 3 days ago and set up a new tank. I dechlorinated the water and made sure gravel was rinsed well as well as decorations. He seemed pretty good right away and has been eating some frozen bloodworms already..he's pretty active and moves around quite a bit from the land area to the water area.
I noticed yesterday morning the water was a little bit cloudy..like you really wouldn't notice if you didnt look straight through to the other side of the tank. This is nothing to be worried about correct? There is a small internal air pump filter in the tank and I have not left any food/worms in the tank whatsoever..I have been feeding him with tweezers which seems to be working well.

Now..this morning I woke up..water looks the same as the day before..but he has a slight..(really slight) clearish filmyness on his head. Just his head..I am not sure if this is just a little bit of his skin shedding or something? He doesn't seem sick or anything but I will take a look tonight when I get home to see if its still there.

Does any of this seem like a problem? Or just normal with a new tank and setup? Again he seems healthy.

Thanks!

 

[froggy]

If you have just set up your tank, it will need frequent water changes to keep the water quality good. As the tank establishes, bacterial colonies will grow that will convert toxic ammonia and nitrites into nitrates, which are less toxic and can be used by plants. This page has all the information you need about cycling new aquaria:

Caudata Culture Articles - Cycling

The newt may be shedding, but keep an eye on it as Cynops/Hypselotriton orientalis (I assume that is the species you mean) often develop skin ulcers if they are wild-caught.
Make sure the water quality stays good (see the above link) and temperatures are under 20 C (not sure what that is in F).

If temperatures are an issue (now or in the summer), this page has some solutions:

Caudata Culture Articles - Cooling

If you haven't seen it, there is a very good casresheet for H. orientalis here:

Caudata Culture Species Entry - Cynops orientalis - Chinese firebelly

Good luck!

 

[dipsydoodle]

The cloudy appearance in your water will be a bacterial bloom; you can get rid of it with water changes but it might take a couple of weeks to go.

Do you have a filter in the tank?

 

[Sway]

Hey! Thanks for the replies!

Since my first post the filmyness on his head has disapeared..I believe it was just some skin shedding or something. I have been feeding him about 4-6 small (frozen) little blood worms every day because when I got him he was really really skinny and I could see his little bones near his tail. I have had him for almost a week now and he looks a little more filled out in his stomach area which I think is good. (Not fat but not wasting away like before) He also has no issues accepting food (even from the first day I got him) he would eat it right away. But I guess I should start feeding him every other day soon??
Since then I also did a small water change. The water is still slightly cloudy but really not that bad..hardly noticeable.
He is starting to "go to the bathroom" (haha) has about 2 times that I can see in the tank so I will do a larger water change probably tomorrow or Saturday.
I do not yet have a thermometer, (I am getting one today) but his water should be room temp which I have heard is ok for Firebelly Newts. (BTW he is a Chinese Firebelly Newt) If I see its higher than it should I will cool it down.

And yes I do have a filter in the tank it is a internal (underwater) filter with an air pump attached. The bubbles are on very low.

Thanks all for your help and if I have any more questions I will let you know!