Salt bath advice

[mandy]

I want to give the newt a salt bath, I saw on the site it said "5 grams/liter".. What would be a good way to measure grams? I don't want to do it wrong... Also, if you suspect a skin problem, does it hurt any to give it a salt bath? Can they harm the newt at all? I'm going to use Kosher salt. Thanks..

 

[rose]

Is this the same newt that crawled out of its tank (or am I totally thinking of the wrong scenario)? If so, I would just let the newt chill in its tank for awhile. Mine have always recovered with just a little peace and quiet. Does it actually have sores or fuzzy spots on it?

 

[mandy]

Hi, no thats somebody else's newt

I was the one who had the Paddletail with the FBT's. Mine had this greyish/clear "film" coming off of it, it wasnt really fuzzy, it looked more like a "flag" when he was swimming. But it's gone suddenly...He also has these tiny things on him, they look exactly like grains of sand, except they are kinda white/yellowish in color and I'm thinking they are parasites...He moved his hind leg toward them, almost to "scratch" them like a dog would... He's been very active the last two days, more than ever (I've had him 8 days) so he seems really healthy. I was just thinking a salt bath would get these things off him. Thanks!-Mandy

 

[mandy]

There he is eating some bloodworms

http://us.f2.yahoofs.com/users/4050ca1f_f89c/8d99/__sr_/7aa3.jpg?phIsYeBBqgYyb0Bw

 

[rose]

Sorry about the mix-up

I don't know too much about giving newts salt-dips, although I've done it with fish before. They do really help with ecto-parasites on fish, but you usually have to be really careful to make sure that all of the other water parameters (pH, temperature, even hardness) are identical to the tank's water. Otherwise, the stress can make things worse. Is it perhaps safer to slowly increase the salt concentration in a hospital tank instead of creating one bath at full strength?

 

[kaysie]

mandy, I've never kept paddletails, but he could be shedding, this looks like they're wrapped in plastic wrap, and they usually eat it afterward.

Rose, usually salt baths are just for a few minutes. Just a dip.

And Mandy, make sure the salt you use is non-iodated, but I think sea salt works well. A salt bath can only 'hurt' if it's really strong and you leave it in for a long time. To measure grams, you'll need a scale or a balance. you can also find an ounces-to-grams converter online. If you type in the number of grams you want and 'ounces converter' into google, it will spit the number out for you.

 

[edward]

The duration of the salt bath depends on the severity of the issue. I am aware of amphibians (including caudates) being kept in hypertonic salt solutions of as high as 15 ppt as part of a theraputic regimen for weeks. I have personally kept caudates in hypertonic amphibian ringers solutions for more than 5 days.
Depending on the amphibian matching temperature may be the only part of the treatment required as long as the pHs are not too extreme. Nongilled amphibians I would not be that worried about the pH.


Ed