Tiger salamander question again

L

leanne

Guest
Ok, I have tigers now, and they don't want to eat earthworms or nightcrawlers, even the small ones. But they will eat crickets like there's no tomorrow-----I buy them from the store because they are not easy to find and coat them with vitamins, but this is very expensive compared to just digging some worms, and less nutritious.

Any advice on how to get them to eat worms? I dangle it in front of one of their faces, that doesn't work, I put it in front of them and let them crawl around, and the salamander will look at it for awhile and then ignore it....but put a cricket in there and ZAP! He's gone! Has anyone else had this experience?
 
Um, you might want to stop feeding them crickets and offer them worms. I believe I read this on Caudata Central. If they're hungry enough, they'll start to eat the worms. However, if you get worried or find them losing weight and not acting normal, I say get used to the crickets.
 
My Tiger's will no go anywhere near earthworms, they literally turn their noses up at them, yet they will eat almost anything else (waxworms, mealworms, crickets, moths).
if you are worried about cost try leaving a light on and window open, you'll get plenty of different insects to feed them for free.
(as long as you don't live close to anywhere using pesticides)
 
They'll probably love boodworms or blackworms. I just switched to frozen bloodworms myself. My newts go nuts over them, and it's easier on me. Plus, each frozen cube has been fortified with vitamins. Experiment with all sorts of things. Eventually, you'll find something they love and is easier and cheaper for you to get. And don't worry about their health, they'll get plenty of nutrition even out of crickets.
 
Riccilily,
Do your newts eat the frozen bloodworms as soon as they hit the water? I bought some salamander pellets but they are hardly in the water and I was afraid that they wouldn't eat them anyway, since they aren't moving---can you leave non-moving food out and the salamander will eat it?
Thanks for the encouragement, I will keep experimenting!
 
At first my newts (c.O.) didn't eat them right away. But as they get used to what and when I feed them, they start eating faster and faster.

Now as soon as I take the lid of and the frozen larves hit the water, they start searching for them. Also I allways drop them at the same place, so they know where to look.

My pleuros (wich I have so much longer allready) would bite my hand off allready, they just can't get them fast enough ;)

One tip though: don't keep the remains off frozen larves to long in your tank. You'll get nasty bacteries. Once defrozen the larves decay rather fast.
 
Thanks, Nathan and Xixarro, it is definitely a learning adventure with these creatures! I am going to try some meal worms at the pet store and also try Nathan's suggestion of leaving the light on to attract wild insects as well. Too bad I don't have a digital camera, I would post photos of my 2 sallies, Fatboy and Horseshoe. Does anyone else have photos of their tigers?
 
Mine eat the worms as soon as they hit the water. they see the cube bobbing, and they go at it. Then they realize that it's frozen, and they wait till it sinks and thaws. You kind of have to coax them to eat, and make them realize that it's food. I really don't have a problem with it though, especially if they're really hungry. Pellets are a different story though. I have seen them eat them, and I think they prefer to wait until the pellets soften up. If they're hungry enough, they'll find the food by smelling it, and they'll eventually eat. Also, if you use pellets, make sure you put them in the same place all the time. One other thing: mine respond well to hand feeding. If you have the time, buy a long pair of tweezers with a rounded tip (or you can even use a toothpick), and put the food right up to their mouths. They'll sniff it, and if they approve, they'll take it from you. I like to use this time to kind of bond with my newts too. We both have fun at feeding time!
 
I found 3 tiger salamanders about 4 months ago. They have become a big part of my life and I theirs. Two of them are very friendly and active. The other one is easily spooked and will run into the glass to try and get away and swim frantically in the water to hide. After a while, he will calm down and let me handle him. He would always eat out of my hand and climb on the others and the glass when it was feeding time. Just recently, he won't come out of his hiding spot, he won't eat, and he moves very slow. Nobody seems to know anything about them and I have been searching the net all day for answers. Please help, I don't want to lose him and I am open for any suggestions.
 
Could be the weather...cooler temps would make them less active. Also how are you keeping them and how often are you feeding them? They only need food every third day...and should be housed on soil with perhaps a few hides and a water dish.

Let us know more about how you're housing them and maybe we can narrow down what it could be.
 
Rob,
Sadly, since that last post all the salamanders died except for one----they all had some sort of parasite(?) that was eating on their bellies, it was strange and horrible. So after I discovered this I changed my substrate from dirt in the yard to store-bought top soil (combination of 80% red sedge peat and 20% sand), mixed with cypress mulch----all combining to make up about 4" of burrowing substrate----and then, just to make sure, I heated it in the oven at 250 degrees for an hour to kill of any possible vermin. So Fatboy, the lone remaining salamander, is doing well. He burrows a lot but also enjoys coming out and taking a swim in his dish. I have been feeding him too much, sounds like, every day, so I have slowed down on that. Recently I have gotten him to eat worms dropped in his water dish, but he still isn't interested in mealworms.

Devynn, you have come to the right place with your question---there are very wise, kind, and experienced people here on this forum. I myself am still learning! Do a search under "tiger salamander" and see what comes up, and also post your question seperately to see if you get any advice. Don't give up on the little critter!
 
Newts and salamanders aren't really crazy about mealworms, so just try feeding them something else.
 
Actually Elisabeth, I disagree. Some of my animals, such as my old fire salamanders, were very big on mealworms/superworms. They preferred them to earthworms and crickets, but I think it was mostly because of their slow speed made it easier for them to eat. I worked on getting them to eat a variety, so by the end they would eat almost anything dangling in front of them.

I'm curious where you got that newts and salamanders aren't really crazy about mealworms? THey're not the greatest food for them, which is the main reason people suggest other foods, especially earthworms (which are very nutritionally complete).

Leanne: Yes, it's very easy to get a fat tiger salamander by feeding every day. All of mine are fairly large after every three day feedings. Nice part is if you keep them fed well that if you ever have to go away they can last a week or two without needing someone to come over and eat. Keep trying with earthworms, as those would be all he would need. I wouldn't worry about trying to get him to eat mealworms...earthworms is enough to keep the animals very healthy.
 
Rob, Mine too. Shanjings, this totally orange newt and one of my orientalis all refuse it. The other orientalis ate it but that's after starving for a few days and the mealworm was newly moulted. I forgot to crush the head though
errr.gif
. But all seems fine.
 
I agree that some animals may not be big on them, but to blanket it to cover all newts and salamanders was what I was commenting on. My shanjings would eat them...they weren't crazy about them like my fires were, but they ate them without prompting none the less.

Different animals, different tastes, but since mealworms are not the most nutritious things they're better to avoid anyways.

Also, as a side note, I never crush the heads of my mealworms when I feed them to any animal. Most of my salamanders are now eating strictly earthworm pieces fed on paper clip, with sometimes crickets thrown in or a random small butter/silk/horn worm thrown in, but when I used to offer mealworms I'd do it once a month or so without crushing the heads...same as with superworms. With reptiles it is for sure a myth about the eating through the stomach unless the animal is really sick. My dragon bites the worm and it breaks in two instantly. Stomach acid does the rest. I know salamanders do not have as powerful jaws, but their stomach acids should be just as potent, killing the worm quickly. Obviously I wouldn't feed them to sick animals, and I suggest they not be fed as part of a regular diet to even healthy animals.
 
Mealworms are still active even when crushed (as long as the head is not). Even when cut into 2, the part with the head will still survive for a while. The worrisome part is when the mealworm enters the mouth and starts to go down the gullet before entering the stomach. Here, it may be possible that the struggling mealworm may use it's powerful jaws to inflict damage before resigning to it's fate. The interior of the salamander shd be soft so i don't see how no damage is done when the mealworm goes in. Anyways, i hear too much mealworms cause compaction in caudates due to the chitin in their cuticle and like Rob said, they're not nutritious enough.
 
Unless you're feeding an animal that is very small mealworms or a sick animal that should never play a problem.

Chitin can also cause compaction in reptiles ir mealworms/superworms are fed as a large part of the diet.
 
Hrmmm... I disagree Rob (nothing personal ok?
smile6.gif
) I feel no matter how big the animal is, as long as the gullet and mouth area are soft, significant damage could be done. That's the reason why Fear Factor contestants are always reminded to properly chew up the live grubs they're eating before swallowing em.
 
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