Urgent! Feeding Terrestrial FB newt?

[micstarz]

Hi, I need help!
I'm going on vacation in two days and my two Cynops Orientalis have decided to become terrestrial. I was going to leave them in water with lots of blackworms but since they have become terrestrial (since last friday) I have switched their setup to 2 parts land 1 part water. The water quality is great, and temperatures are fine. I am just bummed about what to feed them because they stopped taking blackworms (which they gobbled heartily before)

Earthworms are not an option, and neither are crickets. Are small mealworms even feasible? I am not allowed to culture any terrestrial foods at home. Please keep in mind my newts are only 5-6 cm long so they need some really small food.

1. What can I try to get them to eat?
2. What shall I do when I go on vacation? (They are already very thin)

 

[Jennewt]

Set up a shallow dish with pebbles, water, and a few blackworms. It's very important to only put in a few blackworms, because if you put in too many, they die and rot in such a small container. Having pebbles will give the worms something to curl around, so they won't climb out. It is also helpful to put a partial cover over the dish; this allows the newts to go inside and feel "secure" (hide) while they are in the vicinity with their food.

When you are there (not on vacation), I would recommend trying to teach the morphs to hand-feed using a tweezers or toothpick. You may be able to get them to eat frozen bloodworms this way.

 

[micstarz]

Thanks for the reply! I'm going to try the blackworms in a dish now.