Various newt questions!

[janice]

we've had our california newt for nine days. at first he wouldn't eat and i was scared.

first i chose a different water conditioner and that helped - now he stays in the water a lot, before he was on his rock a lot. then i tried a different newt food, nada. finally i gave him a little bit of bloodworm and success! what a relief.

i have a few questions...

1. you're supposed to scoop out the uneaten food but those worms are so teeny. will it hurt that they are in there?
2. are bloodworms OK to feed every day. he won't touch anything else.
3. no matter how hard i try the water stays at 20-22. this place is always warm and i have no clue how to get the water to stay cooler.
4. there's a lot of discrepancy with HOW OFTEN to feed the newt. The pet store says 2-3 times a day. i've read 2-3 times a week. this is so confusing.

thank you so much!

 

[brandon]

http://www.caudata.org/cc/species/Taricha/T_torosa.shtml hope this helps, if not there are many helpful care sheets on the site

(Message edited by cloneguy on May 04, 2005)

 

[janice]

Thanks. I have now looked through but am still confused on some issues. Hope I get some other answers.

 

[jennifer]

Hi Janice. Did you also read the FAQ on that site? This will help with some of your questions. Regarding the leftover bloodworms, yes, it is VERY important to get them all out of the tank after feeding. It is ESPECIALLY important because you have a new tank; things can go foul quickly. You should also be doing frequent partial water changes. Try using a turkey baster to get out the bloodworms; tricky at first, but you'll get good at it after a while. Bloodworms are OK to feed regularly. Try earthworms too. Once per day is more than enough feedings. After the newt gets established, every few days will be fine.

 

[janice]

Thanks, Jennifer. I have read all the FAQ on this site and on others too. Also read through the messages. I am a bit nervous now cos those worms are everywhere and I can't even see them. I don't want to keep having to change the water. I also now see from reading that they sold me a way too small tank. It's only 2.75 gal. He's only a small taricha but I assume this is way too small...? I will buy the baster today but I'm not optimistic. It's not just skill -- it's my eyesight. Tiny transparent worms in amongst gravel -- WHAT???

More advice definitely gratefully accepted!

 

[joan]

Janice, I would DEFINATELY get a bigger tank. I have a 20gal. long for my Taricha. In the winter, they'll probably go terrestrial (mine did, anyway).

What kind of substrate do you have? I don't use any substrate in my tank. I just use lots of (silk) plants.

Definately try earthworms as food. Not only are they eaten in one bite (no leftovers!), but they're extremely healthy and can be used as a staple for feeding.

The turkey baster was actually invented for newt-keepers, in my opinion. You'll get good with it. If there are a lot of worms you can't see, take the newt out and put it in a secure location and take all the gravel out and clean it, to be sure you remove all the worms. Then get a bigger tank, and have a happy Taricha!

 

[benjamin]

Of course there will always be scraps of bloodworms left over. Here are some ways to make it less of a problem then it is:

1. In a 2.75 this can be a very serious problem, in a large tank it's not as bad.

2. Getting a filter with a fountain attachment will cause more evaporation, cooling the tank in addition to aiding the in the biological processing of the left overs which you can't get.

3. Feed him on a plate or hand feed him so left overs don't sink, or if live have a hard time digging into any substrate or under any objects.

4. Larger food items like earthworms are easier to remove if not eaten.

5. Plants help the biological processing of waste food by taking up nutrients and preventing algae growth. They also oxidize the water.

6. Get test kits to closely moniter your water PH, ammonia, Nitrites, and Nitrates closely to see how well you're doing at keeping the optimum levels.

hope that helps.

 

[jennifer]

Until the tank is established, I'd say get rid of the gravel. It just makes cleaning up bloodworms a nightmare, as you have seen! At petsmart, I can buy a 10-gallon tank and screen lid about $17, that's what I'd recommend for size. You could keep a little bit of gravel/pebbles on one side of the tank, and leave the other side bare for feeding.

 

[janice]

Thanks, everyone! The newt is pretty tiny, tip to tail not a lot longer than my space bar plus the Alt key (!!!!) so I got a 5gal tank on a specialty pet place recommendation. They do a trade-up when your newt grows so that's a great deal. I'm going to do as you say and leave one side of the tank bare and the other with gravel since there's a rock that needs some anchoring. I'm just conditioning some water and then will do the big transfer this afternoon. Learning as I go along and with your help.

I'll have to post a picture.