Treatment of Infected Wounds in Newts

By Heather Björnebo

Probably the most common ailment for newts is a sore of some type. Since practically all newts in stores come from the wild and have to endure horrible conditions to get here, a large percentage not only become ill in transit, but many end up dead before arrival. Many times an unwary individual will purchase a newt without completely inspecting it for wounds or "stress sores" and find themselves the owner of a not-so-happy newt. Other times they find a newt that appears healthy but later will develop problems due to the poor conditions it previously experienced. Then there are the cases of injury or poor housing conditions in the captive environment.

Causes of illness. The first thing anyone with a sick newt should do is assess WHY they became ill. Without determining a cause, no amount of medication will help in the long-run. The first thing to do is always to double check that you are caring for the newt correctly. Don’t just go to a pet store and ask, do your research, read books and caresheets, ask around. One common problem is a temperature that is too warm. Some species of newts are not very temperature tolerant. Other times it may be the entire setup; keeping a terrestrial animal aquatic will always lead to problems. Poor water quality can also lead to illness. Inappropriate tankmates can cause injury or introduce diseases. Once you are sure you have everything right, start looking at treatment.

Quarantine. As far as treatment is concerned, there are several options. Some use antibiotics, some not. To determine the best for your needs, you first need to analyze the situation. The cause, as well as the newts current condition, can effect the way you treat them. One should ALWAYS use a quarantine setup for an ill newt if more than one newt is in the tank. Many newt diseases are contagious. Also, isolating the newt will provide him with a more relaxing environment. Always place the quarantine in a cool, dark place that will help him be more relaxed. In most cases, the quarantine should be a very simplified version of his regular cage.

Uninfected wounds. For brand new, uninfected fighting injuries (less than a day old) a simple topical ointment may be sufficient. A prescription medication for dogs called Bactoderm, distributed by Pfizer, can be obtained from a veterinarian. It costs around US$20.00. This ointment is fairly successful in treating mild cases of infection as well, so if you want to be positive infection won’t happen this may be for you. You may instead use over the counter ointments such as Neosporin or other triple antibiotic ointments. [NOTE: avoid ointments containing pain killers. Benzocaine is a deadly toxin to newts.]

Infected wounds. How do you know if your animal's limb is infected? It’s best to presume it is if it’s been longer then a day since it happened or if no fight occurred and there is a sore. If the wound grows, then it’s a more advanced infection, especially if parts of the limb start disappearing, swelling, or becoming fuzzy. If the wound is infected, more drastic measures are needed. There are two options at this point: additional antibiotics or dirt quarantine.

Antibiotics. The first option is to apply antibiotics to the entire animal. The antibiotic will usually be a fish medication added to the quarantine water, usually kanamycin, tetracycline, Maracyn, Maracyn 2, or nitrofurazone. Follow the directions on the container. Replace the water daily if it becomes discolored. You can also use prescription medications such as Baytril. Prescribed antibiotics can be both stronger and more dangerous. You may also wish to apply a topical antibiotic or antiseptic (see below).

Limitations of antibiotics. This first treatment option has many problems. For instance, if your animal is terrestrial, it won’t do much good to put antibiotics in the water. Newts such as mandarins (Tylototriton shanjing) never use their water so it would be a waste of time. Sometimes the only option is to super concentrate the antibiotics and give the newt a soak 15 minutes a day. Nevertheless, just the act of soaking a hydrophobic newt in water where it can’t escape can kill it. Again using mandarins as an example, they will often stress to the point of vomiting if the bathing method is used. Another major problem is that, although the common perception of antibiotics is that they are safe, they are not. Antibiotic means "against-life"; while an appropriate dose of antibiotics can be good, too much can be bad. The problem with newts is that it is hard to know how much is too much. If the antibiotics reach a toxic level, death comes quickly.

Dirt quarantine. The second method is a newer one, and perhaps a safer one. It is an attempt to help the newt use its own immune system, while gently weakening the infection. This method requires a special type of quarantine; we will call it a "dirt quarantine". This is set up by getting some plain old soil, possibly top soil (not potting soil) from a garden center or just soil form your back yard. Take the soil, make it moist but not muddy, like potting soil is fresh out of a bag. Then you smash it down into a small cage until it’s around 1 to 3 inches thick. For a container, use a medium or large plastic Kritter Keeper or a 12 by 6 inch plastic tub. If you use the tub, provide holes for ventilation. When keeping the soil moist, it is important to create a gradient so your newt can decide what moisture level it prefers. Do this by spraying water into only one corner; this way one side is very wet, and the other is more dry. Again, don’t allow it to become mud. You should also provide hiding places throughout the enclosure so it doesn't feel uncomfortable

The idea behind the "dirt quarantine" is to make an environment that the bacteria will dislike, since it is too dry for them, but not dry enough to cause harm to the newt. The concept is derived from the fact that ill newts often will move to land when they are ill. Problems with this are usually due to the type of animal. Animals that lose water quickly like paddletails, (Pachytriton sp.) won’t handle this very well. Terrestrial and semi-terrestrial animals will take to it quickly. Even some more aquatic animals such as ribbed newts, (Pleurodeles waltl), seem to heal well with this method. As far as success with this type of treatment, it appears that animals that can get better do, and usually faster than with the antibiotic method. It also appears less stressful.

Topical treatments. During dirt quarantine, you may also want to use a topical treatment. The following topical treatments have all been used on newts. Unfortunately, not enough information is available to say what works best.

• Bactoderm, as mentioned above for uninfected wounds.
• Neosporin or "triple antibiotic ointment" (without benzocaine), as mentioned above for uninfected wounds.
• Hydrogen peroxide. Dab infected area with a Q-tip soaked in 1.5% hydrogen peroxide (generally a 50:50 dilution of the solution sold in pharmacies). Rinse well with clean water. Do not apply to large areas of skin, as it does cause some damage to healthy tissues. [NOTE: Hydrogen peroxide is effective mainly on anaerobic bacteria. Thus is it more likely to be beneficial for deep wounds, not surface wounds or ulcers.]
• Rid Rot. Since Rid Rot is no longer in widely available, you can substitute Betadine, which is available in pharmacies. [NOTE: Use iodine based medications like Betadine and Rid Rot with caution and in small amounts. Betadine should be diluted before use. Iodine is highly toxic to amphibians. After application, be sure to dab the area dry and rinse with dechlorinated water. DO NOT bathe the animal in these chemicals.]
• Bactine (0.13% benzalconium chloride + lidocaine). See: USGS Guidelines for Handling Amphibians.
• Another method of cleaning is to use regular tap water containing chlorine, but only use your tap water if it is known to be relatively safe.

Conclusions. Whatever method is used, remember to correct the problem that caused the illness BEFORE returning your newt to his home. That way a relapse is far less likely. If the basic problem isn’t changed, the newt will likely relapse, and each successive time get worse until he dies. Also, always remember that no method is fool proof. Because each newt is an individual, each will react differently. It is always your call on what steps to take. That is why it is always important to play detective and figure out what caused the illness.

© 2001 Heather Björnebo
Last edited July 15, 2005