Question: My Taricha granulosa is ...squiggly/ zig-zaggy?

[pony]

The title explains absolutely nothing, but a picture or two might help!

I have one streamlined newt that resembles pictures of Taricha granulosa I've seen online, and then I have his friend, who is crinkly, not a good swimmer, and has trouble moving in general... I tried looking on the internet for information on his "condition" but couldn't find any so I thought I'd post in the forum (it's my first time)!

The crinkled one seems to do okay getting around the tank by himself, but I've caught the other newt giving him a boost into the plants more than once. These newts came from a lake in Oregon that they live in year round. My friends caught them and didn't end up wanting them, so I read up on newts, took them in, overhauled their tank, and am trying to give them a good life. They don't have gravel in their tank anymore, I took these pictures as soon as they came into my care, and the people who caught them put them in a gravel and sand tank. They now have a sand only bottom and lots of plants with floating wood pieces so they can get out of the water. They seem really happy in a deep tank like the lake they came from, and spend very little time out of the water!

So, has anyone seen a crooked newt like this one before?

[Neonetic]

Reminds me of MBD in reptiles.

Also reminds me of genetic defects in wild newly morphed frogs, causes unknown.

Let the more experienced others assist you with this.

[Brian M]

The cause of its deformities could be anything from pollution, nematodes attacking the egg as it developed to increased harmful ultra violet rays. Most likely it won't live a long life though that should be no reason not to give it a fighting chance. As for the question of seeing something like like that before the answer is yes. I caught an eastern newt as a kid with serious spinal deformities she lived for a couple of years in a small tank setup only for her. It would be best to keep her alone in a tank were there isn't any competition from other cage mates for food and hides. Good luck she's ("it's") definetly a special newt.