Illness/Sickness: Help!! Black spots what is it?

I have only had my Tiger Salamander for about a month and this is my first pet like this. I have noticed some black spots on the front of his face what could this be? I have looked up infections and I could not find anything. The bumps are a little raised and I think he might be developing more . A picture of the spots is attached

It looks like dirty, dark muddy water to me. It's not the best idea to try and wipe it just in case but I really wouldn't what else to do.
Sorry.

I have not experienced anything like this with my tigers. My only experience with a 'black spot' was a small black cyst (the size of the head of a straight pin) on a tiger's tail. It was slightly raised. It was removed by a vet, and diagnosed as benign.

Here are some thoughts, although I am not a vet. This might be a bacterial dermatitis - bacterial skin infections in amphibians can manifest as brown to black spots on the animal. In that you indicate that the spots are progressing, this could be suggestive of an infection. If this is the case, if left untreated, it could spread to a generalized infection. I would recommend having the animal seen by a vet that has experience in treating amphibians. If you need help with this, pm me with your location and I can send you listings of potential vets in your area.

Is, or has the animal been exposed to UV light or direct sunlight? I'm reaching here, but over production of melanin could potentially result from severe exposure. Of course, either would be inappropriate for the animal.

If you have other tigers in the same enclosure, I would quarrantine this one. I would also maintain the sal in a hospital environment so that it can be monitored. White paper towels moistened with dechlorinated or spring water with some crumpled moistened paper towels as hides will work. Keep it in a cool, dark environment. I would also disinfect its current enclosure to be on the safe side and not re-introduce it to this environment until the problem has been resolved or at least until diagnosed...then follow vet recommendations.

Please let us know outcomes.

Thank you for your response. We took him to the vet and she said that it is a bacterial infection which requires one 30 minute soak with 1/2 tsp of salt 1 liter of water and a 1/4 of a medicine tablet for two weeks. During the soak I have to scrub the lesions with a Q-tip and finally apply a silvadine ointment on the lesions. Its alot of work, but it is worth it. She said that she does not think it is contagious but we should quarantine the other salamander from his friend. I hope this works!

For my tank set up I have a small UVB light on a few hours a day, should I stop using that light and just go to a regular bulb? I feel that the room in which the tank is set up does not get a sufficient amount of light? Let me know what you think. THanks again!

A light won't be needed unless you have plants growing. Tigers are used to living in animal burrows so they are perfectly at home in dim light conditions.

misky99 said:

Thank you for your response. We took him to the vet and she said that it is a bacterial infection which requires one 30 minute soak with 1/2 tsp of salt 1 liter of water and a 1/4 of a medicine tablet for two weeks. During the soak I have to scrub the lesions with a Q-tip and finally apply a silvadine ointment on the lesions. Its alot of work, but it is worth it. She said that she does not think it is contagious but we should quarantine the other salamander from his friend. I hope this works!

For my tank set up I have a small UVB light on a few hours a day, should I stop using that light and just go to a regular bulb? I feel that the room in which the tank is set up does not get a sufficient amount of light? Let me know what you think. THanks again!

Click to expand...

This is great news and sounds like a well-targeted plan. Was a pathogen identified? What drug is in the tablet and what is the strength of the drug? I ask this because when we have successes (or failures for that matter), it helps considerably knowing what produced the outcome. There is still alot of unknowns when it comes to caudate medicine. Silvadene is a broad-spectrum antimicrobial (has activity against many types of bacteria and some species of fungus) and is often used in caudates without much apparent toxicity.

Regarding the light, as Justin said, there is no need for either type of light. Tigers are by nature nocturnal and spend their time in burrows. And if heat is generated by the light, that is generally not good as tigers should be maintained below 72F - slightly cooler temps are optimal. There is the ongoing discussion about UV light and the necessity for vitD for for proper calcium metabolism to prevent metabolic bone disease.....etc....but adequate dietary intake is key. What do you feed?

Your tiger is beautifully colored. I agree that although alot of work, treatment is well worth the time and patience it requires.

If you have the ability and/or willingness - would you mind posting more pictures as the treatment progresses? This could be very helpful to the forum community.

Best of luck and thanks for the follow-up.

There was no specific pathogen identified (atleast that I remember) and the drug that we were prescribed was Sulfatrim 8.00 T, I haveto use a 1/4 of the tablet and dissolve it into the water. This is day four of the treatment and I do not see much of an improvement, and a possible spread of the bacteria. However, it is still early in the treatment and I am still hopeful.

Thank you for your support and I will be sure to post pictures of what the progression of this treatment.

This is day 4 of treatment, as you see it looks like the bacteria is getting worse, more spots on the head from the first picture, and it seems to be spreading rather quickly on his body. I have to call vet tommrow when she is in to see what I shall do. The white stuff you see on the pictures is the silvadine.

My thought are (1) maybe it's fungal, rather than bacterial or (2) maybe it's melanoma. I've never seen anything like it.

I agree with the others that the UVB light is unnecessary. You should probably stop using it, just in case it is causing or making the problem worse.

Perhaps you're already doing this, but you may want to keep him at a low temperature. This may slow down the growth of the bacteria or fungus. You may want to avoid extreme fluctuations in air temperature (like in and out of the fridge every hour). Perhaps a cooler room or in a well-protected and secured area outside if you don't live in a place that is in danger of freezing at the moment in the winter. Best of luck

Take a look at this thread:
www.caudata.org/forum/showthread.php?t=55589&highlight=betadine

I have seen it before.
Salt baths seem to make this condition worse I noticed.

Breakthrough!!

On day 5 before treatment it was not looking to good, and was debating on stoping the treatment because it did not lokg like it was working to well. I go in to take a look and I find my Tiger in the water and his face starting to clear up!! I am hoping this is a sign for things to come for the rest of his body, I will keep you posted with pictures and information.

:happy::happy:

Great news. His face looks markedly improved.

On the sulfatrim tablet strength - I've not seen an 8.00 - it is usually stated as 5/25, 80/400, 160/800, etc. Are there any other numbers on the prescription container? Just trying to seek a little more information if there is some:happy:.

Thanks so much for the follow-up and pictures on various days of treatment.

WOW, what a difference a day makes. Did you happen to change anything different overnight, i.e was it colder, warmer, wetter, well you get the idea. Thank you for keeping us in the loop and updated, it's really appreciated.

Later,
Justin

Thank you again for all your support, on the sulfatrim bottle it says:

smp tmp 480 tablets(Sulfatrim 8.00 T) 1/4 tablet in 1L dechlorinated .

I dont think I did anything very different, all I did was made sure that was no direct light on the salamander at all, I tried to keep it as cool as possible within a safe manner. Temp was prolly around 60 in the tank.
I did another treatment today and all spots are gone all over the body. He seemed to have shed the bad skin and is looking great. I am going to keep going with the treatment as to doctors orders for another week just incase. I will be sure to post more pictures of his body and how it looks now.
I just need to bulk him up because he seems to have lost some weight due to this whole ordeal. Any suggestions?

Waxworms will help him bulk up. Just be careful once he gets the wieght back because they are loaded in fat and will make him obese in no time.

wow! your right he is looking better.
cole is lucky to have such great parents
see you guys soon enough!

I would go further than everyone else and say that a UV light is a very bad thing. It goes to show the naivity of so-called experts and authors who write books and caresheets saying a UV light should be used with amphibians. For most, if not all salamanders, this is rubbish and likely dangerous, coming from the stupid association people give amphibians with reptiles.

I would not be surprised if the UV light were to blame for this condition. I imagine he spends most of his time hiding when the light is on. In that case he's probably showing the tip of his head most of the time, keeping an eye out for food. So the head would be exposed to the light most. Many amphibians that are active during the day have special excretions that act like a kind of sun block to combat UV rays. Tigers, being mostly nocturnal and rarely active on the surface during the day, would rarely encounter harsh UV light. So in short, get rid of that light. He won't miss it and I have no doubt he will be healthier for the loss of it.

Thank you, I got rid of the light, and I sometimes use a small 60w bulb, not bright, but just enough.
This is a picture of day 6 of treatment, as you see all the spots are now gone and he is looking good, this will probably be my last post on this topic unless something else happens, thanks again for all of your support and I hope this process will help future owners.

The resolution in 6 days is impressive. Thanks for the information on the drug - I would guess that what you have is the 80/400 for 480mg total trimethoprim sulfa, and that you were dispensed 8 tablets....perhaps of no interest to most on the forum - but I appreciate the info.

If the 60 watt bulb is in any close proximity to his viv....I would really consider not using it for the reasons stated above.

Thanks so much for providing the pictures and information....and please do not be a stranger to the forum should this be your last post on this topic.