Terrarium size for mandarin salamander

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cat_lady

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Shonagh
I have a single mandarin sal (Abe) and was wondering what are the minimum and maximum sizes necessary for his housing?
 
Hi Shonagh, an adult T.shanjing will grow to around 15-17cm. As a minimum you want a container 45 x 25cm or equivalent. I’m not sure there is a maximum…. something approaching the size of the Yunnan province perhaps :D?

You can provide hides and tank decorations to make a smaller enclosure seem more interesting and newt friendly. You want to aim for the maximum amount of usable space. Bare ground is something most newts will want to avoid and they are not renowned for exercising.
 
Sorry, I've only just read this!! The floor space I have ideally is 11 x 14 x unlimited inches. We recently acquired a young cat, who keeps sitting on Abes tank. He's very bloated at the moment and I'm not 100% sure but think it could be stress.

He's eaten recently and his tank has water in for him and get sprayed regularly so I can't think of any other reason really.
 
I have a tank like this - is this suitable for Abe?
 

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No reason it cant be with appropriate furnishing, what size is it?
It looks very much like the cheap aquarium/vivariums available around here which I use from time to time. Two pieces of advice, the top isnt secure enough on its own to keep some species in(I can tell you from experiece climbing frogs, pacmans and Anoles can get out, though I wouldnt think it a problem with a small newt) and terrestial live foods will escape(crickets, flys, ive even had earth worms crawl up the sie of the tank and out the top). I tape a fine mesh(metal or several layers of fabric) on to the inside of the lid to prevent it and duct tape/weight down the whole lid with species that can force their way out.
 
Ummm.....will measure and get back to you. With regards to the appropriate furnishings I figured I'd try and get the stuff in the tank he's in now in there!
 
cat_lady said:
We recently acquired a young cat, who keeps sitting on Abes tank. He's very bloated at the moment and I'm not 100% sure but think it could be stress.
Click to expand...

I am not sure what you mean with "bloated", could you post a picture? The newt might be obese (depending on the amount of food it gets) and it could have bloat (what is an illness) - but this won't come from stress I think.
On the other hand - a cat climbing on top of its tank might very well pose a big amount of stress to the newt, you should try to keep the cat away from the tank and provide him several hideaways.
 
The tank I have is 11 litres.

We do try and keep Shortie away, Daniel - she waits until we're out of the room. And it's not that she's interested in Abe, you understand. She likes where his tank is.

He doesn't have bloat as his throat is still puffing out. If he had bloat that wouldn't be happening as far as I'm aware. It's a possiblity he's constipated but I have no idea how to treat constipation. He's fed a few times a week, but it's usually a mealworm or an earthworm, and he sometimes refuses so I don't think he's obese.
 
If I am using the tank I've put a picture up of I'd like to make some levels for it. But I'm not sure how - and don't have a lot of money. Any tips?
 
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