Its All Over

Sammy is dead.

I am very disappointed that no one here was able to help me or had been through a similar situation. How does death usually come to a 4 yr old tiger salamander? Don't they sometimes lose all of their color? And stop eating? And become lethargic? There were no other symptoms, no fungus, bloat or anything matching the pictures at Caudata Culture.

I posted three times asking for help. I only got two responses; Jason recommended a salt bath and Bruce suggested the vet.

Oh, well. He had four years that he wouldn't have had if I'd left him in the street to become road kill.

R.I.P. Little Sammy. I will miss your cute, smiley face.

If someone has nothing useful to add, they won't. People didn't respond not because they were callous and insensitive, but because they didn't know how to help.

Did you take Sammy to the vet? Did they do any cultures? Fecals?

sammy4tbts said:

I posted three times asking for help. I only got two responses; Jason recommended a salt bath and Bruce suggested the vet.

Click to expand...

Yes, I recall reading all three. I had nothing further to add, so did not.
This thread reads like a very sour 'thanks for nothing', which is uncalled for. We do our best to offer advice where we can, but ultimatley its down to the owner.

I appreciate the help I've received over the past few months about tiger behavior and nutrition. I'm just disappointed that there were no answers for this situation.

Perhaps I expected more empathy because I'm that kind of person. If I'd read a plea for help and didn't have the answer, I'd might have told someone that I was sorry for their situation and wished them the best. If someone posts about the loss of their animal, I'd probably write a brief "sorry for your loss."

But I realize everyone is different. I just feel sad. I have enjoyed coming here just to read the different topics and look at the pictures. If I had a digital camera, I'd have posted one and maybe someone else would recognize Sammy's problem.

Thank you.

Plan on buying a camera cause that can really help people to diagnose something. I know nothing of Tigers so couldnt help. Good luck with future pets! Dont give up on em.

I’m sorry to hear about Sammy especially after all the effort trying to get him to eat worms. He must have had something nasty to deteriorate so quickly. I doubt anything we could have suggested would have changed the outcome. Often symptoms only become apparent to the keeper when the illness is in advanced stages; by which time it can be too late to treat. What you describe; colour change, lethargy, dehydration are all common signs of any number of illnesses and to advise a specific treatment based on this is impossible. Normally we would suggest a spell in a clinical set-up to rule out the chance that something is wrong with it’s enclosure and provide a stress free environment for recovery. This isn’t going to fix something like a massive infection or organ failure but it works occasionally. In Sammy’s case I doubt this would have helped. Only a vet could have accurately diagnosed the illness.

Sorry for you loss.
Mark

Thanks everybody.

The outward signs of Sammy's condition did become obvious very quickly. He looked fine and ate some crickets then burrowed for a couple days. When he came back out, he was totally different. It all happened so fast. I didn't know what to do except come here for help. I'm wondering if his problem could have started over the Christmas holiday when I was away and had a bad petsitter. I posted about the situation in early January. I don't think she fed him and she totally flooded the tank. When I came home I saw him once when I was changing part of the tank to get it dried out and then he burrowed for an extremely long time and I feared he was dead then. Could whatever happened to him have taken up to four months to kill him?

Finding Sammy was just a fluke and I enjoyed him for about four years, but I'll probably stick with furry dogs & cats from now on.

I have a huge, 7.5 pound jar of Fluker's Calcium Fortified Cricket Quencher (gelled water) 3/4 full and a 6 pound jar of Fluker's Original Cricket Feed about 1/2 full. Is anyone interested it this stuff? If not, any suggestions as to what to do with it? OH, I also have a 12 oz. jar of Fluker's Orange Cube Complete Cricket Diet (water, food, vitamins), and a 2 oz. jar of Fluker's Dietary Supplement Repta-Calcium powder (with D3).

Luckily, Fluker's is willing to take back some unopened items, 4 Qts.Repta-Bark substrate, 1 block coco-fiber, 8 qts. Spanish Moss, 8 qts All Natural Green Moss.

Please contact me if anyone is interested in these items. Otherwise, thanks again for the help and especially for the condolences. It means a lot that people care.

I'm sorry to hear about Sammy. Diagnosing an illness in amphibians can be very difficult. Even a vet may have troubles getting conclusive answers in time to treat the animal. As Mark mentioned, visible symptoms may only appear late into the illness. Sometimes there is not a lot we can do.

As for your supplies, if you don't want to keep amphibians anymore you can try putting them up in our for sale forums. Another option is to donate them to a local reptile and amphibian rescue group in Sammy's memory.

Thanks Abraham, I didn't know there was a "for sale" area. There is no rescue group in rural northern New Mexico. No knowledgeable vet. No store other than Walmart. I need to move!!!