dying/sick newt?

To start, I have four newts. It is difficult to tell them apart except for one with a bit of a scar on his tail.

Lately I have noticed one of them swimming upside-down, kind of like a dying fish, but then he will right himself and just hang out. This has been going on for a few days, and is worrying me. Do newts do that when they're ill? I know youre not supposed ot handle them, but I needed to move him out of the way while I removed a dying bamboo stalk, he grasped my finger pretty well with his hind legs, though when I got him off of me he ended up upside down again,and did not try to right himself, so I flipped him back over.

Does this sound familiar to anyone?

Please help. I lost one last year, and thought we were doing well... if he is sick, or dying should I remove him into quarantine, or is it probably too late for that?

I thank you in advance, and willl thank you more later. Much appreciated!

~r

PS: I thought I should metion that they are Rough Skinned/ California/ Oregon newts.

It sounds like he might be having a problem with bloat, or the accumulation of air in the gut. I'm really not sure how to fix it, but I bet other members here have encountered something similar and could give you some advice.

That sounds like it could be it. I was feeding him today (I feed them all seperately) and I found him upside down. He does infact look bloated. I have removed him to a separate sick tank for now, just in case.

thank you!

Keep him in a separate tank, and keep the water very, very shallow so that he can stay upright without any effort. If it's just air in the gut, it may pass. I've never encountered this problem, except with larvae. What do you feed them?

Thank you. Yes I have quarantined him, given him a nice shallow small area to soak in, and a nice fresh dry place to lay. He was responsive when i checked on him, that's good.

I feed them frozen bloodworms.

~r

I just read an article on bloat from this web site. I now believe that it is that symptom, but I do not know the cause. He is shedding today, and i wonder if this is due to growth or the bloat. I will be monitoring him, and hopefully he will recover, but if not, can anyone recommend a good humane euthanization technique? I've read the article, but I am looking for advice from someone who has tried a method.

Thank you! = (

I posted this 6 days ago. My newt is in pretty much the same condition that he was in then. No changes. Any suggestions on what I should do??? How long do I leave him like this? He doesn't appear to be in pain, but does look uncomfortable. He has several shad skin in the water, I assume from the bloating. I will probably feed him today or tomorrow (just a little bit) and see what that does.

Specifically:
1 How long should I leave him like this?
2 What if his condition doesn't change, better or worse?
3 What should be my next course of action?

He is in a tiny "sick tank" with about 1 inch of water at the deepest, and the whole tank is only about 4 inches wide by 9 inches across.

Hi.

My little guy is still alive, and seems to be looking better. I have not fed him in about a week, and still has not deficated (pooped). I'm starting to think maybe he's constipated? Any ideas? I think i will start feeding him very small amounts tomorrow on, and see what happens.

Any suggestions of how long to keep him quarantined? He seems lonely, like " whre'd everybody go?"

Thanks!

Keep him separated until he's eating again and able to stay upright. With the small tank, be sure to change the water daily, or whenever you see any debris. If you could post a photo of how he looks, that might help determine if he's bloated or not.

He is upright now I think hard to tell the small tank is really really small. I am cleaning the water frequently, and he ate a little bit. I will keep feeding him and watching him. I also will do my best to get some pictures up (probably tomorrow), but I only have a phone camera, hopefully I can get some good shots.

Thank you.

How long should I keep him separated if his size is normal and he is eating?

Once he is eating and looks normal, I would try putting him back in the tank. But watch him very closely for the first hours and days to make sure he is really OK.

Camera phones don't do too well for pictures of small things like newts. Maybe you can borrow a digicam?

Actually my phone takes really good pix. I'm going to attemp to post them now. I've been so busy lately this is my first chance.

I'm not sure if he's eating...he didn't seem to take much last time, and I still havent found any poop, but the water does get gritty, so maybe it's just disintegrated feces. he is definitely more active lately.


These pictures (if I did it right) are all from the same day and time, just different positions.

He is now looking a little on the skinny side. I tried to feed him approximately 1/2 of a frozen bloodworm cube, i think he ate about half of it. His appetite isn't great, but neither are the others. It may be too warm for them right now, though thankfully has cooled off quite a bit.

Thanks for all the advice. Please tell me if it seems like time to out him back, I htink he's feeling isolated.

~rachel

Today is the day. I will be cleaning, feeding, and re-introducing the isolated one back into the set up. Hope he's really okay.

URGENT! Help! I fed then reintroduced my "sick" newt back with the others today. However, I was peeking in to make sure everyhting is okay, but i don't think it is.

He was swimming on his side back and right side up frantically around the tank. Really just spazzing out and zooming. Then he disapeared behind something. I came back a while later, and he's floating near the top with one eye out of the water as if in suspended animation. On his back I also see a new black dot. It appears that the area around two of his tiny skin bumps is black! I know I shouldn't but I gently poked him to see if he was alive, he is, but he is stiff, and kind of taking small bites in the air/water. Help!

I was only able to get a fuzzy picture of this, as the light in the tank seems to do something strange on the water. I will attempt better pics tomorrow. (It is late)