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Paddle tail salamanders help with temp

MMS

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Hey all i am new to this site and i have two paddle tail salamanders. I am in college so i am living in a dorm room and since its cold out i have the tank with both of them next to the window and that is keeping the temp down for now but i dont think that will work during the spring time once it heats up. any suggestions on how i can keep the temp down?
thanks
 

MMS

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Thanks and i have one more question if i get like an quarium fan would it hurt the salamanders if the fan was pointed on them? Or would it get clipped onto the outside? thanks
 

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First, the tank should have a totally escape-proof screen lid. The fan would sit on top of the screen lid.

The fan will dry out the salamanders if they are on land. Paddletails usually never leave the water, so this shouldn't be a problem. Are they fully aquatic? Are we talking about paddletail newts (Pachytriton labiatus)?
 

MMS

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well i have my tank set up as semi aquatic and half the tank is all water and the other half is all land and well thats not the case for one of my salamanders cause one loves to be in the water but the other one does not go into the water at all anymore he just sits in the little bit of water i have in like a small bowl and thats only everyonce in a wile but ya i have had him for three weeks now and he has not been in the water completly since i got him. and i know for sure he is a paddle tail salamander. And as my tank goes i have like a lid like one for a fish tank but the openings for the filter and heater are not broken off and they have never gotten close to getting out. So how do you think i could set the fan up with a cover like that?
 

Azhael

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Mmmmm...suspicion raises in my head xD
There´s some problem there...either you think you have identified them correctly, but you haven´t , and what you actually have are most likely C.orientalis, or there is some problem with water quality or stress. It´s not at all normal for a Pachytriton labiatus to stay on land. It´s a definite sign of something wrong.
Maybe the other newt is bullying it and so it´s staying out of reach to prevent more agression. Or maybe you have some issues with water quality....or the tank is way too small...or the animal is ill (which is very common).

Try tp upload a picture of the whole tank and the newts, that way, if there´s some problem we can help identify it.
 

MMS

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Well first off i know they are the same cause they look the exact same and the quality of the water is fine the other one has stayed in the water and i got the one that stays in the water just last week and the one that stays on land three weeks ago. and they are not fighting at all and if anything the one that stays on land would be fighting the one in the water not the other way around. I cant get pics on untill next week. but on the land part i have dirt and moss both stay constintly wet and the one that does not go into water is perfectly healthy he moves around eats his food and everythin.
 

MMS

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And when i did get the first one he never went in the water when it was just him for two weeks and i have tested the water and the quality is fine
nothing is wrong with the salamanders i was just wondering how can i set up the fan if i have part land and part water and the cover is the cover of like a fish tank
 

Azhael

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Sorry, but if they trully are P.labiatus and one of them is terrestrial...then there most definitely is a problem. Anyone in this forum would agree.
 

MMS

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well thats nice and i will post pics when by monday and let you decide then
but anyway back to my main question how can i set up the fan if i dont have a screen but instead a fish tank top too it how can i set up the fan so it will not dry out the land???????
 

MMS

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What do you think if it was Paramesotriton chinensis from what i have been looking up it looks like this type more then anything i have seen.
 

Bowl of seeds

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It could be a P. chinensis like you said.
Ive seen pet shops sell them under the name of paddle tail newts, but definitely not a P. labiatus. Or like Azhael said there is something wrong.

As for the fan.. This could be tricky. You can try to place the fan only pointing towards the half of the tank that has water. This way it doesn't disturb the terrestrial newt, but still providing with a cooler temp.
At least that's what I would do.
Let us know what you come up with.:happy:

Hope this helps.

-Frank
 

Jennewt

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If you simply switch over to a screen lid (even without a fan) your water temp will drop several degrees. Also, if you have a submersible filter and replace it with a non-motorized filter, this will also help quite a lot.

Azhael's idea about the one newt being terrestrial due to aggression is very reasonable. If these were truly paddletails, I would say that "personality issues" were almost certainly to blame. In the case of Paramesotriton, the situation is less clear. Fighting could be an issue (and it may happen during the night, not when it's obvious to us humans), or it may be that the terrestrial one is having health issues that are driving it to be terrestrial.
 

MMS

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OK thanks guys and how can i tell if the terestrial one is haveing health issues? I mean he has been staying on land since i got him and i am pretty sure that they are Paramesotriton chinensis. So if he is ill what can i do to find this out or help him? And i had the one that is terestrial for three weeks and two of those weeks he was in the tank himself so i dont think it would be the fact that they are fighting. In regards to Paramesotriton chinensis from what i have read they seem to be more terestrial then anything unless i am wrong?
 

Azhael

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In captivity they can be considered 100% aquatic.
If an animal is ill, stressed, bullied, or there´s not enough water, or not good enough, or the temps are wrong, then it might go onto land to avoid said problems.


How big is the tank where you are keeping them? And what temp are they?
I don´t know if you are aware of this, but all Paramesotriton sold in pet-shops are wild caught. The importation process is usually hard on the animals and those who survive still have to deal with the pet-shop, where they usually receive very poor care. This all means that newly acquired animals will be stressed and possibly ill. In orther to avoid illnesses (brought up by a decreased inmune system), and allow the animals to recuperate from everything, you need to provide excelent housing and water conditions. This is VERY important, so the first thing to do is to make absolutely sure that you are meeting all their requirements.
 

MMS

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OK well i have a ten gallon tank and three fourths of it is water and i have them temp at around 59 degres F all the time and i am not sure about the water temp but i think that is fine because the one newt that does stay in the water is fine in there. But the thing is the one that is on land does not seem to be sick at all he eats all his food and is moving around and everything so i dont know what would be keeping him from the water. When i first got him 4 weeks ago he had the tank to himself for two weeks and still never went into the water so i dont think anything is wrong with him but so do you think i should make my tank completly aquatic then?
 

MMS

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This is what my tank looks like
 

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Azhael

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Yes, go with a fully aquatic tank. The more water the better.
With the volume of water you have right now you are going to continuously be having issues with it´s quality.
Raise the water volume to two inches from the rim, and perhaps use a piece of floating cork bark as a temporary land area.
Bear in mind that these newts can be highly territorial and agressive, and do serious damage to each other. Add to that the fact that they reach a decent size. That means that a 10gallon tank might get small for them, so keep that in mind.

Also, judging by the photo, the aquatic newt appears to be a little underweight (which is very common with newly acquired newts), so you might want to try and fatten it up with earthworms and waxworms.
 

MMS

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How about this set up?
 

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Azhael

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I would loose the gravel, since it traps large amounts of debris and food. It also poses a danger of impaction if accidentally ingested.
Also, i would increase the water level as much as possible to offer more stable conditions. I´m not sure that size of tank is enough for two adult Paramesotriton. Perhaps, planting it heavily and adding more hiding places would make the trick.

Good luck with them, i hope they do well!
 
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