Head sore: second newt first died

Newt has sore on head can see bone... I'm worried, last week one died from a similar sore that didn't heal (it also lost a lot of weight, but I think the major problem was the sore) Any suggestions?

Read: http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/sores.shtml
http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/firebelly.shtml
http://www.caudata.org/people/JM/firebelly.html

Keeping the newt out of the water (on damp dirt or paper towels) and using some kind of topical treatment is worth a try. You are fighting the results of mistreatment during import/sale of wild-caught newts. Good luck.

Actually, they (Chinese firebelly's) were both rescued from a school which had a mixed species set-up when the now deceased became ill. They were both put in separate isolation tanks at my home. This one-male- was only recently reintroduced to a larger tank that was properly set-up for newts just before I noticed the sore.

There were snails in the previous tank... and although I thought I'd removed them all from the plants for the new tank, I just found one 1mm sized one (near where he slept last night)... Maybe the sore was caused by the snail? or maybe it's rot?

I tried dry quarentine for the other and it declined very rapidly (I may have been just too late though). I've put melafix in his water... and was planning to adjust treatment tomorrow depending on the progess of the sore. The sore is currently a pinhead sized hole and it appears to show bone. It's located about where the ears are on our lizard.

In that case, you are fighting the effects of a mixed-species setup that probably wasn't designed for newts. Thanks for attempting to rescue them! I don't think a common snail would cause a sore on a newt. It seems to me more likely some form of rot.

Why let it suffer?

Because a wound that small will most likely heal. If you scrape your knee, should we have you shot?

well I broke and used the ozonol too... no change either better or worse.

He is active (hunted 3 crickets this morning) and plump. He's avoiding the water and still has that tiny pox mark.

I'm alarmed because of the other one's demise.

Could it be a water quality thing? Anyone else had this before?

(Message edited by jdeboer on March 20, 2006)

I've often noticed these come from the newt getting hurt in some way on that spot. Alot like when you bit your inner lip, some people get canker sores. These can get infected and on an animal so small, this could be dangerous.
The few newts I had a long time back died because of this. I didnt know how to treat it.

His head looks a LOT better. The sore appears to have healed. He still isn't entering the water very often, but I am more hopeful.