Caudata Toxicity - Those colors are for a reason!

A couple of days ago, a woman who knows one of my Master Naturalist contacts called and had some questions about her 7 year old son and a new pet that he was given by his grandparents. After freely handling the two new pets, her son immediately started to suffer from painful, blistery rashes all over his hands, arms and face.He also complained of burning, itching eyes, nose and lips. She immediately asked if her son could be allergic to his new pets.

I asked her what the new pets looked like, and she described 'two salamander-looking things with bumpy brown skin and orange bellies'. I said they may be Rough-Skinned Newts. The grandparents purchased the newts with an enclosure and accessories at a flea market.

I told her that he was suffering from the toxic secretions from the T. granulosa, and that he should be taken to a physician. After a trip to the doctor, he was put on some anti-allergy medication and has recovered well. She asked me if flushing the newts would be the best way to get rid of them, and I told her that there was no need to kill them. She said her son still loved the Newts and didn't want them to be killed, and I said that as long as he didn't handle them with bare hands, he would be fine.

She insisted that she didn't want them in the house, and I told her of a few places she could take them that would be happy to have them on exhibit. She later emailed me to say that she had taken them to a local High School and that they were now in a science class.


This is an important lesson in knowing what you are getting into, as well as paying attention to the warnings that nature includes in these animals.

I handle my Tiger Salamander freely, though I wash my hands thoroughly before and after. If I have open wounds, I avoid handling her. Even with species that are mildly toxic, allergic reactions to these toxins can happen occasionally and without warning. Other pets can suffer even worse from these toxins. These animals can also carry pathogens and parasites that can make us or other animals sick.

Not to mention that handling can be stressful or dangerous to the animals too. Common chemicals such as hand lotion, soaps or cleaning agents can be detrimental to their permeable skin. The act of handling can be very stressful too. Lucky for me, my Tiger is quite happy being handled and will get comfortable quite quickly in my hands.

The son was very sad about losing his newts, He loves the outdoors and animals, and I told her it wouldn't be a bad idea getting him another animal that is safer to be around and easier to care for. I emailed her information from the Caudata Culture articles and she said she would think about it. I'm happy that he was very sympathetic to the newts and knew what went wrong. He seems like a very good kid and I hope he gets another pet.

As a side note, and for completion, the natural oils and secretions of our skin can be dangerous to caudates too, as they can cause impermeabilization. Finally, even the safest kind of handling is not risk free as the heat of our hands is dangerously high to any caudate. They have been known to die of thermal shock after being handled for too long, particularly in that gripping manner that small kids naturally apply.
Handling should really be avoided unless absolutely necessary and in such cases kept to an absolute minimum.

I'm glad she consulted with you before she could flush it.

This kind of parent makes me incredibly irritated. For one, she should have researched the animal the grandparents brought in before allowing the child to handle it at all. That would have solved the problem right there.

What is the most irritating to me, however, is the over-protection by parents. I have seen a man throw a kitten against a wall because it bit his young 4 year old while playing with her. It is completely ridiculous, and I can imagine this being the type of person who kills animals for any reason. To go to the extreme of just flushing the animals for a mistake that she made is ridiculous, and she really should not have been so incredibly stupid as this in the first place. I've been seeing a lot of animals being kicked out of homes because they dig holes in the yard, they might have scratched a child, or they just don't want to deal with responsibility.

I think you should have given her a bit of a talking to about that. I don't even know why she'd kick them completely out of the house when it is simply a natural thing, and the newts shouldn't be handled anyway, regardless of toxicity. I would not recommend the woman get another pet because I think that she exhibits a lack of responsibility that I would not trust around other animals.

I'm just glad she didn't kill them immediately - I've seen parents get incredibly abusive of animals who are only giving a natural response to being messed with and hurt by children, whether or not the animal can control it.

Some people just shouldn't have pets.

Sometimes it seems like an act of vengeance than anything. I personally become very verbal and even a bit vulgar when dealing with people who are outright abusive, but otherwise try to educate folks. She said that her brother 'had lizards growing up' and thought they were the same with care and handling. I'm just glad she was interested in the educational material and gave the newts a good home. The boy, on the other hand, is eager to get a 'different' pet and wants something cold-blooded. He told me on the phone that he loves finding frogs at night 'but never uses them as bait'. He seems to understand that you shouldn't handle animals as much, but it seems his mother and grandparents encouraged him to handle the newts 'to make them tame'. I would have scolded her more, but she was quite wracked with guilt and sobbed on the phone for a while. The little boy said "I shouldn't have touched them because I am warm and they are cold. You touch a ice cube and it melts!" Quite clever!

It's sad that you actually have to teach people these things, or that they have to learn the hard way, but it's just part of our duty to educate folks and help these animals get the care they need.

Aim for the lad´s interest. Get him hooked on caudates and he´ll educate his mother xDD
My mother used to hate snakes all her life and would kill them on sight. She also used to think newts (Lissotriton helveticus) were deadly and evil...She has been thoroughly educated now xD The new her likes my snakes and even enjoys watching me catch animals to photograph them, and gets all exited when she thinks she might have seen something.

Speaking from experience, I think the rule to add here is:

Don't Lick the Newts. Sort of a paraphrase of the laboratory rule "Don't lick the workbench!"

I've found that its almost always easier to educate kids than it is adults. Adults know what they know (even if it's wrong) and aren't likely to listen to what you have to say. But kids are much more accepting to 're-education'. Like Rodrigo said, teach the kids and they'll teach their parents.