greensphinx27
New member
- Joined
- Jun 25, 2014
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- 5
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- Location
- North Carolina, USA
- Country
- United States
Hi all, I'm new to the Caudata forums and have spent a lot of time in the last couple weeks learning from others' posts. I have a Japanese firebelly newt (c. pyrrhogaster) named Spike who is nearly 20 years old - he was given to me as a gift when I was in the fourth grade. I found this forum when researching ways to cool my little guy's tank (we just moved to a new house with lots of windows, and I'm concerned that his water is warmer than it used to be), and in the process of reading other posts, it quickly became apparent that for the past 2 decades I have been doing nearly everything wrong when it comes to newt care. I completely empty, scrub, and refill Spike's tank 5-6 times a year (no tank cycling), he has no filter, his "plants" are plastic, his tank temperature has never been in the recommended range, and his diet consists almost entirely of Tetramin with occasional whole earthworms. He has somehow survived and thrived. I want to do right by him, but because what we've been doing has been working for 20 years, I'm afraid to make major changes for fear of upsetting his "equilibrium." However, I'm well aware that correlation doesn't equal causation, and he may be doing well in spite of his current conditions, not because of them. If you all were in my shoes, what would you do?