Help my Barred Tiger salamanders eyes went cloudy!!!

K

kandace

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<font color="0000ff"><font face="arial,helvetica"></font>About two months ago I given two salamanders and the full set up! and they were both fine and healthy. One was always swimming and flirting with everyone and the other was really shy alway hid. But recently the one that was always swimming around just stopped and began acting like my other one hiding out and now I noticed his eyes are cloudy but the other salamander is still the same and doesn't seem to be sick. I tested the water and the Ammonia levels and nitrate levels were through the roof but in a week I have gotten them back to normal. does anyone know what causes this or is this temporary from the water quality? or what I can do to fix it? I don't have the money to take him to the vet if there is something I can do or do I just need to wait? SOMEONE HELP!!!!</font>}
 
<font color="0000ff"><font face="arial,helvetica"></font>I was kinda iffy about changing it to a terrestrial setup because when it was given to me they said that they always had it setup half aquarium/land and only recently did he stop swimming the way he was and he's 3 years old and the shy one is 1 years old. and the older one spent 90% of his time in the water and when he sleeps he's on the slope with only his head out of the water. Do I Still need to change the setup?</font>}
 
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Cloudy eyes can be due to several things including but not limited to infections and irritation due to chemical exposure.

Ed
 
I have now got all the chemistry where it needs to be for two days now and still no change. So should I change the enviroment completely or do I need to get him to a vet or just give it time? I read that if you let them soak in distilled water for 3 hours after exposure to the chemicals should help has anyone heard of that? I just cant take him away from the water, he loves it too much! He looks just like a fish! I mean as you can see from the picture above he has land to hang out on I think I see him up there once a day at most!
 
Kandace, you are going against the nature of the animal. Tigers are terrestial burrowers. They need to be in a vivarium that replicates their natural environment. You would not find an adult tiger in water except during breeding season. If you haven't seen this care sheet yet, you may want to read it:
http://www.caudata.org/cc/species/Ambystoma/A_tigrinum.shtml
 
He has "land", but he does not have the kind of land that a tiger salamander normally inhabits. If you could connect this tank to another one with a soil-based substrate where he could burrow, I would bet that he would choose the soil and rarely if ever go back in the water.

I would suggest just trying an experiment. Get a plastic container (sweater box size) and put a few inches of slightly damp loose coconut fiber bedding into it, and a few pieces of bark or other hiding places. Put the sals in for a couple of days, and see if their behavior improves (less shy or more active). Add a couple of earthworms, and they'll be in 7th heaven.

If the one with cloudy eyes is still eating, I think he'll be OK. After the next time he sheds, he may be better.

(Message edited by jennewt on September 20, 2006)
 
I think my salamander has gone blind!!! I went to feed him last night and normally when I open the top he looks up at me and gets ready for the crickets and last night he didnt even acknowledge me nor did I witness him eating anything and the cricket was right in front of him and then jumped on his head he just swam back into the water and then ran into the glass. WHAT SHOULD I DO?
 
I would suggest that you take the advice of the several very experienced herpers who have already responded and switch over to the terrestrial set-up. You have received information from someone who works in a zoo as well as an academic. Their combined experience is quite a bit!
As they have pointed out, your salamanders are not being kept in a way that mimics their natural environment. The more closely you can get a set-up that is what they would experience in the wild, the less stress they will experience and the more natural their behavior will be- including foraging, etc... Less stress makes for a healthier, better adapted animal. Good luck!
 
It is quite possible that the sal cannot see if its eyes are very cloudy. But I don't know of any treatment that makes sense, besides waiting until the next shedding of the skin. If it really cannot see, consider that it may be at risk for drowning.
 
IF YOU WANT TO MAKE YOUR SALAMANDER FEEL AT HOME THAN TAKE THE ADVICE AND PUT IT IN THE TERRESTRIAL SET UP! I THINK THE REASON FOR THE SALAMANDERS CLOUDY EYES IS BECAUSE OF CONTAMINATED WATER.
 
<font color="0000ff"><font face="arial,helvetica"></font>Ok I did what everyone told me to do and set up a terrestrial setup (I will have pictures tomorrow) and it was just as I expected, the one with cloudy eyes DOES NOT LIKE THE DIRT! He immediatly crawed into his water bowl and is still there he wont come out and when I tried moving him to the other side of the cage back into the dirt he snapped at me and crawled right back into the water and he has never done that before. Normally he's a BIG FLIRT and always looks like he's smiling at me and since I put him in the terrariam he looks so pissed off but this morning that is where he remains now the other sal I have didnt care for it too much yesterday but when I woke up this morning he had barried himself under the dirt. I havent removed either of them from the terrarium I am going to wait another day and see if my water lover sal changes any. Is there any other sal that looks like a barred tiger salamander but loves the water??????????????</font>}
 
It may well take some time for the tiger to adapt...he has been aquatic for 3 years. Snapping is not uncommon when reacting to the potential of being fed...like begging... a conditioned response. What are you feeding the animals and how often? Are both eating?
 
<font color="0000ff"><font face="arial,helvetica"></font>Snapping is uncommon for my sal he has never done that he's always looked so happy and now he looks pitful. I've been feeding them crickets I buy two dozen every other day but they are shared between my two sals and my two fire belly toads my water loving sal honestly I havent seen him eat and he doesnt show any interest at all lately to eat. my other sal he will eat and eat until there is nothing left. I know my water loving sal is not happy at all with the tank change because and I know this is going to sound funny but normally he has this smerk on his face almost like a smile and now he has a straight face.</font>}
 
moving an animal or changing its habbitat durrasticly from aquatic to terrestrial will make a sal stressed, just give him time
 
If you have only had the salamanders for two months, you may not know their permanent behaviours. Adjusting is stressful, but the stress your animals were undergoing in an aquatic set up far outweighs any period of adjustment to a proper set up. It takes time, be patient, your tigers will thank you in the end!
I am having great success now that I have switched to earth worms, they are free, and easy to collect if it rains outside. Try putting some of these in the soil of your new set up. Do they have hiding spots in the new set up?
Also, I was thinking, what kind of temperature are they kept in?
 
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