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Tiger Salamander not eating and pink undernea

Jen9

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E502A665-F106-44D3-8048-67D2A8764712.jpeg
 

Jen9

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Hi.
I have had a tiger salamander for 2.5 years. She eats 1 giant mealworm a day. She hasn’t eaten in 1.5 weeks and has turned pink underneath as shown in the photo.
I changed her UVB bulb yesterday as it was reading low. Nothing has changed in her terrarium environment. I bought new mealworms and red wigglers to try a new food option but she has no interest in either.
help! I need some ideas. Thx!
 

papeachie

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From just the picture it looks like friction burn from crawling across a coarse substrate....

I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to use reptile mats/carpets? or any kind of dry/rough substrate for salamanders. They need to burrow and those mats can't hold the humidity in.

If there are open lesions it could lead to bacterial infections so if it looks bloody and quite serious I suggest going to a vet....or moving it to a quarantine tank.
But if it looks like its healing you should definitely change the substrate to cocofiber/ecoearth/etc making sure it's deep enough for your salamander to burrow.

I've never given any of my pet frogs or salamanders a UVB light and they have been fine without it so I don't know if having one is helpful for a nocturnal species.
 

Herpin Man

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I agree, that is almost certainly the result of the carpet. You should immediately replace it with a soil based substrate, such as a soil/coconut fiber mix.
Food should be earthworms, crickets, dubia, etc.
 

Jen9

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Ok thx! Will replace the carpet. She looks a lot better. In the past when I put a soil area in she wouldn’t burrow or go near it but I don’t want the friction issue from the carpet.
she’s still not eating though but looks in good condition. I’ve never had her not eat for weeks. Is this common in salamanders?
 

papeachie

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Anything is better than dry carpet so make sure to put in moist substrate!

I dont know how cold it is there but my tiger sals go through brumation this time of year (sort of like hibernation) where they become sluggish , refuse food for weeks, and burrow for a long time. I like to keep the house quite cool even in winter (about 22-23 degrees celcius) so that they stay in this dormant state for some period of the year.

She might be in the same state so if you raise the temperature a little she might become more active. However if shes emaciated then it might be something more serious.

Hope she gets better :)
 
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