Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey guys,

Toad and frog supplies are getting pretty scarce here in the midwest and I still want to get a few more meals into my female eastern before I put her down for the winter. My question is...I do have access to some nice size spotted salamanders and wanted to know if they were toxic to hogs. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Scott

Seriously, it's not that hard to switch them over to mice. The benefits are exponentially greater when it comes to times like this. Now we are talking about an animal that can live 30 yrs, just to be collected and fed to a pet.

That was personal opinion, now to answer your question...
I don't recall too many diet studies that found salamanders. Insects and mice positively make up more of their diet. All Amybstomatids have glandular skin capable of secreting a milky substance as a predator defence. This may not sound too different from a toad, but the toxins involved are completely different. On top of that, Spotteds have yellow spots on a black background, a typical aposematic coloration (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aposematic). I'm sure someone out there has fed a spotted to a hog, I'd consider it an unnecessary risk when there is no guarantee they can metabolize the glands. Unnecessary also, in light of the above paragraph.

>>Hey guys,
>>
>> Toad and frog supplies are getting pretty scarce here in the midwest and I still want to get a few more meals into my female eastern before I put her down for the winter. My question is...I do have access to some nice size spotted salamanders and wanted to know if they were toxic to hogs. Any help would be appreciated.
>>
>>Thanks,
>>
>>Scott
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But then again so are toads.

Besides what makes you think that it will eat a spotted. I would try to switch it over to mice or just stop feeding it and put it in hibernation. Besides what would you do when the spotteds run out?

I didn't see that you already had this planned.