Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i just recieved an adult salamander from an unwanted home and i dont have any past data on him but he seems to have open sores on his back and they tend to bleed.... not sure what this is or how to treat it....hes seperated from my lindividuals due to this health risk....what it this problem and what can i do about it

thanks

philip

This is a classic tiger salamander case. They are so often picked up by people who havn't a clue as to care, and when they get bored of them, ship them off to good folks like you.

The treatment will depend largely on the extent of the wounds. First and foremost will be proper husbandry. Super clean, while these guys should normally be kept on a dirt style substrate, for now, use many layers of damp paper towel. Flush the wounds 3-4 times every day for a good 3-5 minutes. This might be enough. To play it safe, I would schedule a vet visit to have the extent of the wounds examined. Amphibian medicine is a bit more tricky than with reptiles, but a good herp vet should have the resources to sort it out.

Check out the amphibian forums here on kingsnake, or perhaps also check www.caudata.org for information on tiger salamander husbandry.

Ian

I echo Ian's advice.

The traditional at-home wound treatment of Betadine (povidone-iodine) that can be used with reptiles should not be used with amphibians because of the porous nature of their skin. Just in case you happen to read about Betadine elsewhere.

Open sores could be bacterial, fungal, protzoal... Cleanliness is key, but a vet visit is in order.

www.arav.org for herp vets in your area.
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Christina Miller, CAHT
www.herptiles.net

thanks for yalls help......i started flushing him today and hes on paper towels instead of the normal substrate .....

any more advise would be great

pm