Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I'm completely baffled, and would appreciate any help given on this.

a few days ago, i noticed a very odd injury/disease/whatever on my siren's tail. He's been in captivity for a year, well established, feeding well, etc. about a day ago, I notice this odd white nodule, like a zit, on one side of his tail. there's a dark spot in the corresponding position on the other side of his tail, and his tail looks slightly kinked.

is this bone damage of some sort? (if so, buggered if i know how he got it) Or maybe a fungal infection with swelling? if the latter, what anti-fungal medication would you recommend?

Thanks,
Henry

Kept one for years. The sore is a bacterial infection caused by the water not being clean enough. Clean his cage throughly. Upon refilling add two drops of Bleach, the problem should go away in a few weeks. Just clean the cage often and keep using the bleach. David Orlando Fl

I also own a greater siren for two and a half years. Last week I noticed that she (nessy) had a white mark on her side with a dark area around it. It since has started to heal up and has not spread. She is eating well and shows no ill symptoms. Is it possible she could have burned herself on the heater? I have her in a 29 gallon tank. Does this sound like a bacterial infection?
Any help would be appreciated.

Also what do you feed your sirens? I feed mine earthworms, fedder fish, pellets, raw hamburger and beefheart.
Thanks

I've kept a pair at a school (classroom tank). They eat well and can mess a tank easily. Despite living in muck in the wild where the water quality is bad, keeping in captivity warents its challenges. We had to remove uneaten food and waste on a continual bases. The bleach thing may have worked for some, but unless you know the ammount of dilutation, this should not be practiced. If you do regular water changes with dechlorinated water, this should keep the ammonia levels down and your pet's skin integrity healthy. Bleach (sodium hypochlorite) will kill anything/everything in the "kitchen sink", but is very toxic and harmful to caudates.
I keep axolotls that are aquatic (gilled) caudates, and I have to keep the water soft adding some sea salt. It is also recommended treating axolotls that have skin fungus with a bath of some of the same ingredients. Caudata.org has a good site on Axolotls and treating skin infections (gives you formulas and such).
As far as feeding, they would eat just about anything! They really seemed to devour live ghost shrimp, crayfish, night crawlers, and guppies. Pellet food and beef heart are also good food sources. Hamburger tends to soil the tank too much. May want to try lean beef strips occasionally. We would stick to live and pellet food for the most part and give beef heart occassionally. They did very well until someone left the lid off the tank after a water change. They had a habbit of darting to the surface if spoked and sometimes during feeding...needless to say, we found him dead on the floor. lids that are secure are a must with any sirens.

I've seen a similar problem in other salamanders and newts. If it is the same it may be a fungal infection. When this is the case it was self limiting, and caused no problem. I am hesitant to say that is what your siren has mainly because this is the internet, I havn't seen your animal, and I am not a vet. The "bone damage" that you said your animal has may have been an injury, with the fungus then attacking the weak area. If this problem persists I would take him to the vet. I would caution against the bleach although large dilutions may be safe. I actually use tap water with my amphibians and the chlorine does it's job. Another caution however, as different cities may have larger, dangerous amounts of chlorine (I live in a northern climate).