Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just got my first pet that wasnt a small animal. I bought a tiger salamander from my local pet store and everything is fine (I think)
Im not sure he is a tiger (thats what the store said) but here is what I have so far:

5.5 gal tank - Getting a 20 gal soon
Forest bed substrate - stuff the store used
Saphium moss (sp?)
I spray the tank 2x a day
Feed him 4 - 6 crickets a day
water dish that never has water (he keeps doin somethin to it)
A hiding place
70 degrees f

Since I got him he seems to have gotten fatter. Im worried he is boated and the temp is wrong. In the winter my room is freezing and summer its boiling. My bro had a tiger and it died cause he was to hot but my bro is into reptiles so he has alot of heat lamps on. Any way to keep the temp at a constant during the seasons. Ive read over the posts and it says he hibernates, the book I got doesnt say anything about that and he isnt hibernating, he never uses his hiding spots

I just looked at the photo gallery and he looks like Jaws I think hes owner is Cathy.

I forgot to mention that I am going to cut down on his food to maybe 4- 6 crickets everyother day (unless told other wise). I read here people are feeding theirs weekly.
His activity seems to be good he runs around the tank when I spray it and he chases his food.

Sounds like you have a healthy tiger there! From what I have read and experienced, the ideal temp for a tiger is in the 60's and low 70's, and as cool as 40 degrees. It is the higher temps that cause some concern. My tiger sally prefers crickets over all other foods, as yours appears to, but try to get him to eat earthworms and nightcrawlers, these are the most nutritious food for him. If I can't get mine to eat a worm, I coat a cricket with calcium/vitamin powder (available at pet stores) and feed that to him, and also gutload my crickets with special food (also available at pet stores), since they are lacking in certain vitamins, namely calcium.

Your tiger will need a water dish he can immerse himself in but that is not too deep, since he has lungs now instead of gills and can drown. Here is a photo of a cool setup from the caudata.org forum to check out, too:

http://www.caudata.org/forum/

Good luck, and report back!

The pic didnt show up. He seems to be doing better today then before but Im going to cut down on his food to 4 - 6 crickets every other day and once a week put the calcium stuff on it (forgot to mention it before, and my brother has the stuff for his lizards)

Hes real active and runs around his cage so Im not really worried but he still doesnt seem to use his hiding place (hes used it more since my last post)

Im worried when it turns summer cause my brothers salamander died in the summer due to head. Anyone have any ideas on how to cool the aquarium down?

Ive started to just spray the water dish to fill it up instead of cleaning it every hour

You could try giving him cool or refrigerated water to swim in during the hottest times. We'd all like that!
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Yes, you did mention about the warmer temps. Cooler is always best with most any salamander. I've rotated either one or two litre frozen water bottles under the enclosure during my summer months. Even my basement gets too warm during this time. I usually place two under the tank at opposite ends mostly for balance when it's too hot. Two more frozen bottles are kept in the freezer, and when the couple mentioned bottles are thawed out and temps are still up too high, I just flip them and replace. Sounds kind of primative, but it works thru experience. Hope this helps you.

Congratulations! If your tiger has as much personality as Jaws, you are in for a treat.
I'm glad you are getting a bigger terrarium for him; 5 gallons is too small. I have found that the dish from a single-serve Stouffers frozen lasagna is a perfect size to slide down in one end for water, and just the right depth. (No, I don't get paid to do Stouffers commercials, I just never cook!!!)
Of all the mixtures I have tried, Jaws seems to like Bed A Beast the best. I just dump the block in a bucket of water and a few hours later, it's soft and mixes up. Seems to hold moisture for a good long time.
I wouldn't worry about him not using his hide a lot. It's there if he wants it. Jaws sometimes goes under his water dish, but seldom uses the half-log I bought him. Except to climb up on and snap at me.
I'd drop way back on the food. Even every other day, 4-6 crickets seems excessive. Much to Jaws' regret, I have never fed him that much. Maybe two every other day. I also agree that worms are better. If you get the big earthworms, you may have to cut them up.
A side effect of being a little hungry is he may learn more quickly to take food from your hand. If you want him to, that is. Jaws readily takes food. As you could see from the photo, he's as ready to take the finger, too! So maybe I shouldn't have started that little trick.
In the summer, if you don't have a.c., then the frozen bottles of water would be the best way to keep the temps down. And of course, having his soak dish will help, too.
Have you named him?

Good advice!
I keep my 2 tiger salamanders in a large Rubbermaid setup (clear lid so I can see in, and much cheaper than an aquarium.) It's as wide as a 25-gallon tank, but not as tall, which is OK because sals never climb.
Mine spend most of their time buried in the forest bed substrate, but when they come out every few days, I feed them. You really have to watch the amount of food you give, as Cathy said. These sals can get quite fat, quickly. I only feed mine a half dozen of crix a week, but I do use the Reptivite calcium powder every few feedings. They are like little dogs jumping for food when fed. I feed them right out of my hand.
I agree with you about the stouffer's-container-waterdish! Lean Cuisine is yummy, and its container doubles as a useful water bowl!
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*~Ginevive~*

I dont like naming my animals unless its something that needs a name like a ferret, dog, cat etc. I guess my hamster has a name cause I call her Sweetie but the salamader probily wont get one. He started to us his log alot more and I keep his water dish full most of the time. Hes tried to clime out of his tank and almost made it, he used the log as a boost and had one foot holding him up and other feet trying to get up using side of aqua for one and the thermometer as another but the thermo wasnt staying still long enough. Maybe this week I will set him up in a bigger tank juyst need to clear a pot on my dresser and go get more beddin and the tank, my brother tanks are all gross dont want to us those