Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello, I am a 2nd Grade teacher who adopted a small salamander when my student brought her in (in a coffee can). I believe she is either a blue-spotted or Jefferson salamander. I know she is a 'she' because she had a baby before she ate it. I kept her at home for 2 months before bringing her to school and I know that stressed her out. Unfortunately, after gashing her tail twice by catching in between two rocks, she finally ripped her tail off (about 1-1 1/2 in.) before I figured out what was causing her injuries.

I have taken all her bedding out and replaced it with damp paper towels. The temp in the tank is about 76-78 degrees over her water but cooler over her cave. She has not eaten in over two weeks and when I put a bee moth by her today, she grabbed it and then spit it right out.

I'm afraid the combination of changing her habitat with the paper towel, the lack of eating, and the stress of her tail loss will kill her. I made the mistake of handling her a lot in the last two weeks so I'm not going to mess with her for a little. Can she survive this? Any suggestions? The exotic pet store told me not to put any medicine on her wound and that she would clean it herself.

Thank you ~ blizzbean and Sally the Salamander

Hello-
Unfortunately, a lot of salamanders don't make the greatest classroom pets due to some relatively simple, though incredibly important, care requirements. If she has not been exposed to any other amphibians, I would suggest releasing her since she is obviously not doing very well. I am still confused as to how she ripped her tail off, as in all my years of keeping sals I have never heard of one ripping its own tail off (I don't believe I have heard of this either, but that doesn't mean it isn't possible).

If she had a baby with her, it was there when she got in, as salamanders do not give birth to live young. Unless you raised up a larvae, then its probably isn't her baby. It could be male or female, but in this case that isn't really important. The young one could possibly have been another species (perhaps redback?)

As for setup, that species should have a couple of inches of topsoil (no fertilizers added) with some leaf litter and to be on the safe side, a water dish. Your temperatures are obviously tolerable, but they are too high. This animal really shouldn't have to deal with temperatures much over 70-72. It's sudden change in appetite might just be the result of being kept too hot for long long and her succumbing to heat stress. If temps aren't lowered, she will likely die.

You could try offering her earthworms, as this is a more natural diet for species in that genus.

One last thing - what state are you in? Do you have any photos of this animal? It would be very wise to check out your local laws because Blue-spotted or Jefferson salamanders could be a protected species and having her in the classroom could be illegal.

Hope that helps,
~Mike

All of Mike's advice is good.
I will add that you really do not need to put any medicine on the wound. But if you want to be on the safe side and keep it from getting infected, you could put a little bit of neosporin on it. It should heal on its own with no problems though.