Salamander wont eat!! HELPPP

[ellarev]

its been extremely cold where i live recently so fire wood was collected from up in the mountains and brought to my property to use. a day or so later i noticed a small salamander near the pile of wood. after doing research, i found out it was an eastern red backed salamander.they live near streams/ bodies of water and there is none near i live, so thats how i know it came from the wood. after doing even more research i found out that they can live in wood holes/ cracks so that just proves that the lil guy came from the logs. sense he would not have survived outside, i brought him in and made him an enclosure with damp paper towels, pebbles, a small pot as a cave, and even a wet silk plant to keep the moisture up. i did not feed him the first day because he was stressed. i learned online that the first few days in a new enclosure salamanders wont eat, so that made me less worried. its been a week or so? (im not sure exactly) and he still wont eat . im feeding him earthworms but he is not showing any interest at all. ive made sure they are small enough for him and still alive and moving but he shows no interest AT ALL. im not sure how much longer he will survive without food considering how small and slim he is. i cant go to the pet store to get small crickets because of covid-19. what should i do or what am i doing wrong?!

 

[JuiceBox52]

its been extremely cold where i live recently so fire wood was collected from up in the mountains and brought to my property to use. a day or so later i noticed a small salamander near the pile of wood. after doing research, i found out it was an eastern red backed salamander.they live near streams/ bodies of water and there is none near i live, so thats how i know it came from the wood. after doing even more research i found out that they can live in wood holes/ cracks so that just proves that the lil guy came from the logs. sense he would not have survived outside, i brought him in and made him an enclosure with damp paper towels, pebbles, a small pot as a cave, and even a wet silk plant to keep the moisture up. i did not feed him the first day because he was stressed. i learned online that the first few days in a new enclosure salamanders wont eat, so that made me less worried. its been a week or so? (im not sure exactly) and he still wont eat . im feeding him earthworms but he is not showing any interest at all. ive made sure they are small enough for him and still alive and moving but he shows no interest AT ALL. im not sure how much longer he will survive without food considering how small and slim he is. i cant go to the pet store to get small crickets because of covid-19. what should i do or what am i doing wrong?!

I would release him, just one week ago he had the whole world to explore, but now he is stuck in a small enclosure. I have nothing against keeping pets in the proper enclosures etc but I do not generally like wild caught creatures being put in captivity. The only exception is if they are very young (to young to remember otherwise) , but this is just my opinion.
Have you checked up on your local laws? Some areas prohibit keeping any type of wildlife without a permit, either at all or for more than a certain amount of time.
How large is the enclosure?
Is the enclosure the same temperature as his natural habitat?
Does he have shelter, water and room to move about?

 

[Retired Viking]

Salamanders hibernate during the winter, lower the temperate down to 40 degrees, do not let him freeze. He will go back into hibernation, when the weather gets warmer let him warm up slowly and once he is moving around he will be hungry you can then release him. They are kept as pets by some people but that means providing him with live bugs. I would recommend you release him in a wooded area where there is plenty of rotting wood. In a pile of rotting wood would be great.

 

[Herpin Man]

If you are planning to keep this salamander long term, I suggest setting it up in a planted vivarium with soil or soil mix. This species needs to be kept humid, but they don't need a water dish. They need a very tight fitting lid, and lots of bark to hide under.
Red backed salamanders require tiny, live, moving prey. Earthworms are not ideal, unless they are very small. The best foods in captivity are small isopods, tiny crickets, bean beetles, and fruit flies. They are nocturnal, so you are unlikely to see them eat during the day. At night, they will climb into the plants, prowling for insects, which they will catch with their tongue.