Layout of terrarium??

Originally Posted by tauntonhandy

Hi,

Was not sure wether to post this in this section or Vivarium section, but have taken a gamble.

I have got a terrarium ready and waiting for my Pixie coming on saturday, see attached pic:

I am trying to find out the following

1- Ideal layout in terms of where to have water in relation to heat lamp, i am waiting to find another water container to put at the far end away from the heat so she has a choice of water temperatures

2- I have a thermostat to control the temperature, what is ideal temp to set this at? i have read a few different figures and want to be sure, I have set it at 24 degrees, with the thermostat about 4 " from the light, hopefully giving a slightly warmer area ranging to colder. Also is this the right place for the thermostat in relation to the light?

3- Is the light at about the right height?

4- Substrate is about 2-3" deep coconut fibre, will this be deep enough?

5- How do i stop my wife calling her "princess"?!


I am sorry to ask so many daft questions, am trying to get it all spot on for her arrival on saturday
(didn't do this much preperation when my kids were born!!)


I would also love to see pics of other peoples pyxie setup's if you have any!

Welcome to the Forum, Paul. I hope your new addition is settling in well if you have received her by this point. You have a very nice set-up, though I have never put a spot light into either of my bullfrogs tank. Depending on the room temperature that they are in, they should be fine without one. They do not move around much, though they will bury themselves into the substrate to either get warmer/cool down or to find moisture. If they have a steady temperature and humidity, they are very laid back and easy to take care of. I'm not sure how big your new Pyxie is, but I would put enough substrate in that she can bury herself down. They seem to be more relaxed when they are partially covered. Coconut fibre is an excellent substrate and retains moisture very well. As for you wife calling her "Princess"....well, I think you are on your own there! Of course, I love my female afb, but she is about as far from a princess as one can get...she swallows baby mice whole, which is not very ladylike!! Whatever name she is, I am sure it will suit her. I hope you enjoy your new pet as much as I have enjoyed mine over the past year. Best of luck and I can't wait to see some pictures!!

This is not a species I keep, but I agree with Jace on the spotlight. In fact you may find your pet is more comfortable without it.

Use of a spot light AND a heater could be asking for trouble. The possibility of the enclosure getting too warm is quite a risk. The other issue I foresee with this set up is moisture control. The radiant energy from the spot light will quickly evaporate moisture from the substrate, leading to a very unhappy frog.

Also, the only thing I have found to keep the wife from calling my critters "cute" names is really, really good headphones. I figure if I didn't hear it, it didn't happen. Then again, you may find like I did, all you want to do is wear your headphones day and night...

Hmmm, still battling with the naming issue!!

Picked her up last night and am well chuffed, she is wicked. Dug down first off and got comfy for a few hours bu then was surprisingly active after a few hours, waqlking around hopping and eating, although she seems a bi scared of the locust i tried to feed her!!!!

Thanks for the comments, I dont have 2 sources of light, just the heat lamp set via thermostat at 24 degrees. Is a bit cold here for no heat source. am going to be regularly misting and dampening the substrate.

Will post pictures as soon as i can, was too dark last night and she is buried under moss and stuff at mo.


I am one happy dude though, frogs rock!!!



Paul

Mine love locusts, its the only thing they will chase around. Just a thought both of mine sometimes splash a bit, make sure the water can't reach the lamp, I have had a lamp shatter after it was hit by water (not from my bullfrogs it was me spraying the substrate in a lizard viv!)

I'd definitely stay away from the heat lamp and use an undertank heater instead.

A name will come to you eventually. Mine was called Cujo by the pet store I got him from, but I ended up calling him Galactus since he consumes everything in his path. He's even tried to get my fingers through the glass.