Little Brown Toads

[Cynere]

Yep, some flies have emerged. I received a replacement culture today as well, it arrived right side up. There are a few flies in the first culture but shaking them out produces globules of food sludge too. I think letting them both sit for a while might be good. I was sent a springtail culture as well as a nice gesture, I am not entirely sure what survived the trip - I imagine we'll see.

I'm still hunting aphids, tiny worms and other crawlies every day for them. They are starting to not be very excited about aphids; I can only find the black ones that don't move a whole lot. They still relish the tiny black ants the accompany the aphids though. Sadly, these ants are too tiny to pick up. I end up feeding them by picking plant tendrils and dropping the leaf and tendril in the tank. Obviously some of the toadlets are fatter than others. They are picky little things.

They really enjoyed the couple flies I dumped in there but I don't want to ruin any chances of the cultures doing well by feeding the whole, small adult population.

[Cynere]

Fly cultures are doing okay I think, I am excited about them blooming. My little toadlets are turning away from aphids. They are starting to be interested in my hand and tweezers. I don't feed them from the tweezers, just use them to move flies closer to the skinnier ones or pick up little bits of debris.

The question of environment comes up. Right now I have them on paper towels and they are pooping for sure - lots of poop. When should I move them to something that doesn't foul so easily? I am out of paper towels today. And what? I have read some on soil, and the expandable eco-earth substrate. Should I include a layer of gravel or a simple false bottom if I intend to include plants?

Another question is that I have nine toadlets and a 10 gallon aquarium. I am unsure exactly what kind of toad they are but it isn't out of the question for them all to grow to 3 inches. I also need to make a two week long trip in August during which I don't believe that I can enlist anyone trustworthy to feed and water my toads. I cannot take them with me either. I have two options, I think.
1) Release them outside to feed themselves so they don't have to suffer at my hands.
2) Recreate a natural environment for them before I go with multiplying species of janitorial bugs and microfauna, add the fly cultures to the tank (so that the adults can escape but the frogs can't get in the culture) then hope that nature works as well inside my tank as it does outside. I am still considering how to make sure their water supply is clean enough.

When I acquired tadpoles, I did not have this trip planned. I think maybe covering the tank with pantyhose would be better than a glass top, I don't want to fog them out. Right now I have the tank only partially covered with plastic. The AC runs here pretty much off an on all day and the house stays 77-78 degrees with occasional highs of 88. Any suggestions are welcome. These are my first toads/frogs ever and I think I am enjoying the experience a lot. If I could keep them, that would be my preference but I don't want to harm them either. I would choose releasing them over keeping them in a place where their needs are not met.

[Cynere]

Well, today I released 5 toadlets to our untreated garden where they immediately started eating ants. The toadlets still hate my guts so I imagine they will do fine. The other four I have kept, these are the fattest and biggest toads of the lot. They are happily munching down on flies. I figure four is a lot easier to maintain than nine; they eat a lot of food. I will be collecting supplies to set up a more natural environment for them soon. I have picked up a brick of eco earth and am sourcing some organic potting soil.



These are the final four. The water bowl overflowed some after a toad and a leaf broke the suface tension.

[Heatheranne]

Sounds like they're doing pretty well.

Sorry I've been away. My tapatalk app wouldn't let me post, but all is fixed now .

I'll take a good look at them and see if I can tell their species. They sure are cute! It will be easier to choose proper housing knowing their species.

A good start is cocoa fiber substrate, as you have mentioned . Basically a similar set up with leaf litter and a water bowl will be fine. Maybe a nice cave to hide in. They will likely burrow in the substrate, which is fine. I'd avoid gravel. Large rocks (bigger than them) can be used if you like to secure plants or for decor. A simple substrate change every 4 to 6 weeks will keep their house clean.

Plants are fine. You have to completely rinse them of all fertilizers and the soil they come in and replant with substrate. Heavy plants are best bc these little guys are pretty tough when they grow up . You can also put the pot right in and cover it with substrate. Then they won't uproot your plant that way...more of a concern for later, being they are so small right now.

Temps and humidity? For now, just try to keep their home at the approx temps it was when you found them outside within a plus or minus 5 degree temp higher or lower. An average range is about 75 to 80 degrees, but knowing their species is the best way to provide the perfect range for them. A Under Tank Heater (UTH) is an easy way to heat their home. Only place it on a side, not the bottom, so they don't bury and burn themselves. Most recommend placing it on the opposite side of the tank than the water bowl. This allows them to choose a warm or cold side since they can't regulate their own body temp. Toads in general prefer a drier environment as they get older. A super light mist is fine. The water bowl is best.

A nylon top is fine for now since they're small. A screen top will be best once they are big enough to eat bugs that can no longer fit through the screen holes. A rock or heavy object, or heat lamp can hold the screen down later. Surprisingly, toads can climb .

Let's see....am I missing anything? There is a good toad care sheet thread here. I'll look for it for you .

A food bowl can be used later too, once you move up from fruit flies. Crickets can't climb glass or slippery sides. It keeps them from nipping at the toads, and from making babies in your substrate. Easier to clean too. They'll actually learn to wait at the bowl for food . It's so cute! I'll link a pic of our old toad Dumpy for you (waiting for food) .

I'll reread through everything and see of I missed anything. They're pretty easy to care for.

You're doing great so far!!!

We just let a bunch go free the other day too. I have my remaining 8 left.

[Heatheranne]

Here is Dumpy


He always reminded me of a grumpy little old man with that cute face, ha ha!

[Cynere]

Thanks Heather, our house's AC is set for 78 but it's frequently 79 inside. The humidity should be pretty low due to central AC.
I did read the Bufo toad caresheet on the site. Dumpy is cute. : )

[Heatheranne]

That temp should be fine. Yw

[Cynere]

I figured it was about time to update my toads' pad. I am getting tired of changing paper towels too. I have been putting this together for the past few days and I imagine it's time to post for suggestions an opinions. This is my first vivarium but I have had planted tanks before. I am hoping to plant this tomorrow with local species. Being this is Florida, we have common vivarium plants growing in the yard. I also have access to a few cool mosses that I hope to incorporate.

I am aware that toads like a dry-ish habitat so I have created two zones. The left side is high and dry while the far right is very moist. The large water source is to ensure that they get their soaking needs without being too much maintenance.



This is the full tank. The bottom is a 2" deep false bottom with eggcrate covered by a fine potato bag mesh. Above this layer is a nonfertilized soil without perlite, about 2" in the middle. The top layer is a layer of hydrated eco-earth.



This is the right side. It consists of an internal, motorized water filter sitting in the false bottom; smooth and large rocks; and a simple plastic water tray. I would like to cover the filter with moss or something. I have used some large rocks to cover the crevices around the filter as I have found that toads are not the smartest creatures. I am hoping to add some mosses to this area and perhaps duckweed. The water spills over the bowl to the right onto the rocks and seeps into the false bottom layer. I am thinking about how I could improve drainage over here but I guess it doesn't matter as long as there are plenty of dry spots for the toads.



Last but not least is the left-hand, high and dry side. I would like to plant this to add shade and hiding places. I would also like to incorporate leaf litter into the tank as well.

I would appreciate any suggestions for drainage, humidity control, and toad proofing especially. Other comments are welcome as well. The toads are looking curiously at the tank as they hear the water running. I enjoy how curious and intelligent they are (within limits, a toad is only built to do so many things).

[Cynere]

In application the soil is too moist. I mixed the eco earth and soil together some and moved the water around so that it drained away from the dirt but I believe that it is still wicking into the soil instead of heading down. I did plant some interesting grasses in it though.

I am unsure that I will be able to make this dry before I leave. It looks like I will release the last four before I go.

[Heatheranne]

Or you can take a nice wad of paper towels and soak some out. Looking good.

[Cynere]

The question though is, how dry does it need to be? Soaking out some water won't solve this issue if water from the pump is wicking into the dirt. It looks pretty but I want it to be a suitable environment as well.

[Heatheranne]

I have mine at about 50%. Mine are still in their baby tank though with just the paper towels and some leaf litter. I mist only 1/2 of their tank lightly and provide the water dish. A great person to ask is UncleChester. My previous adult toad preferred it very dry with just a water bowl. The part I'd mist he usually stay out of. He did love to soak though.

The average house room humidity is generally about 50% in the summer and a bit less in the winter due to furnace heat.

Im not sure how you could dry it up. It's so pretty I think I'd keep the tank for a nice tree frog and make a standard terrestrial tank for the toads. It'd be quick and easy. They just need substrate, water bowl, a hide and some leaf litter. Maybe a couple plants to feel at home. Mine had a couple large rocks he used to like to sit on, I think bc they were nice and cool. Honestly, his favorite place to sit was in the food bowl, lol .

[Cynere]

Well it's been a while. The four I kept have grown a lot. I did leave for my trip and I did not find a suitable way to do the false bottom so I took out the water feature, gave a dish of water with rocks, placed the fly culture in the tank and doused the tank with flies before I left. When I came back there was some water still in the dish, probably from the towel I placed over the tank (staving off evaporation), the flies had died or been eaten but the culture is still slightly viable. Three of four toads were very fat and one was on the skinny side. I have been fattening that one up for the past 5 days.

These guys have been taking fruit flies, grasshoppers, worms and grubs with enthusiasm.



They come to the glass now since I started tong-feeding them. They bite the tongs more than the food though.

[Cynere]

I released the last four today.

[Heatheranne]

We just set our last 5 free last week . It was tough to see them go. Kept wanting to scoop them back up and take them into the house, but I did it and let them go. I reminded myself how happy they'd be in the great outdoors and then walked away with a smile . Hopefully they'll proliferate and we'll run into them and a few of their babies in the future .

Great job!

[Cynere]

I have definitely seen more toads outside recently but I think this is partly due to some rain we had that caused some standing water in a temporary pond in the backyard. Right now that temporary pond is teeming with tadpoles. I brought a few in because they looked different than my last batch, I'd like to see what they are.

[Heatheranne]

Neat! I'll be waiting to see some pictures as they morph & grow .

[Cynere]

The consensus is in that these guys are frogs, of some kind. The question is, cuban or not? The toepads don't seem that large.



After these pictures I moved them to paper towels as they don't hop very well and I didn't want them drying out.

[yoshimi]

I passed away from the cuteness of this thread, but I died happy. Thank you so much!

Update on those frog tads would be cool, unless something bad happened, but you did so well with the toad ones, I highly doubt it.