Tanks

[Niima]

I like to clean my tank (ten gallons) out every sat/sun, and normally anything I read, or ask people say

"50/50 tank!"

"One side water, the other rocks!"

But I how I have it arranged is the filter is in the middle, a small pool around it, a slow slope on either side, flat rocks scattered around, two 'long' plants drape in the water, and there's three smaller plants around all this. I've tried re-arranging to fit the ideal...

But all three of them seem to prefer the water (one loves it under the filter, he sits there and lets the 'waterfall' go over his back.) I've re-arranged four times, and they seem the happiest when I put more water, and in the middle. Should I go with what makes them happy, or the 50/50? (should be a no brainer but I don't know if the 50/50 is for health.)

[deranged chipmunk]

go with what makes them happy. the fbt tank i have planned has about 80% water and 20% land. of course that will probably change by the time i actually go to do it. LOL and everything i have read said a 30-70 split is about right, they prefer more water area than land.

[FinnyBird]

No one knows better than the owner what's best for the toads (assuming the owner is responsible and pays attention to general health and safety). I say it's fine. Generally these "set in stone rules" are more for the newbies who need to know exactly what to do, just to make sure they don't have a bad experience with their first batch of toads from simple mistakes. Like for the people who want to keep their northern water snake in an entirely aquatic setup or for the person who thinks their desert tarantula doesn't need water at a;;. But once you're past the basics stage and have experience and a feel for what works, you have free creative reign.

Good luck.

[Hoppity100]

I like to clean my tank (ten gallons) out every sat/sun, and normally anything I read, or ask people say

"50/50 tank!"

"One side water, the other rocks!"

But I how I have it arranged is the filter is in the middle, a small pool around it, a slow slope on either side, flat rocks scattered around, two 'long' plants drape in the water, and there's three smaller plants around all this. I've tried re-arranging to fit the ideal...

But all three of them seem to prefer the water (one loves it under the filter, he sits there and lets the 'waterfall' go over his back.) I've re-arranged four times, and they seem the happiest when I put more water, and in the middle. Should I go with what makes them happy, or the 50/50? (should be a no brainer but I don't know if the 50/50 is for health.)

I just got 2 FBT's yesterday, already had tank set up and mine is 60% water and 40% land but I also have a large piece of driftwood they can hop on to. All depends on what supplies/decorations you have. Sounds like 10 gal is right size for 2, that's what I have. I also have smooth oval rocks, live plants and a tree house. I bought crickets and meal worms for them. I read that some people put a pool inside their tank with a bowl of water and others have water in the tank. I have water in my tank with land to the side. They seem very content. Hope your tank set up works for you.

[heyjude2200]

[QUOTE=Hoppity100;139980]I just got 2 FBT's yesterday, already had tank set up and mine is 60% water and 40% land but I also have a large piece of driftwood they can hop on to. All depends on what supplies/decorations you have. Sounds like 10 gal is right size for 2, that's what I have. I also have smooth oval rocks, live plants and a tree house. I bought crickets and meal worms for them. I read that some people put a pool inside their tank with a bowl of water and others have water in the tank. I have water in my tank with land to the side. They seem very content. Hope your tank set up works for you.[QUOTE]


I'd like to share how my FBT tank has evolved. I've had my 7 FBT's almost 2 years now. After I started to get the hang of caring for them & had a sense of what they liked best, I redid the whole 55G tank about a year & a half ago, with 60% water & 40% land, with quite a few plants, a ceramic hide & some gnarly wood for hiding, and small rounded stones around the edges of the water. They were always very active & looked to be having a great time exploring and climbing on &/or destroying the plants. I have fequently moved things around & added new plants, (removed tattered ones ) and they always seem to love it--they get right over there and explore anything new, but overall they always spent more time in the water side than on the land side. So, I had been thinking planning another major redo, with more water, less land, about 75%/25%.


But in the more recent months they have spent even less time in the land area, and, it took me a bit to realize what was going on. I live close to the ocean and at low tide I often find flat rocks & I pick up ones that are good for the tank, like 1/4" to 1/2" thick and 2" to 4" long/wide, some with a larger flat area. When I have a few I boil them to remove any bacteria and stack them in the water side for my little guys to climb on. As I have added stones, I found that they love it if I build in little spaces for them to squeeze into or especially if I make a little cave. It seems that they even compete for the 'good' spots'! The time spent on the land side has decreased as the stones & climbing area on the water side has increased. Clearly they prefer the stacked stones to the land area. I've also started rooting a few different varieties of philodendron and just putting them in the water with the roots under smaller, round stones to stabilize them (they grow well in just water) and now they even prefer to hide in the plants on the water side, than in the hiding places on the land side, which they used to like. They love it when I change the structure around and make different nooks and crannies for them.


They all do have different personalities, and I think I have figured out the environment that this group will enjoy the most, but I expect that other groups of FBT's would have different preferences. So, I am now planning the redo to be all water with two or three good sizes areas of stacked stone. I'm looking for ideas to integrate the stones with a carved fake stone background. (I'm a little bummed about the ending of the enclosure of the month pics) Instead of a land side, I'm going to put in a dish--8" to 10" in diameter and a little higher than water level--with land and plants. As I'm formulating my plan, I'm looking for & collecting more stones.


Just a note--I am extremely careful when I stack the stones that they are very stable and won't tip or fall or slide. I would be horrified if one of them were injured.

[Hoppity100]

You take them seriously like me! I love cleaning the tank and putting it all back together. I made mine as natural as I could: smooth oval rocks, plants, eco earth on land part, driftwood, small terra cotta pot for hiding plus a tree house. Mine spend half their time in water and other half on land. I know they are called toads but they seem more like frogs sometimes. Mine also chirp at night and I can hear them while typing and watching tv. Mine finally went for the earthworm today, which is good because the wax worms and mealworms I have don't last long in fridge even in butter holder in door. I even put an apple slice in with mealworms and read putting honey and oatmeal into their container, I read they like grain cereals.

I was trying to think of a better land area. Mine is smooth pebbles on a slant toward water and underneath are 2 smooth rocks to keep surface from sliding. On top of pebbles I have a round plastic jar lid about 5" diameter and they often sit in it. I put their worms close to this area or by water, depending on where they are sitting. Our pet store does not have exactly what I am looking for, think I'll look for rectangular plastic box I can put in one end for land then have substrate over that. It would have to be about 4" tall or less so they can get to it. They are fine the way the tank is, but I thought I could make their land part better. I'm glad you wrote about your tank, are your fire bellies small? Mine are about 2" and all of them were the same size at the store. I did not know until I asked that when they get a shipment in, they only get 5 or 6 FB's at a time. I happened to be there on the same day new ones came. I'm glad I was. They're cute little guys.

[heyjude2200]

Instead of trying to find the right box, you could try this--Home Depot carries different sizes of small acrylic sheets. If they don't have the size you want, they are easy to cut--just score them well with a box cutter & hold the scored edge against the edge of a countertop or other 90% surface, and snap it. Then you can "glue" them together with aquarium safe silicone. I did this to make a divider between the water & land & it has worked great.

I also have 2 small round shallow dishes on the land side for drinking water & they always sit in them too.

My FBT's are 2-1/2" to 3" definitely bigger than when I got them. Regarding your waxworms--your fridge might be too cold even in the butter keeper--assuming you have good batches of wax worms. I found that the ones I bought at pet stores were often half dead. I buy them online now with my crickets & they are much healthier. I had the same problem with them not lasting long in the fridge but I read that the correct fridge temp 41* is too cold for them. Now I wrap them in a lot of bubble wrap for insulation & take them out of the fridge and bubble wrap once or twice a day for 20-30 minutes & I've had much better luck with them living longer. I only buy them every other month or so because they're not the best food for FBT's, but they LOVE them. Last time I fed them to my FBT's two of them went for the same worm from different directions & each had one end of the worm in it's mouth & wouldn't let go. They fell into the water, still grasping the worm, trying to get it away from the other. too funny. And, they are frogs, even tho they're called toads.

[Hoppity100]

Instead of trying to find the right box, you could try this--Home Depot carries different sizes of small acrylic sheets. If they don't have the size you want, they are easy to cut--just score them well with a box cutter & hold the scored edge against the edge of a countertop or other 90% surface, and snap it. Then you can "glue" them together with aquarium safe silicone. I did this to make a divider between the water & land & it has worked great.

I also have 2 small round shallow dishes on the land side for drinking water & they always sit in them too.

My FBT's are 2-1/2" to 3" definitely bigger than when I got them. Regarding your waxworms--your fridge might be too cold even in the butter keeper--assuming you have good batches of wax worms. I found that the ones I bought at pet stores were often half dead. I buy them online now with my crickets & they are much healthier. I had the same problem with them not lasting long in the fridge but I read that the correct fridge temp 41* is too cold for them. Now I wrap them in a lot of bubble wrap for insulation & take them out of the fridge and bubble wrap once or twice a day for 20-30 minutes & I've had much better luck with them living longer. I only buy them every other month or so because they're not the best food for FBT's, but they LOVE them. Last time I fed them to my FBT's two of them went for the same worm from different directions & each had one end of the worm in it's mouth & wouldn't let go. They fell into the water, still grasping the worm, trying to get it away from the other. too funny. And, they are frogs, even tho they're called toads.

Thanks for the tips on wax worms. Like you said, sure enough, the ones from the pet store died soon and first container I bought they were all dead, store never checks them, no date either. I was really mad I had to make second trip to exchange them. The mealworms from them also died. Both were in fridge butter door and I tried storing them in plant window thinking temperature would be better. That didn't work either. I now have earthworms for them instead. Your tank sounds really nice and your frogs are older than mine and I wondered how long they can live? Yeah, I thought they were frogs instead of toads. They are funny to watch, especially feeding time. Oh, and how big do they get?

[heyjude2200]

Thanks for the tips on wax worms. Like you said, sure enough, the ones from the pet store died soon and first container I bought they were all dead, store never checks them, no date either. I was really mad I had to make second trip to exchange them. The mealworms from them also died. Both were in fridge butter door and I tried storing them in plant window thinking temperature would be better. That didn't work either. I now have earthworms for them instead. Your tank sounds really nice and your frogs are older than mine and I wondered how long they can live? Yeah, I thought they were frogs instead of toads. They are funny to watch, especially feeding time. Oh, and how big do they get?

I believe that mine are full grown at 2-1/2" to 3" and I've read that they live up to 15 years. I'm almost a grandmother--hope I live that much longer! LOL. Do you know about dusting their food with a calcium supplement? it's necessary for their diet or they will not be healthy. And you'll find that they all have their own individual personalities. I tried to upload some pics here but wasn't successful. If you go to my profile page & look at the album "Red Bellies" Lulu is on the bottom left and she does the cutest things. The bottom right is Motley who is the rascal of the group. the pics of my tank are out of date, I have a lot more plants now & a different layout. I don't know if you can see this in the photos, but I have a piece of cypress (it doesn't rot or mold) with a hole drilled part way up & a hose inserted from a small circulating pump at the other end of the water side. It keeps the water well circulated & looks nice. The frogs like to hang around there & sometimes climb on it. Good luck and have fun with your little guys Hoppity.

[Hoppity100]

Thanks for writing and I do know about calcium for them. I have calcium tabs I can powder down into dust. I did not know frogs lived this long! I guess 3" is full size? Mine are about 2" maybe a little more. I'm typing as I watch the debate, its very entertaining. Frogs are also entertaining. Mine will get an earthworm tonight, in fact, they're waiting for one already. I'm not a grandma yet, both kids are still finishing college. I have taken pets on as a hobby to help with empty nest syndrome. My dogs and stray cat are keeping me going. They are also like kids and are family members. But frogs and my fish tank and hermits are really good hobbies. I hope you write again!