My intro

[youngsai]

Hello everyone, my name is Joshua, I'm 29, and I am a hobby addict. This addiction started when I was very young, I would collect and build things out of everything I could, starting at quite a young with legos of course. At the same time, a love for all things natural developed and I had a lot of creatures including- dogs, cats, birds, turtles, snakes, frogs, fish, ferrets, mice, gerbils, and whatever I rescued from outside, etc etc. As such, I have faced some harrowing events that I describe as the bullying of nature, events that just happen because life just happens. Example, my kitten (mind you this is the week we were going to take it to the vet to get it fixed) got out, got busy, and had a litter in my top chester drawer. I digress. The reason I bring this up is because I want to avoid such a happenstance with my new little treasures, dart frogs.

I have found myself captivated by these beautiful little living, breathing, hopping precious stones that you call dart frogs. I bought 6 cobalt tincs recently, and they are just awesome, they recognize me when I approach them with food and they are just about the cutest coolest things I have ever seen in my life.

Beyond just an introduction, I wanted to speak about my strategy for caring for them, feeding them, housing them etc. I have been ghosting this and other frog forums for a few weeks now and wanted to finally culminate what I have picked up and see what was right and what was misinformation.

1.) I have them at a temperature that fluctuates between 75-77 during the day, and 70-72 at night.
2.) I am feeding them ff (hyd and mela),
a.)Ihave bought methylparaben and brewers yeasts and am buying just flies from buyfruitflies.com to breed my own
b.) I started the culture food already so the yeast and food is established by the time the flies get here
c.) I bought mite paper and a reflecting lamp case to provide them with light, heat, and protection from mites.
3.) I use only de-chlorinated water for both their bowl and their misting, which I do in the morning when the light goes on, and when I feed them later.

For the long-term (projects I am thinking about but not married to, depending on advice anyone has)
1.) I plan on creating a true terrarium, (building a tank with a front and top entrance (the front connected by magnets for easy access)
a.)with woodlice and springtails to curb mold,
b.) with a base of bonsai soil (another hobby of mine, and my side business),
1.)topped with washed leaf litter,
2.)then topped with sphagnum,
3.)finally topped with living moss and a variety of semi-succulent and succulents.
b.) I have carved out and polished a natural stone from my area ( I work with stone as another hobby), complete with steps, deep areas, and underwater radio (jk about the last one, but this stone is hooked up!

Problems I have encountered-

Not enough flies producing, also, 1 culture had mites three days after I purchased it (which is why I am switching to buyfruitflies.com, unless anyone has a better source for ff) also need a source for springs and woodlice. Also noticed mold in the tank (but i've heard that this is an adjustment phase, and in general, is safe), frogs burrowing under the rock on the side of the heater (is it too cold for them?), frogs sleeping on top of each other (also a sign maybe its too cold)

***can I add methyl paraben to my tank to slow the mold down, maybe a half a teaspoon to my misting water any time it flourishes?


Sorry for the long winded post, thank you in advance for your patience

[maxQ]

Hello and welcome Joshua, LOL............great Intro ! I am originally from Cherry Hill, NJ now in Maryland.

[youngsai]

Nice Gary, Cherry Hill is beautiful, thanks, I'm glad to be here. I'll post some pics of my viv when I get a chance.

[Mentat]

Hello and welcome to FF ! You can get springtails and other food supplies at Josh Frogs. Would not recommend spraying any chemicals (i.e. methyl paraben) into a frog enclosure.

[youngsai]

I just ordered from josh's frog, 3 springtail cultures, and hydei (just the flies are not offered from josh's) from buyfruitflies.com, thinking about rice flour beetles, will cobalts eat them?