Looking for Help with my Toads

[Chelsi]

I have two american toads that I caught this summer and keep in a 10 gallon tank

with peat moss, a little log, and a water dish that is level with the moss. I also keep

a heat lamp on for them during the day and mist their cage regularly.

I feed them crickets everyday, and I was wondering if they should be eating

something more than just crickets, also, I've noticed that they tend to kick at their

back legs a lot, and I wondered if that was because they are trying to shed or

because they are having trouble going to the bathroom.

Also, I use natural spring water in a gallon for their cage, but i was afraid that even

that might contain something that will be harmful to toads.

Please let me know if there are any changes I should make, and thank you!

[Malachi]

You will want to very their diet some. It would be wise to get some vitamin/calcium dusting powder if your limited on your choices of live food, well its a good idea in general

Eco fiber is cheap and awesome for toads since they like to burrow down. ( I have an American toad )

They also do like it super hot unless they are tiny. Your water should be good.

[Kurt]

Super hot? A temperate zone species? I don't think so.

[Malachi]

They***Don't *** like it super hot, I meant LOL

My toadlets I have raised loved to stay in an 80 degree area.

My subadult likes 74 ish.

[Kurt]

Glad we clarified that.

[JimO]

Is your peat moss damp? If so, you might want to have an area with some soil and leaf litter that is a little drier. American toads don't like to be constantly wet. If you have a place to catch moths and grasshoppers where there have been no chemicals sprayed, it would be good to vary their diet, as Malachi pointed out. We have a few Southern toads as "yard pets" and they hang out under the porch light and eat moths, beetles, and other stuff attracted to the light.

Although I've seen toads many times eat beetles (especially June bugs), I don't recommend them because they are hard to digest and probably pretty prickly going down (I can only imagine). Also, I've seen lots of toad poo and often see beetle remains that are nearly fully intact, so I'm not sure they getmuch nutrion from them. You could also feed them a couple of meal worms once a week or so. Check their poo though and don't feed stuff that comes out undigested. Crickets are a good staple, but do dust them with calcium supplements frequently and vitamin supplements at least once a week.

[Greatballzofire]

Toads like to burrow by burying themselves butt first into the soil by excavating with their hind legs. So maybe that is what your toads are trying to do. Give them at least 3 inches of soil to burrow in.

[Greg M]

I'm sure that you've seen it already, but John's care sheet for toads (Toad Basic Care) is a great summary. I would be careful with the heat lamp - American toads are temperate zone animals, and do just fine at room temperature (70 - 80 degrees). Mine are kept at mid-70s with a dim fluorescent tube.

As others have already commented, supplementation with vitamins and calcium is advisable - I gut-load my crickets with Repashy insect gutload and dust with Repashy Plus ICB once a week. Other people have different schemes that are fine too. I also recommend a wide variety of (safe) prey if at all possible. I use Dubia roaches, crickets, butterworms, silkworms, hornworms, "phoenix" worms, isopods and the very occasional pinkie (as a treat for the big guys), all of which are available online as captive-bred stocks.

If your toads are juveniles, you need to be especially diligent about supplementation to ensure that the animals are receiving enough calcium and vitamin A. Calcium deficiencies can manifest as neurological symptoms (shaking, lack of co-ordination) and animals exhibiting these symptoms should be brought to a herp vet. Vitamin A deficiencies result in feeding difficulties - the so-called "short-tongue syndrome" which is actually squamous metaplasia of the mucus glands of the tongue. There are doubts that toads can convert beta-carotene into retinol, so vitamin supplements with preformed vitamin A (retinol acetate, for example) are probably preferred.

[Chelsi]

Thank you very much, I will watch the heat lamp and get supplementation as soon as possible. I feel like my toads have been kicking themselves and even using their front legs to rub the sides of their body and face.. are they having trouble shedding?

[Chelsi]

Yes the moss is damp, and alright I will do that. I also put a natural little log I found outside in their tank for cover, but they refuse to use it. I used to have a fake and heavy yard decoration ironically labeled "toad house" on the front for them to sit in, and they used that every day. Should I just switch out the log for the decoration?

[Chelsi]

Thanks Kurt!

[Chelsi]

Sorry for all the questions... I looked up how to hibernate toads online, because their lifespan will be shortened if they don't hibernate, but there isn't really a clear cut way of doing it and I don't want to refrigerate my toads if it isn't necessary! What do you think?

[Greg M]

Although putting toads through dormancy is used to induce mating, I think it is unnecessary if you are just looking to keep them as pets. IMO, good husbandry (hygiene, supplementation, etc.) is probably much more important for the average pet toad than hibernation in determining lifespan.

Amphibian guru Frank Individglio says "American toads hibernate throughout much of their range, but in captivity this is only necessary if you’d like to breed them…even then only a short cooling off period is required. Please be in touch if you would like information as to how to go about this. Otherwise, normal room temperatures are fine…the usual seasonal fluctuations in room temperature and day length will be good for the toads. If you use a terrarium light, you might want to shorten their light cycle to be in tune with the seasons." I believe that many very long-lived toads have kept without hibernation (I think Frank said that too, but I can't find the quote). I find Frank's blogs (i.e. How a Herpetologist Keeps American Toads, Bufo (Anaxyrus) americanus and Related Species, Part I | That Reptile Blog) to be very useful...

[bluesclues]

HI do you still have your am. Toads ?

I read that heat lamps should not be used at all -


because it dries them out,
and also can damage their eyes - too bright...

I hope they are doing well.


Toads are nice pets. : )


I

[ariesheiress]

I prefer the heating pads over the lamp. I think they are too harsh. If you live somewhere where winter weather occurs, lining the lid with foil and the heating pad keeps my baby's home humid.


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