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Thread: purple-ish Australian Frog....

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    Default purple-ish Australian Frog....

    We were given a frog two days ago. We are told it's an Australian tree frog. Kind of purple-ish in color. I read a bit about it and see that it needs more stuff than it has. Presently it's in what looks like a ten gallon aquarium. There is a ceramic swimming pool looking bowl for water and some plastic plants and other stuff in there. I see where it needs to be 80*-86*. And it needs something to climb. Temporarily my wife put in a molding stick in there and Mr. Frog quickly climbed it. She has fed it two meal worms once so far. We are learning, but we need help. I have a 40 gallon aquarium and we plan on using that as a base. We plan to cap it with a mesh screen, maybe 1/4" hardware cloth, over the top that would be the same size as the base aquarium and be lifted out of the way for access. This would give an opportunity to place some taller items (tree branches?) for the little guy (girl?)(How can we tell??) more liberty to choose what to do and where to go. I see there are heaters that can be placed under the tank. How can I choose one that will give the right temp range? They are listed as 100 watts, 200 watts, etc. We are sure bright light, especially sun light is not good for Mr.(s?) Frog. We will see to that. What else does it like to munch on? We were told crickets. She found there is some beetle looking critter moving around in the bottom of the present tank. ANY help, suggestions, recommendations are welcome. My wife presently has three fish aquariums: a 60G with four golds, a 40G with four tri-tales and another 40G with some other unique gold-type fish. She also has a 60" x 18" x 20" turtle tank.
    Thanks for any help....
    Bob.

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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    Frogs will burrow to cool down, so don't place it on the borrow of the tank. You can put it on the side of the tank, or use a ceramic heat emitter. Heat emitters will greatly lower the humidity though. I think Australian tree frog is another name for White's tree frog? I've never owned this species, but plants of people on the forum do.
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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    Can you post a picture of the frog, current setup, and future setup? That would really help with his/her care. Thanks!



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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    I have seen a purple morph of the White's species before, but I think they're pretty rare!
    In any case, it will help to have a thermometer/hygrometer to measure temp and humidity. Putting a heater underneath may not be as effective at heating as having a heating pad stuck to the side. If you do this, you should make sure there's no water on that side of the tank that might cause cracking.

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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    We sure appreciate the quick help. Great advice for us frog novices. The new tank is 30" longx12" deepx18" tall. I will take pictures of existing set up and occupant tomorrow and post tomorrow night. What do we do for building the new dwelling? Starting at the glass bottom. I read that Sphagnum peat moss is used. Is that across the entire bottom? How thick a mat? And what might be the following layers?
    About that new tank. My plan is to put a tower of sorts on the left hand side. Structure 12" deep x 15" long x 18" tall. It will rest on the tank and provide some taller items for M. Frog to climb on. The remaining 15" of tank top will be covered with a screen that will be hinged to the tower. About that tower...glass/plastic sides with an open top? I thought maybe large mesh screen for sides, but think it may not keep breezes out and let the needed warmth out. Thoughts?
    I like the idea of a ceramic heater on the side. Are those thermostatically controlled? I will look into that.
    Thanks again for helping us.

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    100+ Post Member elly's Avatar
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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    Is this what you mean by "purplish"? In that case it's not a morph.Name:  WhitesDumpyTreeFrog.JPG
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    Anyhow spagnum moss will work to hold humidity. You don't want to put it where the frog can get it while trying to eat a bug. It's been known to stop up frogs.

    You might want to put aquarium gravel or lighter clay LECA balls or other material meant to soak up water on the very bottom of your tank if you want to avoid having the substrate sit in water.

    I wasn't suggesting a ceramic heater on the sides: that might be a bit much for the glass. I was thinking of the heat pads they sell for reptiles. I have not found any of those that are controlled by thermostat. Personally I use overhead heat emitters in heat lamps. I have a large one and a small one and I switch them out as needed.

    Covering up the open side part way with glass or plastic seems like a good idea because keeping warmth and humidity in can be very important in the winter. In any case, that's ambitious and I hope to hear more about how it goes.

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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    Here's a pick of our frog. Looks just like yours, Elly! We use marble sized/larger round river rock in the fish aquariums and plan on setting down a layer of that, maybe an inch or so, followed by two 8qt bags of sphagnum moss. That tower build will be 15" wide x 12" deep x 24" tall. That will give Mr. Frog an area to play on some pretty long branches. The tower will be plastic sided and have a screened top for summer and a plastic cover for winter. The heater I'm considering is this:
    http://stores.cllpetsupplies.com/25w...r-submersible/.
    and will be attached to that side of the tank near the bottom. My wife says she plans on misting the environment twice a day when she feeds the fish. We will get a humidistat to verify proper humidity. Any suggestions on what size heater? I'm thinking the 200. Too much? Too little?
    For branches I'm considering something about two/three inches across and cut from one of the area's cherry trees. Remove leaves and most small twigs.
    Are we on the right track to provide for our new friend?
    By the way....I live with Mother Nature. I even have pictures of her feeding a skunk on the front porch from a few years ago! She enjoys all creatures and cares for them all.
    Thank you all so much for your help.
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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    Phase one was getting M. Frog. These pics are of phase two. The aquarium has about an inch of the rounded river rock and the obvious layer of peat. M.Frog can be seen just in back of the Roman pillars. Wife empties the swimming pool once a day. M. Frog apparently takes midnight swims. Hard to see, but the temp shows it at 72* and the humidity is over 80%. We have the unit set on 2x4's for now. Creates a space beneath where we placed a heating pad. There was no movement of temperature, so I enclosed it both sides about 3/4's the tank length. We'll see if the temp climbs over night. M. Frog appears to be doing okay so far. I hope we're on the right track with this stuff. Phase three will start in maybe a week or so. Some other projects are in the way right now. Already late putting in the garden. Darned rain!
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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    It's good she's changing the water once a day, I notice the waterbowls double as frog toilets. Looks good. If it gets too messy you try leaf litter, durable leaves like Magnolia from a place that doesn't use pesticides, boiled and baked well to kill bugs. Or you can put around some large, flat rocks that are too big for the frog to eat.

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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    Well, M. Frog seems to be doing fine. I made a new screen today from 1/2" mesh hardware cloth and will place wood molding around that to dress it up some. The tower is on hold for now. For heat she places two heating pads atop the screen grid and covers them with a towel to keep heat and humidity in. Temp hovers from 79 to 84 degrees. Humidity is around 70% (right now at 80*) and will vary depending on when misted and when tank top gets opened. She mists the tank interior twice a day. M. Frog gets hand fed every other day. Yesterday three meal worms were for dinner. It appears that M. Frog is 'molting'. Looks like the skin layer comes off and M. Frog is eating it. How often does this happen? Is it even normal? Is it seasonal? Any suggestions to help M. Frog be contented are welcome. By the way, there's also a low watt night light in the tank near the top so M. Frog is easily viewed in the evening hours. It's off throughout the night.

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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    It's perfectly normal to have a frog shed its skin, just keep checking on him to make sure he isn't stuck or injured. My toads do it too and they always look so fresh and clean after!



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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    Shedding is perfectly normal, however if the frog's left with patches of old skin after shedding, that might be a symptom of a problem

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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    An Under Tank Heater is best with a Whites Tree Frog because it can stick on the side of the tank. It will warm the tank and if the frog wants to go on that side to warm up it will and it will jump off if it doesn't want to warm up anymore. Peace lillies and pothos are great plants. You can buy a misting system if you want so your wife doesn't have to mist anymore. The temperature needs a day temp of at least 80 or more all year and can go down to the upper 60's. Humidity I feel is best tropical like 70 up. They are very hardy. You should get calcium dust and get crickets and dust the crickets in the calcium so the frogs can be healthy. Feed the crickets fruit and fish food at least a day before feeding the frog so the crickets are nutritious. I'm confused on your proposed building plan. You can also pick up special lights online or at a pet store. I recommend the Exo Terra UVB lights. They are very bright. You can buy hygrometers online too. They will show you temp and humidity. If you need more help and advice let me know.

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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    Hi, AAron. Thanks for the help! The proposed building plan, now defunct, was to build a tower of sorts on one half of the existing tank. The thought was to place some climbing type object in there for the tree frog. I assume it's called a tree frog for a reason. But, we just have a plain piece of unfinished molding set at an angle and M. Frog seems to like that. What is the purpose of the plants? I'll look into getting them. The tank heater sounds good. I like that it give M. Frog a choice to control his environment. What wattage would be appropriate for a tank that's 30"x12" by 18" tall? The light you suggested....it puts out UVA and UVB. That's good? I thought frogs tended away from sunlight type light. What kind of calcium do we dust the crickets with? Something we get at a health food store? And about the crickets...are they placed in the tank and left to move around on their own? Presently M.Frog is hand held and fed his meal worms. We're new to the frog world, so please excuse so many questions. We still learning.

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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    Quote Originally Posted by mrcaptainbob View Post
    Hi, AAron. Thanks for the help! The proposed building plan, now defunct, was to build a tower of sorts on one half of the existing tank. The thought was to place some climbing type object in there for the tree frog. I assume it's called a tree frog for a reason. But, we just have a plain piece of unfinished molding set at an angle and M. Frog seems to like that. What is the purpose of the plants? I'll look into getting them. The tank heater sounds good. I like that it give M. Frog a choice to control his environment. What wattage would be appropriate for a tank that's 30"x12" by 18" tall? The light you suggested....it puts out UVA and UVB. That's good? I thought frogs tended away from sunlight type light. What kind of calcium do we dust the crickets with? Something we get at a health food store? And about the crickets...are they placed in the tank and left to move around on their own? Presently M.Frog is hand held and fed his meal worms. We're new to the frog world, so please excuse so many questions. We still learning.
    These frogs like UVB lights so that would be best and you can checkout a local pet store and get some reptile Vitamin with D3 or a calcium with D3. You should get both. I believe Zoo Med makes great calcium and vitamin for frogs. I use it. Just throw in around 5 crickets and let the frog eat them. 5-7 crickets is enough for one feed or the frog can become fat!

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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    The purpose of live plants, if you want them is that in a "living" vivarium setup they help prevent ammonia from building up in the tank so you don't have to change the substrate, maybe ever. The disadvantage of that is if your frog has parasites they can build up in the substrate.

    Also plants give frogs places to hide and having plenty of hiding spots can make frogs bolder, less stressed. Artificial plants work too, but they come with some drawbacks, like needing to be cleaned. Also sometimes they have sharp parts that can seriously damage a frog.

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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    One of the main reasons I use live plants is because they release fresh oxygen into the enclosure which is exclusively to your animals. I actually read somewhere Pothos releases the most oxygen lol that's why I tell people to use it

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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    Quote Originally Posted by Larry Wardog View Post
    One of the main reasons I use live plants is because they release fresh oxygen into the enclosure which is exclusively to your animals.

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    But unless you've got an airtight enclosure the oxygen in the tank will just diffuse into the room and vice versa. I highly doubt the oxygen content in your enclosure will be significantly higher then the surrounding room.

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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    Quote Originally Posted by MichielB View Post
    But unless you've got an airtight enclosure the oxygen in the tank will just diffuse into the room and vice versa. I highly doubt the oxygen content in your enclosure will be significantly higher then the surrounding room.

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    Not as fast as you think! I use plexiglass lids which hold in humidity and also I don't know if there is evidence for this but with a plexiglass lid and a lot of plants that release oxygen would produce a lot for the enclosure. I find it hard to believe it wouldn't be beneficial for the frogs.

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    Default Re: purple-ish Australian Frog....

    I see the heater pad comes in 5watt to 35 watt sizes. Which should I get for this size aquarium? As for heat/humidity (and oxygen...) presently there are two heating pads on top of the screen mesh. That is covered buy a small hand towel to keep in the heat and humidity. Now, this could also keep the interior from fresh air, too. Although she opens it at least once a day for misting purposes. And the Pothos plant....get one that's potted and keep that in there with M. Frog? Or set it down at level with the peat? Also...philodendron satin, or golden, or marble queen devil's ivy? I had no idea of a plant by this name and now I find there are many varieties. Need some guidance on the light wattage, heater wattage and pothos variety. We are sure learning a lot from all the help given here. Thank you so very much!

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