Hello everyone. I'm a beginner toad keeper and I've been raising 3 southern toads (Anaxyrus terrestris) for about a month now, and so far, it's going great. They're fantastic eaters and have tons of personality. But I do need some advice on something which I can't for the life of me seem to find any information. What kind of lighting do my toads need? I know that keeping toads is different from keeping frogs in a lot of ways but I'm not sure if lighting is one of those differences. Right now, I'm just using a regular desk lamp to "simulate daytime", but I know they will most likely need something different for the long-term. Using it as a clock actually seems to work however, and when I turn it off at night the toads immediately start to come out of their burrows and hides and mingle with each other just like they would in the wild.
In addition, what kind of heating do they need? These toads are actually native to my area, which is extremely humid and fairly warm most of the time, so I'm not too worried that they'd need a heating mat/light at all honestly, but if they do, please let me know.
My juvenile toad (about 1.5 inch long) likes to pretend she's a tree frog and climb the Exo Terra Boxwood tree I have set up in their terrarium, and it's pretty silly to watch. But sometimes when she gets up to the top, she puts her feet on the terrarium lid and it seems like she's trying to get closer to the lamp/light. I don't point the light directly in their eyes, so she's not blinding herself or anything, but this behavior is strange and I'd love to know why she's doing that especially if it's related to heating and lighting. I have a suspicion that it's because she doesn't have enough space at the moment (they currently only have a 10 gallon and they're quickly outgrowing it).
I love the Southern Toad! I own American Toads. So you can use your light and add a uvb light for better lighting but it's not necessary. For these toads I recommend a 40 gallon if you can get one so they have room to run around. Keep a plexiglass lid on top for humidity and drill some holes in it that's how I do it. Temp is okay in 50-70's. If you need help I can help you with anything and everything else lol toads are my favorite
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I wouldn't recommend any heat lighting for a toad. Just normal lighting during the day. I always run a ceramic heater that keeps a constant 75-83 degree during the day and turn it off at night so the temp drops about 5 degrees. Just regular led lighting during the day so they have a day and night cycle.
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