New White's setup questions - new to Frogs

[ViperJr]

There you go Martin warm and humid.And he is brown.lolAttachment 19018

I trust you, just saying that it does not necessarily apply to every White out there.

If you use a glass bowl that doesn't have a very flat bottom, the crickets don't get traction and thus can't jump out. If the bowl is buried down into the substrate somewhat, any crickets that do escape will eventually fall back into the bowl. Don't know why they do this but it will be pretty routine for you to find one in the morning that fell back in.

Ah, right, not enough friction. Seems so obvious now that I know it

[BG]

I found a nice bowl that has a round bottom not flat. I also like that the top edge curves inward just enough . The crickets will be sliding non stop. Thanks for the tip Don as always.

[Kevin]

OK - Swapped out the Sphagnum moss for the Exo Terra Coco husk. It seems less digestible than the moss, but it's in and the humidity seems stable at around 70%. I read somewhere that people place leaves over it....is that really necessary? I'm using a glass custard cup to put crickets in and they stay put and so I don't think he'll be eating any substrate anyhow. Also regarding feeding, we gave him six small crickets and one mealworm last night and he ate all, does that sound about right for every other day?

Thanks again,
Kevin

[BG]

These pics show how they mimic their surroundings. I caught them in the act.

[GrifTheGreat]

You are getting great advise here. I just wanted to add one thing: be careful not to bend the heating pad. They have very fragile wiring components which can break if the pad is bent. This can cause the pad to malfunction and overheat which can endanger your frog or even catch fire. For the same reason, they are best if only used once. They have an adhesive on one side that you stick to the tank. It's pretty hard to get them off without bending them and the adhesive doesn't really work a second time. But if applied properly they work great. Just put it carefully on the side of the tank without bending it and you're good to go.

[GrifTheGreat]

OK - Swapped out the Sphagnum moss for the Exo Terra Coco husk. It seems less digestible than the moss, but it's in and the humidity seems stable at around 70%. I read somewhere that people place leaves over it....is that really necessary? I'm using a glass custard cup to put crickets in and they stay put and so I don't think he'll be eating any substrate anyhow. Also regarding feeding, we gave him six small crickets and one mealworm last night and he ate all, does that sound about right for every other day?

Thanks again,
Kevin

Wait, are you using coco husk or coco fiber?? The coco husk has much bigger chucks and is also potentially dangerous. Coco fiber is much finer and passes easily through their system. They cannot digest the moss at all. If the swallow any of it will go through their digestive tract whole. This is why it is dangerous; it can easily become backed up and cause impaction.

[Kevin]

Wait, are you using coco husk or coco fiber?? The coco husk has much bigger chucks and is also potentially dangerous. Coco fiber is much finer and passes easily through their system. They cannot digest the moss at all. If the swallow any of it will go through their digestive tract whole. This is why it is dangerous; it can easily become backed up and cause impaction.

Yikes, it looks like I'm on my way to yet another substrate change. I've got the kind with fibers mixed with 1/2" chunks....it didn't look right, but I didn't know that there was a difference and thought I was following the advice.

I'm feeding the frog in a bowl, and it's free of substrate so it should be ok, but still want the best stuff in there possible.

So - coco FIBER. Does anything go on top of it?

[Kevin]

Thanks. What's the max temp on the glass? I'll be using a probe glued to the inside to make sure it's not too hot for 'froggie'.

[rosaphile]

Just thought it might help to mention again that the coco fiber goes by the product names of Eco Earth or Plantation Soil - there may be others but those are the two I know of - they come in a brick. Search on Amazon and you'll see what the packages look like. Also Don's advice to me about White's was to get some leaf litter to place on top of the soil, which looks nice and keeps them cleaner as well as being a bit safer as regards feeding. You can get them from Josh's Frogs (joshsfrogs.com) and they seem pretty reasonably priced for what you get.