Rescued Toad - Help urgent

[SHelly66]

Well we seem to have aquired a toad. Rescued from two crows that were after it. John just got home with it. (3 months ago it was a injured squirrel
So now what. It is cold here frost on the grounds in the morning 4 degrees C now and low of - 1 C or colder
So as far as I can see from our little toad he /it? seems to be no worse for wear that I can see. John said its little flippers hind ones were bleeding but they seem to be fine right now. It is standing in this tub that John set it in
This is literally a "cat house" and of course we were not prepared for a toad lol.. I have a cockatiel cage maybe/ what do I do in the meantime/ As far as food and water supply?

[Poly]

Okay, first of all, welcome to the forum! Congrats on rescuing it!

Setup:
1. For a single american toad (what you likely have) a 10-20 gallon fish aquarium is best.

2.For substrate (bedding) line the bottom of the tank with roughly 2-4" of eco-earth soil (can be bought at most stores i.e. home hardware, Canadian Tire, etc.) as it contains no chemicals that are harmful to your little toad.

3. MAKE SURE YOU USE NON-CHLORINE WATER AS CHLORINE WILL KILL THE TOAD, USE BOTTLED WATER, OR IF YOU HAVE A WELL, YOUR FINE. For a water source take a small tupperware bowl, and place it in the tank so it is even with the soil line (press it down into the soil). The bowl should be 3 toads long, 3 toads wide, and 1.5 toads deep. Put small, smooth pebbles on the bottom of the bowl.

Amphibians do not "drink" water, you will not actually see it consuming the water, rather sitting in the water, absorbing it through their skin, this is how amphibians "drink".

For actual tank setup give the toad places to hide & burrow under (slanted rocks, drift wood and some live plants).

Here is my tank setup just to give you an idea:




Food:
For food, toads eat crickets, worms, spiders, beetles, etc. I recommend ordering insects form this website: Canadian Feeders - Your One Stop Feeder Shop!

They provide a care sheet on the website explaining the pros & cons of each insect, how to care for it, and where and how it should be kept.

They also can ship during the winter, as they put heat packs in the boxes, so don't worry, you can buy food the entire winter from them. I get all my insects from them.

I recommend starting the toad off with cut up worms, he/she will love them, and worms (aka night crawlers) are extremly easy to care for, just keep them in a fridge where they will stay dormant, and can last up to months, or a large container (ie 40 liter Rubbermaid bin) filled with eco-earth at room temperature, mixing in veggies, rotton leaves, etc in this, the worms will eat, grow, and they may even start to breed!

Feeding:

You can do three things:

1. Put the food in the toads tank, and allow him to hunt, but if you have a small toad, he may be unable to hunt the food adaquatly, or if your tank contains a lot of objects where the insects can hide, it makes it difficult for the toad.

2. Feed the toad by using tongs like in this video: (I know I't a bull frog, not a toad, but I couldn't find a toad one, BUT i"m sure you get the idea )

3. A feeding mat like in this video (take the toad out, place him/her on the mat, and drop the food in front of them):

If you need any other info, just ask, I or one of the other great members of this forum will answer you.

Hope all goes well!

~Royce

[SHelly66]

thanks royce it is 730 and this is small town. everything closes early...I left you message in your inbox thanks for your reply not sure what to do with the little beggar though. No aquarium my friend. just feeling bad for this little one... at this point. It looks like it is fine but as far as the water can't get down to the river at all from where we are too much of a bank. Nightcrawlers I've dealt with before but lol none available at the moment here. sigh... I may post in the local forum as with ten cats it may not be good for toady here, and I would want to see it safe. I'll get back to you...

[bobrez]

For just a temporary cage a plastic bin, like for sweaters or shoes, would suffice an add some moist paper towels. If he has cuts
i believe you should use a little human bacterial ointment (neosporin).

[Deku]

Royce. I love that set up you have up there. Jesus look snice and simple. I like to go all out but it looks super complicated so sometimes I just want a simple and nice looking setup. I guess I'll go replicate t his soon. LOL Uhh anywho. I would love to add to this. Umm from my personal experience. Give them a 20L I mean for one toad a 10g is okay. But a 20L would be appreciated alot. I see my toads move around every so often. So just cause you don't see em move doesnt mean they don't. They're nocturnal. lol. Anywho ill add more to this soon. Brb.

[Poly]

Royce. I love that set up you have up there. Jesus look snice and simple. I like to go all out but it looks super complicated so sometimes I just want a simple and nice looking setup. I guess I'll go replicate t his soon. LOL Uhh anywho. I would love to add to this. Umm from my personal experience. Give them a 20L I mean for one toad a 10g is okay. But a 20L would be appreciated alot. I see my toads move around every so often. So just cause you don't see em move doesnt mean they don't. They're nocturnal. lol. Anywho ill add more to this soon. Brb.

Want to hear something funny? I thought my tank was a 10 gallon, until I measured the dimesions of it ant found out it is a 25 gallon! A 10gallon is 18-20" long, my tank is 26" long.

[Poly]

For just a temporary cage a plastic bin, like for sweaters or shoes, would suffice an add some moist paper towels. If he has cuts
i believe you should use a little human bacterial ointment (neosporin).

Great point bobrez! May want to apply some polysporin or ozonol cream to the injured area with a Q-tip.

Another great point, making a temporary terrarium is quite easy, oops guess I left that out! Once you have found a suitable container (must have high sides, toads are pretty crafty escape artists) just treat it like a terrarium, adding all the same components, soil, water bowl, hiding places, etc.