Hand feeding Baby whites help

[tmalla1]

Hi everyone!

Right now, i have 2 baby whites that ive had for about a month. I feed them crickets by just letting them go in their terrarium and that seems to be the only way my frogs will eat them? Ive tried grabbing the crickets with tweezers and trying to hand feed my frogs that way, but they just arent budging with that. Should i be hand feeding them even though they seem fine by catching them in the cage?

And if so, what are some tips on hand feeding them? Thanks!

[DonLisk]

You shouldn't need to feed by hand and usually hand feeding is more stressful to the frog.

Just make sure the crickets are no longer than the distance between the frogs eyes.
You can also try feeding using the cricket bowl method.
This allows for monitoring how many crickets are eaten and reduces the number of loose crickets running around the tank.

[tmalla1]

Thank you for your help! I tried the bowl method for a few weeks but my frogs didnt seem to notice the bowl and the crickets were jumping out, guess i didnt get the right bowl..

[Odica]

If your gonna hand feed the frog I suggest getting a pair of feeding tongs. It is probably less stressful for the frog and easer for you. They are fairly cheap at $7.99 for 10 inch feeding tongs. I use them to feed my frogs baby meal worms but every other day I put about 12 cricket in the tank really no need to hand feed crickets they move alot and the frogs seem to like the hunt when looking for food. Hand feeding them at every meal may be worse than you think. Say this summer you go away for a week or two. You probably would feed them and then put some crickets in the tank before you left. But because the frogs have always been hand fed they may not go after the crickets.

[flybyferns]

Thank you for your help! I tried the bowl method for a few weeks but my frogs didnt seem to notice the bowl and the crickets were jumping out, guess i didnt get the right bowl..

Hi tmalla1,
I would, personally, continue to follow Don's recommendations.
Reduce the size of the crickets.
It is VERY important the crickets are not too large!
Try a clear glass bowl with a little higher side.
Put a few additional crickets in the bowl - so the frogs see them moving.
Remove uneaten crickets the next AM and return to the cricket bin to feed.
It takes time for frogs to get used to the bowl.
You might even try both ways until they get it.
You might put the bowl they soak in near the cricket below.
Keep complete darkness at night ( use a timer, if possible to create a day/night cycle)
Try to avoid hand feedings.
Lynn