New owner of a White's Tree Frog (help?)

[JadeFrog]

Thank you guys for the reply, sorry Kurt that it took so long to send a thanks. I've been pretty busy and I'm still trying to figure out the forum (way behind times this is the first forum I've been on)...

I upgraded my tank to one of the exo terra rainforest kits, and he/she (Petrie haha) seems to like it, I'm still alittle concerned about his color as it gets extremely brown from time to time. And his diet has slimmed down over the last few weeks. I'm also just wondering if anyone can give me an idea of how fast they grow...Since October Petrie has probably grown a total of an inch(he's currently 1.75") and he still seems to be rather skinny (He was eating two to three small crickets or two small crickets and a mealworm every other day...the past two weeks I can barely get him to eat one cricket every other day and sometimes he goes two days in between feeding) I'll try posted pictures after work to see what people think about his size and see if there are any ideas to "fatten" him up so to say.

The guy at the pet store suggested a UVB light to help with his digestion and also moss to keep the humidity level more stable...any thoughts or suggestion on this too?

Thanks again for the responces so far, and good luck to you too IgbyKibbits, hope your two little guys live a long happy and healthy life too.

[John]

Jade - don't worry about a UVB light. Unfortunately for amphibian enthusiasts, most pet stores and even some book authors confuse amphibians with reptiles. Many types of reptile need UVB light in order to make Vitamin D. Amphibians are a completely different class of animals (like mammals are a completely different class of animals). There is no scientific evidence that frogs, particularly those usually kept in captivity, require UVB light to make Vitamin D. That doesn't mean you shouldn't give them a terrarium light, just that you don't need a UV light.

Regarding the moss, for larger frogs some kinds of moss (the stringy, long kind - sphagnum) can pose a digestive problem because the frog can accidentally ingest it while going for other food, and then the moss can cause an intestinal blockage, leading to the frog's death. This is very rare but it's a risk. If you want to keep the humidity up then have a nice water-absorbent substrate, plenty of plants, mist regularly and if necessary you can partially block the ventilation to keep moisture in. However don't block it too much - most tree frogs require significant turn over in air or they can develop respiratory problems.

[JadeFrog]

Thanks John for the reply. I'll have to check into alternative ways besides the moss to keep the humidity level in a good range, I don't think my substrate is doing a great job.

[Kurt]

Thank you guys for the reply, sorry Kurt that it took so long to send a thanks.

Don't worry about it.

[IgbyKibbits]

Jade -

I use a coconut based substrate (T-Rex Jungle Bed Premium Blend Forest Substrate) and after a good couple of spray downs with treated water, it really seems to hold the moisture well. Plus, I have read and heard that it's a good substrate for our messy eaters (in that, if they accidentally swallow some of the coconut, it is non-toxic and small enough in that particular blend that they will not choke). My only advice is to make sure that one or two times a week, you mix the substrate (just break it up and move it around) so that moisture doesn't collect in one area and potentially cause molding.

The other thing I did to help with humidity before we installed the water side of the tank was put a plastic covering (just a very thin plexi-glass sheet we had) on top of about 1/3 to 1/2 of the wire screen. That helped keep some of the moisture in while still providing good ventilation, but it really depends on the type of tank that you have.

Hope that helps!

[Wambli]

I guess my questions are as follow:
Are my temperatures and humidity levels fine?
Is it normal for it to stay brown for so long, and if not, any suggestions on what to do?
How much should it be feed/how often? and is it too soon to feed it mealworms?
Finally just any tips or advice...
Temp.
My Dumpys are kept at room temp our house is 72 night and day. during the day I have a florescent light on them that does produce a little heat and helps the plants grow.... they like to sit in the top of the tank by the light. At night in the winter I use a red light that gets a bit hotter that I put on top of the tank in case they get cold and the red light does not bother the night time activities... except I can see them.

Color.
mine while near the white lights are bright green to blue. when they are in there water dish or on the ground they are dark brown. when they are on the log or dark colored vines they are brown to dark green. on the plants they are lighter green to emerald. If I pick up one that is brown and hold him for a while he will turn the bright green to blue color... so I am not sure if it is mood or warmth or light... or the combo of all of it... but in a dark place they are brown.

Environment.
I have two dumpys in a 30 gallon tall with live plants and 1/2 top soil and 1/2 peat moss. I scrape off 2" of the mix once a month and add new peat moss. twice a week I turn under the soil to mix it up before feeding them. I also clean the glass and the plants at this time... I use a bit of warm water to wash the leaves of the plants. I wash the water bowl out every other day with very hot water and refill with cool water with the de-chlorine stuff.

Food.
I put 16 crickets in twice a week right after cleaning there cage so they get to know the food comes after the cleaning. so the 2 of them share 32 crickets a week... that is about the 2 crickets a day idea... but they seem to like to eat 4 or so at a time then some of the crickets hang out for a few days and then are gone. The crickets seem to leave them alone and do not bite them. or hang out by them. but maybe thats because the cage is like a forest. I dust once a week with the calcium and I have a chunk of sweet potato in the cage for the crickets to gut load on while they wait for there demise.

Handling.
I get my frogs out once a night while watching TV... I hold them each about 20 or 30 min... they seem to like it from what I can tell. I get the male out when he chirps... then the female next. then wash my hands and move on to the red eyes. seems like only my female red eye likes to be held. I have greys in one tank, red eyes in another, Bull Frogs in a pond in the basement, and my dumpys... I think the female red eye is my favorite with the dumpys next... the greys pee all the time and the bullfrogs are slimy.... but I still hold them once a week on cage cleaning day.

[JadeFrog]

Thanks Wambli

I've worried about the color a lot but it looks like other healthy white's turn brown too. I have noticed when Petrie is out of his cage and feeding that's when he turns more of a green but in his cage is where he stays more brown(during the day at least, I've not paid much attention to color at night because I have a red light on him) Maybe with some time, Petrie will finally settle into his home and I'll figure out the right conditions for him to be more than just brown all the time.

Thanks so much for all the replies, it's easing my mind and I'm starting to worry less about the little guy (now I'm just starting to get more curious as to if it is male or female)

[JadeFrog]

Thanks for all the help and advice, but sadly little Petrie didn't make it...He stopped eating for about a week and died rather quickly after he had stopped eating. I've been struggling with feeding him all along, I never felt like he was gaining weight or that he was eating as much as he should based on all the information I've read and talking to others who have them. I was told he might have just been sick all along.

But now I have found a few great and informative care guides, and have been given great advice thus far from this site. So thank you all very much who gave me some input. My only other issue now would be how to pick out a healthy frog.

[Wambli]

I got Bud and Sharron at petsmart... they let me hold them... they seemed active... and they siad the vet checks them out every week at petsmart. Your little guy small I would start with a larger whites... I love my whites... mine were about 1 1/2 to 2" when I got them.

[Kurt]

You're welcome.