new to frogs, have some questions

[the new kid]

Hello everyone,

I am new to this forum and the frog world, and I have been considering getting a few fire belly toads. I know most of the basics, but have a few questions on them.
1) How often do i need to change the water? (I will be using a half-land/half-water setup with a filter.)
2)What can I feed them besides crickets and roaches as a staple? I heard crickets smell and my mom won't let me breed roaches.
3)If I have to feed them crickets, then how do i get rid of the smell?
That's it for the questions. Thanks!

[jocie1976]

Welcome to the forum and to frogs! I have 6 Fire Bellied Toads and I love them! My set-up is also half and half with a filter/waterfall. I usually have to top up the water every 3 or 4 days due to evaporation (Dechlorinated of course), and change at least half of their water every two weeks. I could probably get away with doing less each time, or waiting longer between, but better safe than sorry. Especially since I keep 3 baby platys and an assassin snail in the water area. It used to be 4 platys, but one of the frogs got one. (That's why they are there, in case someone is hungry between feedings. I feed mine 4 crickets each, every other day. Sometimes they get mealworms as a treat. I refuse to keep the crickets here as I also find them to be very smelly. I live very close to my supplier though and pay for a couple of months worth and just pick up a couple dozen every time I need them. I don't have to deal with them that way. Cut open the bag and drop them in. They will eat most insects as long as they are small enough. If you want to keep more crickets around so you're not running back and forth to the store, try keeping them in a Rubbermaid tote storage bin. But you have to feed crickets to keep them alive. I'm sure someone else could help you out more on that though.

[the new kid]

Do you know if you can feed them something other than crickets as a staple, not a treat?

[jocie1976]

All of my research has led me to believe that crickets and guppies are the best staple foods. I have baby platys in with mine and they have only ever eaten one. Fire-bellied toads have a voracious appetite. Live crickets should make up the majority of their diet, with other food items such as wax worms, earth worms, black worms, and small silkworms being substituted for crickets every few feedings. Few toads recognize non-living food, so all food items must be alive when offered. A feeding schedule of two to six food items per toad every two to three days usually works well. Juvenile animals should be fed daily in small quantities. It’s important that any uneaten food or dead feeders are removed from the cage as soon as they are noticed. Adult fire-bellied toads should have their food coated with high quality reptile vitamin and mineral supplements once every two to four feedings. Juveniles should have their food supplemented as often as every feeding. I know a couple of people who just throw enough crickets in to last them a week and be done with it. I just don't like having that many crickets around.

[DaysiC1]

Hi...I have 4 Firebellies and I have a big bowl for a pool for them....they love it...I keep the moss moist and a log for hiding with fake plants. I feed mine crickets every day 4-5 a day. The medium sized ones. I have no odor from my crickets. I buy 200-500 every other week for all my frogs and this way I don't have to keep going to the store. They eat everything I give them and are doing great. Any idea how long before they start calling....I'm dying to know if I have any males.....Thanks

[FrogFriend]

I had my crickets in a rubbermaid type set up and I lost a lot of crickets and it always stank! I recently put them in their own small 3 gallon (not entirely sure on size) tank that we weren't using and added a natural kitty litter to the bottom. This absorbs any smell from the crickets, I barely loose any now and because he natural kitty litter is made of organic corn and wood shredding then I don't feel bad if the crickets eat that too. If you do decide to do this to keep down on smell, just make sure you are getting one that doesn't have any added ingredients or frangance that may harm your crickets and inevitable harm your toads. I also regularly give the crickets apple cores, chunks of veggies, shreds of lettuce/spinach from foods that we prepare. Again, all these needs to be organic and/or properly cleaned. I have learned that a happy cricket=happy FBTs! I also get quite a few because I have to travel 30 miles to get them, so I do the best I can to keep them happy and comfortable so I don't have to make every other day trips for crickets because ones I just bought died.

As for them calling, It's when the temperature starts to warm up and they are starting to attract the ladies. I love it! The first time I heard them calling I thought a neighbor had gotten a small dog that was constantly barking. Even our dog started barking when he heard it! But they make all kinds of fun noises, usually in the evening. I even hear someone doing this trill! It makes me feel like I am in the jungles! Hope this helped a little.

[jocie1976]

When I bought my 6 FBT's I had no idea what sex they were. But within days one was calling. I had to double check to be sure it was them, because like the person above me said, it sounds like a small dog barking far away! They can also make the trilling sound, but by reading and watching, the trilling call is to tell a male to "Get off me! I'm not interested!" My two males seem to mount each other more than anything else, and it is always the one being grabbed that makes the trilling, although they take turns with who does the grabbing, lol. I know that doesn't answer you're question about age of calling, but mine called very early. And they call all the time! Morning, afternoon, evening, night time, doesn't matter to my frogs, lol. I'll attach a video of my two males calling and the trilling sound the caught ones make when they are saying NO. This video is also the only time I ever saw them clasp belly to belly.

Fire Bellied Toads - Mistaken Attraction - YouTube

[FrogFriend]

Hahaha! Yeah, when I first got mine, it was in the early Spring. Then the barking started and when the weather was nice and warm they would bark all day and night! LOL! But when the temperature started dropping I would only hear it in the evening...I don't know why, you'd think it would be warmer mid day...and I love the trilling sound, didn't know it was "No means No!" noise, but it was still funny. I think I have two males and two females and the males will particularly like one of the females for awhile and then like the other female for awhile and yes, sometimes get confused and like one another...loved your video!

[Hoppity100]

To answer your questions: how large is your tank? The more frogs, the more often to change water. I have 4 and change my water 1-2x per week depending on how it looks, sometimes I can skim it with a net. Feed them crickets, meal and wax worms, earthworms. Smell from crickets? Mine don't really smell, I put 10 to 20 in my tank at a time then alternate with worms. My tank is now half and half land and water. I have pebbles (not gravel), smooth rocks, plants, treehouse, driftwood log, clay pot, a dry area with eco earth, water heater to 76 degrees. If too cool at night I partially cover the screened lid with saran wrap and it creates humidity. Once in a while some of mine perch on the wood waiting for a meal, they all get along, no arguing just calling sometimes in the evening. Now my hermits argue at night because a few times I found their house and plants moved, food dish tipped, log knocked off house. I suspect they were fighting over a banana. I found one hugging a peach. But, anyway, I'd like to put fish in my water but don't want froggies to acquire parasites. Hope this helps.

[annaliese]

Do not feed them meal worms. It will kill them. They cannot digest their tough skin