Fish Out of Water ((finished metamorphosis))

[Perocore]

So my little American Toad tadpoles are about 3 weeks old and I think something is wrong with them- from the time I get up and check them in the morning to the time I turn out the lights for the night they undergo some serious changes- WAY faster than I'd expect! Haha, it's pretty awesome though. Anyways, they all have legs now, though only 6/7 have made it to this point. Yesterday they ALL still had tails, but I was cleaning their tank out and noticed that the biggest one, which my little sister named Jaime, is finally, officially, a little toadlet! I moved him into a new tank and he seems to be doing very well!


That's a shot of him, his very first time out of water! The others should mostly be done tomorrow, I think, so they can join him. I'm picking up some pinhead crickets on Monday for them.

((As a note I use the term "him" as a default, I honestly have no idea yet XD))

Also, I do have an important question! Do American Toads require additives in their food such as D3 or Calcium? My leopard geckos do, but they're reptiles, and I honestly don't know for toads. I kept a pickeral frog once and he just ate crickets and thrived...so do toads need extra vitamins..?

[Bombina Bob]

congrats! fat little guy! make sure you get a very shallow waterbowl to
prevent drowning. pinheads and flightless friut flies make great food for
toadlets. im not sure why your tads change that way though.

[Perocore]

Haha, I contribute the crazy growth rate to high temperatures and good algae wafers!
I don't know if we'll be able to get wingless fruit flies (my mom has her limits) but I will be getting the pinheads soon...I also have some newly hatched mealworms that are the perfect size for the little toads- just have to crush their heads and we'll be good!
The water dish is shallow and wide, and I put pebbles in it just in case

[Bombina Bob]

all seems pretty good! mealworms have a hard
exoskelleton so its good for them to be only used
as a treat. Earthworms are very nutritious if you
chop them up into tiny pieces

[Perocore]

Okay, update time on the toadlets!

All 6 of them have been out of water for about a week, and after I got them some flightless fruit flies they started growing very well! None of them are too much smaller or bigger than the others, so I don't have much worry about cannibalism. I moved them into a new tank yesterday and they seem to be enjoying it much more. They've all started digging themselves little burrows to sleep in, too, which is very cute. And all of them are surprisingly tame, they don't flinch at my hand when I'm feeding them or filling the water up, in fact when I open the tank they all hop towards me in hope of getting some more fruit flies! I'm glad they're doing well, my first time with amphibians

[Mmfh]

Congradulations! Sounds like you are doing it right. I too love how they dig little burrows for themselves.

[Mentat]

...
Also, I do have an important question! Do American Toads require additives in their food such as D3 or Calcium? My leopard geckos do, but they're reptiles, and I honestly don't know for toads. I kept a pickeral frog once and he just ate crickets and thrived...so do toads need extra vitamins..?

Yes, they need CA and vitamin supplements too. Here is link to a care article to help you get started the right way: Frog Forum - Toad Basics - Keeping ground-dwelling Toads. A care sheet for Bufo, Anaxyrus, Spea, Scaphiopus, Ollotis, Alytes, Pelobates .

[Perocore]

Thanks for answering my question, Carlos! I've been looking around and some say nay while some say yay. Luckilly I have to buy calcium for my leopard geckos anyways...but what sort of vitamins do the toads need? I know most reptiles/lizards need D3...do toads..?

[yoshimi]

Thanks for answering my question, Carlos! I've been looking around and some say nay while some say yay. Luckilly I have to buy calcium for my leopard geckos anyways...but what sort of vitamins do the toads need? I know most reptiles/lizards need D3...do toads..?

If you can get calcium with D3 for them, that would be best. I'd say shake the pinheads/mealworms up with it every feeding while they're teeny and growing. And something like Reptivite for vitamins about once a week instead of calcium should ward away deficiencies. Vitamin A and calcium deficiencies are the big offenders..

And congrats!

[kueluck]

So cute!!! Please read the caresheet Carlos sent you........it can save a life.