Am I good?

[chp7298]

So I'm hoping to get together my terrarium for my first frogs, red eyed tree frogs. I think I'm good, but want to make sure. So here's my shopping list so far. I'm looking to keep 2-4 depending on what you guys think.

18"x18"x24" terrarium with ventilated lid
Eco earth substrate with sphagnum moss on top so the eco earth doesn't stick as much to the frogs
50w infrared bulb with 5.5" ceramic clamp lamp and 15w T8 fixture (9am-8pm T8, 8pm-10pm red light, 10pm-9am nothing)
Some fake plants (vines, abutilon, amapallo, and mandarin) and java wood branches
Calcium and D3 powder
Cricket gut loading supplement
Still deciding on hygrometer/thermometer
Small, shallow dish for spring water

Routine:
Daily misting with RODI water to keep humidity around 70%
Feeding 4-5 crickets per frog (approximately the size of the distance between their eyes) every other day (or every day?), with half of the crickets coated in the powder (I heard too much calcium was bad too?) and all gut loaded
Replace water dish daily with fresh spring water
Change substrate every one and a half-two months

Am I missing anything?

My one question is how do I clean up often since I have the substrate and not something like a paper towel bottom?

Thanks!

[Heatheranne]

So I'm hoping to get together my terrarium for my first frogs, red eyed tree frogs. I think I'm good, but want to make sure. So here's my shopping list so far. I'm looking to keep 2-4 depending on what you guys think.

18"x18"x24" terrarium with ventilated lid
Eco earth substrate with sphagnum moss on top so the eco earth doesn't stick as much to the frogs
50w infrared bulb with 5.5" ceramic clamp lamp and 15w T8 fixture (9am-8pm T8, 8pm-10pm red light, 10pm-9am nothing)
Some fake plants (vines, abutilon, amapallo, and mandarin) and java wood branches
Calcium and D3 powder
Cricket gut loading supplement
Still deciding on hygrometer/thermometer
Small, shallow dish for spring water

Routine:
Daily misting with RODI water to keep humidity around 70%
Feeding 4-5 crickets per frog (approximately the size of the distance between their eyes) every other day (or every day?), with half of the crickets coated in the powder (I heard too much calcium was bad too?) and all gut loaded
Replace water dish daily with fresh spring water
Change substrate every one and a half-two months

Am I missing anything?

My one question is how do I clean up often since I have the substrate and not something like a paper towel bottom?

Thanks!

Welcome chp,

I see you've done your research . This is a plus and will save you much grief. I'm quite pleased to see it . You're going to be a good frog parent.

Tank:

An 18x18x24" tank is approx 33.6 US gallons. This is a great sized tank, especially for beginners.

(converter is length x width x height % 231 to get US gallons of volume)

The general rule of thumb is 1 frog per 10 gallons of space. This will give you a hand on any tank size you choose .

I would recommend 2 or 3 retf's for this size tank. This will also allow a little extra room for decor and plants.

Substrate:

Eco Earth is the safest substrate for them other than paper towels. I like to use paper towels changed daily the first 30 days to monitor for feces to know how well they're digesting. Eco earth is fine though. It should be changed monthly and more often if it loses its fresh earthy scent. You can prolong the use of the Eco earth by creating a false bottom if you'd like. It can then be changed every few months. Live moss grown in sheets if fine and even helps to keep humidity up. Loose moss can be troublesome, but let me explain why. It can actually be ingested when they dive at their food. It also always inevitably ends up causing intestinal impaction. However, if you bowl feed, this is not an issue. Bowl feeding is nice because there are no crickets running around to annoy or bite at the frogs and you can count how many they've eaten. it is also nice for when you need to remove the uneaten ones so they may re-gutload. Live moss sheets are safer. Another alternative is larger leaf litter... dried leaves they can walk across to keep their suction pads clean .

For cleaning, remove all Eco earth monthly and wipe out the bottom of the tank with hot water and paper towels to remove any bacteria or fungus growing on the tank floor. This is easiest to do quietly during the daylight hours while they are asleep. They'll likely be sleeping up within the plant leaves while you're doing the cleaning. Remove and visible feces daily. If using paper towels, change daily.

P.S. springtails and isopods can help keep your home clean by eating mold and decaying matter.

Lighting and heat:

Nice choices. Optimal heat is 78'F during the day ( not to exceed 80'F), with a few degrees less at night. I use 78'F day, 75-76'F night. Keep their lighting on a 12/12 hr day/night schedule or as close to that as you can.

Plants:

Artificial plants are fine so long as their edges are soft and smooth so they don't get hurt on them. Give them a nice canopy of leaves a few inches from the top and they'll be happy .

Food:

Yep, food should be no larger than the distance between their eyes, for easy swallowing.

Gut loading: a must, especially with crickets. They are not very nutritious on their own.

Can use crickets, small dubia roaches, fruit flies (used when froglets or juveniles), cut earth worms (with no dyes or scents added).

Offer food nightly and remove any uneaten food in the morning.

Supplements:

Calcium with vitamin D3: use every other feeding. No need to only dust half. Dust them all .

Multivitamin: also pick up an amphibian/reptile multivitamin. Dust one day a week, not on the same day as the calc/D3. They need trace minerals and small amounts of other vitamins for vital body functions and health. Reptivite is used weekly. Repashy is actually formulated for daily use. Both are nice brands.

Water:

Dechlorinated water and spring water: you've got it! Both are safe for soaking and moistening substrate. Change soaking water daily, as you've noted.

Distilled water: fine for misting only.

Humidity:

70-80% through twice daily misting or an automatic fogger/mister. Less can cause dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, and poor shedding. Higher can cause respiratory infections, electrolyte dilution and fungal growth within the tank.

Stress:

To help minimize their stress when moving into a new home keep them in a nice calm and quiet place of your home with not too much traffic.

Add a background to the back and 2 sides of their home to give them a sense of security.

Plants - they love leaves big enough for them to cling into . They'll enjoy sleeping on the underside of the leaves.

Minimize handling of the frogs.

Hand washing:

Be sure to always wash hands before and after handling them. Give a good rinse after washing to remove all soap residue, lotions, perfumes and bacteria that we carry on our hands. Avoid hand sanitizer, it could burn them. Some people use non-powdered gloves when doing frog chores.


Quarantine:

It is wise to keep your frogs in quarantine for a minimal of 30 days. This allows you to monitor their health, eating habits, soaking, feces. It also prevents you from having to tear down your beautiful tank after time and money spent making it perfect. A 10 gallon tall tank with screen lid works great for this task and is good to have on hand in case one gets sick. I actually prefer the 12x12x18" Exo terra for this purpose, but of course any 10 gallon is fine. Have an extra water bowl too.


Enjoy! Red eyes are beautiful and amazing to watch. Lights out and they come alive .