Toadlet question

[kellie]

Hi guys! i have 2 american toadlets .. they're about 2 weeks old (out of water) and everytime i handle one of them, he gets stiff. almost like he's playing dead. he's fine before i handle him and he's fine after i put him back in the tank. the first time he did it, i thought he had broken legs or something, but then he was fine .. it's strange. any idea what this could be? a defense mechanism maybe .. like fainting goats?

[Eel Noob]

Might be.

I used to have a pictus gecko that would stiffen it's body and laid as flat and close to the ground as possible whenever I try to pick it up.

[kellie]

it's so strange .. i've never seen anything like it before. the first time he did it, i was sure he was a goner. then, when i put him back into his tank and he happily hopped away, my jaw dropped. i couldn't believe he tricked me!

[Kurt]

Maybe he had a stress related seizure. Just a guess.

[kellie]

this happens everytime i handle him.

[Ebony]

I agree with Kurt. It could be a sort of defence behaviour. Maybe give them time to get used to your hand in their enclosure before handling them too much.

[SethD]

this happens everytime i handle him.

Is he just holding his legs close to his body in a normal toad position, not moving and "playing dead" even if turned over or is he stretching his hind legs strait out behind him all stiff? The former is normal for a lot of baby toads, the later is a seizure often caused by a deficiency and stress.

[kellie]

Is he just holding his legs close to his body in a normal toad position, not moving and "playing dead" even if turned over or is he stretching his hind legs strait out behind him all stiff? The former is normal for a lot of baby toads, the later is a seizure often caused by a deficiency and stress.

no .. it's the second one. his little legs stretch out behind him and he tries to move, but can't. i don't want him to be stressed out. poor little guy. what kind of deficiency can it be? should i be dusting their fruit flies? if so, with what? when they were tadpoles, i was feeding them pieces of seaweed sheets and food called "hikari tropical first bites" for tropical fish fry. it's a powder and i read in more than one place that it's good for toad tadpoles. and how can i get him to be not stressed out so much? i've had them since they were tadpoles and handle them often, everyday .. at least i was, up until he was having his little seizure-type things .. but, since i didn't know what was causing it, i felt it was best to leave him alone for the time being until i found out what was wrong. i feel so bad for him now. any advice is appreciated.

[kellie]

no .. it's the second one. his little legs stretch out behind him and he tries to move, but can't. i don't want him to be stressed out. poor little guy. what kind of deficiency can it be? should i be dusting their fruit flies? if so, with what? when they were tadpoles, i was feeding them pieces of seaweed sheets and food called "hikari tropical first bites" for tropical fish fry. it's a powder and i read in more than one place that it's good for toad tadpoles. and how can i get him to be not stressed out so much? i've had them since they were tadpoles and handle them often, everyday .. at least i was, up until he was having his little seizure-type things .. but, since i didn't know what was causing it, i felt it was best to leave him alone for the time being until i found out what was wrong. i feel so bad for him now. any advice is appreciated.

i actually just read this ..

Metabolic bone disease (MBD) is usually caused by an imbalance in dietary calcium, phosphorus, and vitamin D3. Other factors that may be involved in some cases of amphibian MBD include excess dietary vitamin A (usually in animals on rodent-based diets) or low water calcium hardness (Wright 2001a, 2001b). Signs suggestive of MBD include bone deformities – especially of the mandible and spine – long bone fractures, splayed limbs, reluctance to move, tetany, bloating, subcutaneous and body cavitary fluid retention (edema), and prolapse of the stomach or cloaca. Tetany refers to muscular spasms that can resemble seizures and that are often induced by excitement or handling. Slight drooping of the mandible not related to metabolic bone disease has been observed in some boreal toads and may be a developmental defect. Diagnosis of MBD is by characteristic clinical signs (bone deformity, tetany, etc.), demonstration of reduced bone density by radiography, or by pathologic examination of sentinel animals.

TETANY definition: clinical neurological syndrome characterized by muscular twitching and cramps and (when severe) seizures; associated with calcium deficiency (hypoparathyroidism) or vitamin D deficiency or alkalosis.

so, i guess i'll be getting my little toadlets a multivitamin and start dusting their fruit flies. does anyone have any suggestions what kind to get and tips on how often to give them? my poor baby toadlets!

[SethD]

It is probably a calcium deficiency. Such things are common in a vast number of captive frogs. Here is an article dealing with dart frogs but the same thing would apply to you toadlet. Calcium deficiency Dusting his food with a good quality supplement like repashy cacium plus ICB more than likely would fix the issue.

[kellie]

It is probably a calcium deficiency. Such things are common in a vast number of captive frogs. Here is an article dealing with dart frogs but the same thing would apply to you toadlet. Calcium deficiency Dusting his food with a good quality supplement like repashy cacium plus ICB more than likely would fix the issue.

thanks so much, seth. i'll look for that at the pet store tomorrow. i've read that when they're "toadlets", their food needs to be dusted everyday, but when they grow to supplement them 2-3 times per week, is this accurate?

[Kurt]

I don't know any store that carries Repashy. I have seen it at shows and on-line.