Quote Originally Posted by flybyferns View Post
For Plettschner
What species of green frogs do you have?

I had to ponder a bit before I started typing a reply.

I'll use Fire Belly Toads and those "hard to care for Dart Frogs " as examples.

This is a good discussion topic.
An interesting spin on whats difficult; and does that = exotic?
Does exotic = "frog master"
Does "regular" = cheap $$
Does exotic = expensive

Hate to break the news.....
- some of the "regular frogs" are actually difficult to keep and/or quite high maintenance
( ie Fire Belly Toads high maintenance ( IMO) -- thought to be "easy" because they are not expensive )
( ie Red Eye Tree Frogs - high maintenance AND difficult to keep )
- some the exotics ( ie dart frogs ) are easy to keep

It's all upside-down

Sounds to me you are describing dart frog care
-substrate lasts for an indefinite amount of time
-frogs have to eat off the substrate
-there's NO filter to get clogged
-there are no water changes -- ever
- there are lots of plants that are very easy to grow --- even for a "brown thumb"
-and to poop fertilizes the plants --- so you just leave it ( except for taking it off the glass because it looks ugly)

A 5.00 fire belly toad is just as difficult and just as big a responsibility to keep as a 100.00 dart frog.
Just because we see 30 FBT ( all mushed together ) at a big box pet joint doesn't make them easy to keep --- means they are simply readily available.

It's all about what set of care needs one might find more or less..........well annoying
A "miniature functioning ecosystem" is exactly that ~~~ functioning~~~ pretty much... on its own

I have simplified it a bit , hopefully you get the idea

Keep it coming

One more BIG thing:
If you are replacing substrate when it is suppose to be replaced, being careful to use a safe substrate for the frog species you keep,
cleaning the filter, doing your water changes, cleaning your plastic plant because you have a "Brown Thumb", and trying to invent a new frog pooper scooper ......Well congratulations ....you are taking GOOD care of your frog And, Welcome to Frog Forum

Lynn put it very eloquently - basically, vivariums look complicated but in reality, they are the absolute easiest way to care for the majority of frogs. They are so easy, in fact, that even as a business trying to maintain dozens (over 100 now) of frogs, we STILL set up vivarium for our groups. Myself, I find them so easy that I set up my snakes, frogs, skinks, all in living vivariums. No water changes, no substrate changes, just glass cleaning, plant pruning, and watering!

What you described with the pumps and filters etc sounds like a lot of work for the green frog (green tree frog?) that I was thinking of - they are simple tree frogs that do well in an enclosure with live plants, which is easy enough to setup and really not that expensive if you already have lights/cage. Less than $50 usually for substrate, plants, hydroton, filter mesh, and maybe a water bowl or sticks.

-Jen