Can you domesticate a young wild toad?

[Poly]

Hello everyone!

I am new to this site AND amphibian care, so I have a few questions...

First of all, I caught a wild toad that is under 1 year old, and would like to know if it is possible to domesticate it for a pet.

I have had it now for about 4 days, and on the first day it refused to eat, same as the second day, but on the third day (yesterday) it tried to eat a slug that was dangleing in front of it, but it couldn't get it with it's tongue, today it tried the same thing with a grass-hopper, but it didn't get it either, and it will only try to eat 2 or 3 times them will just stop, and go about hopping around the terrarium.

How do I get it to eat? Is it going to eventually stop trying to "escape"?

Also, here is the tank I am keeping it in, it is a 25 gallon fish tank, I have approximately 3-4 inches of soil on the bottom, a large chunck of moss, many small plants, an appropriate sized water bowl (I use tap water, but where I live, I draw from a well, so it's underground water, no chlorine!) and a flat piece of rock for it to burrow under. So far it has just sat on the moss most of the time, sat/swam in the water, and tried to climb out of the tank... I keep the tank moist, I mist it about 10 times a day. It dosen't have a lid, but should it? Should I have some type of lamp or light shining on it sometimes? This is all new to me, so any help would be greatly appreciated! The tank also has a thermometer, and it stayes between 22C and 30C (72-80F) at this tempature do it still need to "bask" in sunlight? Thanks!


This is a photo of my toad, the coin beside him is a penny.

[Pete]

Sure you can keep them, although I'm not sure domesticate is the correct word for it.

Be sure to check out the basic toad care article http://www.frogforum.net/toad-care-a...pelobates.html

As for getting it to eat, it sounds like it's trying to eat. It looks a bit small, so you may want to try some smaller bugs. slugs can be slimy and a little bit of a challenge to eat. Try picking up some small crickets at a petstore or look for some small rolie-polie/pill bugs under a log. Ants might work for you, too.

[LilyPad]

He is pretty tiny yet. The toads I have that are about that size are still eating fruit flies (dusted in calcium and vitamins) though last night I did cut up some red wiggler worms and they munched them down very quickly and happily! Yours looks like he could take down some small crickets. I bet if you get some appropriately sized food in there, he would eat like crazy.

10 times a day is a bit excessive for misting, you should get a hydrometer to see what your humidity is like. My toads do go back and forth between the lighted side and the cooler darker side of the tank. They don't need a hot basking light like reptiles though, I have a 25 watt light on the toads, though when I upgrade their tank, I will put a 40 watt blue daylight bulb in there.

I would get a cover on the tank, you never know what trickery is up the sleeves of frogs and toads! You should be able to get a decently priced screen cover at your local pet store.

The toad should settle in soon. We have 4 toadlets, and they are like puppies. I walk up to the tank and they get all excited because they want food Only 2 of mine ever burrow so far, the other 2 just find cracks in the moss to sit in or are just out there without hiding at all.

[Poly]

Okay, well I just mist enough to keep the soil moist, about 10min ago, I held a grasshopper in front of him for about 4 minutes until it got his attention, then set it down, he went for it, but by the time he got his tongue out, the grasshopper hopped away... Should I get smaller grasshoppers? I know they eat pill-bugs too, I'll look for some on those...

Should I feed it in it's normal tank, or should I have a seperate one? I have read many how-to articles on toads, but they all seem to be for "tame" toads, when I go up to the tank, the toad just hops away, and when I leave, I watch it go and try to climb out of the tank (it can't) and I can only get it's attention with food for a minute or two, then it goes back to trying to escape, how long will it take for it to "settle down"?

Oh, and slugs arn't the best choice? I figured because there soft they'd do well as food, so what right now try for some pill-bugs and small grasshoppers & crickets?

Thanks

[LilyPad]

You can try feeding it crickets in a shallow glass bowl, they shouldn't be able to get out and it will give your toad some time to do some hunting. You don't want to overdo pill bugs, that is not a good staple food for your toad, but occasional feedings is okay. If the grasshoppers are small enough, they are a good choice for your toad, but it is best to pick the long rear legs off as they can cause impaction. Like I said, you can try cutting up some worms, as long as the pieces are wiggly, they should catch his attention. And they are slow, so he shouldn't have a problem snapping them up.

Because the toad is so young, you really need to get some calcium and vitamin dust. If it doesn't get those essential nutrients, it will end up with deformities because it is in such a critical growing stage right now.

You have to give him some time too, it's going to take a bit for him to get used to his new environment. You can try covering 3 sides of the tank so he has some privacy to get accustomed to it. When you're feeding, just drop the food in and walk away, no toad taken out of the wild 4 days ago is going to be okay with taking it from your fingers or tongs. If you really want to keep an eye on how much it is eating, do the bowl trick. Keep your hands out as much as possible for the time being.

[Poly]

Thanks! I'm just worried about him starving... he's not skinny, but I want to make sure he eats!

[Poly]

Yes!! I put the toad in a smaller 2 gallon tank, and dropped two small grasshoppers in it, I then watched a grasshopper jump in front of it, and the toad catch and eat it! Thing is, the grasshopper it ate, was only half the size it was, the toad is about 2 inches long, well the grasshopper was a good 1 1/4 inches long!

It ate the grasshopper hole, I did not remove the back legs, is that a problem?

Thanks!

[LilyPad]

That is too big. The food should only be as big as the space between your toad's eyes.

[Poly]

Oh, well what will happen now? I noticed he seemed to "swallow" many times?

[LilyPad]

Just keep an eye on him and make sure he poops.

[Poly]

Okay, will do.

I may be getting a Pacman frog, so if I do, I may release the toad, still not sure.

[LilyPad]

If you're debating releasing it, I would do it now then. It's too young to get accustomed to even temps and having his food handed to him to go back out in the wild after more than a few days. Otherwise pick up a cheap tank and care for them both I love my little toadlets now, they are a lot of fun!

[nicodimus22]

Toads aren't going to be domesticated, exactly. They will get used to you being around, and they may take food from your fingers after a while, but that's about as good as it gets. Handling toads frequently is detrimental to them, since they absorb the salt and oil naturally found on our skin through their skin, so minimize it. A lot of handling may also stress them, since in nature the only large thing picking them up would be a predator attempting to eat them, and those defensive instincts die hard. If you notice your toad playing dead after being picked up, or peeing on you, that means it's very scared/stressed, so put it down right away.

As long as your toad has access to a shallow (water level only coming up to the toad's shoulders at most) dish of dechlorinated water to soak in, the humidity isn't a big deal. They are often found in rather dry environments in the wild, and just soak in puddles/creeks/lakes when they feel the need to to get hydrated. I wouldn't worry about the misting for the toad's sake. If you are growing live plants in the tank, they will need it, although toads tend to burrow a lot, so you need some tough plants that can take the abuse. One thing I will caution you about is the moss. It's probably fine if you use a separate feeding container, but it is an impaction risk if the toad ever swallows it accidentally.

Crickets that are narrower than your toad's head are a good staple food, and you can easily get them at most pet stores. It's better to err on the side of feeding a toad a lot of smaller food items than feeding it fewer of something that is too large. Isopods (wood lice, pill bugs, etc) are good too, if you can get some. You will want to use a supplemental powder every day for a young toad, and about once a week for an adult toad. I use this for mine:

Repashy Calcium ICB Plus 5.3 oz JAR - Alpha Pro Breeders

As far as the light/heat thing goes, I think it's a good idea to use a low-wattage bulb to give a toad the option of a warmer and cooler section of the tank, so it can regulate its own body temperature. Doing this also helps to reinforce the day/night cycle. I noticed mine were burying themselves in the substrate for most of the day before I made the light available, and they are out and about during the day more often now that it's there.

If your toad is still pushing up against the glass trying to get out, take some kind of paper and tape it to the back and sides of the aquarium (on the outside.) You can use wrapping paper, aquarium paper, or just cut up some paper grocery bags and flatten them into sheets. Anything to make it look solid. Doing this definitely helped my toads stop that behavior. It's great that you have such a big tank, as your toad will love the space! Hope to see more photos of it soon, and welcome to the forum!

[Wormwood]

Wonderful little tank set up.

I'd get the "small" crickets from a petstore for now or put some wet sheets of cardboard down in muddy patches in your yard or under bushes; these will gather pill bugs in massive numbers, which I find are a wonderful staple food for young growing toads. If you do get crickest I'd suggest getting a lid because they will jump out.

As far as the light or basking lamp goes I'm firmly against it, just keep the tank in a room with some natural sunlight and they will do just fine. Toads, especially American or Fowler after all are nocturnal creatures and usually don't come out during the day anyway so they would advoid any direct light like that.

My best advice is to keep the soil moist enough around the plants to keep them growing but don't go over board with keeping the soil wet for the toad. I notice the drier the substrate is the more they move around, come out to eat, pop on over to the pool to keep moist.

[nicodimus22]

As far as the light or basking lamp goes I'm firmly against it, just keep the tank in a room with some natural sunlight and they will do just fine. Toads, especially American or Fowler after all are nocturnal creatures and usually don't come out during the day anyway so they would advoid any direct light like that.

Let me pose this question: if you give them the choice, and *they* choose the light/warmth, how is that a bad thing? In the wild, toads have the choice to burrow or stay above ground, to move into a drier or wetter area, and to move into the sunlight or into the shade, right? I have seen a picture of toads stacked up on top of each other directly under a spotlight, and sometimes my own toads go and sit on the warm rock under the light of their own accord. It seems that at least sometimes, they prefer it. Clearly, you don't want to go overboard with it, but I don't really see the harm in using a low-wattage spotlight in one part of the tank and seeing how they respond, especially in a room that is not very bright in the first place. It seems to me it would probably help reinforce the natural day/night cycle, if nothing else.

One the topic of the "toads are nocturnal" thing, I have a couple of thoughts about that. It would seem to me that if these were strictly nocturnal creatures, they would be repulsed by/hide from the light rather than being drawn to it. Also, on the day I found my toads, they were hopping all over the place in the middle of the day, which doesn't seem like the behavior of a truly nocturnal animal either. I have seen information that says they can be active during the daytime as well:

Fowler's Toad - North Carolina

Also, this study specifically focused on Bufonids (bufo boreas) and their tendency to thermoregulate in the lab or in nature by basking:

ESA Online Journals - The Role of Behavioral Thermoregulation in the Growth Energetics of the Toad, Bufo Boreas

Some other members here at Frog Forum have also commented that basking seems to promote rapid growth, which I am also seeing in my toadlets right now. Some discussion in this topic on the subject:

http://www.frogforum.net/toads/8993-i-love-toads.html

Anyway, that's why I'm using a light. It seems logically sound to me, and some others seem to have success with it as well. As long as you're not overheating your toads in a place where they can't get away, or using too strong a light, I don't see the issue.

[Poly]

Great points Pete! I agree with the lighting as well, I just have to get a new hood for my tank. As for people stating that they are "nocturnal", I think toads are more or less a nocturnal hunter, rather than a nocturnal animal, you see toads hopping around in the day time, but at night you see many more, and I think this is due to the times they hunt.

What wattage light do you use for your toads?

Thanks

[Pete]

You may find a clip-on light or some simple, single bulb apparatus is better than an aquarium hood for light. That way you can focus it in a isolated basking area for your toad. I'm all in favor of trying a basking light, but you do have to be careful to avoid dehydration. Some things to remember is a low wattage bulb, many hiding areas away from the light, and a well maintained water dish. Also there are probably differences between toad species and their preference for a heat source.

[Poly]

Yes, I was thinking of trying a clip-on light, how long should the light be left on? I don't have to actualy leave it on 12-hours a day, couldn't I just give it 20min here and there of light to warm up in, obvisouly if I came to shut the light off and seen the toad "basking" in it, I would leave it on, but I don't like leaving lights on for long periods of time, even if there low wattage.

[nicodimus22]

Great points Pete! I agree with the lighting as well, I just have to get a new hood for my tank. As for people stating that they are "nocturnal", I think toads are more or less a nocturnal hunter, rather than a nocturnal animal, you see toads hopping around in the day time, but at night you see many more, and I think this is due to the times they hunt.

What wattage light do you use for your toads?

how long should the light be left on? I don't have to actualy leave it on 12-hours a day, couldn't I just give it 20min here and there of light to warm up in, obvisouly if I came to shut the light off and seen the toad "basking" in it, I would leave it on, but I don't like leaving lights on for long periods of time, even if there low wattage.

Well, I'm not sure a hood light is such a good idea, because it would be lighting/heating the whole tank evenly. What I am doing is providing a range of conditions in the tank by using a 50W spotlight. There is only an area of maybe 4 or 5 inches on the tank floor that is "sunny" where the light is focused. The toads can easily move in or out of this area, or go to a hide of cooler temps and almost complete darkness if they want to. It's a gradient.

I would recommend getting a heat-resistant screen lid and a 5.5" reflector lamp rather than a hood with a light. As for how long to leave it on, the way I look at it is that I'm simulating the light and warmth of sunlight. The sunlight isn't full strength all day in nature, but it is for at least a few hours in the middle of the day. You could always put it on a timer if you're not going to be there or don't want to be bothered with turning it on and off.

[Pete]

Probably you don't have to leave it on 12 hrs. I'd recommend getting yourself a timer, and you could try a few hours per day, and see how much it uses it.