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Thread: Toad behaviour change

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    Default Toad behaviour change

    Hello all,

    My large female toad who is normally calm, has been acting differently than usual. She has been trying to climb the glass walls which is unlike her regular behaviour. It usually occurs when a storm system passes through my area. I figured that maybe because it is now autumn and temperatures are beginning to drop in my area maybe she's trying to either find a suitable location to hibernate or find as much food as possible to fatten up for winter. Is it normal for toads to be extra active before attempting to hibernate. She still eats and soaks in her water bowl. What can I do to calm her down.

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    100+ Post Member Larry Wardog's Avatar
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    Default Re: Toad behaviour change

    Quote Originally Posted by Trout hunter View Post
    Hello all,

    My large female toad who is normally calm, has been acting differently than usual. She has been trying to climb the glass walls which is unlike her regular behaviour. It usually occurs when a storm system passes through my area. I figured that maybe because it is now autumn and temperatures are beginning to drop in my area maybe she's trying to either find a suitable location to hibernate or find as much food as possible to fatten up for winter. Is it normal for toads to be extra active before attempting to hibernate. She still eats and soaks in her water bowl. What can I do to calm her down.
    That's exactly what it is. Mine do that too.

    Sent from my BKL-L04 using Tapatalk

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    Default Re: Toad behaviour change

    Yes that's perfectly normal. My Gray Tree Frogs get very excited during Thunderstorms but even just when it rains without the lightning. Their excitement isn't from stress though, they clearly enjoy being near the window with the panes opened so they can feel the change in pressure, humidity etc. My guess from a lot of observation of Toads here is that she's only stressed by the fact that she can't get to a suitable spot from which to observe the storm as my wild resident Toads do during the storms here.

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    Default Re: Toad behaviour change

    How old is she and were your Toads wild for part of their lives or purchased through a pet store or other retail source?

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    Default Re: Toad behaviour change

    Quote Originally Posted by KP View Post
    How old is she and were your Toads wild for part of their lives or purchased through a pet store or other retail source?
    Hi there, My toad is just under 4 inches without legs. I am unsure of her age but I have had her since august of 2018 I dont think she's really all that old maybe 4-5 years old because she moves around and chases food with energy like a young toad. For the time I've had her I haven't seen her display this type of frantic behaviour. It has been off an on raining and sunshine with the air temp being pretty cold in my area so that's what I thought was stressing her out or maybe trying to make herself prepare for hibernation. Right now though she's completely buried sleeping underneath the eco earth and a decoration inside the tank

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    Default Re: Toad behaviour change

    Was she wild for any part of her life or was she sold by a commercial dealer or a pet store? This is important because if she was wild and then caught and taken into captivity she would have stronger instinctual imprints for many behaviors. One thing to keep in mind with regard to placement in your home is that Toads orient to the rising and setting of the moon and while visual orientation isn't the sole mechanism behind that if you have her in a part of your home where she can see the rising moon that response will be more pronounced. Another factor is that if she was wild before being acquired and your age estimation is at all accurate she may have had at least one hibernation behind her and she would be more anxious to do that thereafter. American Toads actually hibernate below the frostline in colder climates so in those regions that insinct is stronger in the toads. If she's a Fowler's Toad that instinct wil be even stronger as they go into hibernation earlier and stay in longer than the American Toad.

    With any specie with such a wide climatological range as those two types of toads as with my Gray Tree Frogs, you can get them to adjust to the winter cycle as if they're residents of a warmer clime for their kind by maintaining the conditions they'd experience in a more southerly region. It doesn't need to be extremely south of where you are just that it be far enough to stimulate a more moderate winter cycle response in them. I've done this successfully with my Gray Tree Frogs giving them a winter season more like they'd experience in the general Appalachian region of Georgia. They've adjusted quite well and have reduced activity and feeding habits but still sleep alot without having to dessicate and be reconstituted in the spring which is a hard and more risky cycle to do with a domesticated Gray Tree Frog. Bottom line is that you can be at ease allowing her to sleep as much as she likes during the winter as long as she never gets cold enough to feel the urge to burrow below the frostline, making sure she has water and food available.

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