Off topic but anyone have experience keeping frogs?

kwandrsn · Jun 27, 2013

I work on a tugboat and today as we were moving a barge out of a dock I found a green tree frog. (You know the kind with suction cup like feet). He was dark green and I know they are usually light green. It was like 95 today and he was on a extremely hot metal barge with no shade or water.

I touched him to see if he was alive and he hopped up and latched on to my glove. I finished tying the barge off and he stayed on my glove so I took him back to the boat and put him in a bucket with a little water. He turned back light green.

I decided to keep him. I got home and put him (or her) in a 5 gallon bucket and filled a lid from a bowl with water and put in it and then I covered the bucket up with a rag that I punched some holes into and tapped the rag to it so he can't get out. He is very active trying to get out when I remove the rag.

I'm going tomorrow afternoon to a place that deals with nothing but reptiles and amphibians.

First off will my current "home" for him work for a day and what do I need to buy.

I'm thinking of getting one of those starter kits for like $100 it has the terrarium that has the front glass that opens

Also I have never kept a frog what do I need to do to keep him (or her) happy and healthy?

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SeahorseKeeper · Jun 27, 2013

Tree frogs need a moist environment like a rain forest. Typically, they don't drink from a water dish but will have a blast playing in it. The habitat you are considering is perfect. Go for taller as opposed to wider. You may need a heat bulb to keep temps stable (78ish). Their diet is crickets or insects. For substrate, I would do coconut husk or another natural substrate. Just be careful not to get something with big pieces. The frog can and will eat it. This can lead to an impaction. Also, they love to climb.

I would add a moist paper towel to your current temporary housing. It should be fine until tomorrow.

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Dan1789 · Jun 28, 2013

Also consider a drip bucket. They sell these small containers that will drip water through the top screen of the enclosure onto fake plant leaves or whatever you have in the cage. This is how they prefer to drink. At least my chameleon did.

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ruppertb · Jun 28, 2013

I used to keep reptiles. And had a balast decorating. Ideas like suction cups with eyehook screwed into sticks. You can use them from outside just bake them at like 200 after washing them with mild bleach water. Also you can add fake plants with suction cups and create vines to hang fromm top. I would always tape a magnet to a fake ivy and then clip it on outside of screen. That way you could re arrange.

Use coco husk for substrate and they sell the drip bottles and pressurized spray bottles at pet stores. Try to get the water to drip on a few leave and into a bowl. Then you won't have soggy substrate. Try to water earlier in the day so the heat can dry tank out a bit to prevent mold. And if you use ro water you won't get water stains on glass from dripping water

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ruppertb · Jun 28, 2013

If you buy a terrarium with the front glass doors and the screen top with the styro back make sure to block off hols behind the styro. My reptiles always loved to go back there and I lost a breeding male due to him getting stuck.

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kwandrsn · Jun 28, 2013

Ok I went to aquatic critters reptile store and talked to a worker and I was going to buy the kit for like $140 and he talked me into letting him build me a "package deal" he even put everything in the tank for me. He used a regular 10 gallon tank and put a big piece of bark and a fake plant suction cup to the glass forest floor substrate and a water bowl and a screen lid which he taped up 3/4 of with packing tape to help retain humidity. And it all cost me $65 and he gave me some crickets. I stopped at petco and bought a cricket keeper with the 2 tubes and also got some gel looking stuff and some some cricket food. Hard part was trying to get the crickets out of the bag and in the container

One person told me to feed 6 crickets every other day, petco lady said 3 a day. I was also told to spray everything including substrate down every day and to change water bowl out every day and to change substrate out every month and a half.

I put him in it and tried to put crickets in with the tube thing and dumped more than I need to in it. Oops, no way I'll catch them back

He is just hiding under the bark for now

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ohio reefer · Jun 28, 2013

Looks good! I haven't talked about reptiles in a while haha. I used to have 15 75 gallon aquariums that were set up similarly with exotic tortoise in them. Then my favorite "bubba" outgrew his and I let him wonder the yard. He got to about 100 pounds and 3 feet before I donated him to my local zoo. Mist the leaves in your frog enclosure daily. And I would feed my frogs 6 crickets every 3-4 days

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kwandrsn · Jun 28, 2013

Well he hasn't moved from under the piece of bark since I put him in his new home. I was told I didn't need a heater but do I need a light? It's in it bedroom which stays a little dark during the day most of the time unless we are home and the light is on