Reptile & Amphibian Forums

it's hard to make sure he gets the crickets that I drop into the tank for him. The crickets just hide right away. i'm sure he catches them at night because he looks a good deal plumper in the morning and I don't hear the crickets the following night. I'd just like to see him catch them a bit faster so I don't need to worry about them picking at him during the day.

Is there a way to get him to notice the crickets are there right away?

Thanks

I don't have my WTF yet but I've been doing research for a few months;
I read that the best time to feed him is at night, so the crickets
won't be active while he's asleep, and so if you use calcium supplement
or anything similar, it won't rub off before he catches them.

When I get my WTF, I'm going to feed him at night but remove him
from his setup and put him in a seperate, empty (small) terrarium to catch
his crickets. And then put him back when he's done.
I think I read this on this forum, but I'm not sure; just a suggestion.

(Others, please correct me if I'm wrong about this!!)

There is no need to worry about it. Put the crickets in at night and leave the tank alone, the wtf will find the crickets and eat.. they are very patient and skilled at hunting insects. As for taking it out and putting it in a seperate tank.. I think that would have been for a case that the frog wasn't eating, or it was being intimadated by tank mates.. it is not necessary to do everynight for feeding, and actually may add some stress to the situation and have an adverse affect.
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photos.xtremecombatsports.com

I've fed my WTF several ways:

1) Put insects in a bowl. This works with small or clumsy worms such as waxworms, mealworms, superworms, small nightcrawlers (see below). The frog comes down at night and eats them. But then he also spends most of his spare time sitting in the bowl, waiting for food!

2) Hand feed him. I just hold a bug up, and he goes for it. Well, he goes for the bug and as much of my hand as he can stuff in his mouth.

3) Put him in a separate container. This works very well, and if my frog is stressed, he shows no signs of it. I think I could be setting of cannons and flashing strobe lights in the middle of an 8.5 earthquake, and he'd be concentrating on catching the bugs crawling around him.

I like to watch him eat, so doing of of the above allows for that. Otherwise it comes down to releasing crickets into the tank and letting him eat them in the darkness. If the crickets ever come out from under the moss.

And I've had him about 18 months and he's doing very well with this approach to feeding.

I'd have to say, that's a neat looking frog, but it looks like he's getting to be overweight. They can become obese fast, you might want to rething his diet (wax worms, mealworms and such are very high in fat content)

My opinion on the thread that was started here is that you just drop the crickets in. If you want to watch him(or her) eat, then its a matter of dropping the crickets in next to the frog. Hunting is one of the ways that a WTF stays healthy and gets excersize, like I mentioned before, they tend to get obese fast. (you can tell by the ridges above the eyes and tympanum. The larger they are, the more you should be worried.)
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I think my frog owns a megaphone....

"I'd have to say, that's a neat looking frog, but it looks like he's getting to be overweight. They can become obese fast, you might want to rething his diet (wax worms, mealworms and such are very high in fat content)"

MY GAWD, you are right!!!

I took that picture in the winter of 2004, and since then he has become .... a more slender frog.

His diet is mostly superworms (what will be said about that! - oh, that's right, they'll chew through his stomach) and crickets (oh no - another killer food!). Then he gets nightcrawlers sometimes (I've had people tell me those are like feeding him hot dogs!). A mealworm here and there. I think I last fed him a waxworm sometime last year.

But the worst thing of all, the one thing that I know will kill him for sure: I sometimes give him a small bit of Reptomin sticks!!

How has he survived and become healthier these 18 months? Obviously I need to try harder! Maybe I should feed him porkchops?

All in fun.

I don't know about you, but my White's dislike nightcrawlers for some reason unknown! I got two of my first ones to eat a big one, but after that, they won't touch them. However, they love plump juicy crickets! That seems to be their favorite food, with the zoophobas, second, and then mouse pinkies. How big is your female? My must a leg span of, at least, 6, 7, inches! I bought her from Petco, and she was on a bit of skinny side...but now she is huge!

Thanks for correcting me TimOsborne! I got my WTF today (finally!)
and I haven't yet started feeding him seperately as he's in a quarantine
tank anyway. They can't very well hide from him in there.

so even if the crickets burrow under the moss he'll find them at night? it seems like that's whats happening but i'm not sure. putting him in another container stresses him too much and he stops thinking about food and he won't take things hand fed. it really seems like he's catching stuff though because the crickets are no where to be found a few days after i release them into the tank.

unless they're all burrowing under the moss and not coming out and not chirping.

then again, he's pretty plump so he must be eating...right?

You know, I wouldn't worry about it, I've had my frogs for almost two years, and all I do is put the crickets in the tank and let them hunt. If your frog does not look sickly, loosing weight, or not deficating, then I wouldn't have anything to worry about! (frogs don't poop every day, and like to poop wherever its convenient, like in their water!)
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I think my frog owns a megaphone....