Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i have a pacific tree frog and i just noticed his toes tremble sometimes. what does this mean?

i'm pretty sure it is a way of cooling themselves down, i would suggest lowering temps a few degrees. what is the temp now? in some cases it is a territorial issue. is there another frog in the tank? if there is, it could be this, but your best bet is the temp thing. good luck and contact me if you have any more questions.

thanks,im thinking its the temp thing too since i dont have any other frogs in the tank. and i did have a couple other questions but they are about darts. i wanted to know what your opinion was on mixing two french guinia cobalt tincs with an imitator. And also, exo terra makes a water conditioner called "electrodize" and what it does is makes the the water amphibian safe and adds vitamin D3 to the water. If i use this to condition the water in my dart tank will i still have to dust their food in actual powdered calcium?

as far as mixing an imitator with tincs, it's risky, but if you have a large enough tank it can be done, i wouldn't go with anything under 50 gallons. and bromeliads are a must if you are housing imitators with larger species. i have an imitator, but have never ha tincs, so i can't tell you first hand if i think the two are compatable. both are very bold frogs, in this case you would want the larger frog to be less aggressive than the smaller one, and this is true. so it might work. i would put the imitator in first so that it can set up it's territory and then a few months later introduce the tincs. as with any pet, make sure both are quarentined and healthy before you put them in the same tank together. another importan thing is that there is plenty of hiding spaces for both species, esp. the imitator. another reason this would probally work is because tincs are very terrestrial and imitators are one of the most arboreal of darts. are your tincs a sexed pair? if so they will get along with eachother, but they might be protective of thier eggs in breeding season. they don't take care of their eggs like the darts from the hist. group, but i'de still watch them and be careful. i personally don't think the water would have a large effect on the frogs. still use a supplement and if you do decide to use the water, i would use it along with the supplement, not to replace it. blackjungle sells a good dart frog powder and the money to buy it goes to a organization to help D. pumilio's, thats what i use and it seems to work very well. the powders are popular for a reason, they are efficient and proven to work. sorry it's long. and good luck! feel free to ask more questions if you have them!

thanks alot otis! you seem to be one of the more knowledgable people on these forums so ill definitely ask more when i can think of some. I think since these are my first darts ill just stick with a pair of tincs and then start adding once im a little experienced and have room for a much larger terrarium.

you know actually i have one more question. if my tincs were to breed would they carry the tadpoles off to a hidden spot and feed/protect them or is it strictly the thumbnail species that practices this kind of parenting?

thank you i think sticking with one species is very good idea. tincs are a great starter species and a good intro. to darts because of their bold personality.

as far as breeding either buy a large group and then when they are older sex them (i've read this, but don't get it) or buy a sexed pair, or just buy some babies. this could present a problem later if they are both males, but in general they aren't agressive unless there is a frog of oppisite sex. ex. 2 males and one female- the males will fight over the female. but if it is just two males they have nothing to fight over. but the females of tincs are the more agressive of the two (male and female). your frogs will most not likey breed if you don't stimulate a breeding season, this just means a wet and dry season. most eggs herps lay their first time are bad, so don't worry about it. you can stimulate this by having a dry period with no mistings, no lite, and less food, then about 3 weeks later mist them very heavily, turn on lites, and feed A LOT, they will be hungery. do this gradually over a period of about 2 to 3 days so you don't overwelm them. let the eggs sit for about half a day so they are for sure fertilized by the male. they don't raise their eggs like thumbnails but will protect them. contact me if they breed and i'll tell you how to raise the tads. good luck!

alrighty,thanks a million. i should have my darts by this sunday.(thats when the captive bred reptile show comes to town!) ill probally have more questions once i actually get them. thanks for helping me make sure these guys are going to be happy and healthy. responsible herp keeping is a big deal to me.

good luck with your darts!