Reptile & Amphibian Forums

What i Got from all of your responses was to try tipping the tank upright, shallow dish of distilled water and lots of hiding spaces. This is what im going to do. Leave the tank long and put dirt in the bottom but can i use the stuff with the white styrafoam in it? i have a bunch of ivy vines im going to use and lots of various plants that require humidity and high light. it is a critter cage so it has a screen top. i have a regular fish tank light on top and it stays about 75 in there. im just got a heat lamp today so im going to try that. I will post agian friday if any changes occur . But if i should can i use mosss that i find outside on the ground,no pestisides in my yard so it should be fine. I have had him for about 4 months. and always brown. Im in illinois so it was probalby wild. I cant thank every body enough . but thank you...

Hello. I would use spring water from an artisian well rather than distilled because distilled can actually bloat your frog (through osmosis). The styrofoam that you are talking about is perlite I believe, which you don't want. Try a mixture of peat moss, top soil (cheap stuff-no perlite or vermiculite), orchid bark, and osmunda fiber. I do equal parts of all except for the peat which I use 3 parts. This is a very good soil mixture for any tropical plant and especially pothos. Just moisten it real good once and it usually stays pretty wet with regular misting. Try not to use a critter cage due to the fact that the glass is not as thick or tempered and sometimes they have a tendency to leak if the substrate is moist. All-glass or some other brand is a great choice.

Good luck.
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Justin
stk18119@loki.stockton.edu

D.auratus (Costa Rican, Nicaraguan)
D.leucomelas
D.tinctorius (lorenzo, yellowback, citro, pb, oyopock,etc.)
D.azureus
D.ventrimaculatus (yellow/gold)
D.pumilio (blue jeans, solid red)
P.aurotaenia (narrow bands/green)
P.bicolor
E.tricolor (Santa Isabel)
H. leucophyllata
P. hypochondrialis azurea
P. resinifictrix
A. caladryas
etc.......

I don't think that a frog would bloat from distilled water, but it will dehydrate because electrolytes are taken away from the cells by osmosis. If you have information of frogs bloating that way, though, tell us because it could be another factor involved when people are having that problem!

Anyway, the soil can't have any additives but Bed-A-Beast or like substrate is recommended over soil. Ground peat/sphagnum moss mix in a bag I trust, but not soil from a Home Depot or something.
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Got hips like Cinderella / Must be having a good shame / Talking sweet about nothing / Cookie I think you're Tame

Just as the electrolytes move across the gradient from high to low so can water. I have never witnessed this first hand with frogs but have with fish kept in distilled and it's not pretty. Nevertheless, distilled water should not be used for the reason you have stated.

I have never had any problems with keeping my frogs on straight soil and have found that bed-a-beast can fungus over if kept too moist. Moss is even better- esp. if it's living. Java moss or tropical pillow moss are my favs.

Enjoy,
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Justin
stk18119@loki.stockton.edu

D.auratus (Costa Rican, Nicaraguan)
D.leucomelas
D.tinctorius (lorenzo, yellowback, citro, pb, oyopock,etc.)
D.azureus
D.ventrimaculatus (yellow/gold)
D.pumilio (blue jeans, solid red)
P.aurotaenia (narrow bands/green)
P.bicolor
E.tricolor (Santa Isabel)
H. leucophyllata
P. hypochondrialis azurea
P. resinifictrix
A. caladryas
etc.......

Thanks for the information, I didn't know that could happen... and to fish, to say the least!

Anyway, I don't like soil mostly because bags of soil at stores are usually exposed to bugs and that takes a certain element of control out of the situation. I rather start off knowing nothing lives in the substrate and then add as I wish, but I haven't heard of anyone having problems with it... although I've found pretty nasty-looking worms in bags of dirt before.

I live in Miami where humidity is crazy and I don't get mold in my Bed-A-Beast unless there's food left on it, or it's really soaking wet and the froggies' gifts can mold over. I think the good bacteria and such in a developed tank prevent this, though, because most of my tanks are very humid and with very moist substrate, although I've only had that problem with new and relatively bare set-ups, and some of my set-ups are virtually mud with how wet the substrate is. Maybe whatever lives in the soil is what helps prevent that, but as soon as I start adding live mosses, collected wood, plants, etc. the problem with the Bed-A-Beast is zip for me.
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Got hips like Cinderella / Must be having a good shame / Talking sweet about nothing / Cookie I think you're Tame