Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok like i said, i'm new to this. so i'm gonna be doing some research before i make any decisions. now i really like the coloration of most poison dart frogs and i especially like the D. azurus but those cant be kept in small groups from what i hear. i would like to have a vividly colored type of frog with dramatic color changes like the cobalt tinc goes from blue to yellow with some black. and also be able to keep 3 or 4 together in a tank. i really like cobalt tincs and i hope they can do well in a groups so plz gimme feedback. also any additional info you guys can think of might be nice too.

when keeping the tincs or azureus you should only keep one female, but you can have more than one male.

k hmmmm how well does ordering online work? i really dont like the idea of animals being shipped and stuff but if it is a successfull thing then its ok. if i order a small group from that saurian enterprises place and ask for only one female will he be able to sort it out? sry bout all the questions.

i highly recommend patrick at saurian. he is the best. he ships the frogs with the most care. If he has the sex you want he will let you know if you ask. i ordered some cobalts from him, i wanted a pair but he only had males at the time, so i got two males and checked out a local show and found a female.

cool cool thats what i'll prolly do. and it is my understanding that you shouldnt keep them in the terarium you set up while they are still very small right? or did i misread the caresheet?

if they are still froglets then you should moniter them in the sweater box(s) if they are subadults or older then just put them in their tank!

will it be easy to tell if there froglets or sub adults? and the sweater/shoebox needs to be heated and everything just like the tank right? also should i build a little pond in the tank for them to swim? i uderstand some frogs like to swim and stuff and some dont. again sorry about all the questions just dont wanna screw anything up.

>>>will it be easy to tell if there froglets or sub adults? and the sweater/shoebox needs to be heated and everything just like the tank right? also should i build a little pond in the tank for them to swim? i uderstand some frogs like to swim and stuff and some dont. again sorry about all the questions just dont wanna screw anything up.>>> If you ask for a specific sex they are sub adults, and since you are a beginner dart owner i suggest you try to get the sexes you want, remember only one female if you want tincs or azureus,and then a male, but never two females. your tank really doesn't need to be heated, darts do great at room temps, 70-80 degrees, but never above 80. darts can not swim, but they do like the water to soak in and it keeps up humidity. make sure if you have a large and /or deep water area you make sure there are things to grab so they can get out and not drown. if i were you i'd get the sexed pair of azures from saurian, that way you know you have a male and female. or ask patrick if he has any pairs of cobalts. good luck

Darts actually CAN swim, but they do need an easy egress if you have a pond, because they swim only when they fall in by accident. I have a couple of paludariums that combine aquarium/dart terrarium. I put slanted logs (mountain mahogany) from each section of aquarium to land. The frogs don't fall in often once they're used to the set-up, but when I first put them in there, they fell in quite a lot-- swimming swiftly to the logs.

Saurian is an excellent place to get frogs, and his shipping is the best. You can expect to get them well within 24 hours. In several years, we have had only one bad experience where his entire shipments for that day got misdirected and all but one arrived three days late and DOA. It was a sad experience for both of us, but Patrick guarantees live delivery and takes any such losses by replacing the frogs with no hassle. I have also gotten a few from Black Jungle, and these have been satisfactory and arrived in good health. I have no experience with the others. Patrick will also give you follow-up advice.

The only other different advice I would give would be to also quarantine adult frogs for awhile, but not in a sweater box. You can keep them together for a couple of weeks in a ten gallon tank with just paper towels or I like a cocoas fiber substrate, packed tightly, and maybe a few plant cuttings. Put the cups they are shipped in on their sides. These will contain leaves and give them a place to feel secure. This is just so you can keep track of them easily, make sure they are all eating and get aquainted. In a small quarantine tank, you can identify individual frogs by their subtle markings. This is useful for the future.

As an aside, both D. leucomelas and D. galactonotus get along in groups regardless of sex, if this is a concern. It is difficult, if not impossible to sex froglets, and you pay a lot more for sexed adult pairs. So if you are just beginning, want to enjoy a group, these two species (in my experience) are great. You might also consider Phylobates terribilis. They also get along in groups, although each establishes a separate resting territory.

Another thought: Dart frogs in general are escape artists, so you want to make your terrarium absolutely secure. I've discovered that if a fruit fly can escape, so can a thumbnail dart, and some of the larger species can get through openings you wouldn't think they could navigate. Some may leap past you when you open the cover to do maintenance, so fast, you may not see them until it's too late. Every one of my losses except one, has been from an escape of some sort. It's really hell to find a $150 frog the size of your thumbnail dried up on the floor and not be able to figure out how it got there.
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Patty
Pahsimeroi, Idaho

4 D. auratus blue
5 D. galactonotus pumpkin orange splash back
5 D. imitator
6 D. leucomelas
4 D. pumilio Bastimentos
4 D. fantasticus
4 P. terribilis
4 D. reticulatus
4 D. castaneoticus

i figured they could swim just not swim as say a lepord frog or a frog with webbed feet would do. darts won't unless they absolutly have to. slaytonp, thanks for helping out with your long post.

Sweater boxes work well to raise/quarantine dendrobatids. At work I have reared large number of tincts in sweater boxes on peat moss with one hide box/frog up to 4 frogs, a shallow water bowl and a petri dish to keep the substrate from becoming contaminated with the dust. This sort of set-up has also worked well for Atelopus zeteki for a temporary setup and several other dendrobatids.
One of the advantages to sweater boxes is that when you have large numbers of frogs to deal with they are stackable.
Ed

Atelopus zeteki !! lol Ed you've worked with some amazing animals , where on earth did you track those down?

I didn't have to track them down. I work with them as part of the Golden Frog project run by AZA.
I'm the Amphibian Keeper as well as the Lead Keeper at the Philly Zoo.

I do have A. spumarius at home and hopefully may have an egg mass soon.

Ed