Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just got a WTF for my 10 yo daughter, we have him in a 5 gallon, but soon to get a 20 gallon for him. I have an UTF heater ( which isn't heating it at all ). I had some left over large aquarium pebbles so I used those for the substrate. I have a grapevine for him to crawl on. I cover his tank with a blanket on the top and two sides. humidity is usually around 50% the temp is only at 70 during the day with the UTF on the side of the glass. Here are my problems.

1. How do I do a better job of heating him up or is 70 ok.
2. Is the aquarium pebbles a sutable substrate ( too big to eat)
3. He used to climb ( the first week ) on the glass and the
grape vines, but now he wont.
4. He ate great the first three day's and now he wont eat at
all.
5. His color is beautiful, green blue, bright and he will sit on
my hand or my should for hours without moving ( he sleeps )
Is sleeping ok?? He is in the water dish daily and nightly.

Am I doing this right or semi right for the first time, I can't go all out but I do want to keep him healthy & happy.

During this time of year my household temperature is around 68F.

I house my one WTF in a 20-tall tank, with a layer of soil covered with moss on the bottom, 3 leafy plants, and a branch. There is a shallow water bowl.

The tank is covered with a standard screen top. For twelve hours each day there is an 18-watt full-spectrum fluorescent bulb on. For 24 hours each day there is a 25-watt red-bulb (cheap kind you find at the hardware or grocery store) in a hardware store reflector dome. I can also easily watch him at night under the red lighting, which does not appear to bother him.

This setup keeps the temps in the upper region of the tank (near the red light) in the 80s, and the lower regions in the low 70s.

The frog hangs out near the top (in the corner of the glass under the branch) during the day and then he descends to the bottom at night, where he sits on top of a clay flower pot, soaks in the water bowl, or hangs out in the food bowl.

I spray the tank down every day. Sort of like a light rain, not a downpour. I also add water for the plants every few days.

I feed him a large food item (nightcrawler, superworm, or maybe a couple crickets) every other night. I lightly dust the foods with calcium/d3 and sometimes a multi-vitamin.

Yours might not be eating every day because he's had enough food from the previous meals. I think you might want to raise the temperature a little bit, so that there is a place in the low 80s that he can go to if he wants. I've found the 24-hour red bulb works for me. During the warm months when the household temps get 75-80, I'll turn off the red light.

My house is pretty dry (central heat) but I've not found it necessary to cover it to keep humidity up. The soil and plants, along with the water bowl, maintain some humidity, and the once-a-day spraying helps, too.

Be careful with the large gravel. I feed my guy from a bowl, or sometimes place him in a plastic container with his food. If he goes for a bug that's on the gravel he may also ingest a rock.

Also I wouldn't touch the frogs becasue they are fragile and plus human skin can casue many problems to the frog. If it sits in the water bowl and is bloated but hasn't eaten I'm thinking maybe it has impaction or something. Hope your frog is OK.
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3 Baby Whites Treefrog (Faygo, Fanta, Max)
1 Pacman (Big Mac)
3 Cats (Cindy, Rex, Tabby)
1 Mississippi Map Turtle (Lucky)
1 Parakeet (Swifty)

Thanks for the reply.... ok so after I put in the message this morning, before I got yours I emptied his cage. Took all the rocks, etc. out. There were crickets and a mealworm still squirming at the bottom of all the rocks. First thing he jumped at the cricket then ate the mealworm. After that I decided that he needed a new set up. Im still waiting for the twenty gallon, Im going to get it from a relative I will see on Sunday so frogger will have to wait until then. I don't know what sort of heat sorce she has with it, but if there is no lamp I will go get one on the Monday following. Thanks so much for the advice, and hope that the 20 gal comes with the light set up!!!!

Take care - Happy Froggin