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Small wild baby toad will not eat. HELP!
Topic Stats: 2811 views, 4 replies and 4 subscribers.
Aug 2nd, 2008 23:15
I just got a wild baby toad about 3 days ago. Her name is Kermetta. I've noticed shes not really eating. I mean she's like really active and everything, and she poops, and pees, but I haven't seen any missing food from her cage. She's about the size of my tumb nail and is very active and social, but I'm begining to be worried. Is this normal when small wild baby toads are adapting to home life? I mean I even tried to set her free yesterday, but she hopped back to the house serveral times. I feel like she has become attatched to me. But I need some help. I feed her a varity of bugs, rolly polly's, crickets, worms, slugs, and they are all smaller than her. I just don't know what to do. Please, someone, give me advice. I just can't loose her now. D=
Aug 19th, 2008 11:50
Aug 21st, 2008 15:10
I posted this previously, but didn't seem to go through. I tried to cut/paste the link but for some reason it isn't working. You can google "feeding toads" and find all sorts of info. The following is from widipedia.
How to Care for an American Toad
American Toads are common throughout the country in North America. You can distinguish an American Toad by looking to see if it only has one or two large warts on its back. They can be fairly difficult to raise in captivity. Here are some steps to make the task a bit easier for you.
[edit] Steps
1. Prepare a home.
* Find a 10 or 20 gallon or a 10 gallon fish tank. A 5 gallon tank is too small for a regular habitat, but will work in temporary conditions.
* Fill the tank with 3-4 inches of dirt. Two inches works if you have other refuges for the toad such as a leafy plant or tilted piece of bark. Most pet stores carry ground coconut fiber or forest bark bedding which is an excellent substrate.
* Using a Tupperware container that is at least 2 toads wide and 4 toads long (big enough for him to swim around in), bury it so the top is level with the dirt, and fill it with filtered/un-chlorinated water. Amphibians are sensitive to chlorine so do not use straight tap water; bottled water is okay to use.
* Find a medium-sized rock or a piece of slate and wedge it at an angle, near a corner of the tank as the toad may want to burrow underneath a rock.
* Put 1 or 2 hollow logs and some moss in the tank if you want a natural environment for the toad, or you may use fish tank props to decorate it.
* Be sure the lid closes securely. Never leave the tank without the lid on it. Never use a cardboard lid.
2. Feed your toad properly. They like to eat house flies, fire flies, tiny minnows, crickets, slugs, worms, grasshoppers, roley-polys, ants, katydids, beetles, centipedes, ladybugs, millipedes, and almost any tiny insects.
* Feed toads live food as they only eat things that move. If the bug is dead, use a laser pointer to draw the toad's attention to the prey or dangle the bug by a loose fitting string.
* Feed the toads two or three times a week.
* A sufficient sized meal for a toad varies by size of toad, and size of prey. For a small toad - two bugs, one worm, one minnow, or one slug; larger toad - 4 bugs, 2 worms, 2 minnows, or two slugs is a meal. Medium toads can eat a meal of size in between.
3. Perform maintenance.
* If the dirt in your toad's aquarium becomes dry, use a spray bottle to moisten it. Toads also enjoy a misting every now and then. Make sure you don't turn the aquarium into mud, just make sure it is not dry.
* Change the water daily as they tend to use the water dish as a toilet.
[edit] Tips
* Toads are not aggressive and will not bite. They have a defense system in which they secrete a poisonous substance, but it is harmless to humans unless it comes in contact with an open cut, is swallowed or comes in contact with the eyes. They also drain water they've absorbed through their skin as an attempt to scare you away, but it is not a harmful substance.
* Toads tend to urinate when they are frightened, do not drop it if it urinates on you. The urine is harmless.
* Do not panic if you check on the toad and it is not there. It is probably burrowed in the ground, and it will come up to the surface when it is nighttime, hungry, or needs water.
* If the toad is not eating, it might not be hungry. If it consistently refuses to eat, try changing its diet. A healthy toad is a viscous predator of anything small enough to fit in its mouth and will rarely pass up a meal.
* Do not squeeze it.
How to Care for an American Toad
American Toads are common throughout the country in North America. You can distinguish an American Toad by looking to see if it only has one or two large warts on its back. They can be fairly difficult to raise in captivity. Here are some steps to make the task a bit easier for you.
[edit] Steps
1. Prepare a home.
* Find a 10 or 20 gallon or a 10 gallon fish tank. A 5 gallon tank is too small for a regular habitat, but will work in temporary conditions.
* Fill the tank with 3-4 inches of dirt. Two inches works if you have other refuges for the toad such as a leafy plant or tilted piece of bark. Most pet stores carry ground coconut fiber or forest bark bedding which is an excellent substrate.
* Using a Tupperware container that is at least 2 toads wide and 4 toads long (big enough for him to swim around in), bury it so the top is level with the dirt, and fill it with filtered/un-chlorinated water. Amphibians are sensitive to chlorine so do not use straight tap water; bottled water is okay to use.
* Find a medium-sized rock or a piece of slate and wedge it at an angle, near a corner of the tank as the toad may want to burrow underneath a rock.
* Put 1 or 2 hollow logs and some moss in the tank if you want a natural environment for the toad, or you may use fish tank props to decorate it.
* Be sure the lid closes securely. Never leave the tank without the lid on it. Never use a cardboard lid.
2. Feed your toad properly. They like to eat house flies, fire flies, tiny minnows, crickets, slugs, worms, grasshoppers, roley-polys, ants, katydids, beetles, centipedes, ladybugs, millipedes, and almost any tiny insects.
* Feed toads live food as they only eat things that move. If the bug is dead, use a laser pointer to draw the toad's attention to the prey or dangle the bug by a loose fitting string.
* Feed the toads two or three times a week.
* A sufficient sized meal for a toad varies by size of toad, and size of prey. For a small toad - two bugs, one worm, one minnow, or one slug; larger toad - 4 bugs, 2 worms, 2 minnows, or two slugs is a meal. Medium toads can eat a meal of size in between.
3. Perform maintenance.
* If the dirt in your toad's aquarium becomes dry, use a spray bottle to moisten it. Toads also enjoy a misting every now and then. Make sure you don't turn the aquarium into mud, just make sure it is not dry.
* Change the water daily as they tend to use the water dish as a toilet.
[edit] Tips
* Toads are not aggressive and will not bite. They have a defense system in which they secrete a poisonous substance, but it is harmless to humans unless it comes in contact with an open cut, is swallowed or comes in contact with the eyes. They also drain water they've absorbed through their skin as an attempt to scare you away, but it is not a harmful substance.
* Toads tend to urinate when they are frightened, do not drop it if it urinates on you. The urine is harmless.
* Do not panic if you check on the toad and it is not there. It is probably burrowed in the ground, and it will come up to the surface when it is nighttime, hungry, or needs water.
* If the toad is not eating, it might not be hungry. If it consistently refuses to eat, try changing its diet. A healthy toad is a viscous predator of anything small enough to fit in its mouth and will rarely pass up a meal.
* Do not squeeze it.
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