red-eyed tree frog help please. =)

[andwhy6]

i am looking to pick up a red-eyed tree frog for my girlfriend but i cant find any husbandry facts (tank specifications, feed, enclosure size, temps, water-land ratio, ect.) on them or a good spot to pick one up. although i havent researched much i would love to get some direction.
thank you all

[qiksilver]

go buy a good book about them. most of the care sheets about them are mostly garbage and don't really help all thoo much, there is good info in most but you also have to wade through the trash. for cages the larger the better, they have one of the more impressive leaps, even for treefrogs. they do well in small groups and eat normal insect fare which is most likely crickets as the staple. ummmm, temp is pretty much warm room temperature. they can be kind of fragile but their incredible beauty makes jumping through hoops worthwhile. Sorry if this only kind of helps, just some things i can remember from when I kept them. I had a trio or so in a 55 gallon tall tank, but haven't kept them in years. Good luck with you search for information!

[andwhy6]

thanks ill go check out the library

[mlededee]

if you want a good book the care and breeding of popular tree frogs by phillippe de vosjli, robert mailoux and drew ready has a good section on red eyes and on setting up tree frog vivariums.

a 20 gallon tall (since they are arboreal they need vertical space) enclosure is the minimum size required for a single red eye, a small group (3-4) can be kept in a 30 tall. adequate ventilation is very important, so a half screen, half glass lid works well. temperature should be between 70-80 degrees (warmer than 85 degrees is dangerous) with humidity around 50 percent. high humidity is not necessary (and is actually bad) for tree frogs unless you are attempting to assimilate the wet season to induce breeding

a small water area should be provided, but the water should not be so deep that it comes above the frog's shoulders or it may pose a drowning risk. red eyes defecate in the water so it needs to be cleaned every few days--this is very important when choosing your water feature/container. the easiest thing to use is a plastic tupperware type container that you can just remove, clean and refill every few days. also make sure to use dechlorinated water as straight tap water is toxic. you can either add dechlorinating drops to your water or fill a container (like a clean milk jug) with water and let it sit for 24-48 hours before using it--this allows the chlorine to evaporate from the water.

any plants used in the enclosure should be washed prior to use. whether you use real or fake plants make sure they have broad, sturdy leaves that can support the weight of the frog. cork bark, vines, and other climbing structures should be placed throughout the cage making good use of the vertical space.

for substrate you can use orchid bark or some sort of bed-a-beast type substrate.

a full spectrum fluorescent bulb connected to a timer for 12 hours of day-light per day works well for lighting (12 hours on, 12 hours off) but make sure that it doesn't heat up the enclosure too much.

crickets, feeder roaches, and houseflies are good food sources and should be fed every 3-4 days. the food item should be no larger than the distance between the frog's eyes. you can also try mealworms, phoenix worms and the occasional wax worm but i never had much luck getting my frogs to eat worms.

you should try to get your frogs from a breeder if at all possible. captive bred frogs are healthier, don't carry a huge parasite load as wild caughts usually do, are already acclimated to captivity and your chances of overall success with the frog is greatly multiplied. wc frogs are also usually already adults, so an estimation of age is hard, meaning that if they are able to acclimate properly they may not have much time left anyhow.

it is my experience that red eyes can be somewhat fragile when acclimating but once they are established they are actually rather hardy as long as the proper husbandry requirements are met.

[andwhy6]

well thank you very much thats just about all i need i think

[mlededee]

and thanks to your bringing them up, now i need more frogs.