Penny the American Toad Gets Fancy New Digs

[Teamonger]

I caught a teeny tiny american toad last fall. She was smaller then my thumbnail and the cutest little mouth cannon. She is now a fairly large little fatty and it was time for her cage to get an overhaul. I found this amazing stump while out looking for isopods one day and instantly knew what I would use it for!

Now Penny has all the fun places to bury herself and hunt bugs

 

[Sarah K]

Beautiful! The stump looks like it was an excellent find!

 

[Prayingmantisqueen]

How did you care for her? I would love to keep a toad like this as we have TONS by our pond in the summer.

 

[danl82]

Great setup and that stump is an excellent find. 

 

[Teamonger]

How did you care for her? I would love to keep a toad like this as we have TONS by our pond in the summer.

When she was tiny I hunted the neighborhood for proper sized insects but I assume dusted fruit flies would be a great starter food as well. Once she was big enough I moved her over to a diet of isopods, phoenix worms/black solider flies (she loses her mind chasing them lol), and earthworms. Treats include waxworms, mealworms, superworms, and pretty much anything she can fit in her fat face. Toads are NOT picky eaters. Like any captive animal you have to make sure you dust their food with vitamins and calcium. 

As for care there is a lot of information out there on the care of American toads and toads in general. American toads are pretty hearty little guys and for me it was lovely to have a pet I did not have to supply much extra heat as they live native around my area and so tolerate colder temps then all of my exotic pets. They love to burrow so a safe dirt or cocofibre substrate deep enough for them to dig in is a must. While the tank does not need to be kept too moist they should always have a clean container of water to soak in for shedding (they love to go to the potty in there too...).  

Penny now lives with a friend (who is spoiling her rotten) of mine since I moved to another country, but of all my pets I miss her the most. She had such a huge personality and was a joy to interact with and watch.

 

[Prayingmantisqueen]

Awww nice. 

Thanks for all the info @Teamonger!! I will see if I end up keeping a toad this summer then  

 

[hysteresis]

Im considering dart frogs.

 

[Teamonger]

Im considering dart frogs.

I have not had the pleasure of keeping darts myself but the ones I have seen personally and heard about looked like lovely beautiful little active hoppers. I would love to get some one day as they are gorgeous and take up far less room then most frogs/toads but I have not seen them available in Iceland yet. I do personally have 5 tree frogs (3 Whites and 2 Golden Gliders) currently and their care is much easier to handle then most of my mantises (besides the one that keeps hurting herself cause she´s cursed or something). A light on a timer, misting system or a humidifier along with daily spraying, and a bio-active cage makes life very easy.

 

[MantisGirl13]

Im considering dart frogs.

They have such bright colors! My last name is Dart.

- MantisGirl13

 

[Prayingmantisqueen]

They have such bright colors! My last name is Dart.

- MantisGirl13

Well maybe you should look into some "Dart" frogs then you would share a name ha ha.... they truely are beautiful.

 

[hysteresis]

That's a cool last name. 

 

[MantisGirl13]

That's a cool last name. 

I know! Thanks!

- MantisGirl13