# Frogs & Toads > Dart Frogs (Dendrobatidae) > Beginner Discussion >  Dendrobates Auratus question

## xkatelynell

Soo today I went to petland..and somehow came home with this little creature o.o  :EEK!: 



Anyway, being they are so small, is a tank this size okay? I will be getting more plants/hiding areas/ect next time I have more money & can order some good stuff from josh's frogs so right now i'm just curious about the enclosure itself. 



The temperature is awesome and the humidity is also really nice. This tank has 2 small vents for air. It's 2.5 gal.

These guys seem to be more ground dwelling than most others, so once I get more stuff in there for him to hide in would that be okay?

_Pleaaaaseee_ don't kill me for the lack of hiding places  :Frown:  :Frown:  :Frown:  :Frown:  I *promise* it will be better soon!

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## JeffX

I can't really tell how big it is.  Normally for dart frogs they say the tanks should be no smaller than 10 gallons for the young ones, and twenty plus for when they get adults.  

Do you have a steady supply of small prey for your dart frog?

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## Tom

She said in her post that it is a 2.5 gallon tank. How big is the frog Katelyn?

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## JeffX

> She said in her post that it is a 2.5 gallon tank. How big is the frog Katelyn?



I was talking about the frog.  I couldn't see it and tell if it was a juvenile or adult.

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## Tom

> I was talking about the frog.  I couldn't see it and tell if it was a juvenile or adult.


  Oh sorry. I read that the wrong way. JeffX what do you think of her decorations?

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## xkatelynell

> Oh sorry. I read that the wrong way. JeffX what do you think of her decorations?


Nooo! Haha. No decoration comments  :Frown:  I need need to get to a petstore and get more. I think I'm going to go today  :Smile: 




> She said in her post that it is a 2.5 gallon tank. How big is the frog Katelyn?


My frog is the size of your thumb nail. Very small. Though the pet store said it was full grown? I mean, it is a pet store and the possibility of them being wrong is very high :/

So is a 2.5 good sized for a small frog for now? Eventually should I get a 10 or 20 gal? Or should I go for something like an exo terra with more height than width?

Thanks everyone for your responses!

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## xkatelynell

> Do you have a steady supply of small prey for your dart frog?


Since I have tree frogs every time i need crickets I grab 2 cultures of fruit flies.  :Smile:

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## Tom

Producing your own cultures is very easy and cheap I recommend it. I wouldn't say you really need a bigger tank maybe a 5.5 but not much more. I do not personally know much about that specific species but I do not believe that hight is a huge factor. I would recommend a few plants like pothos or bromeliads they also help with humidity.

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## JeffX

http://www.frogforum.net/food-feeder...ing-101-a.html

The above is a link to culturing fruit flies.  This is really easy.  The only problem I had was losing my fruit flies as they jumped out of the jars.  You might want to look into culturing your own.  Those guys eat alot.  You could also order Phoenix worms.  I have some extra small ones for my Bumble Bee Toads.  

Those guys tend to grow to about an inch and a half.  I'd look into getting a bigger tank, and maybe put in a false-bottom.  It will help with the humidity.

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## xkatelynell

Tom - I'm going to order some live plants soon from Josh's Frogs  :Smile: 

Jeff - I will have to look into culturing sometime soon. What do you use to get the fruit flies out of the jar? or is that a lame question? hah. I still live at home and my mom is like freaking out about the fruit flies in the house so I'm trying to figure out how to keep them here with as little as possible escaping :/

I will look into a bigger tank. Do you suggest one that's wider or taller?

Here's another little picture of him/her.  :Smile:  Seems to be doing okay. I'm really glad. I woke up so many times last night to go check on temperature and humidity  :Stick Out Tongue:

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## JeffX

I use an old film canister which I have a little calcium dust in there to dust my fruit flies.

What I do to get mine out is tap on the sides of the containers to get them to fall down to the bottom.  Then I try and to put them in the canister.  I always do this over the tank so if any fall out which they do they get eaten, and not lost on my floor.  I'm still able to dust most of them though.

Flightless fruitflies aren't much of a mess.  They won't be flying everywhere so your mom won't have to worry about that.  

I'd go with a wider tank than taller for them.  They really need a good amount of space.  The 2.5 gallon is fine for the time being, but if you can get a bigger tank than I would.

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## Kurt

I use a funnel to get the fruit flies into the dusting jar, especially if the container they are coming from is wider than the receiving container. I do shake, sometimes violently, the reciving jar and funnel to prevent the fruit flies from climbing out. Once they hit the dust, it becomes very difficult for them to climb upwards. 

If fruit flies manage to get away from you, I find they usually walk right back to the culture and try to get back in, which they can't obviously. Let your mom know that they are flightless.

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## Kurt

> I use an old film canister which I have a little calcium dust in there to dust my fruit flies.


I used to use a vial, roughly around the same size as your canister, and found it to be too small. Flies would be crushed/smothered by the flies on top of them. So when they got poured into the enclosure many are dead which not good for the enclosure.

I now use jars. I reuse the fruit fly culture jars that I get at Petco. I also use them for culturing more flies after the old cultures are dead and cleaned out.

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## xkatelynell

Thanks guys. I will start looking into culturing my own. I thought about getting a cricket breeding kit too, then I'd be all set haha. 

Here's an updated picture of my tank, it's all fake but the one plant in the middle and the humidity is about 80% and the temp is about 73. 

This is only temporary until I can get more money for a bigger tank and some more live plants. Is it better now with more hiding places and not a toilet paper tube ?  :Stick Out Tongue:

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## SethD

I would recommend you put some dirt over the coco fiber to cover it up if possible. That stuff is great for humidity but as I am sure your finding out it sticks to the frogs and gets tracked all over everything. Also if your dart frog is captive bred it shouldn't be much more toxic than any other frog so the poisonous label isn't necessary unless you want to impress someone... In that case you might want to try a different spelling of the word "poisonous ".  :Wink:   Best of luck with your new frog.

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## Kurt

I cover the coconut bedding with leaf litter to prevent it from sticking to the frogs. Besides it looks nice and natural.

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## xkatelynell

> Also if your dart frog is captive bred it shouldn't be much more toxic than any other frog so the poisonous label isn't necessary unless you want to impress someone... In that case you might want to try a different spelling of the word "poisonous ".   Best of luck with your new frog.


Haha no I know! I had labels on all of my frogs/reptiles that describe them in a goofy way. I'm weird like that I suppose  :Stick Out Tongue:  Here's the labels before I put them on  :Stick Out Tongue: 






> I cover the coconut bedding with leaf litter to prevent it from sticking to the frogs. Besides it looks nice and natural.


Will do! When I got it they were only only on coconut bedding so I guess I assumed that was fine so I really appreciate you pointing that out. Do I need to order the leaves or is it something I can just go gather and boil?

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## xkatelynell

What do you guys think about this tank for the frog? I'm going to get it sometime this week. Graduation present from my mom.  :Smile: 

Zillla Fresh Air Acrylic Atrium

Or is it too tall and not wide enough?

& Do you guys use waterfalls/ultrasonic foggers? Should I invest in one or the other? 

This is what I understand I need

Coconut bedding + Live oak leaves 
Hygrometer + Thermometer 
A couple of live plants
A coconut hide out/some kind of log hide out
The water filter system/fogger

& Eventually the stuff to make a false bottom 

Am I missing something?

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## Kurt

I would order "live" oak leaves from Josh's Frogs.

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## Kurt

Seems ok. How much ventilation is provided?

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## John Clare

> I would order "live" oak leaves from Josh's Frogs.


With the amount of advertising you're giving him (others are doing it too, I've done it as well), perhaps you should email him and ask him to sponsor us :P.

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## xkatelynell

> Seems ok. How much ventilation is provided?


About the same amount as an exo terra if you have experienced those, just the top is going to be a mesh I think. But if I need to I can block off some of the ventilation I can do that with some plastic wrap or buy an acrylic piece for it.  :Smile: 

& I am also getting the oak leaves for both the dart and my tree frogs  :Smile: 

One frog will be okay in that large of a tank? or should I get it a friend eventually?

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## xkatelynell

Sorry I'm such a bother!

Exo Terra Waterfall - Habitat Décor - Reptile - PetSmart

What do you think of that for the tank? I would get the small one but I really like it  :Big Grin:

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## John Clare

I've heard of people using those in all kinds of tanks, including Dart tanks.

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## xkatelynell

Awesome  :Smile:  thank you. Once I get my new tank all set up I will post pictures.

I think I'm going to get the one off of pangea that is 18"L x 12"W x 20"H. I just feel like it's so big for one frog the size of the upper part of your thumb but I mean I guess it is a frog and will probably enjoy all of the space?  :Smile:

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## Tropicok

The D. auratus seem to like a light turned on in the morning and off in evening.  My dart frog will come out in the open soon after the light is on.  It also warms the tank some.  In my opinion I don't think dart frogs would do well in the Atrium cage you liked.  It would be hard to hold humidity levels with that much screening.

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## Paul Rust

> With the amount of advertising you're giving him (others are doing it too, I've done it as well), perhaps you should email him and ask him to sponsor us :P.


*I already have John.* :Big Grin:

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## xkatelynell

What kind if tank and tank size do you suggest then? Maybe I get that tank and cover up part of the screen if not all of it? Would that wok? And I have figured that out about the light too.  :Smile:  thanks for your advise!

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## Kurt

> With the amount of advertising you're giving him (others are doing it too, I've done it as well), perhaps you should email him and ask him to sponsor us :P.


Sounds like a good idea. While you're at it, you may want to get Black Jungle, Saurian, and who ever else on board too.

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## Kurt

> What kind if tank and tank size do you suggest then? Maybe I get that tank and cover up part of the screen if not all of it? Would that wok? And I have figured that out about the light too.  thanks for your advise!


In the upper frame of my tanks I have placed either plate glass or a piece of Plexiglas with a screen window to maintain humidity. Works well. Be advised Plexiglas will bow when exposed to humity.

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## xkatelynell

> In the upper frame of my tanks I have placed either plate glass or a piece of Plexiglas with a screen window to maintain humidity. Works well. Be advised Plexiglas will bow when exposed to humity.


That's what I was thinking too because my mom ordered the tank today, so if I have to make modifications I can. 

When it comes to dart frogs how many plant type things do you suggest? Like a good you can't see them from all the plants or a couple of open spaces, or one side super planted one side open haha I've read they need LOTS of hiding places, but I just want to see him/her sometimes though? Hmm..

I also got this 

Pet Tech Magnaturals Large Hanging Jungle

Is it something the dart will like or would it be more of a tree frog thing? I kind of just got it because I thought it was neat  :Stick Out Tongue: 

Thanks for all of your help again! He's doing great for now and is getting a lot more social already! I just can't wait to get the perfect home set up for him.

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## Kurt

That plant is fake. 

I love heavily planted tanks, so think with plants you can barely see the frogs. I would plant bromeliads to start off with. Darts love them and some darts use them to their lay eggs in. I like some ground cover (besides the "live" oak leaf litter) and I use an oak leaf ficus for that. It has small leaves and spreads out across the bottom and up the sides of the tank, making a green carpet. If you can get your hands on tropical moss that will work too, but in a different way. My understanding is that it comes from Hawaii and sells out very quickly at Black Jungle. I also understand that you cannot use the mosses you might find in your yard, they just don't last very long in dart tanks. In my dart tank, all kinds of ferns popped up out of no where.

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## xkatelynell

I know it's fake. I like fake plants more because I don't have to worry about bugs, mites, ect. The plan with the dart frog though is to have mostly live plants with maybe a few fake ones. My tree frogs have always had fake plants though, as well as all of my reptiles.

I know that I'll probably get my wrists slapped from everyone here, I just don't like live plants in my enclosures, I'm really bad with plants..but I know I have to deal with it for this one.

I should get my tank and plants and what not this week & I'll put pictures up for everyone's opinions. 

Thanks!

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## xkatelynell

Another question:

I have  12x12x18, 18x12x20, and a 5.5 gal tanks. Which one do you think the dart frog would do better in? He's only like the size of the tip of my thumb (and I'm a tiny 5'2'' girl) 

Thank you  :Smile:

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## Kurt

Any of those are fine for now. In the long run the 18x12x20 would be the better choice. My blue dart was in a five-gallon on until the plants out grew it. So, I made a tank that has the same length and width, but twice the height.

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## xkatelynell

Would the little guy be okay in that big of a tank I don't want him to get lost or uncomfortable. Or are frogs not like that?

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## Wembley

Just a heads up on the rzilla tank, there is mesh on the bottom front side of the tank. I use it for my Waxy Monkey frogs, low humidity high heat frogs. It does not trap humidity well, so you will have to modify it a bit.

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## xkatelynell

> Just a heads up on the rzilla tank, there is mesh on the bottom front side of the tank. I use it for my Waxy Monkey frogs, low humidity high heat frogs. It does not trap humidity well, so you will have to modify it a bit.


I didn't realize that, thanks for telling me  :Frown:  I might have to trade my exo terra for the r zilla and have the dart in the exo terra and my tree frogs in the r zilla. Hmm.

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## Kurt

Sounds like a plan.

About the tank being to big for the dart, think about this, where do they originally hail from? It's not from a little tank out in the wild. They boldly hop about the rainforest floors of Central America (& Hawaii).

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## Tropicok

The fake plants usually don't appeal to me but I kinda like the Magnatural one for the back of a tank.  Thanks for posting that.  Where there used to be none there are now a multitude of products for critter setups.

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## xkatelynell

Kurt- that's true. I never thought of it that way. I was thinking along my reptile and how as a baby she needed a smaller tank so she didn't have to search for her food. But I guess live food is probably easier to find than diet. But I think I have decided I'm going to but my tree frogs in the r zilla and the dart in the Exo Terra which has less ventilation.   

Tropicok- I do really like that magnet one. I never have seen anything like it and I like the idea. It would give my frogs something to lay on other than up in between the cage and backgrous, which they seem to choose out of all the plants and at not. Silly lazy butts  :Stick Out Tongue: 

sorry for not being able to quote messages I'm on my phone :/

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