Tadpole Care

[hojh32]

Hi guys, 2 weekends ago picked up some tadpoles (guessing 12 american toad tads) and put them in aquarium. Used rain water/distilled water combo to fill tanks. Fed them boiled lettuce and some tropical fish food flakes. The past 1.5 weeks they've done really well. They've been divided into 1 10 gallon tank and 1 about 1/3 size. I've only had the water level about 3 inches high or so with some shallow rocks just below water level the whole time. They are developing back legs now and in the past two days we've had 4 die. I think 1 had some sort of infection on it, another looked like it was becoming deformed, but I think the other 2 were fine beforehand except we did notice they were becoming sluggish before they died. Been doing partial (~20%) water changes about 2x/day so I didn't think it was ammonia buildup. Could it be lack of O2? Just bought an air stone to see if that helps. I had this happen to one tadpole before in the past and he died when he developed back legs too. Any advice or tips on what to do?

[Robyn]

When tadpoles morph, it's a tough time, and some die then. I would suggest using pond water, spring water, or tap water treated with dechlorinator. Both rain water and distilled water have no ions in them. Straight distilled water would be deadly. They could probably take the rain water as it has some trace amounts of things in it, partially depending on how it was collected. In the wild, they would be in puddles and ponds. While they would be filled by rainwater, they would also have contact with the ions in the dirt and plants that are around.

Is it easy for them to crawl on to the rocks when it's time? Have you seen any doing that? I've seen tadpoles who weren't fully morphed hanging half in and out of the water. If you don't have any aeration or filtration, then the oxygen levels could be low. Add an air stone.

Good luck!

[hojh32]

Thanks for advice. I had picked up a couple of air stones the night I posted and only lost one more since then. Just have 7 out of the original 12 now. I will try using water with more ions to see if that helps too.

[hojh32]

Update:
Since I switched over to aged dechlorinated tapwater and added an airstone, no more problems. In fact today we had our first toadlet emerge from the water and in about half a day he has practically absorbed his tail. He doesn't seem interested in some small insects we placed but I guess this is a period when he doesnt eat?

[Robyn]

Congrats! Yes, he won't eat at first. Any food for the new toad must be very small to fit in his mouth and move enough to be seen but not so much that he can't catch it. Insects such as pinhead crickets also tend to be "stupid" and drown. I haven't tried this myself but I wonder if they might take live blackworms since those are aquatic. I'm not sure if the toadlets would go under water to get food but if the worms are dumped on land, that might work.

[hojh32]

Have a compost bin in the backyard and when I open it there are swarms of fruits flies that fly out. I use a wide mouth jar and make one big swoop and place the lid on and usually catch 2-6 flies. Then I put jar in fridge for 10-15 minutes so they become "dormant." While dormant I dump the jar out and with two tweezers tear their wings. By the time I'm on 3rd or 4th fly they usually start waking up. Then I put them back in fridge for a couple of minutes to subdue them and then dump them in toadlet tank. Working great as these guys are perfect size for small toadlets gobbling 'em up. They seem to move alot as they are trying to fly which easily attracts the toads. So far only older toadlets eating. Younger ones still aren't interested yet. Will probably be looking to release these guys fairly soon. It was fun and interesting raising these guys!

[Robyn]

Glad the toadlets are eating! Not so happy for the flies ;-(
If you want to save time (but not money), they sell wingless fruitflies at many pet stores.

[Rosiemeadow]

Sad for the flies, I know no one likes fly's, but it still makes me sick to think people supply their "pets" with live food, I can't do that.

[hojh32]

I know I still feel bad for the flies. But its either them or some other living thing thing raised in a pet store as toads/frogs dont eat nonliving creaturrs. Dont plan on keeping them as "pets" as we're releasing the two oldest toadlets today. Just long enough to give em a fighting chance.