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Serving the Dart Frog Community Since 2004...
Dart Den

Serving the Dart Frog Community Since 2004...

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Specific Breed Mixing Question
#1
I am new to the dart frog community.......I have my habitat set up and have 4 dart frogs in there already. I currently have the following in there....a brazilian yellow head, an azerus, a leucomelas, and a citronella tinc.

My question is....I want to buy the following 3 frogs (one of which I know is of the same species as one I already have, but am not sure if it's okay to mix them)....so again, my question is, can I mix the following 3 frogs with the frogs I already have...will all 7 frogs be living happily ever after, so to speak?.....(their habitat is more than big enough). Any and all help is appreciated. Thanks in advance Smile Happy frogging to all.

I want to get the following...

Epipedobates tricolor zarayunga juvenile

dendrobate auratus green and black panama juvenile

dendrobate tictorius alanis juvenile
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#2
Can you post a picture of your viv for us to see please? That will help out.
Josh
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#3
Hello and welcome, where do we start! If your referring to adding a second tinc to your group then the answers no and it would be your third! As far as the other two in consideration I'd say ummmm no as well, speaking about the four already no, if any advice is truly appreciated as you said ^ there. You should pump the brakes slow down a little bit, use the search function try keywords like "mixing" "minimum tank size" "quarantine" and expand from there.
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#4
I will post a pic of the viv as soon as I get the 55 gallon fish tank one set up Josh....right now the 4 frogs I currently have are living in EXo Terra 18 by 18 by 18. Does that help or still need pics of it? It's nite so the lighting is bad so the pics won't come out too well...so if you still need pics I'll take them in the morning.

I do appreciate the advice flybuster...but why is having the 4 I already have together bad?...the petstore I bought them from had them like that to begin with....so I'm not real sure where or how I went wrong???
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#5
viewtopic.php?f=12&t=4470 start here
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#6
Did they inform you about feeding-vitamins-humidity. Do you still have the screen top on your tank or is it sealed ? Your tank is aprox 22 gallons but has a small footprint viewtopic.php?f=27&t=4286 that should help a little regarding quantity.
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#7
Thanks flybuster, As far as breeding them goes...the pet store guy said there is quite a bit of work involved in breeding them and I have absolutely NO none zero zip interest in breeding them. He said if I just let them be as they are in their normal everyday habitat they won't breed/mate. So is there still a problem in mixing them?

The tank is sealed, the one they are currently in, but the 55 gallon one will have the screen.

Yes they informed about the humidity, vitamins and feeding Smile
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#8
Hi Silly,
Welcome to the world of dart frogs--it can be a very fun and rewarding hobby!
Sorry to say it, but I'm afraid your pet store guy misled you. If there is 1 male and 1 female, they will breed. And you may not know it until little mixed frogs appear. Unlike many other hobbies, mixed breeds are not a good thing when it comes to this hobby. A lot of pet store guys really don't know much about dart frogs, and others just want to make a few sales, don't care about the actual animals. (Think puppy mills).
Having different breeds together is also a problem when it comes to the health of your frogs. Having different breeds together leads to stress, which you probably won't see until your beloved pets start dying, and it is too late.
It's good that your current tank is sealed, you will need to seal the top of your 55 gallon, once it is built. With a screen top, the humidity won't stay high enough for your frogs, you need the top to be sealed.
How are you doing with your fruit flies? Are you dusting with a good all around multi-vitamin, and also with a calcium w Vit D powder? There are many good links here on DD that help a lot with how to produce fruit flies, and how to dust with the vitamins/minerals for feeding. Also info about misting, how often, etc, to keep your humidity level high enough.
Posting a picture of your current 18x18x18 viv would help to give you good advice about what looks good, and what could use improvement.
Some pet store guys don't even talk about fruit flies, some tell people to feed crickets, or mealworms--absolutely not true for darts!
How long have you had your frogs now? Are they eating OK?
Please post pix, everyone enjoys seeing the frogs!!!
Good luck and keep posting!
Diane
PS: If you post what area you live in, you might luck out and have fellow froggers nearby, who can help out with supplies, advice, etc.
P. Terribilis orange, R. Imitator Cainarachi Valley, D. Leucomelas, D. Auratus, D. Azureus, P. vittatus, D. cobalts, D.Oyapok, Bombina Orientalis
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#9
Hi Diane, I am a fellow Illinoian (is that even a word???!! lol) I am in a little suburb just outside of Chicago...called Midlothian,....close to Crestwood, and Orland Park, maybe you've heard of these??

To answer a few of your questions, and to post a few new ones of my own since you brought some up lol....

I've had the frogs for approximately a week now....
And I didn't know the 55 gallon tank would have to be sealed...I was looking at tops for the tank, and I found a gorgeous glass top/lid, but husband *thought* a mesh one would be more suitable as he *thought* the frogs and living plants and such would need to "breathe".???

The fruit flies I buy from the reptile store that I bought the frogs from, ....they come in a container...they last for, I think the guy said a month...maybe 2....something like that.

I am not currently dusting with any vitamins yet....as I have NO clue what to use yet. The guy at the pet store did say something about vitamins...but said they didn't have anything in stock...so I'm currently just misting with distilled water.

I knew a few facts about darts going in...so I knew NO crickets allowed....lol. I did have red bellied toads for a while before the dart frogs so I do have crickets for those guys... Smile lol.

The dart frogs all seem to be doing well...feeding fine and getting along just fine. I will post some pix in the morning, as again, I said it is middle of the night here, and my 4 daughters are all asleep in the room where the darts are located and I don't want to wake them right now by turning on the lights and taking pics Smile
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#10
Realized I had a couple of pics on my phone...here are a couple of shots of the viv and the frogs I currently have Smile

[Image: nvs179.jpg]

[Image: viipnb.jpg]

[Image: 11114rn.jpg]

[Image: 6401li.jpg]

[Image: xajjl.jpg]
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#11
I used to live in the suburbs of Wheaton and Lombard, a gazillion years ago, it's a small world! And your husband was "trying", but the frogs need high humidity, which means the top needs to be sealed. A screen top lets the viv dry out too much, not good for the frogsSad
Your frogs will need dusted flies soon, to be healthy. You will get different opinions here, but the basics are calcium with Vitamin D, alternated with a multivitamin, such as herptivite. Dust one day with one, the next day with the other. Mist the viv at least once a day, sometimes more, to keep the humidity high. The plants and the sides of the tank should show moisture, if you don't have a humidity gage. These vitamin/mineral supplements are available at Petsmart/Petco, if you have those locally.
Your azureus, leucomela, and citronella look OK, in my opinion, but your BYH, to me, looks very thin. Is it just the angle, or does he look thin to you?
I have bought those small containers of fruit flies in a pinch, but I don't know if you can count on it producing flies for very long. How often are you feeding? How many flies are you getting out per feeding?
All these problems are fixable, if you are feeling up to the task! It really is worth it, if you have the time to figure it all out! I have had my dart frogs for 2 years now, and it is very rewarding to meSmile
Hang in there, and keep posting!
Diane
P. Terribilis orange, R. Imitator Cainarachi Valley, D. Leucomelas, D. Auratus, D. Azureus, P. vittatus, D. cobalts, D.Oyapok, Bombina Orientalis
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#12
Hi Tilly and welcome to Dart Den !

Mixing morphs or 'populations' is indeed a heated topic. Have you done your homework / research ? Did you read these threads:

viewtopic.php?f=12&t=4470

viewtopic.php?f=27&t=4134

One quick point - the size of the frog matters a lot. These animals may look happy-go-lucky and passive, but they can be aggressive, dominate and stress smaller frogs - and they often do.

You have different species as well as different sizes already and plan on adding an Epipidobates which is smaller yet. I have no doubt that there is aggression and undue stress occurring in your tank right now.

A lot of newbies desire a vibrant, colourful tank full of different frogs and this is just dangerous and most likely deadly for the animals. I recommend a single species enclosure of 2 frogs at first, so you can get your feet wet and start to learn more about these animals and their habits - able to recognize stress, dominance and aggression.
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"Time flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana".
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#13
This will come as a surprise to many ( ha ha ) but I am going to put it right out there...
Without quite a bit of reading and studying fairly soon you will run into health issues. Pet stores, for the most part, are not a place to either buy darts nor get even basic husbandry info.
You now have four different locales with two different
species which can and will interbreed and hybridize , if they do get the proper feeding and supplementation, which they are not getting now.
Luckily , there is all the info you will need here and on a couple other sites. But since the cart is now before the horse time is of the essence and quite a bit of reading will be needed to be done , fast...
Good luck with your frogs. You are at the right place to dig out info.
Darts with parasites are analogous to mixed tanks, there are no known benefits to the frogs with either.


If tone is more important to you than content, you are at the wrong place.

My new email address is: rich.frye@icloud.com and new phone number is 773 577 3476
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#14
Your setup is way too small for even a pair of frogs. I keep mixed setups and help others get started so if you have any questions feel free to PM me. Potentially the four frogs you have can easily be kept together but not in your current setup.

I see these are your first post so I would say do a little research first and quickly.
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#15
Why don't we have a thumbs down button^?!?
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