# Thumbnail feeding and vacation



## kychris (Nov 10, 2011)

I've done some research on here but didn't find anything to my specific situation. I'm leaving in a week for a two week vacation.

I have two Vent thumbnails in a 44 gallon pentagon tank. They are about six months old. One is calling, the other has started occupying a bromeliad. I can have my parents check on them, but they are a bit squeamish when it comes to FFs so I'm trying to minimize what they have to do.

My plan is to put a culture that just now is starting to produce in the tank with a small hole like most people do. I'm figuring the boom will be over by the time I do this. I will also feed a lot a few days before and add extra springtails. The viv has a false bottom and is sealed except for small gaps around the large door.

My concern is that the two thumbnails will be overwelmed by the production of FFs.

Would it be better to dump a bunch of FFs and springtails in there before I leave or just put the culture in there?

Thanks for any advice.


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## SnakePaparazzi (Jul 20, 2008)

I'd recommend making some mini cultures with 1/4 the amount of media you are using for regular ones... Take a booming culture or two and dump the in to the mini cultures... Put enough in each to feed all your frogs for 1 feeding... Make enough cultures to feed every 2-3 days... Have your parents put a hole in the lid of each culture when they put it in the tank every 2-3 days.

-Christian


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## Dizzle21 (Aug 11, 2009)

What ive done that works good is make a culture using one of those orange medicine bottles with a lid and put a hole in the middle of the lid, a little smaller than the diameter of a eraser head. put a small amount of fly media and water in the bottle , then a small piece of coffee filter. pretty much making a very small culture. add flies to it and place in the tank. suprisingly most of the flies will stay in the culture and produce. 
some will start to venture out and be frog food. When they start producing there should be a steady amount of flys that escape the culture. The frogs will eat small amounts multiple times a day rather than a lot at one feeding. I like using this method when I get frogs that need a little weight put on. Still need to supplement tho!
_D

edit: Looks like Christian beat me to it


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## kychris (Nov 10, 2011)

SnakePaparazzi said:


> I'd recommend making some mini cultures with 1/4 the amount of media you are using for regular ones... Take a booming culture or two and dump the in to the mini cultures... Put enough in each to feed all your frogs for 1 feeding... Make enough cultures to feed every 2-3 days... Have your parents put a hole in the lid of each culture when they put it in the tank every 2-3 days.
> 
> -Christian


This sounds pretty good and easy too. I think I'll go ahead and have a hole punched in the top and just put a sticker over it. Then, my parents will just have to remove the sticker.

Thanks!


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## goof901 (Jan 9, 2012)

put something unsticky on the sticky part of the tape that is on top of the hole so that the flies don't get stuck to the tape.


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

If the frogs have been well fed up until this point, then they are probably obese and have lots of fat reserves to hold them over the vacation time... If you feel like you have to feed them, use a small isopod or springtail to seed the tank or add a piece of orange or other fruit and give them a heavy feeding before you leave. The extra flies should remain in the tank for another 3-5 days and the rest of the time is easily enough for the frogs... (many captive dart frogs can do with a bit of enforced diet...)

There are anecdotal reports of people gassing thier frogs from adding a large fly culture to a tank that is heavily sealed up..... 

Ed


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## mordoria (Jan 28, 2011)

I was fine for 10 days. I made small (film canister) cultures. The misting was the problem. I had someone mist while I was gone.


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## hypostatic (Apr 25, 2011)

As previously stated, they should be fine on food (especially if fat). If the microfauna of your tank is well set up, then they will feed on that during your vacation. If not, then you could seed your tank with a culture or two at night a day or two before you leave in case you're worried.

I recently went on vacation for a week and my frogs (2 tincs) survived the ordeal haha. I just fed heavily the week before I left and they seemed perfectly healthy when I came back.

I would focus more on making sure that the viv's environmental parameters are stable during your absence (in case you constantly need to fiddle with it). I.E. make sure that the viv wouldn't overheat or dry out too much while you're away.



mordoria said:


> The misting was the problem. I had someone mist while I was gone.


Maybe a shallow dish with might be sufficient to keep the frogs hydrated?


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## fystol (Dec 10, 2011)

I like the idea of using a small culture while away. I found one of the best things to use for me is to use finished spice bottles. Not the real small ones but like Morton’s or Lawry’s season salt. I wash them thoroughly before use and let them air dry. I then drill a hole in the cap. Make my mini culture and put some mosquito netting or landscaping fabricate on the top of the bottle then screw the cap on. After the culture starts producing I take the cap off (leaving off) and replace the spice lid with the little holes already in it. This allows the fruit flies to travel out to the tank. Another good reason for using the spice bottles is that they are typically not clear plastic. By not being clear plastic the frogs don’t continue to attack the bottle trying to get flies they can’t get too.


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