# My tinc won't eat



## FrogMommie (May 23, 2013)

I'm new to dart frogs, and we got our first pair of cobalt tincs back in April. One of the tincs has always been rather shy, but he would come out and explore a bit and we could watch him eat a little if we weren't too close (otherwise he'd just freeze and not move until we walked away). The past couple of weeks, though, he has been hiding more and when he finally came out at dinner time yesterday, I noticed he had lost a lot of weight and was very very skinny. He was also only eating the two fruit flies that came right up to him and practically jumped into his mouth. Otherwise he'd just look at them. I'm not sure if the other tinc has been bullying this one or if he's getting sick, but he's clearly not been eating enough. I pulled him out of the tank last night and put him into a quarantine box with five fruit flies of his own, but they were still there a little while ago-he hasn't eaten any of them. 

Is there something I can do to entice him into eating? He's still pretty energetic-he came out and tried to jump out of his box when I checked on him. He just won't eat!  Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!


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## frogface (Feb 20, 2010)

Welcome!

Sorry to hear about your frog having problems. Do you know how old they are? I think moving him to his own container was a good first step. You might also consider putting a slice of banana in there with him. The flies will congregate on that rather than crawl on him, which could stress him out. 

Are you supplementing the flies with calcium and vitamins? Do you have a vet who can run fecal exams? Would you post pics of both of the frogs for us so we can get a look? Also pics of their tanks. And it would help to know the temps and general humidity of their enclosures.


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## FrogMommie (May 23, 2013)

I'm not sure how old they are, but I'm guessing just a few months old. They were sold as 'froglets'. I'm supplementing with both calcium and multivitamins-switching off on alternating days. The humidity hangs around 90 percent, and the temp stays in the lower 70's (70-74).

I took a few pics of the frogs last month and a couple of the fasting frog but the resolution isn't that good (the good camera died and has yet to be replaced). Hopefully the link works and you'll be able to make out the frogs. Couldn't get a newer pic of my healthy tinc, he's hiding right now and I didn't want to dig him up.

Cobalt Tincs - a set on Flickr

Also, I'm going to email my local vet and see if he treats frogs--he does a lot of exotics so I'm hopeful but I'm not thinking he gets a lot of dart frog questions.


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## frogface (Feb 20, 2010)

I think emailing the vet is a good idea. He should be able to do a fecal exam, at the very least. I can't see your pics from work but I'll check when I get home.


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## frogfreak (Mar 4, 2009)

FrogMommie,

The frog in the pic labelled "Tinc May 23 take 2" isn't going to last much longer, I'm afraid. He's lost so much weight it's lost muscle mass on the front legs and thighs. I don't know if you could bring it back or not, but I think it's unlikely. 

What kind of flies are you feeding? Do you feed springtails? The smaller the food items the better, in this case. FF larvae would be very beneficial too.


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## FrogMommie (May 23, 2013)

I'm feeding him wingless ff that we've cultured off some we got from Josh's Frogs. No springtails yet, but that was on the agenda for this month just to give them a little bit of variety. I'll get my husband to chunk some of the larvae in with him and maybe he'll eat some of that.

When I saw how tiny his little legs had gotten, that's when I started to panic  He's always (for the past month and a half that we've had him) been a lazy hunter--he'd wait until his smaller tankmate (who is now much bigger than him) finished and then he'd climb the walls to the top of the tank and eat the flies trying to get out. Now he's not even trying.

I'll keep giving him food and maybe I'll get a miracle. Thanks for all your help!

Also, if my vet *does* end up working with frogs and mine dies, do you think I should take him in and see if he's riddled with parasites?


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## frogface (Feb 20, 2010)

If he dies, I think you should take in a fecal sample from the living frog to check. If there is a parasite problem, it's likely his tank mate has them too. Actually, you should do that anyway.

However, sometimes froglets just don't thrive, so don't take it to heart.


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## frogfreak (Mar 4, 2009)

FrogMommie said:


> I'm feeding him wingless ff that we've cultured off some we got from Josh's Frogs. No springtails yet, but that was on the agenda for this month just to give them a little bit of variety. I'll get my husband to chunk some of the larvae in with him and maybe he'll eat some of that.
> 
> When I saw how tiny his little legs had gotten, that's when I started to panic  He's always (for the past month and a half that we've had him) been a lazy hunter--he'd wait until his smaller tankmate (who is now much bigger than him) finished and then he'd climb the walls to the top of the tank and eat the flies trying to get out. Now he's not even trying.
> 
> ...


Best of luck with him! I would keep the tank in ambient light only with lots of hides. He needs food rest to get his strength back.

It's a possibility that the frog is riddled with parasites, due to it's health right now. Parasites can take hold when a frog is under stress or when the immune system is compromised. Personally, I wouldn't move a frog in that condition.


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## Enlightened Rogue (Mar 21, 2006)

It breaks my heart to see frogs that thin. Trust me, we`ve all been there. You`re doing the right thing in asking for help, and you`ve gotten some great advise from the people who know.
Best of luck and your frog knows he has a good ''mommie''.

John


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## frogfreak (Mar 4, 2009)

Any updates?


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## FrogMommie (May 23, 2013)

Poor baby made it until yesterday. I would only find a little bit of food gone when I checked on him, not enough to keep him alive. Still not sure why he was refusing to eat more than 2 flies at a time, but I understand that sometimes these things happen. 
Thanks so much for all your help and suggestions!


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## pdfCrazy (Feb 28, 2012)

Sorry to hear about the little guy. Like others have said, sometimes they dont thrive. Parasites of one sort or another WILL be in almost every living animal, including ourselves. Healthy animals however can deal with that and it dosnt afect them to much. But when an animal is stressed (new tank, captured from wild, tank mate bullying, etc) those parasites can brign a healthy frog down quickly. I've been keeping darts off and on for over 20 years. I've NEVER run a fecal check on any of my frogs. I've never had a mass die off in my collection. But, it is a tool that can be used when problems crop up. I recomend to everyone to locate and identify a vet that has experience with dart frogs or other exotics IN YOUR AREA, and BEFORE you need them. That way, if something comes up, your set to go, you dont have to spend days trying to locate one. With that being said, don't let this discourage you. I WOULD have a fecal run on the other one regardless of how he looks. The symptoms match a high parasite load, and if one had them, the other likely does. Fecals are not prohibitively expensive, but they must be packaged and handled correctly. Once the results come back, you will know whether you need to treat or not. It can be as simple as dusting the FF's with powdered meds for a short duration. If it comes back negative, consider it peace of mind, and now you can find another friend for your other tinc to share that great tank


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