# Problem with dusted fruit flies



## FeraFrogs (Mar 13, 2013)

I try to feed my frogs dusted fruit flies as much as I can but it seems impossible to give them dusted FF without spilling tons of vitamins into the tank. I usually pour them onto a leaf but then have to take it out and wash it. Is it ok to leave the excess vitamins in there? Is there a way to shake the FF out without getting the vitamins to come out?


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## IdartYou (Feb 8, 2013)

Im new here but ill give it a shot. 

You could use like a small bowl or lid of some sort? put the FFs in there dust them then put the whole thing in there. either the FFs will crawl out and be eaten or your frog will kind of perch on the side or in the bowl and eat them? 

That would be my best guess.

Good luck,
Phil


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## IdartYou (Feb 8, 2013)

Here you go. slapped this together in under 10 minutes.

Requirements:
Water bottle
acrylic mesh [ i believe..its pictured]
Some sort of knife...Razor blade worked perfect for me
silicone or glue of your choice (frog safe of course)

Remove top to form funnel









Cut center of cap out









Cut your mesh and silicone or glue it on

















And finished will test when fully dried

















Quick reminder even though it is a small amount of silicone please do it in a well ventilated area. 

The idea here is to pour the FFs in and then hold the funnel thingy...(?) you made over an empty container of your choice pour your dust into the funnel and it should coat FFs leaving any excess dust in the container you chose. Then simply feed your frogs. 

Hope this helps did the best i could, 
Phil


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## SDRiding (Jul 31, 2012)

I just use two tupperware containers, one where I dump the flies and the dust give a little shake to coat them and then tap the flies into the other container while the excess dust stays in the other one.


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## jdooley195 (Oct 19, 2009)

Try not adding so much powder, it doesn't take as much as you'd think to get on them. Try adding the flies first, then adding a small amount of the supplements, and tapping and swirling the cup a bit at a time, until you see a slight color change on the flies. You should have little, to no excess.

Filtering them would work too


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## FeraFrogs (Mar 13, 2013)

Wow thanks for the all the great ideas guys! If I get a little excess in the tank is it ok to leave in there? Or can it harm the frogs?


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## frogface (Feb 20, 2010)

A little excess is ok. 

Try tapping the cup as you tip it sideways. The flies will tap up and the supplement will stay toward the bottom. Tapping the whole time as you tip it enough for the flies to fall into the tank. After some practice, you'll be doing it with no supplements going into the tank.

It takes a little finesse but you'll get it.


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## nonliteral (Mar 26, 2012)

frogface said:


> A little excess is ok.
> 
> Try tapping the cup as you tip it sideways. The flies will tap up and the supplement will stay toward the bottom. Tapping the whole time as you tip it enough for the flies to fall into the tank. After some practice, you'll be doing it with no supplements going into the tank.
> 
> It takes a little finesse but you'll get it.


+1 -- tap it, shake it, swirl it around a bit. Pretty quick you'll get the hang of doing it such that the dusted fruit flies separate themselves away from the remaining dust in the bottom of the cup, and you'll be able to tap the flies out without taking much excess dust along with them.


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## fishgas4 (Jan 23, 2012)

I use a film canister with cap. I make a small hole in the cap with a hot nail and put dusted flies inside. I lay it on its side and let the flies climb out. Works great!


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## ForbiddenFrogs (Feb 5, 2013)

I use a medium hand screen strainer I dust then pour them into it over a bowl to catch the excess powder


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## oddlot (Jun 28, 2010)

Use less supps in the cup as stated earlier.I just use a quart chinese soup container and gently tap it with my finger with little vitamins ever getting out,besides if it's just a little bit isopods and springs relish the extra.


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## radiata (Jul 24, 2010)

I use a clear plastic jar with a plastic mason jar top that I modified by drilling a large hole through and gluing a mesh screen over. I use it for dusting FFs, Bean Beatles, 1/4" Crickets and Isopods. I put a little _dust du jour_ in the jar, add bugs, cover, swirl to coat the bugs, invert and shake over a garbage pail to remove excess dust, remove the top, and sprinkle bugs in my tanks. 

The yellow funnel came from an auto parts shop. It has a nice high edge on one side and is great for use when tapping tapping your FFs from their culture container into the jar. Don't use a glass jar - you could drop it into a tank and crush a frog. This is the source of my mesh disk- AZDR.com - Arizona Dendrobate Ranch - Quality Dart Frog Breeders & Terrarium Supplies.

I did not use the PETCO FF container in the photo for this project (they weren't out when I made my shaker). But I would use it now if I needed another shaker. However, I'm afraid the mesh that comes with it is too fine to use for excess dust elimination, and that I'd use a coarser one like AZDR's. If it is difficult to remove the label/adhesive on the PETCO jar, use a little GOOF OFF (Stain Removal | Spot & Stain Remover | Goof Off).

I use the soft artist's brush in the photo to move along pokey bean beetles and isopods.


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## Peter Keane (Jun 11, 2005)

use as least as possible, if you dust daily (up to 5x/week), the flies should be a 'grayish' color (not totally white). If you dust less (2-3x per week), they should be dusted and look whiter, but no excess. Avoid getting any excess on moss you may have in there, I think I remember someone stating that the excess minerals/calcium over time can harm/kill the moss. I've never tested this though, I just never sprinkled it over my moss.. The tough one for me, as it is not in a fine powder form, is the Rapashy SuperPig (color enhancer supplement/Pigment enhancer). 

Peter Keane 



FeraFrogs said:


> Wow thanks for the all the great ideas guys! If I get a little excess in the tank is it ok to leave in there? Or can it harm the frogs?


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## Harpo (Nov 9, 2012)

I usually pour my flies into a collection cup and I dust in there. If I have excess powder, which is often, I will pour the flies+powder into a shot glass. I lay the shot glass sideways in the tank. The flies walk out and the dust stays behind. I remove the shot glass later that day. 

That dust will go rancid in the shot glass if left in the tank for more than a couple days. The smell is foul and will immediately leave once you remove the shot glass.


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## dallas green and gold (Jan 30, 2013)

If all else fails you can use a petri disb to pour your flies in and it will catch the extra and you can remove that once flies are gone

Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk 2


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