# Proper quarantine enclosure questions



## Rain_Frog (Apr 27, 2004)

I will be relocating my tinctorius into a sterilized 10 gallon quarantine tank. (for fecal samples) What kind of things can I put in the tank to make the frog feel at home, but keep it "clean"? (to not disrupt samples) I already contacted frye, but thought some of y'all that have been there before could explain

I thought this would be appropriate, particularly for beginners. One thing I don't understand, what is the safe paper towels to use?

Some people I see use the white, bleached kind, but I heard that the kind you DON'T want is "dyed." Some say the dyed (with the patterns) is bad, but some say you want the unbleached (which are plain brown?!?)

And, if need be, does anybody know if Kordon's Permoxy is a good chemical agent to disinfect? You can use it for koi/ fish aquariums, etc for sterilization, but not sure if its strong enough concentration to kill worms, cysts, chytrids, etc. I have heard from numerous aquarium plant sites that bleach is pretty corrosive to plants and it might be best to use potassium permanganate.
http://www.novalek.com/kpd35.htm

can I put my LECA and cork bark in an oven for an hour or two to kill everything (from the old enclosure)? I do not have an autoclave.


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## Guest (Feb 10, 2006)

i keep new frogs in a large faunabox with a hiding place , some plastic plants and a wet paper-towel as the "ground" - i change it every 3 days or when it gets dirty... i quarantine them around 30 days...


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## Dane (Aug 19, 2004)

I've always used white grocery store paper towels, but the brown unbleached ones would have to be the best choice. I put some sphagnum and pothos on top, enough to provide hide spaces, but not so much that it's tough to find droppings. As far as sterilization, up to a 10% bleach sol'n is the most effective method for the money.


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## Rain_Frog (Apr 27, 2004)

From talking to Corey, will shagnum moss/ plants cause inaccurate results in any fecal run? It is very easy to find poop from my tinc as she often puts it on a leaf when she basks on one in the morning (ew! :shock: ) Corey said the vivarium microfauna can get into the sample and cause inaccurate diagnosis.

What about my LECA and Cork? I say put it in the oven for an hour at a 175 degree setting.

I hope I get my tinc back in shape. She's eating well and acting fine, but that swelling on the throat makes me wonder if there's something wrong. Definitely if I get it checked now, less likely there will be a problem in the future.


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## Guest (Feb 11, 2006)

For me the best is keeping them in a faunabox for 30 days with a wet paper towel. You can put some Leca balls as drenage but this is problematic and not enough in faunabox. 

Here, a setup from http://www.herpetologic.net :

















But i don't find so many plants enough :? and so many work with moss , leca etc. but maybe it's better than a paper towel... i never used moss in quarantine.


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

Typically you can get fecal samples within a few minutes of placing the frog into the enclosure. As a consequence I generally just place a small plastic hide box in the enclosure over unbleached paper towels. I do not place plant clippings or leaves in these (although sterlized plastic leaves are safe and can be disinfected and reused)

If you have to leave the frog in the quarantine setup for a longer period of time, then you can make a more complex setup but I would suggest not collecting the fecals from those enclosures and strongly suggest moving the frog to the more sterile enclosure for a fecal collection as the more complex enclosures will contain soil nematodes and these can cause false positives on fecal checks. The simple set up above does not give time for the nematodes to get established allowing for a clean fecal submission. 

Ed


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## Rain_Frog (Apr 27, 2004)

Alright. Now, are all brown "unbleached" paper towels ok to use? There are different types too. Some, are more "papery," like I use in the men's bathroom at work (that you rip off a roll), while others are more soft, like the kind you used from those silver dispensers that pull out one at a time.

I would deduce that the softer, individual ones are better. What about adding the bleached (white) kind to a solution of water and chlorine remover? Will that remove all traces of bleach?


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## RGB (Jan 15, 2006)

I saw white unbleached paper towels the other day at the grocery store. Try checking a few stores in your area.


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## KeroKero (Jun 13, 2004)

With Ed's comment on getting samples in a few minutes the frog has been in the tank, there really is no reason to try and make it homey, the frog will not be in there long! Hopefully not more than a couple of hours, and then can be put back into their original tank. Unless they are being treated for something and need to be moved into a more sterile environment, I wouldn't worry about dressing up the tank. Honestly, no more than a container and a paper towel.

Quearentine tanks for new frogs are a little bit different, these are tanks the animals are going to be in for 30-90 days, and yes, should probibly be more homey. If you are taking fecal samples the tank would have to remain pretty sterile, maybe with addition of a plastic hideout and plastic leaves (which can be sterilized and reused). If your frogs have passed fecals, or you aren't even doing them, more complicated set ups can be used, with sphagnum moss, real plant clippings, and the like. These set ups are the same for most of my froglet tanks and individual adult tanks, so I can keep track of individual frogs (how much they are eating and the like).


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## Rain_Frog (Apr 27, 2004)

For those who use the "more risky" white paper towels, what brand do you use?


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## kyle1745 (Feb 15, 2004)

I have made this post a sticky since it is a good beginner topic that comes up from time to time.


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

To build a little further on my post above. If the dart frog has been feeding normaly, I have never had it take more than a few hours to get a fecal and usually it is within the first 15 minutes or so. 


Ed


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## Rain_Frog (Apr 27, 2004)

Ok. I went to Walmart, and I didn't even find the brown paper towels there either.

I have had no luck finding the unbleached type. I'm thinking about ordering some from vivarium concepts.


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## defaced (May 23, 2005)

What about brown packing paper, brown paper bags, or unprinted news print like you would buy at an art supply store? Just trying to toss out some ideas. All of those are very low process papers.



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## Rain_Frog (Apr 27, 2004)

About the collecting of poo, Frye recommends that I keep Jean in a quarantine tank for two days and collect as much "vivarium cigars" as I can collect from her, ship it overnight in a closed container to him.


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## Rain_Frog (Apr 27, 2004)

Update, I bought the paper towels from Cindy Dicken and my friend will be coming over today to get a picture of her. She is acting normal that I'm aware of. I really hope it isn't liver damage or something. Jean is our mascot here.


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## Rain_Frog (Apr 27, 2004)

I will be putting my frog in quarantine and collect stool samples next week.

Question. If I do have a worm/parasite problem, how do I sterilize the tank properly?

One idea is to remove the frog temporarily and fill the 10 gallon tank with a 10% bleach solution. (artificial plants and all).

Empty it, and add a lot of chlorine remover and stir. 

How do you guys sterilize a quarantine tank? Is it better to have two tanks to put the frog in while you clean out the other? (basically, rotate quarantine tanks so the frog can move instantly into the other without having to sit out while you clean the former).


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## Darks!de (Nov 16, 2004)

When I did quarantine, I would keep them in small deli containers, the kind you buy frogs in at shows. I cleaned the tank with scalding water from the bath and then soaked in 100% bleach for a few hours. After that I just did several rinses until I could not smell the bleach any longer. You can also add decholinator at the end of the rinses to make sure all chlorine is neutralized. 

You can definitely use this same method on all fake plants/rocks etc. Any natural things such as wood/cork/huts I would do a bleach bath and then bake as for chytrid.

As to the fecals. Check the tank often, and try to get the ones that are freshest and look the most moist. Get as many stools as you can and wrap them in a wet paper towel, roll it up and stuff it in a film container or small pill box. Label it and overnight it.

Luke


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## Rain_Frog (Apr 27, 2004)

Cool, thanks Luke!

What temp did you bake your stuff at? I have LECA, cork, bark, and leaves that I would like to kill nemetodes/parasites from an existing tank.

Even though leaves from outside can be "dechytridized" by simple drying, nemetodes, coccidia, etc. will not be unless I put it in the oven at a specific temperature. I do not have an autoclave.


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