# how to fatten up a skinny auratus fast?



## Baltimore Bryan (Sep 6, 2006)

I got a group of 2.1 CR auratus, and one of the males is really skinny. I figured I'm in no rush to get him fat and breeding why not just feed him ff. Well today I saw him acting a little strange, trying to "itch" something of the sides of his stomach with his legs. I tried spraying him down and it seems to have worked but I am starting to get worried that I need to fatten him up quickly or he will get sick. He is a great eater, eats every single ff I put in there, and doesn't miss them or anything. I have heard people say to use ff larvae but I don't have a lot of ff right now unfortunately (barely enough) and I have no idea how you would separate them from the media. Is there any other way I can get him fatter quick? I tried some pinheads, and he loved them, but it's expensive for 3 bucks a feed every day for a couple weeks. Any other way? Thanks


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## Otis (Apr 16, 2006)

if he's eating a lot and is still skinny maybe there is something else you could do besides feeding him more. something has to be causing him to be skinny. did you get fecals done? maybe he has parasites. as long as he is eating thats good though.


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## Hayden (Feb 4, 2007)

Try termites if you have access to them. They will fatten him up really quick unless there is a parasite issue.


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## Baltimore Bryan (Sep 6, 2006)

I've only had him for a couple days and I didn't have many ff, so I can't say if he's just not fattening up. I think he might just be thin, but if he doesn't start to fatten up soon, I'll get fecals done. I now have more ff's, but I think I might try some termites. A couple questions- for the termites, I do have woods with lots of termites. Can I just take them directly from the woods and feed them, or do I need to treat them somehow? If I can just feed them, then yes I can use them. Thanks


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## Hayden (Feb 4, 2007)

Yeah you can just feed them from the woods. Shouldn't be a problem.


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## Baltimore Bryan (Sep 6, 2006)

Alright well I went into the woods, got about 60 termites, and on my way back I tripped on a tree root and altough thankfully I am OK, the termites fell out :x  . So although unfortunately I couldn't find any more termites, I found some ants and some isopods. A couple of questions- I know the ants are fine, but do the isopods have any good nutritional value in them? I've seen people use them in tanks before, but I never knew if they are good for fattening up the frogs. Also, I feel pretty dumb about asking this  but what's the difference between isopods and woodlice? Is there one? I found a thread that tells how to culture woodlice, so if they're the same, I'd like to be able to culture these. Thanks


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## Julio (Oct 8, 2007)

if you can't get termites, waxworms are a great source to fatten up a frog in no time.


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## VTHokie (Jun 28, 2005)

I wouldn't feed them ants. I know darts will not eat some kinds of ants and you do not want a colony of ants to get started in your viv. I had one start in mine once and had to redo the whole thing.


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## Baltimore Bryan (Sep 6, 2006)

No ants, got it. I used to occasionaly feed a few of those ants that crawl all over your house because we had so many :roll: . I agree, it would not be good to get an ant colony in the tank, because I just redid it for the auartus. I will try and get some waxworms this weekend, or maybe sooner. Thanks


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