# Should there be left over flies?



## chinoanoah (Mar 9, 2009)

When i feed, there are a lot of left over flies, and most of the time only a few of the frogs will be down there eating. If I feed on day 1, and on day 2 there are still flies left over -- Does that indicate anything? Should I continue to put flies in there? Is there a way to make sure every frog is eating equally? I have yet to see my Galac eat, but the flies in there are slowly disappearing. Also, my tanks are heavily seeded with springs, so can I assume a lot of their nutrition is coming from the springs, and they might not even be needing the FF too much?


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## R1ch13 (Apr 16, 2008)

Hey Noah...

Not meaning to point out the obvious...

But for instance, say you throw in a good 60+ flies to a couple of adult sized frogs, chances are they wont catch each and every single one of them, they are easily capable of munching down 30 each, but they just cant catch them all.

I feed my 2 Adult Terribs, around 40-50 flies every other day.

I only add in half of them, and wait until they have gotten as many of them as possible, only then will I add the other half.

You can add a piece of fruit into the tank and all the flies with congregate on this, making the frogs life alot easier. Ive done this a couple of times, when I thought the amount of flies in the tank was a little much, I just simply waited a couple of hours until the fruit was covered with flies, and took them out.

Its all about finding a happy medium I think mate.

I am new to it all too, more frequent, smaller feedings may give you peace of mind, if you are worried about any not getting any food, but I can pretty much assure you they will be munching on something..

Goodluck bud

Richie


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## james67 (Jun 28, 2008)

while this may be the case with bold frogs like terribs, tincs, etc. seeing flies left over (to me) generally indicates that ive been feeding too heavily. if i see flies left over i generally skip the feeding (for adults) as the flies can stress the frogs. this does happen, and eventually the frog can stop eating altogether. you have to remember that we likely feed our frogs much more than they get in the wild and skipping feedings may not be so bad. ive been trying, with great success, making feeding erratic. i feed one day then skip one then feed, then skip two, or three. all frogs are very healthy and active.

it isnt unreasonable to feed as little as twice a week, and many folks do just that (with good microfauna)

james


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## chinoanoah (Mar 9, 2009)

Ok. Thank you for all of the input so far.


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## WVFROGGER23 (Jan 5, 2010)

I usually overfeed a little. It keeps all of them fat and healthy. I also think it helps with aggression to a certain degree as they don't have to compete for food quite as much. I also agree with the post above, they are very skilled little hunters but they aren't gonna come close to catching all of them. Especially the flies that escape into my apartment!


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## Dragonfly (Dec 5, 2007)

Overfeeding can contribute to issues, such as stress. The stress then can mean that a frog or frogs eat less, resulting in weight loss and death. Better to feed right around what they are eating - and if need be feed more often than too many at a time.

It is useful to have a small clearing where you put the ffs and other food. That way you will see the frogs eating. Putting some in then putting more in is a good strategy.

It is also good to review any changes that could have caused parasites to become a problem for a frog if weight loss is starting to be an issue. If you have added new plants without washing or set up a new tank, you can also be introducing new fauna to your frogs. 

Additionally stress can result in the previously tolerated parasite load to become problematic.

It is always good to review all factors which can affect your frogs.


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## WVFROGGER23 (Jan 5, 2010)

Dragonfly said:


> Overfeeding can contribute to issues, such as stress. The stress then can mean that a frog or frogs eat less, resulting in weight loss and death. Better to feed right around what they are eating - and if need be feed more often than too many at a time.
> 
> It is useful to have a small clearing where you put the ffs and other food. That way you will see the frogs eating. Putting some in then putting more in is a good strategy.
> 
> ...



I'm sure this is very true in a small enclosure, but overfeeding by just a few is not going to do any harm to the frog as long as the enclosure is big enough. I find it hard to believe a few extra flies in a large enough enclosure will stress a frog thats natural habitat is littered with ants and similar sized insects. Just cut back on the flies a little or feed half of the usual ammount for a day or two. They will clean up the "extras."


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

Overfeeding easily leads to obesity... 

Ed


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## Dragonfly (Dec 5, 2007)

WVFROGGER23 said:


> I'm sure this is very true in a small enclosure, but overfeeding by just a few is not going to do any harm to the frog as long as the enclosure is big enough. I find it hard to believe a few extra flies in a large enough enclosure will stress a frog thats natural habitat is littered with ants and similar sized insects. Just cut back on the flies a little or feed half of the usual ammount for a day or two. They will clean up the "extras."


The size of even the largest viv isn't big enough to compare to natural habitat. I do agree that a "few" extra flies in a large enough enclosure will not be a stress factor. 

However, the more experienced froggers are more likely to get the balance of the number of flies correct. What I consider a "few" too many might be the same "few" too many someone else will consider it to be. Additionally, the size & number of frogs, plush the size and space to hide in the viv will change what you consider to be too many.

I also agree with Ed that too many ffs can result in fat frogs. 

Learning balance is a viv by viv basis.


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## WVFROGGER23 (Jan 5, 2010)

I definitely agree with you. I wasn't comparing a larger viv size to the rain forest though. Although you would be amazed if you do the research on how many insects exist in just a few square feet of your back yard here in the US. That is why I said a "few" extra flies. I'm just saying that if the frog leaves a few extra flies in the viv it is nothing to panic about. Especially when the viv is sewn with springtails as another food source. Just cut back on the number of flies for the following days and let the frogs clean them out.


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