Herp Megathread 3: No one will come to my house

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Pet Island > Herp Megathread 3: No one will come to my house

«‹›93 »

Desert Bus: May 9, 2004; Take 1 tablet by mouth daily.

You gave him a good long life, free from predators or lack of food.

Sorry for your loss.

# ? Jul 24, 2025 18:04

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? Nov 7, 2025 00:58

Mister Bates: Aug 4, 2010

I have acquired a crested gecko.

I have never kept a reptile before but have a lot of experience with fish, so I approached this the way I would design an aquarium, with a hardscape attached to the background, then a substrate, invertebrate cleanup crew, leaves and other botanicals on the bottom (chunks of bark, moss, etc.), and plenty of live plants. I tried to provide plenty of climbing surfaces and verticality. Eventually I may move to a larger tank than this 18x18x24 (in particular I'm already thinking about how I could have gone taller with more things to climb or perch on), but wanted to start with something relatively basic since I've never made a vivarium. I obtained this guy from a local breeder; he is about 18 months old, is extremely active and curious, and does not seem to have any fear of humans whatsoever. He does not have a name yet.

# ? Aug 26, 2025 00:16

Leperflesh: May 17, 2007; Well actually,

I've kept cresties for close to 20 years, definitely ask me anything

that setup looks fine for one crestie of that size IMO. You do need to make sure there's plenty of ventilation, when you have glass on four sides make sure the top is screen and not blocked. You'll be misting daily and need that moisture to dry during the day so that it's not 100% humid all the time, or you'll get mold and mildew etc.

# ? Aug 26, 2025 16:51

luchadornado: Oct 7, 2004; A boombox is not a toy!

I'm getting some goddamn frogs and no one can stop me. Probably 2 poison dart frogs of some sort, although I'm really in love with the idea of mossies even if they're not a beginner frog. I'm doing my research, so I'm not concerned about that part.

If I'm in the US where do I get a terrarium? No one really talks about that - I see a handful of recommended places on reddit that are either a) dead b) don't ship to the US c) not currently shipping. I see people saying just to build your own. I've got a glass cutter, A4 gloves, 100% silicone caulk, all the stuff I would need if I went that route. They all seem to say just go to home depot or michael's and get some cheap glass and go to town, however that stuff is super thin. I've found a chart that suggest a 30"w 12"d 18"h terrarium would want 6-9mm glass which is way thicker than a picture frame.

What's the blessed path here?

# ? Aug 26, 2025 23:24

Mister Bates: Aug 4, 2010

luchadornado posted:

I'm getting some goddamn frogs and no one can stop me. Probably 2 poison dart frogs of some sort, although I'm really in love with the idea of mossies even if they're not a beginner frog. I'm doing my research, so I'm not concerned about that part.

If I'm in the US where do I get a terrarium? No one really talks about that - I see a handful of recommended places on reddit that are either a) dead b) don't ship to the US c) not currently shipping. I see people saying just to build your own. I've got a glass cutter, A4 gloves, 100% silicone caulk, all the stuff I would need if I went that route. They all seem to say just go to home depot or michael's and get some cheap glass and go to town, however that stuff is super thin. I've found a chart that suggest a 30"w 12"d 18"h terrarium would want 6-9mm glass which is way thicker than a picture frame.

What's the blessed path here?

I got mine (a ZooMed 18x18x24, which is probably too small for dart frogs but they sell bigger ones) at a local exotic pet store but Southern Agriculture has the exact same model I bought for the same price, I see them every time I go in to buy cat food. Any chain pet store would also have them.

That having been said, my friend who keeps dart frogs swears by InSitu and insists I should never buy any other brand when I inevitably do a frog vivarium, and they do definitely ship to the US: https://insituecosystems.com/

Leperflesh posted:

I've kept cresties for close to 20 years, definitely ask me anything

that setup looks fine for one crestie of that size IMO. You do need to make sure there's plenty of ventilation, when you have glass on four sides make sure the top is screen and not blocked. You'll be misting daily and need that moisture to dry during the day so that it's not 100% humid all the time, or you'll get mold and mildew etc.

What are your thoughts on keeping a standing water dish in the enclosure? I have one in there right now just in case but he has yet to drink out of it, although I have seen him licking water off of the plants and glass.

Mister Bates fucked around with this message at 00:09 on Aug 27, 2025

# ? Aug 26, 2025 23:45

Cowslips Warren: Oct 29, 2005; What use had they for tricks and cunning, living in the enemy's warren and paying his price?; Grimey Drawer

Where in the US are you? There might be a reptile show close by. Those are usually good spots to check out cheaper supplies and good quality animals. If you're in California or near the West Coast, I recommend looking up Dr. Ron Harlan online because he's bred several poison dart frogs and can help get you in the right direction.

# ? Aug 27, 2025 01:29

Leperflesh: May 17, 2007; Well actually,

Mister Bates posted:

What are your thoughts on keeping a standing water dish in the enclosure? I have one in there right now just in case but he has yet to drink out of it, although I have seen him licking water off of the plants and glass.

I tried water dishes for like a year and the only thing they did was drown crickets. I've heard of people being more successful with suction cupped little tiny drinky cups stuck to the wall, but my cresties just drink droplets from whatever surface after misting and that's it. Assuming you're feeding a powdered diet, they also get a fair bit of moisture from the food.

luchadornado posted:

I'm getting some goddamn frogs and no one can stop me. Probably 2 poison dart frogs of some sort, although I'm really in love with the idea of mossies even if they're not a beginner frog. I'm doing my research, so I'm not concerned about that part.

If I'm in the US where do I get a terrarium?

I've kept dart frogs in several kinds of vivarium, from just ordinary fish tanks with partial lids (cut down the screen lid to a partial, fill the rest of the space with cut acrylic), to zoo med style, to completely custom. To me the main questions are:

Do you want to set up a water feature? This is advanced stuff, I'd suggest not doing this with your first frogs. If you intend to drill out a drain or hole for an electric cord for a pump, you might prefer an acrylic or w/e tank over glass. You can drill glass, but it's scary and easy to accidentally crack the glass.
Do you care if fruit flies escape? They will escape regardless, but some vivs let a lot escape. Zoo meds are not fly escape proof. Screened top fish tanks let all the flies leave in minutes. Custom tanks with laser-cut ventilation can be nearly fly-proof.
Are you setting up an automatic mister? Zoo med tops are set up with holes for you to run your tube in from the top and attach nozzles to, which makes this easier.
What are you doing for lighting, if anything? I have always used "jungle" UVB lamps, mostly because they promote plant growth, but also because I don't 100% trust the care sheets that claim dart frogs don't need any UV. The frogs can self-regulate if there's a bit of UV available. Do not use a "desert" UVB lamp, that's way too much. The lamp you use, its form factor, etc. may determine what shape/depth/etc your viv needs to be, depending on how you're gonna mount it etc.

The rest is down to personal preference.

BTW if you're anywhere near me in the SF bay area, I've got a selection of used vivariums you can have for free. They need to be cleaned out because they've been sitting on my patio for years, but they're free.

# ? Aug 27, 2025 01:59

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? Nov 7, 2025 00:58

AtomikKrab: Jul 17, 2010; Keep on GOP rolling rolling rolling rolling.

Leperflesh posted:

I tried water dishes for like a year and the only thing they did was drown crickets. I've heard of people being more successful with suction cupped little tiny drinky cups stuck to the wall, but my cresties just drink droplets from whatever surface after misting and that's it. Assuming you're feeding a powdered diet, they also get a fair bit of moisture from the food.

I've kept dart frogs in several kinds of vivarium, from just ordinary fish tanks with partial lids (cut down the screen lid to a partial, fill the rest of the space with cut acrylic), to zoo med style, to completely custom. To me the main questions are:

Do you want to set up a water feature? This is advanced stuff, I'd suggest not doing this with your first frogs. If you intend to drill out a drain or hole for an electric cord for a pump, you might prefer an acrylic or w/e tank over glass. You can drill glass, but it's scary and easy to accidentally crack the glass.

Do you care if fruit flies escape? They will escape regardless, but some vivs let a lot escape. Zoo meds are not fly escape proof. Screened top fish tanks let all the flies leave in minutes. Custom tanks with laser-cut ventilation can be nearly fly-proof.

Are you setting up an automatic mister? Zoo med tops are set up with holes for you to run your tube in from the top and attach nozzles to, which makes this easier.

What are you doing for lighting, if anything? I have always used "jungle" UVB lamps, mostly because they promote plant growth, but also because I don't 100% trust the care sheets that claim dart frogs don't need any UV. The frogs can self-regulate if there's a bit of UV available. Do not use a "desert" UVB lamp, that's way too much. The lamp you use, its form factor, etc. may determine what shape/depth/etc your viv needs to be, depending on how you're gonna mount it etc.

The rest is down to personal preference.

BTW if you're anywhere near me in the SF bay area, I've got a selection of used vivariums you can have for free. They need to be cleaned out because they've been sitting on my patio for years, but they're free.

I have a water dish for mine, a very very low and flat one that's basically just a shallow pool to sip out of. Sometimes she tries to eat the dish.

# ? Aug 27, 2025 10:20

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Pet Island > Herp Megathread 3: No one will come to my house

«‹›93 »