Today I started by adding plants to Stumpie's enclosure. Me, being an idiot, planted all the plants I had instead of saving some for my tree frog enclosure. I might take a few out. Stumpie's digs still look pretty empty. I asked online for thoughts and I got chided for "not having thermostats and dimmers," which were on the floor and cropped out of the photo. Someone said I should create a whole cave system and make levels and ledges, but Stumpie has three feet and no claws on the left side of her body. She can't climb properly, and I don't know how to make that kind of stuff anyway. I don't have the money either, especially after Christmas. I think I'm going to add some stones tomorrow, big ones, not pebbles that she could swallow.
Next I added all of the mealworm beetles to her enclosure. I would love to get a mealworm colony going in there, so when one comes up to the surface Stumpie can get a snack. (Yes, mealworms aren't the best feeders, but it's literally all she eats. Tried everything, she spat it all out and went on a hunger strike.) I also added half of my dwarf white isopods, which I really hope will breed and multiply. Stumpie's pink springtails haven't arrived yet. Neither has her tube UVB bulb. They'll be here soon enough. Finally I used the velcro dots I got to stick two thermo/hygros to the back wall, one on the hot side and one on the cool side. I think she needs a stronger ceramic heat emitter, it's not very warm on the hot side.
Next I decided to start the tree frog enclosure. I first had to rinse all the leca balls for the drainage layer. It took way longer than it should have because I had no strainer. Instead I filled the small tub with them, put water in it, and then tipped it over slightly with my hand keeping the floating clay balls from going over the edge. It wasn't too successful, had quite a few go down the garage sink, never to be seen again. It took two trips to wash and transport the balls to the enclosure. Next was the substrate barrier. There wasn't any long enough to cover my entire enclosure, so I just bought two smaller ones. Next was Reptisoil. I had so much left over from Stumpie's previous setup, which was great because I didn't buy enough ABG mix. After spreading the ABG mix over the Reptisoil, I put the rest of the dwarf white isopods and my white springtails in. Next I began hand-shredding a bag of sphagnum moss. It took forever, but it was necessary. Strings of moss can kill a frog if ingested, so I had to shred it into small pieces. I spread the moss pieces all over and then added magnolia leaves, but I realized I didn't get enough leaves either... I put the jungle tree, driftwood piece, and jungle vines up. I secured the vines with velcro dots, and also put the two thermo/hygros up. One up top near the heat lamp, one on the bottom floor. Finally added the food dish and water bowl. You can't see it in the pic, but there is a heat lamp and UVB tube light. Not sure if I'll need a ceramic heat emitter for this enclosure too. We'll see after monitoring the temps.
I still need plants, maybe some more leaf litter, and a hide up top. I'm thinking I should get a few ledges too. I'm kind of balking at the prospect of spending more money, but I can't cut corners. I want the very best for my pets.
Time to eat breakfast and go pass out.
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