White's Tree Frog Caresheet

The White's Tree frog is a fun and fairly easily cared for pet. You can find them in most pet stores in various sizes and they are usually around twenty dollars.

Some background: The majority of White's Tree Frogs come from Austrailia.

Description: The White's Tree Frog earned its alternative name, The Dumpy Tree Frog because of its tendancy to become obese - quickly!

A healthy White's is plump and bright green. Some may have little white spots that resemble freckles and some will have a very attractive bluish tint to them.

The White's Tree frog has very waxy looking skin. They are great climbers and jumpers and have big, round, flat, and sticky toes. They also have a huge appetite.

I think the most charming thing about The White's Tree frog is its big smiling face.

Females tend to grow larger than males, growing to be 5 inches rather than 4. Males will sing/croak. Frogger (my white's tree frog) often sings in the evening, but will also sometimes sing during the day in response to squeaking spray bottles, the vacume, or the garbage disposal.

Food: Dusted crickets should make up the bulk of the diet. Other feeder insects like waxworms may also be offered.

Some owners feed their large white's tree frogs pinky mice too, but this should only be offered as a rare treat.

The White's Tree frog will keep eating and eating, so you must make sure you don't over feed them. They will quickly become obese.

Tank Setup: Start with a twenty gallon aquarium. It's better if it is taller than it is wide because they like to climb, but a regular tank will be fine. But it must be at least twenty gallons for an adult. I started out with a smaller one and the frog badly rubbed his nose against the glass because he wanted more room.

The daytime temperature should stay in the 80 range and at night it can drop down to the 60's. You may need to use some sort of heat lamp to keep this temperature and you will want a thermometer (I recommend the kind you can stick onto the outside of the glass) to watch. In the Winter, on top of the lamp, I use a small heating pad which sticks to the outside bottom of on corner of the tank,

Mulch can make up the ground for the tank and moss and logs provided so that your frog will feel comfortable and secure. Frogger usually spends his days tucked between his water dish and the glass beneath a pile of moss.

You can decorate the tank with various fake plants (make sure they have no sharp parts!) or you can go for real plants, but you must make sure any plants you use are in no way toxic!

Mist the set up daily with dechlorinated water, but you're not trying to keep the humidity up. The White's prefers a dryer climate and they don't come frog rainforests!

Your frog will also be thankful for a water dish. The bigger the better, but it should not be too deep, just deep enough for your frog to sit in. The water must be cleaned out whenever it is soiled or daily/every other day to keep your frog healthy. Frogger loves the dish I got him from a reptile expo that is more than six times his size.