Vacant 20 Gallon Tank

[melahela30]

I have an empty 20 gallon tank that id like to use to have on my desk. What should i put in it? I was thinking mantellas at first but i dont know much about them and theyre pretty expensive for being so little. Geckos maybe? What do yall think? Open to any suggestions. :lol:
Thanks, Sean

[Nero557]

Well, you can put a leopard gecko in it, and that tank will last the lifetime of the gecko, or you can buy a bearded and that tank will last a few months... You can start off most snakes in that tank, some will last longer in it than others. depends what you like man. I had a Pac-Man frog once, they eat just about anything you can think of... depends what you like, good luck choosing... maybe I gave you an idea, maybe not...

[yeaitsdave]

Darts are awesome little frogs, very decorative and pretty easy to do. Blue tongue skinks will work in a 20, as long as theres only one of them. Did you want something decorative or something you can handle? I always wanted a diamondback terrapin, but they need brackish water (slightly higher ph and salt levels) to survive, but theyre very pretty and are fairly personable, just a bit pricey

[melahela30]

either decorative or easy to handle, it doesnt really matter. Id put in the time if it wasnt easy to handle. i remember i used to have a diamond back terrapin when i was a kid and i could have sworn i got it for about $30. the pet shop i always use has them for $200 each. thats slightly overpriced or atleast more than im willing to spend on one turtle. They are extremely cool turtles though. I already have 6 babies (not dbt) in a 55 gallon tank. i figured with the darts that they would be difficult to care for but theyre very neat. ill have to do my research on them. Thanks for the suggestions, any more are welcome. :wink:
thanks, Sean

[yeaitsdave]

Darts arent too bad, they need a kinda specific environment, hot and very high hummidity. If you wanna make it into a full terrarium it would prolly work out really nice, http://www.blackjungle.com/ has both the darts and a care sheet and all the supplies for a terrarium, as well as a link or two on how to make it. Im pondering making one for my dad as a b-day present, he loves reptiles, as long as its easy to care for, and darts, once established, are easy

[melahela30]

So i think iv decided on getting some brightly colored salamanders. dart frogs are what i really want, but theyre so expensive for being so small. that website you just posted has some great stuff. i can see myself blowing a couple hundred dollars on there haha. i could use a lot of that stuff for salamanders and their items will make a very attractive display. Do you know of any websites that have good caresheets on salamanders? Thanks a lot for your help. When you get the darts be sure to post pictures :lol:
Thanks, Sean

[Teiidae]

How about some pet mice :twisted:

[D3K3]

I would put a snake in the tank. I also have a 20 gallon thats empty. Im planing on putting a Jungle Carpet Python in it. (until it out grows it). I think snakes are some of the coolest pets.

[melahela30]

yeah i personally think carpet pythons are the coolest looking snakes. i thought i was alone on that one. :wink: im thinking im staying with some fire bellied newts and frogs along with a fire salamander. that site that he posted has some great stuff that would make the viv look incredible. once you get the humidity and temperature right then all you really have to do is just feed the little guys. im really excited about it but i gotta wait until graduation so ill have enough money to get everything. does anyone have any experience with the exo terra fogger machine by any chance? im interested in getting one for this tank but i dont know how well those things work.
thanks, Sean

[Johelian]

Not very reptiley, but if I had an ok-sized tank I would love some fish on my desktop! Once you have your setup running they take relatively little care, and you can get some great colours in there. The plus-side for me as well is that theyre always active; while I really like how my beardeds cage looks, she herself rarely moves while shes being observed, so it gets a bit boring after a while. I could watch a fish tank all day :) Might be an idea, although obviously with the weight of the water you might want to check a desk will take it!

[Grimlock]

yeah i personally think carpet pythons are the coolest looking snakes. i thought i was alone on that one. :wink: im thinking im staying with some fire bellied newts and frogs along with a fire salamander. that site that he posted has some great stuff that would make the viv look incredible. once you get the humidity and temperature right then all you really have to do is just feed the little guys. im really excited about it but i gotta wait until graduation so ill have enough money to get everything. does anyone have any experience with the exo terra fogger machine by any chance? im interested in getting one for this tank but i dont know how well those things work.
thanks, Sean

i don't know if you meant you want newts, frogs and a fire salamander together or not, but if you did, well its a bad idea. they all secrete toxins that will slowly kill one another. only keep one species per enclosure. Also the fire salamander would probably try to eat a frog or newt and likely die from the poison.
Fire bellied toads are neat if you can put up with their constant noise (i couldn't...)
If you go with a fire salamander remember they cannot tolerate warm temperatures, they need to be kept in in the 65-70 range, 75 or higher will severely stress them.

[DeadIrishD]

African fat tailed geckos....

1. IME they seem to be alot tamer than leopard geckos.
2. They can be absolutely beautiful, expecially the amels.
3. Did I mention that they are impossible to kill?

[melahela30]

what could be kept with a fire salamander or fire bellied newt if i only got one or the other? anything?

[Grimlock]

what could be kept with a fire salamander or fire bellied newt if i only got one or the other? anything?

only others of their own kind. most herps dont do well in mixed species cages, but especially newts and salamanders...they all have toxic skin and are not immune to the toxins of other species.
Pet stores LOVE to mix amphibians for some reason, don't fall for it. Don't even buy an amphibian that is being housed with another toxic species, the damage has likely already been done. they soak up everything through their skins. they will seem fine for a while but will eventually succumb. i know this from experience :(

if you want something that doesn't need much maintenance for your 20g consider a group of 5 or 6 pinktoe tarantulas. if you introduce them all to the cage at the same time they should get along fine (they do occasionally eat one another esp. if there is size differences). You can make a really neat display for them with live plants, they are arboreal and will climb on the glass and make webs. all you really have to do is remove any dead crickets and remember to keep the humidity high.