PetHobbyist.com's 11th Annual Chat Month Complete Chat Month Schedule and Transcripts Subscribe to our free email newsletters about pets and animal issues Email Address:

PHFaust:On behalf of Jeff Barringer and all of us at kingsnake.com, Michael Shrom to our 11 annual Chat Month..

PHFaust: Michael Shrom has been keeping amphibians for 30 years. He is currently dealing specifically with newts and salamanders, but has worked with various species of frogs in the past as well.

PHFaust: He has also supplied c.b. ribbed newts to NASA for some work they are doing on research the Russian space program started.

PHFaust:Michael will be joining us tonight to talk amphibians, from basic to more experienced questions.

PHFaust: Michael when you have completed your answer, please type GA so we know to Go Ahead. Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls I present Michael Shrom!

Michael Shrom: Hello. Hopefulluy we'l have some fun and talk a little about salamanders and other amphibian ga

SoLA: why are none of the toads in california in the genus Bufo anymore ?

Michael Shrom: Wow. That's a tough question. zI'm not much of a taxonomy expert. The only thing that is constant is change. Hows that for a glib answer? ga

PHFaust: With Taxonomy it never stays the same!

blackmamba1: where are you from

Michael Shrom: I'm located in Pa. I'm about 1.5 hours from Philly.

herptile_nr: Do you need to clean terrestrial setups with lots of plants, or can you just let the plants break down the waste like with dart frogs? If you do need to clean the tanks how can you do it?

Michael Shrom: For small amphibians I like to add isopods to the set ups to help clean waste. I use lots of coco fiber as a medium

Michael Shrom: I keep set ups going for years if the same animals are in it.

Michael Shrom: If disease crops up or their are problems I tear down everything and clorox.

Michael Shrom: I'm sorry to say but it is poor husbandry to move plants from one setup to another or keep the plants when you tear down the tank. ga

Cleobear_nr: I have a young pacman frog, are they safe to feed mice? Is there a certain age you start?

Michael Shrom: You can start young pacman frogs off with small pinkys.

Michael Shrom: They are eating machines. Be carefull not to overfeed. Don't feed more than what will fit in their mouth.

Michael Shrom: When I had pacmen I fed about once a week. ga

Cleobear_nr: ok thanks, I was wondering if it was too much of a meal!

Michael Shrom: If you get a real little one it might not be able to handle a pinky. If it regurgitates or can't swallow it go for something smaller. Try crickets or guppies. ga

PHLdyPayne: Do you know what research is actually being done with the salamanders by NASA on the Space station?

herptile_nr: I heard It had to do with limb regeneration happening faster in space.

Michael Shrom: They are doing growth studies. They cut off their tails and see how the new ones grow in.

Michael Shrom: The latest studies have shown that tales grow somewhat slower in space and are oriented differently.

PHLdyPayne: interesting

Michael Shrom: It's tough to say exactly what conclusions have been drawn from all of their studies. ga

Sterellie_nr: How do you get Sal s to take worms? Mine will only eat crickets.

Michael Shrom: Sometimes salamanders get stuck on one favorite food. Try putting a small cricket in a feeding dish or hiding hut with some chopped and whole worms. ga

Ontario-Herper: Hi Michael. I am currently in the process of setting up a 65 gallon vivarium for fire belly toads. In you're opinion how many toads could I keep happily in it? Thank you for you're time!

Michael Shrom: Fire bellies are pretty gregarious and hardy animals. A lot depends on the footprint of the tank. A high tank will take less animals than a breeder style squat tank. My guess would be well over a dozen.

Naja_nr: Hi Michael ... Raksha here. :) I know you're mostly a newt/salamander guy, but do you have any hints on dwarf African clawed frogs (Hymenocheirus (sp?) - NOT Xenopus). I seem to be unable to keep them alive, although added at different times and from different pet stores, and kept in different set-ups. I started to suspect they don't do well on blackworms, so I no longer give those, but that was just my guess as to what might have been wrong. Any ideas or specific husbandry tips?

Michael Shrom: Hymenochirus need a heated tank and will only eat small live food or frozen food normally. They are best kept in a colony in a well planted tank. They are more difficult than Xenopus.

Michael Shrom: A planted tank with saphnia would be good for dwarf clawds.

mromero92: Hi Michael . Can you tell me the sex of my pyxie frog? http://i334.photobucket.com/albums/m428/mromero92/animals/DSCN0111.jpg

Michael Shrom: I couldn't link to kit on my computer. I'm not good at sexing pixies. ga

mromero92: ok

Josh_Herper: thanks! alright I have a few questions. How many Dumpy Tree Frogs can you put in a 20 gallon tall. what do you recommend putting the humidity at? and for a pacman what is the minimal tank size for a large adult. Thanks!

Michael Shrom: Dumpies like to climb so a tall tank is good. I'd probably put about a half a dozen adults in. A pacman doesn't take much space. A ten gallon or little smaller with a water dish it can fit in is good. Pay special attention to cleaning so th pixie doesn't get infections. ga

Barbs13: From your personal experience, out of all the amphibians you have kept, which one sticks out in your mind as the most fun to keep, and which has been the hardest to keep?

Michael Shrom: I had some american toads in a forest floor wet up that wer a lot of fun. Some of the most difficult for me were Lissotriton. They are so small and sometimes can be fussy about wter. That was a tough question and I might answer it different each time. ga

SoLA: if you had to have a three chamber heart...what would you want to be...and why ...and what is your favorite meal at Taco Bell? (by the way...american toads are the greatesat animal ever)

Michael Shrom: This sounds like a question from someone that hangs out the pond to much. I had mexican tonight in downtown Lancaster. I prefer it to Taco Bell. ga

SilentHouse: Hi Michael. I was just wondering, what is your favorite amphibian and why?

Michael Shrom: I'm keeping a lot of Ambystoma andersoni and axolotls. ga

Reptileszz: I think this is a stupid question. Is it safe to say that a Whites Tree Frog will not eat much in the winter even if kept warm? Or any frog for that matter. And half a dozen in a 20 gal? I wondered about 2 in a 25-30 gal tall hex tank... not a problem I take it?

Michael Shrom: O.K. I've only kept a few dumpies in my life. Animals behave a lot differently in captivity than in the wild. My guess is they will eat year round. I might not be the best guy for whites tree frog questions. ga

blackmamba1: how and when did you become interested in amphibians

Michael Shrom: My aunt Edith took me newt hunting when I was a kid staying at her cabin. ga

herptile_nr: Do all salamandra give birth to larvae and if so how many. I was also wondering if you breed A. Opaccum and T. Granulosa.

herptile_nr: clarification: How many larvae are layed at a time

Michael Shrom: Most salamanders lay eggs. I breed fire salamanders that have live young. Some fire salamanders will birth larvae and some will birth non gilled juveniles. I don't breed any native U.S. salamanders. Some of my friends breed Taricha granulosa. ga

Michael Shrom: Sometimes fire salamanders will have only have a few larvae at a time. Some larger fire salamanders have huge clutches. I've heard of S.s. gallaica having over 50 larvae at a time. ga

RiseAbove: Have you ever been bitten by an amphiuma or witnessed a bite? If so, what was the damage?

Michael Shrom: I've been nailed by a small Pixie frog with little damage. I've never seen anything nasty but understand Amphiuma have a nasty bite. ga

PHLdyPayne: Do you know of a way to breed African bullfrogs without the use of steroids? Or at least I think it is steroids other breeders have used to induce breeding in these frogs.

Michael Shrom: I think it is hormone injections and not steroids. The injections can be tough on the frogs if they are not healthy and ready to breed. I think most breeders do use the injections for African bullfrogs if you mean pixies.

Michael Shrom: You guys are pretty good. I expected some funny stuff form those Caudata.org guys that hang out at the pond. ga

PHFaust: LOL well I was going to ask why tiger salamanders are names as such, if it was for their stripes or personality,... :)

Michael Shrom: They are eggressive eaters and do hide and ambush their food. I think it is because of their stripes. They do make some noise but it is more of a grunt than a growl. ga

Naja_nr: Do you keep most of your animals in a naturalistic set-up or a more sterile cage for ease of cleaning? Any tips for an easy naturalistic set-up?

Michael Shrom: I keep some display tanks. My forest floor set ups are minimalist natural. I prefer bare bottom tanks for most aquatic salamander. ga

Michael Shrom: When I sell the animals in the set ups or move animals out that are not in my permanent collection everything is thrown out or cloroxed. ga

travisdimler: Michael....How has the economy affected your business so far, and what do you see in the near future for the herp business in general

Michael Shrom: The economy has put a little dent in the hobby. Hobbyists are pretty serious and are still purchasing what they really want. With an increase of restrictions I see things moving quickly to mostly captive bred. It is a shame that reptile and amphibian importers are treated like drug dealers. ga

Barbs13: Thanks for being here: easy yes or no question for you: Were the American toads you mentioned as being the most fun to keep, [b]North American Toads[/b]? We have a gorgeous one that lives in our yard. It comes by every morning in warm weather to see what has dropped from our porch light overnight. It was so calm, it sat and let me take several great photos of it one morning ([i]or was it too full of bugs to move[/i]?). :)

Barbs13: It's not a captive

Michael Shrom: Yes. I think they were Bufo americanus. I'm not real up on my taxonomy though ga

BURMTIC: which out of the 2 amphibians would u say would be the most hardyest to keep as pets ...."the Mandarin Newt",,,,,or the Fire Salamander??? Thanks

Michael Shrom: I'd say fire salamanders. mandarins often come in in rough shape. Most mandarins sold in the hobby are w.c. and have problems with parasites and skin lesions if not cared for properly, With c.b. I'd say fire salamanders and mandarins are similar and take similar set ups. ga

PHFaust: I get the final question.... It is one commonly asked here. When looking at Amphibs, what are good suggestions for great starters

Michael Shrom: c.b. is best usually. It depends on personal preference. I like the aquatic stuff a lot. ga

PHFaust: On behalf of Jeff Barringer and all of us here at kingsnake.com, Thank You for taking your time to chat with us. Transcripts will be posted with in a few days. Once again, Thank you Michael Shrom!

Sterellie_nr: How do I get my Salamandra to take bloodworms? Mine will only take crickets. I don't get to vary their diet enough. Any suggestions? I usually move them to a separate aquarium for feeding every three days. Any other tips on husbantry? The books don't offer alot of help.

Barbs13: Thanks Michael, and best wishes!

PHFaust: Thanks so much michael for coming! I dont believe you have a website correct?

Michael Shrom: Thanks. it was fun. My sons are working on my website but I have none now. I advertise on Kingsnake.com and am active on Caudata.org

Ontario-Herper: Thanks Michael all the best!