What does vitamin D3 do to Grey's Tree Frogs? Is it safe or harmful?

Green Tree Frogs feed exclusively on insects. You can feed mostly crickets which should be gut-loaded (fed a high-protein, nutritious meal before being offered to the frog) and dusted with a calcium and multivitamin supplement a couple of times a week. Flies, grass hoppers, etc. make good food also.

It is always recommended to gut load all prey to maximize nutritional value. Crickets, mealworms and other prey typically arrive from suppliers with a piece of fruit or gel for moisture and cardboard or simple oats for food. When you get them home, offer a high quality baby cereal mix, tropical fish flakes and fresh greens and veggies. The nutrition they receive will then be passed on to Rio. Crickets are more nutritious than mealworms, especially adequately gut loaded crickets. Less chitin as well unless they are freshly molted mealworms. If you feed a diet such as Repashy, Rio shouldn't need additional calcium unless he has a deficiency. This would need to be diagnosed by your herp veterinarian. Since you feed other foods as well, he may not be getting enough calcium, so dusting any live prey would be recommended.

It is true that vitamin D is obtained through sunlight, however I would still recommend supplementing Loki to ensure you won’t have any issues. The daily amount of sunlight may not be sufficient for him.

As you probably know MBD is a metabolic disease due to lack of Calcium. Treatment must be done properly at your local vets, while prevention (or cure of mild forms of MBD) can be achieved by following these recommendations: Gut load live food prior to feeding making them more nutritious, dust live food with Nutrobal, Calcium, and/or Calcium D3, use correct UVB light, avoid excessive phosphorous in a diet (most fruits are high in P and low in Ca).

He should be examined by your veterinarian or a vet experienced in treating reptiles to diagnose infection, injury or metabolic bone disease. Provide unfiltered UVB lighting as well as a heat source. Calcium(D3) and multivitamin supplementation is essential as is a healthy diet of fresh greens, vegetables and fruits. You can also supplement the diet with a commercial iguana food. Review iguana care at the link below. Yes, it says "green iguana" however care is the same. http://www.reptilesmagazine.com/Care-Sheets/Lizards/Green-Iguana/

Hello, I’m glad you are taking steps to correct the MBD. Oral calcium is important as well as vitamin A and hydration. I like Repashy vitamin A dust on crickets every 2 weeks and calcium powder dust with every other feeding. Make sure the humidity stays above 50-60%. This is very hard inside in the winter so it will be a constant battle. Gut load and dust all insects fed, if you have a drip or misting system, ensure that is working well. The UVB light should be changed every 6 months. MBD lizards are at higher risk of infections and fractures so keep a close eye on his appetite and activity. Pad branches and lower branches if he seems unsteady. Most of all, be patient. Reptiles take a long time to get sick and take just as long to recover. It can take several months for him to bounce back, and any distortion or trauma to his bones may always be noticeable. If you’d like to discuss this more, don’t hesitate to request a consult. Take care!

As long as it is a calcium carbonate based supplement and phosphorus free, you can use it. If Sheldon spends time outdoors in unfiltered sunlight, you won't need a calcium supplement that contains Vitamin D3. Read labels very carefully.