Hello. I recently installed a 100 gal. preformed pond in my backyard. At the
moment, it just has a few lillies and other plants, no fish. A week or two
ago I noticed dozens of little tadpoles in the water. Didn't think much of
it at the time. Today I saw a toad on the patio. Tried to capture it but
when I came back out with a box it was gone.

My problem is that I have dogs, and here in S. Florida we have bufo toads
which are highly poisonous to dogs.

I'm not sure the toad I saw today was one of the poisonous ones; I
understand that bufo toads can grow quite large but they have to start out
small, no? I'm concerned that the pond may be an attraction for them and
that it may be wise to remove it asap before one of my dogs gets poisoned.
In the 3+ years I've lived here I have never seen a toad in my backyard
until now. My dogs have had encounters with cats, squirrels, birds and
oppossums that have had the misfortune to stray into the yard, so I'm sure
they will not have any fear of a toad.

My question is: do small garden ponds attract bufo toads, and also is there
any way to tell if the tadpoles in the pond are baby bufo toads? Is there
any safe way to repel these toads, or at least the bufos, or was it just a
mistake to install the pond in the first place, given the bufo toad problem
in S. Florida?

Thanks
Don