Help! Frog is dying and I'm at a loss

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Pretri's_owner

Registered Member
Apr 3, 2021
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African clawed frog
Approx. 22-25 years
Very sick
Has 30 gal aquarium roughly half to three quarters full to himself; no tank mates. He's lived with dropsy fine for years until about a month ago when he deflated (for lank of a better term) to almost normal sized over a week's time. Then he stopped eating. Started acting like his front legs wouldn't move correctly. He stopped responding to external stimuli and has been shedding like crazy. Normally he pulls the sloughed skin off and eats it within an hour. Now he has ribbons of it hanging off of him.

I've called every vet within a 30 mile radius to no avail. After the first two weeks and a few attempts at treatment, his eyes started to cloud over and I realized there were nearly microscopic, threadlike worms on the glass. Immediately transferred him to his antibiotic bath and gutted his tank completely.

He's been extremely lethargic, hasn't eaten or even attempted to eat in nearly a month, almost completely unresponsive, and I can't keep waiting for the vet. They've been trying to treat his dropsy instead of whatever is wrong with him now. I don't know if it's a parasite, fungus, bacteria, virus, or something else completely.

Two months ago, he was bloated like a balloon, but was very active and responsive with a great appetite. He would swim up to the front of his tank when I walked by if he was hungry. When he was done he'd swim away. He was curious and full of life despite being old as dirt. Now he seems stiff and unable to swim properly. I just can't keep watching him suffer every day not knowing if he's in pain constantly. He's starving and presumably blind and I have no idea what happened. Nothing changed other than I finally threw out the old plant he kept demolishing and the normal water changes. He's been in the 30gal for about a year. He's had the same food for the last two or so years.

I don't even know if this board still has traffic, but if anyone has suggestions or information I'd really appreciate it. At this point I'm trying to research methods of humane euthanasia but I'm terrified they're not humane

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Please correct me if I'm wrong, but to my understanding it's only the dwarfs that are recommended to be in groups as the clawed cousins are typically quite a bit more aggressive. He is still coming up for air but it's awkward. The tank is a breeding tank so it's only about 6 inches deep so here doesn't have to go far. Still has about 15 gallons in it. Any more shallow and he can't bend his neck to get a good angle.

I've tried making the water colder and warmer. Usually around 75, let it drop around 70 (no improvement), bumped it up around 78 (no improvement), then let it settle back around 75 (still no change). Ph varies but it's been around 6-6.5 since I started checking it again regularly instead of just for water changes. Gh between 0 and 30, kh around 0, NO2 and NO3 both 0. I'm not very familiar with water parameters so please let me know if that's not what you were asking.



I used to bird and frog sit for his previous owner. She explained that he was a grow-a-frog for her kids in kindergarten. He just lived a lot longer than they expected and when they moved they asked if I wanted him since they didn't think he would survive the trip. He's always been by himself and at his age, I didn't want to risk introducing another creature that might hurt him
 
No, any animal for a recommendation should be in groups but there are excpetions. They are sociable animals (except me lol) nad enjoy a lil group :)

So a 30 gallon but not full? Thats great to hear.

How long have you had him? Could be also old age.

Tank should have some nitrates which gives me an idea its not cycled. How do you sit with ammonia?

Your water is soft but i am not experienced with frogs water needs. Have you done a water change recently? But as i said it may be just old age hence his age.. im sorry about him :(
 
Sprinkle said:
No, any animal for a recommendation should be in groups but there are excpetions. They are sociable animals (except me lol) nad enjoy a lil group :)

So a 30 gallon but not full? Thats great to hear.

How long have you had him? Could be also old age.

Tank should have some nitrates which gives me an idea its not cycled. How do you sit with ammonia?

Your water is soft but i am not experienced with frogs water needs. Have you done a water change recently? But as i said it may be just old age hence his age.. im sorry about him :(
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Thank you for the response. The ammonia is reading high but I've been removing about 2 gallons a day and replacing it with fresh water trying to bring it down. I think my test strips may be faulty or have absorbed moisture from the air because they're reading high in the small soak tank as well even with all new water in it.

Is soft water bad for other aquatic creatures? I've always been told that tap water needs to sit out or have conditioner added to remove the impurities and additives. Have I been misinformed?

I've only had him 2 or 3 years but I've spent a lot of time with him during that span which is why I'm hesitant to attribute this simply to age. I know he has preexisting medical conditions, but his personality, movements, habits, physical condition, and reactions all changed dramatically almost overnight. I've seen a few other people post similar stories but none that match up completely or give a resolution. If you have any suggestions that might make him feel better or be more comfortable, I am all ears. I just don't want him to suffer
 
Ammonia should be high.. and you should be removing 50% or more of tank water per week.

there are fish that either need hard or soft water. I wouldnt let water sit down but use only water dechlorinators.

You can spare his suffering and euthanise him with clove oil or ice cubes or do daily 50%+ water changes to see if he perks up, and if not, euthanise him.
 
Howdy, Pretri's_owner, welcome to AC. I'm sorry I didn't see this sooner.

The "shedding", lethargy and lack of appetite all sound like chytridiomycosis, an infection caused by a couple of amphibian specific fungi. ACFs are known to be carriers although many that carry it live their entire lives without ever manifesting symptoms. This is a disease that is almost always terminal and that has been threatening world amphibian populations on a catastrophic scale for a couple of decades now. You may have heard of it on the news or read about it, it's generally referred to as the "chytrid fungus" or "amphibian plague" in news and educational sources. At least one unique species here in Wyoming, the Wyoming toad, has been on the verge of extinction since the mid-1990s due to this disease.

I'm more comfortable with fish than amphibians, though I have kept a few amphibians in the past. Members of most amphibian forums (well, all that I've been a member of in the past) will tell you to euthanize the frog or salamander. I know some anti-fungal medications have been successful, but I don't know which ones. Amphibian keepers dread the mere thought of bringing it into their frog rooms and I've chatted with folks who've lost entire rooms, with hundreds of amphibians, to this disease.

I'm not saying that it is chytridiomycosis. That particular suite of symptoms just seems suspicious. Since it's obvious the frog is suffering, rather than a vet you may be better off contacting the herpetology expert in the fish and game or wildlife resources department in your state. They may be willing to make a diagnosis to determine if it is a chytrid fungus infection. If it is, due to the potential environmental impact, they will probably advise you to euthanize the frog and will help you dispose of the body so that no wild amphibian populations are infected.

Sorry I couldn't be more positive.

Sincerely,

WYite
 
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