Very worried about African Dwarf Frog

I agree that you may have an ammonia spike in the tank.

This is a 5 gallon so I'd do a 4 1/2 gallon water change. Be sure the new water is the same temperature as the water in the tank and don't forget the dechlorinator.

It won't hurt the frogs to have that big of a change as long as you don't shock them with with water that's either too cold or too warm, and as long as you have removed chlorine and chloramine.

Could you get a ruler or tape measure and measure from the bottom to the top of the tank so we can know how tall it is exactly. Your water level is a little low in the photo but you said it was about 15 inches to the surface, so I just wanted to make sure.

Also, could you show us a photo that allows us to see the substrate. I'd like to get a look at how much gravel you have in the bottom of the tank. Food and debris can get down in the gravel and accumulate, so you have to vacuum regularly to remove that or you will have serious problems with water quality.

There are siphon vacuum systems that are pretty cheap at Walmart or Target or pet stores that allow you to suction the gravel and suck up decaying food, gunk, poo and debris. You don't need to spend much money on one for a tank that size.

Speaking of tanks. Four frogs in a 5 gallon is a bit small, so in the near future it would be good if you could upgrade to a 10 gallon. This would give them more room to swim and play, and would improve the water quality which is most important thing.

You mentioned putting your hands in the tank frequently; there's nothing wrong with that as long as you don't have any lotion, cream, sun screen, cologne, or soap residue on your hands, wrists and arms. Frogs are very sensitive to chemicals and even a tiny bit of residue on your skin can get in their water and cause problems.:eek:

I always washed my hands, wrists and forearms good, and then rinsed thoroughly, rubbing and scruffing my skin under running water to rub of any residue. Then dry with a clean paper towel, so I didn't get a fabric softener residue off of the towel onto my hands.

Be carefuly spraying air fresheners or room deoderizers, or any aerosol, really, in the room near them. In fact I always covered the tank with a towel if I was using windex or furniture polish spray or anything that might be airborne and drift over into their tanks. Amhpibians really are sensitive to chemical exposure. I'm not trying to freak you out:nilly: with scary warnings, things will be OK... you just have to exercise some care.:dance2:

Your little girl under the filter is probably OK. These little guys have the strangest behavior that is, to them, perfectly normal.

They can float... spread out in this spaced out zoned out way... it is called their "Zen" mode. I've seen mine drift slowly down... land on one foot with body in this stange ballet or ice skater pose, one leg out arms up.... pause for a moment and then just slowly fall over on their back like they just died. Then scramble up and zoom off to hide.

I've seen mine squeezed between the heater and glass side of the tank, looking like it was in a catatonic state... then have it swim happily away.

You do need to watch out for anything in the tank that they may squeeze into but then can't go further. It's hard for them to back up. It is possible for one to squeeze himself into a space that has no wiggle room and he can't go forward and can't back up... one could possibly drown in a situation like that.

The girl floating under the filter intake; if she doesn't move away after a while I would worry, but she's probably just found a neat place to hover.

If she is puffy looking, like she's swelling up, let us know. Try to get her to move so we can see her better if you think that's happening to her.

It's hard to see her, but from what I see she looks alright.
 
OK Mel--A few questions. First, if I change the water can I put them in my frog o sphere? And if I do, do I need to dechlorniate the tap water if they will only be in there during water changes?

And it is 15.5". Don't worry about the substrate, I think I'm taking it out, just lots of hassel :O
 
If you use a gravel vac or syphon to do wc's there is no need to take the frogs out. Just syphon out whatever portion of the water that needs changing and add water that you have already dechlorinated. Catching them and putting them in another container seems like it would stress them more. Mel would know better though. She has vast knowledge of these things. ;)
 
OK! I transferred the four frogs to their new, non-gravel setting. I let the water start out a little cool-ish, most likely late-'60s, because my room is hot, and water heats up a few degrees easily I'm sure. I can see two, but I think the other two darted up to play in the filter again. I'm going to ordered frozen bloodworms online, and just drop in a few pellets a day until they get here.

Everything sound OK? I'll upload some pics in a bit.

Here is the website, and the bloodworms I'm getting: the 16oz one:

http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.c...03csegb&ref=3312&subref=AA&CAWELAID=529155642

**ACTUALLY** the shipping on that one is $25, so I'm getting these:

http://www.amazon.com/HBH-Enterprises-Tadpole-Bites-1-2oz/dp/B0002APO8G
 
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Those Frog Bites are good. I had those and my frogs loved them, too. Later, however, you can find the frozen blood worms at Petco or Petsmart or maybe a local fish store, so you don't have to pay shipping. It would be good to have them so their diet is varied.

Are they still in the 5 gallon? If you stirred up a lot of gunk when you removed the gravel be sure to do water changes every day for 3 or 4 days.
You may have to rinse goo and gunk off your filter cartridge by swishing it in the tankwater you remove when you do the water change, or in water that is good and dechlorinated so you don't kill the good bacteria.

Bare bottom is really good for these little guys, I'm glad you're doing that. Frogs&Snails is right on the money about the water changes. Just leave them in their tank.

One caution however: watch out as you siphon out water, keep the tube nearly flat on the bottom and avoid the froggies. I had a scary and funny (now, but not at the time, lol) incident with a siphon.

I was siphonning merrily along the bare bottom tank, :dance2:I looked to see what made a noice I heard in the kitchen, I only looked away for a split second and when I looked back at the tank I saw my little frog going up the tube fast and heading for the squeeze bulb on the siphon.:eek:

I knew she would get into the bulb and go through it, but the tube on the other side of it narrowed and as she exited she would get squished in the tube by the water pressure.:thud:

I lifted the vacuum tube out of the tank immediately to stop the flow, but she was in the siphon squeeze bulb. I started screaming "HELP! HELP!" I NEED A KNIFE!!! I NEED A SHARP KNIFE!!"

My sister was here in the back of the house and came running; the look on her face makes me laugh even now when I think of it. "WHAT? WHAT? WHAT'S THE MATTER???!!!" She was jumping up and down in place. :nilly:

"I NEED A SHARP KNIFE!!! THE FROGS IN THE BULB!!! I HAVE TO CUT THE BULB OPEN!!! GET ME A KNIFE!! GET ME A KNIFE!!"

She ran to the kitchen untensil drawer and came running with a butcher knife. I was terrbily afraid I might accidentally cut the little frog :cry:as I slit open the bulb, but no... there she was hunkered down.:frog: I held the bulb over the tank and widened the slit with my fingers and she fell into the tank and jetted into the little plastic cave.

Well... my sister and I needed a Margarita after that, lol... but Allie, my frog, was just fine. She did seem to be much more cautious of the siphon after that.
 
Annadae, I was just looking at your profile and description of your tank. I would love to see a full tank photo. The little hidey bridge and coral sound really cool. I bet the froggies will love hiding in those places.
 
Ha ha thanks Mel :P Your story was HILARIOUS! And also for the advice. I have one on my camera, I'll have to upload it tomorrow. :) And they love their coral, two are hiding in it now :P and one is under the bridge!!

Oh, and as for feeding goes...I think I will just let it go. I'll drop the pellets in there daily, and hopefully they will find them. I am thinking I may not have made the right choice with these guys...I thought, according to many sites they would be easy to care for but they are causing so much stress. I may eventually, after these little ones pass on someday, get guppies. What do you think?
 
Well.... try not to stress about it... it just sounds scary and like a lot of work. Once things settle down it will get easier.

Really, anything you get is going to come with worries and issues. Guppies are really cool, but they need their water maintained and monitored just like the froggies... if not moreso.
 
I'm going to keep feeding the pellets--they probably need time to adjust. The thing with guppies is they are so much easier to feed because they come to the surface for food. These frogs totally ignore EVERYTHING I give them! They hate me D:
 
Hi Anna, I've been out of town and haven't been able to check on how things are going for the froggies. And, they don't hate you, lol. It just takes a while for them to get in the groove. Believe me, they will discover the frog bites and start chowing down on them.

Do give us an update so we know how they are. If they are showing any signs that they are sick, please post asap.
 
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