African Dwarf frog dying need advice

[laine]

Hi,


I had 2 ADF for about a month who where quite happy in their tank. I was reading up online and it said the forgs like to be in groups so I bought another 2 from the same shop on Sunday. I put the new frogs in the tank and they all seemed to be getting along fine.


However I woke up on Thursday and one of the new frogs was dead so i took him out the tank (the shop have a guarentee with their pets so im taking it back) Then on Friday night one of my original frogs was dead and this morning the other new frog was dead too!!


1 of my original frogs is still alive so ive gutted the tank (cleaned it in boiling water the tank/stones/toys) What else can I do? I know this sounds silly but i feel guilty as my 1st 2 where fine until i bought them friends.


One of the new frogs did have a weird foot but the woman in the shop assured me that it was common and it was just his toes hadnt seperated . All of the frogs where at the bottom of the tank and just looked like they where sleeping (but i checked and they werent)


Anyone have any tips on how i can help my remaining frog? At the moment he swimming up and down likes hes not got a care in the world.


:(

[Laki]

How big is your tank? And what else were you keeping in with them?
From what I've read ADF's need at least 2-3 gallons per frog. So a 5g for 2 would be cutting it close on space and bioload.
Also, straight from the petshop the 2 new ones should have been separated in a quarentine tank fom your original ones for a week or so to make sure they were healthy. Unfortunately, pet store employees (not all, but a lot) are ignorant to pet's needs because they're told to make a sale. Or she simply didn't know about ADF's.
I'm so so so sorry for your loss :(

[laine]

Thanks for the reply its a 5 gallon tank. It was only the 2 frogs in the tank possibly ironically I didnt want fish incase the frogs caught a disease from them.

The "aquarium specialist" in the shop said to float the bag in the water for about 3 hours to help the frogs aclimitise then it would be ok.

[Laki]

Acclimate is different from housing them separately for a few days. So you were right to acclimate them to the new temp and new water but I'm thinking they might have come with a disease which harmed the other ones and the ammonia killed them all except one. :(

Don't worry though, don't beat yourself up about it. Hopefully the other one is fine though. We all start somewhere!

[purplemuffin]

Good luck with your last. If there were no physical symptoms, it could have been a bacterial infection. Hopefully it wasn't frog dropsy. They didn't look very swollen did they?

http://aquaticfrogs.tripod.com/id18.html

[laine]

Thanks for all the replys.

The frogs didnt look bloated they just looked like they where sleeping. There bodies where still lean and they werent red or discoloured in any way.

I took some water to the pet shop to be tested water test from after they had died they said there was a bit of amonia but not enough to kill the frogs they put that down to the 3 frogs dying. So the water was fine. Which tbf i knew already due the fact the first 2 frogs where living happily in it.

They said that they would replace the frogs since it was most likely a disease that the new frogs had but they want to wait before they replace them A for the water level to neuralise (they said I should change about 25% of the water and this should happen naturally) and B give lonely frog a few days to recover or die (sob). He seems fine though he just looks sad.

TBH im a bit apprehensive about getting new ones i dont want to put the one i have left under any more stress than hes had the last few days.

[Gizmothefreaky]

First of all, the only reason we say that ADFs need groups is because they are more active in numbers. They do perfectly fine by themselves though, so you dont need to worry.

Please read the link in my signature.

[Chesherca]

I'm a new frogkeeper, so I can't add much to this conversation, but I wanted to say I'm sorry you're going through this, and was wondering how things are getting on over there? Do you still have one frog? Is he well? Have you replaced the others yet? From what I've read, (and I could be wrong, as I said I'm new at this!) You probably shouldn't have 4 frogs in a 5 gallon. If the levels weren't high to cause harm, then this doesn't really apply to your current concern, but I DID want to pass that on, so you can take it into account before replacing your others. If you already have done so, you might want to consider purchasing a second 5 gallon to house the other pair. And as for your singleton, I have only one ADF, and he's really happy on his own! My human need for companionship makes me want to buy him a 'friend,' but your frog is probably perfectly content 'stretching out' with his 5 gal to himself! You mentioned fish, I haven't done this personally, but see that MANY people house a single ADF with a betta fish with success. So if you want a buddy, but are leery of purchasing another frog, you may want to do some research on this combo.

Anyway, I hope all is well! It can be very difficult to find information on these little guys, and it's a pity... they're such sweet little creatures!

Originally Posted by Gizmothefreaky

First of all, the only reason we say that ADFs need groups is because they are more active in numbers. They do perfectly fine by themselves though, so you dont need to worry.

Please read the link in my signature.

YES! Read the link in her signature! This lady knows a LOT about froggies, and is very patient and gives good advice. I've been pestering her . . .