Red Leg?

[NJfrogger]

I just moved my little ACF into a 10 gallon. He's finally eating normally and everything and then I notice this. It's not on any other part of his body and it may be just because of his coloring. It's perfectly symmetrical. I am just paranoid. Would you say the coloring on the romp/back of legs could be red leg? I was looking up some pictures and it really doesn't look like it but maybe someone here could tell for me. Thank you very much.

[elliotulysses]

By the time you see the "red legs" the animal is already in critical condition. If you have noticed them having this coloration for more than a day then it is not red leg!
Also you're pretty safe as long as you take good care of your tank. Do you have a testing kit? API has a master freshwater testing kit that can tell you if anything is off in your water. Do you use a dechlorinator? If so, which one? I, as well as m any others, recommend Seachem Prime. Personally I like Seachem's stuff, especially their ammonia alert.
But be aware that if you are using Prime that the API kits might give you some false readings! So just do a little research.

Not too long ago I was in your position, worrying to death that my frog had red leg. However it showed no symptoms (no lethargy, no yawning, no anorexia, etc). So those are the ones to watch out for.

Do a little research on the products and the *real* symptoms of red leg and you will do fine.
Also there are products that prevent red leg, but as I was told, there really is no reason to do so unless you have horrible tank maintenance

[Louis Charles Bruckner]

if you are worried about water quality just take a new ziplock sandwich bag with some of the aquarium water to you local pet store
a small mom and pop store not a petco or petsmart
they will be happy to test your water for you and they have done the tests many times and rarely make a mistake.

Bottom line if you keep good water quality and don't over think things.
your frog will be fine.

[elliotulysses]

Any news on your little guy(or gal!)? To me, the picture looks perfectly healthy. Like I said, look more for behaviors if you are worried!

[NJfrogger]

Sorry to reply so late, between work and the Holiday I haven't been able to reply!

I think it's just his coloring, honestly. I haven't been able to look up "Red Leg" symptoms properly and I won't be able to until tomorrow. I am actually in a rush right now, but I will update you further and answer more questions tomorrow. He has no symptoms of being lethargic, yawning, or anorexia from what I can tell. He eats extremely well and acts like a normal ACF.

[LeClownBlanc]

Sorry to reply so late, between work and the Holiday I haven't been able to reply!

I think it's just his coloring, honestly. I haven't been able to look up "Red Leg" symptoms properly and I won't be able to until tomorrow. I am actually in a rush right now, but I will update you further and answer more questions tomorrow. He has no symptoms of being lethargic, yawning, or anorexia from what I can tell. He eats extremely well and acts like a normal ACF.

Then he is probably fine. We were worried about redleg with one frog, but it turns out it was his dye coming off and natural color coming out.
But yours looks very typical of what I see with albinos. Try to hand feed him each day if you can. My boyfriend does this and if they don't seem to eat, he does an inspection. However, this has only rarely happened and from what I understand ACFs sometimes skip a day of feeding. You kind of judge by how well they are digesting it.

[NJfrogger]

Okay, so now to answer questions..

The water quality isn't what I had an issue with at all to be honest. I've had the water tested at Petsmart multiple times for the both tanks he was and now *is* in, so he should be fine with that. The tests came back good. I will be honest, no I do not have an at home testing kit, but maybe it would ease my worries if I did. I use a dechlorinator that I bought either at Petsmart or Petco. I use to use it for my Betta Fish, it is Aqueon brand water conditioner. The water in my area has a "rep" to being pretty awful, so I would never not use it.

He also has literally not issues eating, yawning, I don't notice any of these symptoms at all and the coloration doesn't seem to really look like Red Leg. I just am paranoid. I got this frog partially because my parents act as if I can't take care of pets. He was an impulse buy in a way, but I really really care for him and want him to live a long happy life.

Right now, I just feed him Bloodworms. I know that can cause Bloat over a period of time so I want to get some reptomin tablets.

I don't want to make a whole 'nother thread about this. It's about HOW to go about feeding him. I have googled this multiple times and even looked on Youtube to little help. Like I said he is a GREAT eater. I actually hand-feed him. He will eat mostly from my hand or if I place it in front of him. Now that I have a larger tank, it is much less feasible for me to do this every day. I have seen frogs just come to the top for food, which would be ideal seeing how the Bloodworms don't sink. But some other ones will just eat sinkable tablets? Do those exist? What is the exact name of those and where can I buy them? I just bought a long tweezer off Amazon and it will be shipped soon, but I'd rather him just eat off the bottom. I tried a turkey baster to make it move, but he didn't really go for that. My parents will also be taking care of him for 1-2 semesters of college and I KNOW they will not hand-feed him willingly. So I am wondering if there's a way to "train" him to come to the top, or if maybe there's certain types of foods he will just go for on his own.

Thank you for any help. You guys have been a big help so far!

[elliotulysses]

Okay, so now to answer questions..

The water quality isn't what I had an issue with at all to be honest. I've had the water tested at Petsmart multiple times for the both tanks he was and now *is* in, so he should be fine with that. The tests came back good. I will be honest, no I do not have an at home testing kit, but maybe it would ease my worries if I did. I use a dechlorinator that I bought either at Petsmart or Petco. I use to use it for my Betta Fish, it is Aqueon brand water conditioner. The water in my area has a "rep" to being pretty awful, so I would never not use it.

He also has literally not issues eating, yawning, I don't notice any of these symptoms at all and the coloration doesn't seem to really look like Red Leg. I just am paranoid. I got this frog partially because my parents act as if I can't take care of pets. He was an impulse buy in a way, but I really really care for him and want him to live a long happy life.

Right now, I just feed him Bloodworms. I know that can cause Bloat over a period of time so I want to get some reptomin tablets.

I don't want to make a whole 'nother thread about this. It's about HOW to go about feeding him. I have googled this multiple times and even looked on Youtube to little help. Like I said he is a GREAT eater. I actually hand-feed him. He will eat mostly from my hand or if I place it in front of him. Now that I have a larger tank, it is much less feasible for me to do this every day. I have seen frogs just come to the top for food, which would be ideal seeing how the Bloodworms don't sink. But some other ones will just eat sinkable tablets? Do those exist? What is the exact name of those and where can I buy them? I just bought a long tweezer off Amazon and it will be shipped soon, but I'd rather him just eat off the bottom. I tried a turkey baster to make it move, but he didn't really go for that. My parents will also be taking care of him for 1-2 semesters of college and I KNOW they will not hand-feed him willingly. So I am wondering if there's a way to "train" him to come to the top, or if maybe there's certain types of foods he will just go for on his own.

Thank you for any help. You guys have been a big help so far!

No way to take the frogs with you to college? I don't think many dorms mind. My girlfriend kept a goldfish when she lived in a dorm. It is just travel that is usually a stress.

Have you cycled your tank or used anything to help cycle it?

How big is your frog? Maybe you should try some feeders on it, like worms, crickets, or roaches that are the small enough for them to eat. They have a great sense of movement and scent. Doing things like this isn't only nutritional, but will get their instinct going.
There are sinking pellets, but I find those to be mainly a mess. Reptomin floats on top then sinks so it usually gets your frog's attention.

[LeClownBlanc]

No way to take the frogs with you to college? I don't think many dorms mind. My girlfriend kept a goldfish when she lived in a dorm. It is just travel that is usually a stress.

Have you cycled your tank or used anything to help cycle it?

How big is your frog? Maybe you should try some feeders on it, like worms, crickets, or roaches that are the small enough for them to eat. They have a great sense of movement and scent. Doing things like this isn't only nutritional, but will get their instinct going.
There are sinking pellets, but I find those to be mainly a mess. Reptomin floats on top then sinks so it usually gets your frog's attention.

I agree with Eli, but start with some reptomin and then mix in small feeders.

And yes, I did keep a gold fish. Usually the dorms give you space for a tank and my R.As never said anything. If you are getting an apartment, then it's even simpler. I have yet to lease anywhere that forbids aquatic animals. My roommate even snuck in a tortoise--no complaints. Keep in mind my dorms were fairly strict. However, really try to keep them with you. I trusted my mom with the goldfish, but she forgot to feed it, let it get a fungal infection, did nothing with the water maintenance and ultimately lead to a death after four years of keeping him. So if they must keep your frog, at least suggest they get an account on here and read through relevant threads.
I believe LLReptiles(maybe not and Xenopus Express (they specialize in ACF) sells supplies to even safely ship your animal if you are moving too far. But if it's a short move some fresh tupperware with lots of small holds should do them alright in the ride.

Again, don't bother with sinking pellets, especially if you have sand. If you must do sinking pellets get a very tiny plate and put them on there. Remember, to keep water quality good get a turkey baster and suck up all of the extra food. It will mess with the tanks clarity and chemistry.

The API master test kit usually runs for ~$15 on Amazon. Don't bother trying to get it at petsmart/petco. They will charge nearly $40. But you can try to get the tetra multitest strips. They are kind of expensive ($20 range) and not the most accurate, but they give you an idea of what's going on in your water. I think the tetra strips also give you suggestions on how to fix wacky water chemistry.

Are you using a filter? If so what kind?

[NJfrogger]

My issue is the nearest college I applied to (I go to Community College right now) is 6 hours away Upstate. I cannot imagine the stress of transporting him, on him and on me. Plus it's probably a little harder with a ten gallon. I don't think they'd care about him that much being there, since he's aquatic, but it's just the stress of the move, even for little things like Thanksgiving Break. Not to mention I couldn't just take the train, I'd have to drive with him home every single break. If I wound up at the school 1,800 miles away, I couldn't take him on an airplane.

I cycled my first tank with Biospira (?), as well as my second one. I've always done fish tanks that way but to be honest I am not sure it is the best method. My frog is a froglet, he's maybe about an inch? He's not very big and he was really skinny when I got him from the store. I think he's still pretty skinny to be honest, despite him eating. He eats Bloodworms. I would like to start live feeding very soon, but I think he's still to tiny. Is feeding them guppies/live fish okay? I wouldn't feed him feeder goldfish, but he apparently ate a few feeder guppies at the store. I don't know how that's even possible he's so little. I would make my Dad take care of it, my mom wants nothing to do with it, but I did find her watching him the other day LOL. My Dad used to be heavily into arthropods and even bearded dragons so he has some sort of experience. He even had some "hot" scorpion breeds. He also had a saltwater tank. My mom kind of got him out of his hobby but he still likes animals and he likes my little guy.

Thanks for the advice on sinking pellets. They sound like more of a pain than they're worth! Does anyone know the exact name of the Reptomin that would be good for him? I got a 10 gallon tank kit at Wal-mart, and while the current on the filter was stronger than necessary (I fixed it with the water bottle trick), it seems to work just fine. I don't know the exact name of it.

[elliotulysses]

My issue is the nearest college I applied to (I go to Community College right now) is 6 hours away Upstate. I cannot imagine the stress of transporting him, on him and on me. Plus it's probably a little harder with a ten gallon. I don't think they'd care about him that much being there, since he's aquatic, but it's just the stress of the move, even for little things like Thanksgiving Break. Not to mention I couldn't just take the train, I'd have to drive with him home every single break. If I wound up at the school 1,800 miles away, I couldn't take him on an airplane.

I cycled my first tank with Biospira (?), as well as my second one. I've always done fish tanks that way but to be honest I am not sure it is the best method. My frog is a froglet, he's maybe about an inch? He's not very big and he was really skinny when I got him from the store. I think he's still pretty skinny to be honest, despite him eating. He eats Bloodworms. I would like to start live feeding very soon, but I think he's still to tiny. Is feeding them guppies/live fish okay? I wouldn't feed him feeder goldfish, but he apparently ate a few feeder guppies at the store. I don't know how that's even possible he's so little. I would make my Dad take care of it, my mom wants nothing to do with it, but I did find her watching him the other day LOL. My Dad used to be heavily into arthropods and even bearded dragons so he has some sort of experience. He even had some "hot" scorpion breeds. He also had a saltwater tank. My mom kind of got him out of his hobby but he still likes animals and he likes my little guy.

Thanks for the advice on sinking pellets. They sound like more of a pain than they're worth! Does anyone know the exact name of the Reptomin that would be good for him? I got a 10 gallon tank kit at Wal-mart, and while the current on the filter was stronger than necessary (I fixed it with the water bottle trick), it seems to work just fine. I don't know the exact name of it.

I think the name is just Reptomin plus calcium and vitamin c? It's got a turtle on it, but don't worry, they are fine for your little guy. Just get them a little wet and break them into smaller parts.
The sinking pellets could be shrimp ones or something like that as an occasional treat but they are not super nutritious. Also be careful of the bloodworms. I had a froglet pass from bloat doing exactly what you were, and thought it was the best solution. My advice is to get reptomin ASAP. They aren't very expensive :P

And I think what Jamie was saying was to disassemble your tank and get one of the frog storage units. That would be fine in a car/train, but I don't know so much about an airplane. But if your mom is willing to take care of him and understands aquariums/ACFs pretty well then you probably shouldn't worry.

For it's size, you'll want to try to feed him every day, but don't be too freaked out if he doesn't eat much more than a stick, but it could be a total pig! Just suck up the waste, do a weekly water change, and you're good.

You'll want to kind of have a quarantine tank for the guppies/ghost shrimp and keep them for about a month to make sure there is no disease. They can be feed these, but it's not too natural for them. I was informed that in nature if there are small fish, big fish are present and big fish are their predators. However, the ghost shrimp may be more natural. They do eat small crustaceans. If you're using the worms can be pulled into smaller parts if you're not too squeamish, but maybe wait until it's a little bigger. For now reptomin may be the way to go

[NJfrogger]

I think the name is just Reptomin plus calcium and vitamin c? It's got a turtle on it, but don't worry, they are fine for your little guy. Just get them a little wet and break them into smaller parts.
The sinking pellets could be shrimp ones or something like that as an occasional treat but they are not super nutritious. Also be careful of the bloodworms. I had a froglet pass from bloat doing exactly what you were, and thought it was the best solution. My advice is to get reptomin ASAP. They aren't very expensive :P

And I think what Jamie was saying was to disassemble your tank and get one of the frog storage units. That would be fine in a car/train, but I don't know so much about an airplane. But if your mom is willing to take care of him and understands aquariums/ACFs pretty well then you probably shouldn't worry.

For it's size, you'll want to try to feed him every day, but don't be too freaked out if he doesn't eat much more than a stick, but it could be a total pig! Just suck up the waste, do a weekly water change, and you're good.

You'll want to kind of have a quarantine tank for the guppies/ghost shrimp and keep them for about a month to make sure there is no disease. They can be feed these, but it's not too natural for them. I was informed that in nature if there are small fish, big fish are present and big fish are their predators. However, the ghost shrimp may be more natural. They do eat small crustaceans. If you're using the worms can be pulled into smaller parts if you're not too squeamish, but maybe wait until it's a little bigger. For now reptomin may be the way to go

I'll look into the Xenopus express thing ASAP. That could solve my entire problem. This school is in the middle of nowhere so unfortunately there's no apartments or anything. I am not sure what I am doing yet, but overall, I am sure my parents especially my Dad will take care of him. My mom denies it but she sort of likes him I think. I will go out an get the Reptomin Sticks tomorrow, thank you for the advice and the name. He actually has been quite the pig, but some days he won't eat. I suppose thats normal. He's a tiny little guy with a teeny stomach. I would probably wait on the live food for now. He actually CAME with one feeder guppy. I didn't notice it in the bag till I got home and neither did the girl who got him out for me. They were already in the same tank, so I just keep them together. He has shown SOME interest in eating it but I can't be sure if he ever will. For now I am treating the Guppy as a pet

This forum has definitely been more helpful to me than any other source! Thank you guys so much, you have no clue how much you've helped me out!

[LeClownBlanc]

I'll look into the Xenopus express thing ASAP. That could solve my entire problem. This school is in the middle of nowhere so unfortunately there's no apartments or anything. I am not sure what I am doing yet, but overall, I am sure my parents especially my Dad will take care of him. My mom denies it but she sort of likes him I think. I will go out an get the Reptomin Sticks tomorrow, thank you for the advice and the name. He actually has been quite the pig, but some days he won't eat. I suppose thats normal. He's a tiny little guy with a teeny stomach. I would probably wait on the live food for now. He actually CAME with one feeder guppy. I didn't notice it in the bag till I got home and neither did the girl who got him out for me. They were already in the same tank, so I just keep them together. He has shown SOME interest in eating it but I can't be sure if he ever will. For now I am treating the Guppy as a pet

This forum has definitely been more helpful to me than any other source! Thank you guys so much, you have no clue how much you've helped me out!

Xenopus has a specially formulated floating pellet, but I really don't know the nutritional value. If price is a problem, Amazon won't be asking much for some simple reptomin.

It's odd they gave you a feeder guppy for a small frog. If they are in the same tank don't get too attached to the guppy. Your ACF will probably eat it when it gets big enough. I used to keep an apple snail and my one frog nibbled away on it until it died. For tank-mates ACFs are good with ACFs of the same size, as they will not really care and eat the smaller one.

It's good that your parents are supportive and helping your pet. Try to print out some links for care guides and what to do, even if they are experienced with aquariums. African clawed frogs are hardy, but you want to make sure that they don't feed them something unfortunate, or let the water chemistry get thrown off. Especially something that could be toxic like ammonia or nitrite.

I saw what you use as a conditioner, but I highly suggest you use Seachem Prime. It is extremely potent and also puts ammonia and nitrites into a safer form for the biofilter. It literally takes 1 drop per 1 liter, so it does last a long time. Just get an eyedropper or syringe.

[NJfrogger]

The only reason she gave me the feeder guppy was because she just caught it by accident and didn't even notice. I wasn't going back to return him, so I just kept him, got him some food. He's a very lively little guppy, but no I am not too attached. Haven't even named him yet lol. Seachem Prime is actually about the same price as the conditioner I bought, when I am done with this Conditioner I will definitely go and get some of that. Thank you!

[elliotulysses]

The only reason she gave me the feeder guppy was because she just caught it by accident and didn't even notice. I wasn't going back to return him, so I just kept him, got him some food. He's a very lively little guppy, but no I am not too attached. Haven't even named him yet lol. Seachem Prime is actually about the same price as the conditioner I bought, when I am done with this Conditioner I will definitely go and get some of that. Thank you!

Prime may be the same price, but it is super potent. Two drops of it per gallon lasts you quite a while, which does save money in the long run.
The guppy is interesting. Maybe you should house it in another aquarium?
Unless you look forward to it's end haha

[NJfrogger]

Well, he won't eat the reptomin tablets. He hasn't shown interest in food for a few days. The last time he ate about 6 bloodworms, so maybe that is a lot for him? He tried to eat the tablet but he let it go and it floated away since then he has shown little to know interest.

[Louis Charles Bruckner]

Don't worry that is more than likely completely normal, these little guys are pretty finicky sometimes.
Can be very stubborn but soon Hunger Will win.
Just make sure you don't leave any uneaten food in the tank because that can cause a serious problem with water quality.
I found the best tool for this job is some small tubing used for aquarium airlines.
Used as a siphon to vacuum up uneaten food or other debris. (Poo)

Just like one of the moderators tagline reads if you take care of the enclosure everything will take care of itself.

[NJfrogger]

Thank you, glad to hear it isn't just me with this issue. I don't have a gravel vacuum but will most likely get one soon. How exactly do you use just the airline, because I do have that! I found some great articles on Do It Yourself things for fish tanks, and I usually feed him with a long tweezer, so any uneaten food is taken out after a few minutes if he doesn't eat it from the tweezer. I am currently trying to train him to come to the top to eat, but that has yet to happen.

OH and by the way, he ate a little more than half the Reptomin stick today I was so proud. I read that Adults should be eating 2/3, he ate 1/2...he wouldn't eat the other half but I suppose one is better than none.

[Louis Charles Bruckner]

Since you are policing up the uneaten food pretty quickly the tweezers there is no need for a
improv gravel vac.
But if the need ever arises you can use a small wooden dowel with the airline attached to it so you can easily direct the end of the
hose where the debris is and suck it out.

you just need a bucket for the water, fill the line with water and put your finger over the loose end and put the other end in the tank
and put the bucket on the floor and put the other end with you finger over it in the bucket and let it go and keep that end in the bucket.
Or you will have a mess to clean up.

That is the easy way to start a siphon.

vacuum the gravel before you do the water change. Let the old water do some work for you.
then unplug the filter and rinse out the filter in the old water.
that way you don't kill off any of the good bacteria in the filter , just getting rid of some of the
solid wastes that your filter picked up.

A lot of people rinse out their filter in the sink with cool water, but that water has chlorine in it unless you have a well.
Being in Jersey that is a very remote chance.

[NJfrogger]

Just wanted to update.

My little frog died a few hours ago. I went to school..normally. Came home and he was on the substrate ...just dead. I am kind of in shock actually. He had been doing very well. Eating the Reptomin pellets like a champ. He even was shedding and had eaten in yesterday. My dad checked the water with some kit he got at the Petshop and said the water was fine..don't know the exact specs but he knows how to take care of aquariums. He was in 10 gallon filtered and CLEAN tank. Just did a 25% water change 2 days ago. I just really don't get it. I tried to do everything correctly and he just didn't make it. Don't think I'll be keeping frogs again for awhile. Maybe it was all the bloodworms? He doesn't look bloated though. I just don't really know and I feel bad for him that he got stuck with an inexperienced person but I did really try.