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Thread: The unluckiest frog owner...

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    Default The unluckiest frog owner...

    I feel really sad right now and I just wanted to share my story of being (atleast in my own opinion) the unluckiest/worst frog owner..

    I have loved frogs since I was a little girl, then I found out that you can actually have them as pets. I spent months finding out about different species and how to take care of them. I considered what kind of a frog would be the right one for me. So, I got my first hyla cinereas (Luma & Lime) about 1,5 years ago. I had had my pretty couple for less than a week and I loved them. Then I wanted to show them to my boyfriend and we arrived to my house and I showed him the vivarium.. Oh, what we found.. One of the frogs (Lime) was dead, lying on the bottom of the vivarium, after having him only for a few days! I was shocked and mad. I called instantly to the pet shop where I got them from. They asked a few questions about the habitat etc. and we came to a conclusion that the frog was somehow already sick when I got him or he died because of a stress... Luckily the pet store promised to get me a new one for free (which I also named Lime), he arrived about 2 weeks after the incident.

    After that everything went perfectly and they both ate and were happy etc. and I loved them. I loved them so much that last summer I decided that I want more. I bought a new vivarium and planned it to be for white's tree frogs. It was October-November until I got my new frogs: Dory and Ruto. A friend of mine was going to Sweden where the herpetology culture is more spread and returned with the cutest little two litoria caeruleas. They were blue-eyed white's tree frogs and I loved them so much that I wanted more. As my vivarium was big enough I thought, if I can take care of two why not four?

    Actually I had been looking for blue phase white's tree frogs since summer and they were my first option. But when my friend told about the blue-eyed ones, I thought "Why not!". Well after having Dory & Ruto for a little over about a month the local pet store told me that on their list is now a species called "Sandfire Blue White's Tree Frog'' and I was enthusiastic and said "Yes please!"

    The new blue-phase tree frogs (Koda & Riki) were so little! My blue-eyed ones (Ruto & Dory) were still little as well, but I guaranteed the new ones for a about a month. After the month I asked some professionals and on a Finnish forum, that do people think I can let them be in the same vivarium, at the time the smallest frog (Riki) was 2,9cm and the biggest (Dory) was 4,3cm. One professional told me that they've had smaller and bigger white's in the same vivarium with no problem, after all they were same species and the new ones weren't so much smaller than the old white's.

    After only a few days since I had my 4 white's in the same vivarium happened the second unlucky thing... I couldn't find Koda, one of the new blue ones, anywhere! Then I noticed it... I had left the vivarium door sligthly opened the night before.. I was so f*cking mad and disappointed at myself. I wanted to be sure that Koda had run away so I emptied (and cleaned) the whole vivarium - my frog was nowhere to be found. Then I was certain that Koda wasn't there... Then I started looking everywhere in my apartment. He/she was only a little over 3cm and a tiny tree frog could be anywhere! I tried and looked for it everywhere and for ages, but couldn't find Koda... Then I put watercups and left some food all over my apartment, hoping for him/her to find them and that I'd find him/her. I had them for about two weeks until I gave up. None of the food was eaten and I was pretty certain that Koda couldn't have survived without food/humidity for this long. This happened around January and I still today haven't found Koda (or what would be left)...

    Unfortunately this is not the end.. A couple of days ago I noticed that my first frog Luma (hyla cinerea) has probably hurt her leg, I don't know when or how... The skin looks whiter than it should and her toes look droopy, the leg looks also swollen. The funny thing was, that even though I can clearly see she's not okay, she acts fine. She is eating okay, she moves around, sheds etc.. So I asked in a Finnish forum for advice and they told me to contact a vet. As I said earlier, in Finland the herpetology is not as advanced as probably in the US. So here was my lucky moment - the nearest vet specialised in herps has her office only about 15 minutes from where I live. I'm taking Luma today to see the vet. I really just hope that the vet says that my little frog will be fine and don't need to put her down...

    Well that's not all.. This morning.. I was looking for my new blue-phase white's frog Riki from the vivarium. Riki has his/her favourite spot where usually is found but wasn't there. I started looking everywhere in the vivarium but didn't see her/him. Then I looked at my other two white's tree frogs (Dory & Ruto) and have a really bad feeling that Dory looked a lot fatter than yesterday. I said yesterday to my boyfriend that she's gaining weight and gave her a cricket. But I just don't think she'd be that fat after one cricket + I found Dory near Riki's favourite spot... I am very afraid that she has eaten my little Riki!!! I didn't have time to look all over the vivarium this morning as I had to leave for work.. I really just wish I'm wrong and Riki is still somewhere... I just can't stand the feeling if within 24 hours I'll lose two of my frogs, as I've already lost two..!!

    Please don't judge me, I know this is all probably my fault, but I never wanted or meant these things to happen.. I don't know what to do.. I love my frogs so much and I just feel so bad and sad right now...
    1.1.0 Hyla Cinerea - Luma & Lime
    1.1.1. Litoria Caerulea - Dory, Ruto & Riki

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    100+ Post Member elly's Avatar
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    Default Re: The unluckiest frog owner...

    I'm sorry, that's terrible. But at least now you have a better idea of what not to do?

    If another frog ever escapes, (hopefully they won't) then it might be a good idea to put down bowls of water that might attract it.

    Sadly you've discovered that frogs eat anything...

    The good news is that unless the sickness from your white lipped frogs spreads it's really unlikely that your remaining frogs will have problems. I'd make sure to keep the materials from the viv with sick frogs from contaminating the new white's tank. (Different tweezers between each tank and so on.) Also, it might be a good idea to remove any big chunky things in the substrate that a frog might swallow (or at least put down leaf litter so the frog can't reach them.)

    You're not a terrible owner. I mean, you went to the vet and tried your best. The good news is that White's are pretty hardy frogs.

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