Frog-Sitting For A Friend (ACF Question)

[lilac]

Hi everyone, I registered as a member here because I have been appointed the task of looking after my friend's African Clawed Frog while she goes away on vacation for a few weeks, eek. I have NO experience whatsoever with reptiles and/or amphibians. I own a cat and dog, but I'm sure frogs are so much more different than them.

First off, she says that she hand-feeds her frog which was fine with me, but then she said sometimes he gets so excited, he will also nibble or bite my fingers. She said it doesn't really hurt, but she also generally has a high pain tolerance, so I'm kind of worried. What do their bites feel like? Does it hurt at all?

The frog lives in a 10 gallon aquarium by himself. She said just to change the water "whenever it gets dirty". Is this usually once a week? More?

Lastly, will the frog be ok with not eating live worms for the few weeks? I think she also feeds him turtle pellets, but can I feed those to him as a staple for the time being? I'm kind of squeamish about worms being around me.

Thanks and looking forward to your replies.

[tgampper]

Hi everyone, I registered as a member here because I have been appointed the task of looking after my friend's African Clawed Frog...

Hi Lilac;

Welcome to the forum.

She said it doesn't really hurt, but she also generally has a high pain tolerance, so I'm kind of worried. What do their bites feel like? Does it hurt at all?

Don't worry about the frog bites. I've never known anyone loosing a finger to the clawed frog . Seriously, they're just little nibbles, you probably wouldn't even notice it.

The frog lives in a 10 gallon aquarium by himself. She said just to change the water "whenever it gets dirty". Is this usually once a week? More?

One clawed frog is not a big problem, so if the aquarium was clean when your friend left, it would stay that way for about a week or so. You can siphon off any excess waste daily.

Lastly, will the frog be ok with not eating live worms for the few weeks? I think she also feeds him turtle pellets, but can I feed those to him as a staple for the time being? I'm kind of squeamish about worms being around me.

No problem about the food, clawed frogs are one of the few that will eat turtle pellets. My clawed frogs are over 15 years old and the only food they eat are turtle pellets (like Tetra's Repto-Min). I suggest feeding the frog 3 times a week about 4 pellets while your friend is on vacation.

Enjoy the frog, they can be a lot of fun to watch