African Clawed frogs, cannibals?

[mattman0182]

I have a 29 gallon freshwater tank and my ACF is my only resident at the moment.I was thinking about getting an albino to put in there with him. My problem is that he is 2 years old so the frogs at the store are a bit smaller. I was informed that my frog would more than likely eat the young albino. I was also told that albinos are more aggressive than regular frogs so there will probably be conflict. Is this true?

I apologize for the amateur questions, i just don't want to get an animal just to send it to its death. :/

[tgampper]

Good questions! I keep both "wild type" and albino ACFs. It has been my experience that the albinos are physically smaller and less aggressive than the wild caught ones. My four albino males get along very well together. However, like everything else, there are always exceptions to every rule. To be safe, make sure they are about the same size. "Wild types" are much larger and tend to be bullies. Also, make sure that there are more females than males in the tank. I have seen males attack lone females.

As far as cannibalism goes, I been keeping ACFs for 30 years and never seen it.

[mattman0182]

Hmmmm Thank you VERY much for the reply! Well I actually wanted to by the Albino from the same exact store in which I got my regular frog. I just really like how the albinos look and i have a 29 gal with just a frog lol. I had some fish but they all died in a suspected ammonia spike. :/

This brings me to my other problem, sexing the frogs. Is it harder to sex younger ones? Such as the ones I may find in the pet store. If I do end up getting one, Ill get the biggest one they have, which will still be smaller than my regular ACF. My gf has a small tank she i not using, so if my frog is mean to the albino, I can simply move him.

Also, my tank heater is broken, so the tank has been at room temperature all season, should i invest in a new heater? Winter is approaching so the temps in my room will probably drop a little.

BTW its good to know they probably wont eat each other. I actually believed the lady when she told me they are prone to swallow smaller of their own species.

[tgampper]

ACFs are hard to sex until they reach sexual maturity. Males take about one year and females about 9 months. Once they reach maturity, it will be easy to tell them apart. I have posted pictures and a brief gender checklist on my Tongueless Society Group at
http://www.frogforum.net/groups/tongueless-society.html

[mattman0182]

Thanks a lot for the link. I am thinking my frog is a guy since he is not really fat. Loves to hide under a piece of driftwood I have in the tank. He's not socialized with humans though. :/ I'll keep thinking about it. One thing is for sure, I do take care of the animals i get, unlike a lot of customers who randomly purchase animals without knowing how to properly care for them.

[tgampper]

Also, my tank heater is broken, so the tank has been at room temperature all season, should i invest in a new heater? Winter is approaching so the temps in my room will probably drop a little.

There isn't any reason to have a heater if the room temperature keeps above 65 degrees. It gets quite cold here in Nebraska and I never needed one.

BTW its good to know they probably wont eat each other. I actually believed the lady when she told me they are prone to swallow smaller of their own species.

As I mentioned in another post, there are always exceptions. My albinos males are very mellow and often they take turns amplexing each other (not sure of the reason). I have noticed some mild aggression with my "wild types", I think its a feeding frenzy more than anything else. Most of the time, my frogs chill out with their head poking out of the water.

[rodsboys]

Just to be safe I would grow out the new guy first. Years ago when I didn't know any better I had small frogs and adult frogs in together. The small frogs disappeared. If it fits in a ACF's mouth, it will be eaten. Again this was years ago and I didn't know any better.

[Jenste]

ditto to Tony

Adults will eat young frogs. If it can fit in their mouth, it is dinner.

I have a few adult females, including 2 adult albino females I am selling if you are looking for adults. I have them posted in the for sale section