WE CAUGHT A FROG!!! How do we keep it alive??

[KimiBear]

My family went to Hilton Head Island, SC this past weekend, and we saw frogs every night by the hotel door. Last night one of them hopped inside when we opened the door! My sister really wanted to catch it, so we did! Its about an inch big. It has been in a coffee cup (with extra holes in the lid) for about a day now. We also put a little bit of water, some dirt, rocks, a stick, and a leaf in the cup as a "habitat". It seems to have survived our car ride back home to Atlanta, but we know next to nothing about caring for frogs! We think its a tree frog, since it does look like the frogs found on this page: Hyla cinerea - Green Treefrog
So please help us!!! What can we feed it? It should be really hungry by now!!! Does it need a proper "house"? Does it like light? Is it safe? What do we do to keep it alive??

[David Pinckney]

I’m so sorry that no one’s answered you yet. All frogs are strictly carnivorous, and most will eat anything that moves and can fit in their mouths. I’m not an expert or anything, but I’ve owned dozens of amphibians in the past. Most were store bought, but I also captured a few like you did. Sometimes that worked out, but other times it didn’t, and when you’ve already taken the animal away from it's indigenous range letting it go probably won’t work out either. What I used to do is take the animal to a few pet stores, and ask the people there questions about what it needs. Then I would acquire the materials, and follow the advice. I once caught two Arizona toads (Anaxyrus microscaphus) and they were very easy to care for, and lived for several years. I also once caught an American Bull frog, and that turned out to be a nightmare; I just wound up letting it go back to the lake.

Good luck, and have fun.

[DC101]

If it is a tree frog like you mentioned, then they can be rarely easy to care for.

Like David Pinckney said, go around to local pet shops and ask question, but ill try to help as much as i can.

The eat crickets, woodies, some worms (not very often because they are high in fat) and anything really that will fit in their mouth, including smaller frogs.

You would want to but a vivarium, or for just temporarily you can but a big plastic tub. Anything that has plenty or room, ventilation and for tree frogs, it need to be vertical because they
like to climb.

They will need lighting for during the day. Preferably uvb and for night you can use an infrared light. The Infrared light is also used for heating as they need specific temperatures so do your research.

You need a water dish for the frog to drink and soak in every night. Make sure that you use good water like rain water (depends where you live) or some others that don't have nasties like chlorine and other
chemicals.

They can be rarely costly when preparing the tank, but once you have it ready, thats all you need to do. You would also want to mist the enclosure everyday once or twice, depending on the frog. If you are serious
about having a frog, you may want to think about breeding crickets because it will save lots of money in the long run.

Here is a care sheet for green tree frogs. Check it out and do some searching around the site and pet shops.
Green tree frogs are also called whites tree frogs, guppy tree frogs and some others i can't remember.

Good luck!

Frog Forum - White's Tree Frog Care - Litoria caerulea

[Lemcneill]

I was actually just past Hilton Head Island the other week so I know exactly which frog you found! The Green Tree Frogs were all over.

Also, while DC101 is right, that's just in Australia, so you have an ACTUAL Green Tree Frog, not a White's Tree Frog.

They're not too tough to take care of. They need taller tanks, a few crickets every couple days which should be dusted with Calcium with D3 every few feedings, and then dusted with Vitamins for Reptiles about once a week. Make sure you have plenty of climbing places, hiding places, a water dish for them to soak in and make sure the water is either bottled spring water or you can buy water dechlorinator at the pet store for your tap water. They are mostly nocturnal so they won't be super active during the day, but you can get a red light for at night to watch them. I have two Gray Tree Frogs and they don't seem to mind the light at all and they're super fun to watch. I actually found both of them myself.

I hope I helped! I'm sure if I missed anything, someone will make sure to add it in C:

Also, in this forum look at the top for the Green Tree Frog Care Sheet. It'll give you most of the basic information you'll need, like Temperatures and Humidity needed for your frog. It's the same as the White's Care Sheet.

[KimiBear]

Thanks for all the information everyone! We'll bring him to a pet store today and see what they say.
Meanwhile... do you think an old fish tank will do? What about putting him in the same tank as our turtle? (that's probably a bad idea right?)

[Deac77]

It should be fed small crickets at night they will be the easiest to come by they prefer taller tanks preferably no smaller than 10gal they don't care for light but need heat being nocturnal they are primarily active at night coco fiber is a good substrate and lots of foliage for them to hide and feel secure in is important those are the basics you'll have to mist the tank most likely and provide a heat source being cold blooded they can not regulate their own temp

[BlueisallIneed]

My family went to Hilton Head Island, SC this past weekend, and we saw frogs every night by the hotel door. Last night one of them hopped inside when we opened the door! My sister really wanted to catch it, so we did! Its about an inch big. It has been in a coffee cup (with extra holes in the lid) for about a day now. We also put a little bit of water, some dirt, rocks, a stick, and a leaf in the cup as a "habitat". It seems to have survived our car ride back home to Atlanta, but we know next to nothing about caring for frogs! We think its a tree frog, since it does look like the frogs found on this page: Hyla cinerea - Green Treefrog
So please help us!!! What can we feed it? It should be really hungry by now!!! Does it need a proper "house"? Does it like light? Is it safe? What do we do to keep it alive??

To keep it alive you should return it to the wild! I wouldn't catch something specially if you have done no research on it. Go to a pet store or get it from a breeder and buy one AFTER you have the proper housing, food etc.

[KimiBear]

To keep it alive you should return it to the wild! I wouldn't catch something specially if you have done no research on it. Go to a pet store or get it from a breeder and buy one AFTER you have the proper housing, food etc.

Well, it's too late for that!!! I wanted to bring it back outside when we caught it, but my sister was already so attached to it! So now I'm going to try my best to keep it alive as long as possible. And it's not like we were looking to find a pet frog--why would we have done any research on it without having the consideration of getting a frog? Also, what's the fun in wasting money to buy one when you can catch one for free?
Anyways, this new pet of ours is just going to be another small adventure in our lives, so whether it goes good or bad, it doesn't really matter. It's just nice having Turtle around! (we kept calling him Turtle accidentally, so we named him Turtle!)

[numpty]

Anyways, ... so whether it goes good or bad, it doesn't really matter.

It probably will to the frog.

[DC101]

I agree with blueisallineed, if you aren't prepared for it, then you should release it. Once you get everything ready for them, then you can buy one.

Green tree frogs can be $20 to around $40 in Australia.

When you said 'you wasted your money because you can catch it for free' its not wasting if its going to good use.

And anyways, wild caught frogs life span is much shorter than captive bread frogs.

[UncleChester]

..And it's not like we were looking to find a pet frog--why would we have done any research on it without having the consideration of getting a frog?

Because the responsible thing to do would be to know what you are doing before taking on the care of another living thing?

Anyhoo, since there is no care sheet for your frog on this site, you should give the excellent Frog Forum - Gray Tree Frog Care and Breeding a read. Your Hyla cinerea can be found in the same habitats as H. versicolor and H. chrysoscelis (in their southern areas at least), and the care requirements are pretty much the same.

Also, what's the fun in wasting money to buy one when you can catch one for free?

If you aren't willing to shell out the $5-$10 for a Hyla cinerea to keep as a pet, than I don't really know what to say. On the other hand, that $5-$10 Hyla cinerea from the petstore will probably have been wild caught (I may be mistaken but I don't believe anyone breeds them for commercial purposes), so it wouldn't be much different.

Green tree frogs can be $20 to around $40 in Australia.

Are you referring to Litoria caerulea or Hyla cinerea?

I wish people could stop saying "Green Treefrog" as it is used to refer to (at least) three different species- the Australian Green Treefog, aka Litoria caerulea, the American Green Treefrog, aka ​Hyla cinerea, and in my local area (within a 2' radius of me) the much rarer Christmas Green Treefog, ​Rana clamitans (see attached photo). This is an international forum here folks.

[SwimminSteve]

Anyways, this new pet of ours is just going to be another small adventure in our lives, so whether it goes good or bad, it doesn't really matter.

Are you kidding? This frog is a living thing. He didn't ask to be kidnapped and housed in your coffee cup! Since you've decided that you will not release him, you at least owe him your best efforts at a good life. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but it sounds like you're saying that it doesn't really matter if he lives or dies. If you don't care about him, why even keep him?! I don't understand your reasoning at all.

[BlueisallIneed]

It sounds like you’re on the wrong forum if you don't really care how the out come is. Get your sister a stuffed animal instead. The outcome sounds like it will be better choice.

[KimiBear]

Are you kidding? This frog is a living thing. He didn't ask to be kidnapped and housed in your coffee cup! Since you've decided that you will not release him, you at least owe him your best efforts at a good life. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but it sounds like you're saying that it doesn't really matter if he lives or dies. If you don't care about him, why even keep him?! I don't understand your reasoning at all.

Okay people, okay. I said it doesn't really matter because it'll die eventually anyways, no matter how long we manage to keep it alive. Even if we could put him back in the wild, you can't guarantee that he would have a longer, happier life. Plus Turtle's pretty small. He'd be an extremely easy prey for other animals! :/
And for the record, we do care about him. We just don't know HOW to care for him. We've tried all sorts of food for him and we can't find something he likes! Crickets are too big for him (tried chopping some up too). Ants don't work. Frog pellet food things don't work. He wouldn't eat the small flies I managed to catch. But my dad thinks it did eat a mosquito he put in. We're gonna try the really gross worm things next!

[bshmerlie]

You need to check with a local reptile shop, Petco, Petsmart or any place that might sell fruit flies or pinhead crickets. If he is too small for the normal size small crickets that most petshops carry then he is a gonner if you can't find some fruit flies. But you can also order fruit flies from the internet from one of our sponsors like Joshs Frogs. He will send you out some right away. However, as someone said before if you're not willing to spend $5 on a petstore frog we can only hope that you are willing to pay something in order to feed it.

[Deac77]

Ok he's not going to eat if stressed I suggest you get the habitat set up properly then worry about food crickets worms what ever won't matter if you have a dried out dead frog or a drowned dead frog get what he needs provide proper light and heat and start there

[Heatheranne]

I think you should set it free. It does not sound as though you are properly prepared to take on the care of this frog and if that is so, it will likely die.

Frogs require certain housing, temps, humidity. You have to dechlorinate all of their water. You have to keep their homes clean and change the water in their water bowls every day to two days. You have to mist twice a day to keep their homes moist. At minimal you need a clean tank, screen lid, paper towel for their floor (misted with dechlorinated water), or coconut fiber or plantation soil substrate (moistened with dechlor water), a shallow water bowl, heat source when it's cold, amphibian calcium with vitamin D 3 powder, amphibian multivitamin powder, live food (crickets, small roaches, cut worms, etc.), safe plants, etc.

It's takes some effort to get things set up.

If you are willing to do it all?

I know frogs are cute . We here all love frogs. That's why we are here. They are just trying to give you logical advice.

Your sister will understand if you tell her it could die.

It is best to get set up first, with the proper set up for the specific species. Then purchase your frog(s).

Try reading through the article here that helps to see which frog(s) is best for you. They can vary quite a bit in their housing. There are also differences in their behaviors. Some are more active than others. Some only wake at night, which would be boring for her to watch if they are always sleeping. Just things like that.

Any thoughts?

[Heatheranne]

I would go to a pet store to get him food. Some insects can be poisonous. I would recommend tiny crickets called pinheads, or flightless (wingless) fruit flies. Don't feed too many meal worms...they cause intestinal impaction in which outcomes are usually not good. Their food needs lightly dusted with amphibian calcium with vitamin D3 powder every other feeding or they will develop deficiencies and will get sick and eventually die if not corrected.

Be sure to only use dechlorinated water for all water used. You need to gently spray his home with this water twice a day to avoid dehydration. A frog's skin is very permeable. You should also provide a shallow water bowl with only enough water for him to sit in, filled with dechlorinated room temp water. The dechlorinator can be purchased in the fish or amphibian section of a pet store.

Frogs stress easily and the more you hold or handle them, the less likely they'll eat, especially wild-caught frogs. Captive bred frogs are slightly more used to human interaction. We are scary predators to them.

New frogs feel safer in darker homes with three sides of their tanks covered.

You need to thoroughly wash and rinse your hands before handling them, their food, and their water or they can absorb oils or chemicals from our hands and be hurt or become I'll. Absolutely never use alcohol based hand sanitizer before handling. Wash again after handling them or their food or house items.

[BlueisallIneed]

I would definitely set it free. If the frog gets sick and your not willing to spend much money, how much do you think a Exotic vet cost? You looking at hundreds to even in the thousands for a frog. If you don't have the money or will to really take care of this frog properly you need to let it go. Dying of natural causes is better than by some human that doesn't care to go all out for you after ripping you from your home!

[yoshimi]

I'd love to know what the outcome was here. I have a wild-caught toad and fought with myself til I was in pieces over whether to keep her. Then it was winter, and 5 months later, she's still here, an inch larger, and I'm in love. Different needs than a tree-frog, but I feel bad that this girl's words were thrown back at her. She was looking for help. And found the little guy in SC so she couldn't just toss him out the door.

An inch big, he could've eaten baby crickets. Of course, proper enclosure comes 1st. I figured that out pretty quick. Had fun and learned a lot setting up a decent home. Funny to find that a "free" wild-caught frog can cost a lot of time and money. The time goes to research, research, research. As quickly as you can cuz you've got a helpless little creature waiting. Banjo sat in an empty blank disc thingy, still wet from the rain, while I googled feverishly. Went out in the dark to get dirt and whatever I could find to make a temp home in a plastic drawer. Her home now is a 22.5 gallon. And toads are forgiving. If I'd scooped a tree frog up from the sidewalk, may have been a different story. A weird story. But I felt the same way as KimiBear before the snow came, setting her on the ground. So small and vulnerable. Now she's bigger and fatter but I still see my baby when I look at her.

I know, intellectually, that wild animals need to be left in the wild. 99.9% of the time, I follow that rule. I wouldn't pick another frog up and take it home, but if I went back in time, I'd probably do the exact same thing. Banjo was on the sidewalk when I abducted her, and sidewalks tend to be built next to streets... The next warm rainy night, I won't hop out of the car and grab some off the road, but I can look at her sitting in the food dish and KNOW, she will never be one of them.

If this girl's sister kept the frog, she was probably scared away from the forum, which I think is a shame, with all the info and experience available here. I didn't post until I had things under control. I didn't want to be picked on, I wanted information. I was getting enough of the "let it go" from my bf and the part of me that worries all the time. It was a race against cold weather to decide whether I could care for her. Didn't have the time to post about it! Stinks that in one day, this girl is here asking how to care for a frog caught on vacation, that she could feasibly get the supplies to care for, and then >poof< gone.