Sleeping in the Water Dish?

[HerpDerp]

A couple days ago a ended up getting a white's tree frog. I didn't expect to actually get one that soon but when I went to the pet store they told me the other one they had died a couple weeks before and they didn't know why (sounded like impaction). And this poor guy was dark gray and just didn't look good. The temps where too low and it just looked sad. So I took him home. He's about 2 inches long (bigger than I had anticipated starting with) and most definitely a male. I got him to croak the first night.

So here's the weird thing. He was in his water dish this morning when I turned the light on and he never got out of it. He just hunkered down and fell asleep. Is this something I should be concerned about? He looks fine and is sleeping just the same as if he was sleeping on the side of the glass or on his vine. He's just sleeping... in his water. Oh and on another note, he shed his skin last night too and actually looks green (he's a darker green, but looks healthier).

[flybyferns]

Hi ,
I keep the information below in a word.doc so it is available quickly; so you may have read this before.
FF member that are experienced enough to help will need additional information. Please cut, paste and answer the following questions.

http://www.frogforum.net/tree-frogs/...enclosure.html

If you end-up needing a vet but do not have a herp vet nearby (able to care for frogs ) here is D Frye’s contact information. And a list of common “medicine cabinet” supplies that should always be kept on-hand when keeping frogs.

http://www.frogforum.net/tree-frogs/...-prepared.html

If you ever have to email him, he will need photos and detailed information regarding eating, pooping, housing. He will get back to you promptly.

Additional first-aid information
Frog Forum - Basic Frog First Aid

Hope this helps your frog and gets things rolling along for you.
This could mean more than one thing. Maybe he is constipated? What substrate is in his enclosure? Have you seen any poop?

Lynn

[HerpDerp]

Thanks for the reply. I've only had him a couple days so I'm not entirely sure on some stuff but I can fill out the trouble in the enclosure. It should also be noted that he has a 15 day guarantee and the place I bought him will pay if he needs to be taken to their vet.


1-size of enclosure: 10 gallon tank (the plan is to get an exo terra 18x18x24 in a couple months)
2-# on inhabitants - specifically ( if there is another frog ---size differences ?): Just him!
3-humidity: 30-50 during the day 80 at night
4-temp: 78 ish at night and 85 during the day
5-water - type - for both misting and soaking dish: de-chlorinated tap water for both.
6-materials used for substrate: Just coco fiber
7-enclosure set up i.e. plants( live or artificial) wood, bark etc -how were things prepared prior to being put into the viv: I have a pothos that's been sanitized prior to being put in (soil changed allowed to grow out chemicals etc.). There are also some artificial plastic plants that were rinsed in hot water and a climbing vine bought specifically for reptiles and amphibians.
8-main food source: As of right now, crickets but I also plan on feeding night crawlers and dubia roaches.
9-vitamins and calcium ? ( how often ): None yet since he hasn't really eaten since I got him (adjusting) but I have a vitamin/calcium combo supplement that I plan on using. I'm thinking 2-3 times a week?
10-lighting: a fluorescent bulb and an incandescent for "basking" (both low wattages)
11-what is, specifically, being used to maintain the temperature of the enclosure: UTH and the bulb.
12-when is the last time he ate: I put three crickets in when I got him three days ago. I only have seen one scurrying around so I assume he's had a couple. I plan on being more aggressive with feeding tonight or tomorrow once I feel he's adjusted.
13-have you found poop lately: He pooped in the bag when I brought him home.
14-a pic would be great ( including the frog ) any little cell phone pic is fine: I have included a pretty crappy cell phone pic. Don't mind the country crock pot used for the pothos LOL
15- how old is the frog: I'm not entirely sure. He's about 2 inches long if that helps?
16-how long have you owned him: Three days
17- is the frog wild caught or captive bred: Well the sign said captive bred. I'll assume it's accurate.
18- frog food- how often and if its diverse what other feeders are used as treats: I pretty much already covered that.
19- about how often the frog is handled: Minimally. When I put him in the tank and I took him out of the water dish because I was worried about him getting too cold.
20-is the enclosure is kept in a high or low traffic area: Pretty low traffic. It's in the bedroom so really the only time there's anyone in there is briefly during the day and then when I'm getting ready for bed there's some "traffic".

[HerpDerp]

So he ate three crickets last night that I know of for sure. I left a couple in the tank for him to hunt through the night. They're only pin head crickets so that's why I fed him so many. Sometimes the pet stores "small" crickets are actually medium and sometimes they're pin heads lol. He doesn't seem all that active. He moves around a bit at night but not a ton. And he seems to be completely avoiding the warm side of the tank. It's about 85 degrees in the basking area. Is that too warm? And at 2 inches how much and how often should he be fed??

[Sasha]

How's your frog? I think a temperature of 85 is a little high, should be around 80 and around 75 at night. Bring the humidity up too, should be between 60-80% during the day. My frog is about 2 inches long too and I just asked the vet how many crickets to feed him because I can feed him 6 a night and he gobbles them up and stares at the bowl for more. He told me that 4 is good and that 6 is okay but not all the time. Mine are still pretty young so I feed them every night dusted with Calcium. Once a week I will throw in a multi vitamin.

It worries me that your frogs previous tank mate died and that they told you that and now your frog is acting funny. White's aren't water frogs so they don't really sit too long in their water. So it's possible your frog has an impaction or something else. Is it sleeping even at night when it's supposed to be active?

One of my first frogs was really active for the first week and then all the sudden stopped eating and got very lethargic. I had one of those "windows" with the pet store and even though I felt bad and worried about what would happen to the frog, I did take it back and got a new one.

[HerpDerp]

He does seem a bit lethargic at night too. His belly looks a little bloated so maybe he's impacted. I can put him in some warm water tonight and see if that helps. I'll bring the temp down a bit too. That could be why he's favoring the cooler side of the terrarium. And fortunately if there is a problem with my frog they will pay for vet care rather than just replace him right off. It's the only one they had and I just decided I didn't want to leave him in that situation. Is there anything else I can do to help impaction (if that's even the problem). He pooped on the way home and I haven't seen any since so that might be the issue.

[Bolisnide]

Thanks for the reply. I've only had him a couple days so I'm not entirely sure on some stuff but I can fill out the trouble in the enclosure. It should also be noted that he has a 15 day guarantee and the place I bought him will pay if he needs to be taken to their vet.


1-size of enclosure: 10 gallon tank (the plan is to get an exo terra 18x18x24 in a couple months)
2-# on inhabitants - specifically ( if there is another frog ---size differences ?): Just him!
3-humidity: 30-50 during the day 80 at night
4-temp: 78 ish at night and 85 during the day
5-water - type - for both misting and soaking dish: de-chlorinated tap water for both.
6-materials used for substrate: Just coco fiber
7-enclosure set up i.e. plants( live or artificial) wood, bark etc -how were things prepared prior to being put into the viv: I have a pothos that's been sanitized prior to being put in (soil changed allowed to grow out chemicals etc.). There are also some artificial plastic plants that were rinsed in hot water and a climbing vine bought specifically for reptiles and amphibians.
8-main food source: As of right now, crickets but I also plan on feeding night crawlers and dubia roaches.
9-vitamins and calcium ? ( how often ): None yet since he hasn't really eaten since I got him (adjusting) but I have a vitamin/calcium combo supplement that I plan on using. I'm thinking 2-3 times a week?
10-lighting: a fluorescent bulb and an incandescent for "basking" (both low wattages)
11-what is, specifically, being used to maintain the temperature of the enclosure: UTH and the bulb.
12-when is the last time he ate: I put three crickets in when I got him three days ago. I only have seen one scurrying around so I assume he's had a couple. I plan on being more aggressive with feeding tonight or tomorrow once I feel he's adjusted.
13-have you found poop lately: He pooped in the bag when I brought him home.
14-a pic would be great ( including the frog ) any little cell phone pic is fine: I have included a pretty crappy cell phone pic. Don't mind the country crock pot used for the pothos LOL
15- how old is the frog: I'm not entirely sure. He's about 2 inches long if that helps?
16-how long have you owned him: Three days
17- is the frog wild caught or captive bred: Well the sign said captive bred. I'll assume it's accurate.
18- frog food- how often and if its diverse what other feeders are used as treats: I pretty much already covered that.
19- about how often the frog is handled: Minimally. When I put him in the tank and I took him out of the water dish because I was worried about him getting too cold.
20-is the enclosure is kept in a high or low traffic area: Pretty low traffic. It's in the bedroom so really the only time there's anyone in there is briefly during the day and then when I'm getting ready for bed there's some "traffic".

My guess would be the temp is a bit too high, as previously stated...causing the enclosure to dry out.
Be careful with the incandescent heat lamps (even low wattage) on a 10 gallon long. They can pose a big problem with drying out the enclosure.
Can you put it on a dimmer? This way you can dim the light keeping the daytime temp about 80. Turn it off at night and only use your UTH (on the side of the tank). Keep night temp no higher than 75, about 70 is preferable.
My guess is he is/was thirsty and soaking up the water...
A vet is a good idea, without doubt.
Goodluck

My white's didn't poop nor did he eat for an entire week after I brought him home.
I think, the best thing you can do right now is keep his enclosure temps and humidity right on, cover 3 or all sides of his enclosure (not the top) to help him feel more secure, and relax, give him time to settle in. He is probably quite stressed out. I would also recommend you not handle him, unless it seems quite obvious he needs a soak. But if it were me, and my new frog, I would just let him settle in while providing the best environment control.

[Sasha]

I'm not sure either about what a regular poop cycle is. Shrek, pooped on Thursday after a very traumatic visit to the vet and I haven't seen anything since.

[HerpDerp]

Well it definitely makes me feel better knowing that it can take a while for them to poop. And I can monitor temps and might not have to use the incandescent light at all. I have a florescent bulb so I could just use that. I did find that covering half the top in plastic wrap helped the humidity quite a bit. I didn't know the temps could drop so low at night. Should I just put the lighting and heater all on a timer so it all turns off at night? I have a bird too so I never let my apartment drop below 70 degrees so room temp stays pretty high all year round for me.

He's actually eating just fine. I put a deep tupperware container in the tank and fed him in that and he ate three in the blink of an eye. It all seems that he ate the three that were in the tank too so his appetite is great. I don't have the sides covered yet but that should be happening soon. None of the pet stores around here had what I was looking for so I went online and ordered a bunch of those plants that suction to the back of the tank so I can create a natural looking background. I also ordered a digital thermometer/hydrometer so I can get some more accurate readings. I should have that by the end of the week.