My new Xenopus Tads

[rodsboys]

Good to know, thanks. I don't know what thiaminase is, but I'll look it up. What is the recommended size for a group of these frogs in captivity? Is three too few?

Not sure what you are asking, but I think you are asking about size of group to keep? You can keep as many frogs as you want as long as you have a suitable sized set up for them. I have 6 in my group and I am using a 65 gallon aquarium (36"L X 18"W X 24"H)

This is a great read about thiaminase : Thiaminase

[BugBoy99]

I apologize for the lack of clarity, I was asking about group size. So, if I kept three frogs, that would be enough. I just wanted to make sure that I don't keep too few, if I keep some. Thank you for all your advice.

[gemzjames]

Hi

I feed my wild caught frogs ox-heart .... my professor has always fed his frogs this diet so ive followed suit and they absolutely love it. As long as there is no fat in the meat and its a good piece of meat they will eat anything. They cannot eat any fatty meats though as they cannot digest it and it can cause the fat to accumulate inside them and kills them. Just make sure you dont over feed them cause they seem to be able to eat forever ... but in the wild they are extremly lazy animals as they dont really "hunt" for their food ... they tend to wait until something dying or dead comes floating past and they will "pounce" on it. As they dont have teeth i make it too easy for ym frogs to eat as i cut up small portioned size pieces for them and monitor how much each frog eats individually :-)

I have always had a tendancy to stay away from commercial food as i dont personally believe its any better for them considering they arent going to be eating that in the wild anyway .... not that they will eat cows in the wild but its pure meat and they like it.

with regards to group sizes, i have 2 muelleri in one tank and 3 laevis in another and they are quite happy.

[mpmistr]

In regards to feeding, earthworms are really cheap and holy moly they sure do go absolutely crazy when they have a chance to eat them. Mine seem to eat reptomin well enough though, I throw earthworms in every few days to spice it up a bit. I once fed my frogs thawed frozen shrimp (no salt, season, ect..) and it was actually very interesting because they used their clawed feet to shred the shrimp apart into smaller chunks, they attacked it like a shark feeding frenzy. It was quite messy though so I don't think I will be doing that again.

What other foods are you guys feeding your ACF? I've been kind of interested in introducing insects into their diets but I'm not sure which would really work, I hear crickets are not all that great and their legs are sharp.

[BugBoy99]

Thank you so much for all the advice. It is really helping me a lot. I agree about the earthworms, at first they would not touch earthworms but, once they learned it was edible, they started attacking them as if they'd never see another earthworm in their lives. I'll probably be feeding them earthworms this afternoon. I can get wild-caught freshwater shrimp, but I'm not sure that that's an option I'd like to explore.

As they dont have teeth i make it too easy for ym frogs to eat as i cut up small portioned size pieces for them and monitor how much each frog eats individually :-)

Obsessive compulsive, are we? So am I, I've been feeding each frog with a pipette, to make sure that all of them eat. After I know that they are eating, I just watch to make sure that none of them are getting skinny. I make sure to feed the skinny one's by themselves.

I haven't tried oxheart, but I have been feeding chicken liver. I may consider adding some oxheart to the diet later on. I will be releasing most, if not all, of the froglets. But, I am considering keeping three of them. Because, I may be moving within the next few months/years, and I want to make sure that I'll be able to find a home for them when I leave. More than three frogs may be hard to re-home.

Has anyone ever considered feeding pond-skaters to the ACF'S?

Thanks,
Joh

[gemzjames]

I will be releasing most, if not all, of the froglets. But, I am considering keeping three of them. Because, I may be moving within the next few months/years, and I want to make sure that I'll be able to find a home for them when I leave. More than three frogs may be hard to re-home.

As you'll only be keeping 3 ... why dont you take them with you when you move, mine have travelled up and down the country with me ... 3 is quite easy to move around :-)

[BugBoy99]

As you'll only be keeping 3 ... why dont you take them with you when you move, mine have travelled up and down the country with me ... 3 is quite easy to move around :-)

:-( Provincial legislation. Many South African Provinces don't allow you to keep amphibians, of any type, and if you can keep them you need a permit. Permits have at least a month's waiting period, but usually closer to three or four months. If not for that, and the fact that I will be eventually moving to the United States, where I want to study, I would gladly have taken them with me. Thank you for the suggestion, though.