Tongue Sticking Out

[dpcsquid]

Just got back from the vet. After a big scare (I pulled him out of his layers of tanks and he was belly-up) and an exam by a really awesome vet, he says he's hypo-calcemic, even with the calcium he's been getting. He told me to go get a Repti-Glo 5.0 UVB to help process the vitamins.

In addition, he gave Picard a one-time A and D vitamin boost in the office and sent me home with oral calcium to give him twice a day and a Protein-Enhanced Carnivore diet to syringe-feed him twice a week in the meantime.

Little guy has been moved to a 5 gallon tank with moist paper towels and a hidey-hole. He said that the guy may grow some or that he might be the product of inbreeding.

All in all a very productive visit and I'd like to thank everyone for all of your help. <3

[GrifTheGreat]

Just got back from the vet. After a big scare (I pulled him out of his layers of tanks and he was belly-up) and an exam by a really awesome vet, he says he's hypo-calcemic, even with the calcium he's been getting. He told me to go get a Repti-Glo 5.0 UVB to help process the vitamins.

In addition, he gave Picard a one-time A and D vitamin boost in the office and sent me home with oral calcium to give him twice a day and a Protein-Enhanced Carnivore diet to syringe-feed him twice a week in the meantime.

Little guy has been moved to a 5 gallon tank with moist paper towels and a hidey-hole. He said that the guy may grow some or that he might be the product of inbreeding.

All in all a very productive visit and I'd like to thank everyone for all of your help. <3

Well honestly the UVB light isn't needed, but he will benefit from 4 to 6 hours of UVB exposure per day. Horn Frogs need insane amounts of calcium because they grow so fast. They can reach adult size is less than a 3 months with proper nutrition and supplemetation.

Keep us posted on his progress make sure he has shelter because those CFLs can be really bright.

[dpcsquid]

So, it's been about 4 weeks, and although my little guy hasn't been eating crickets, I've been feeding him the rescue diet twice a week. Today I finally put him back in soil for the first time, came back 3 minutes later...and he had flipped himself over. Drama queen. I just put a bit of dirt on him and am walking away at the moment, hoping he just needs some adjusting time, because at the moment he looks like O___________________O

Any recommendations for moving a frog back to soil after it's been on paper towels for a month? Any way to wean them back into it?

[GrifTheGreat]

So, it's been about 4 weeks, and although my little guy hasn't been eating crickets, I've been feeding him the rescue diet twice a week. Today I finally put him back in soil for the first time, came back 3 minutes later...and he had flipped himself over. Drama queen. I just put a bit of dirt on him and am walking away at the moment, hoping he just needs some adjusting time, because at the moment he looks like O___________________O

Any recommendations for moving a frog back to soil after it's been on paper towels for a month? Any way to wean them back into it?

There is normally no need for weaning. Their instincts usually kick in and they burrow in. You could keep him on towels and just add a container full of substrate for him to burrow into. I've done this before.

[dpcsquid]

I'm sorry to keep popping back in here. I have another update.

It's been over a month now since Picard went off his calcium regimen, and I was told to keep giving him the high protein carnivore diet twice a week until he starts eating on his own. He hasn't started. I put about 1/2 inch of soil into the bottom of the tank, but every few days he manages to flip himself onto his back a few times. I've watched him make his way across the tank before (it's only 5 gallons) and he tries to do it speedily, which I think may be contributing to him flipping over because he teeters back and forth (he has a bad front leg). I'm sure that force feeding him twice a week isn't helping.

So here are my questions.
--How long should I /not/ give him the liquid diet/try feeding him crickets before force-feeding him again? Maybe I'm not giving him enough of a chance to be hungry.
--Is it normal for them not to have solid waste while on a high protein diet? He hasn't had anything except for right when we started and he isn't impacted.
--I hate to say this, but if he's flipping himself over this much, I don't want to be cruel and put him through unnecessary stress. Is euthanasia considered a more humane option if the flipping continues? I just don't know if it's always stress or him trucking around the tank.

[GrifTheGreat]

I'm sorry to keep popping back in here. I have another update.

It's been over a month now since Picard went off his calcium regimen, and I was told to keep giving him the high protein carnivore diet twice a week until he starts eating on his own. He hasn't started. I put about 1/2 inch of soil into the bottom of the tank, but every few days he manages to flip himself onto his back a few times. I've watched him make his way across the tank before (it's only 5 gallons) and he tries to do it speedily, which I think may be contributing to him flipping over because he teeters back and forth (he has a bad front leg). I'm sure that force feeding him twice a week isn't helping.

So here are my questions.
--How long should I /not/ give him the liquid diet/try feeding him crickets before force-feeding him again? Maybe I'm not giving him enough of a chance to be hungry.
--Is it normal for them not to have solid waste while on a high protein diet? He hasn't had anything except for right when we started and he isn't impacted.
--I hate to say this, but if he's flipping himself over this much, I don't want to be cruel and put him through unnecessary stress. Is euthanasia considered a more humane option if the flipping continues? I just don't know if it's always stress or him trucking around the tank.

Most of these special medical supplements are designed to be absorbed directly into the body so that their is almost no waste.

You could force feed him some of the solid foods like a cricket or night crawler chuck with his supplement. It's possible that something else is wrong other than Hypocalcemia, but I'm not sure what.

This decision is entirely your choice. If he gets around and burrows, but has some mobility issues then he isn't necessarily in need to be put down. I'm not sure if he is suffering or not. They do get used to being force fed after a while and struggle less when they recognize the syringe or whatever else you use to administer the dose. Injections excluded. If it were me I would do everything I could to help him like you already are. Euthanazia should only be a last resort.

[Cwcuz2112]

I lost a frog Thursday night who had almost the same symptoms as yours without the tongue sticking out . He would not eat on his own flipped over constantly and never grew as fast as the other two I got at the same time and they all came from petsmart . You will defiantly want to go see the vet again to make sure but I think you will likely be feeding the frog the carnivore diet for the rest of its life. I think its great that you have taken the time and patience and done as much as possible to give him the best life and care you can . Deciding on euthanasia for the frog is a decision you and your family and vet should make .I personally wouldn't rush it and would give it time and another vet visit .