please help out with a frog rescue!

[Heatheranne]

I would get a 10 gallon aquarium with a screen lid.

Get some dechlorinating drops for the water. The chlorine in city water is toxic to amphibians. Follow the instructions on the bottle. Or you can use bottled spring water. Do not use regular bottled water or distilled water for his substrate or his water bowl. You can use distilled water to mist with.

Get him a nice shallow water bowl. Fill it with luke warm dechlorinated water daily, or spring water. Rinse out the old water daily. He may like to soak and hydrate in it.

Mist the tank twice a day. I do not know their humidity requirements. You should get a thermometer and a hygrometer (measures humidity). Do some research on their natural environments. You'll want to know the proper humidity.

Get some coconut fiber, not husk, (also called Eco earth) or you can use plain unfertilized plantation soil. Use dechlor or spring water to expand if you by it in compressed blocks. Change his substrate every 4 to 5 weeks.

Since we do not know his temperature needs, for now try and get his house temp up to your average day time late spring/early summer temp, with a slight drop at night. You can do this by using a heat lamp over the screen lid. Get one with a dimmer so you can adjust the amount of heat. Use a 50 watt infared bulb. Put the heat lamp one one side of the tank and the water bowl at the other so he may cool down in the water if he'd like. I would still research their temperature needs.

Cover the back and two sides with paper or a background. It makes them feel safe. A nice cave or plant to hide under helps too. If using live plants, you must rinse all fertilizer off completely, including the roots. Then rinse in dechlorinated water before placing into the tank. Keep him in a quiet area.

Supplements:
1. Calcium with vitamin D 3 is a must to prevent metabolic bone disease. It comes in a powdered form which can be lightly dusted on his food. Dust every other feeding. Put a pinch of the calcium into a baggie and gently shake his bugs/worm pieces in the baggie until lightly coated. The vitamin D 3 is necessary for them to properly absorb the calcium. Look for a supplement with both. It's usually in the reptile or amphibian section of the pet store.

2. Multivitamin powder is also necessary. It would be in the same section as the calcium/vita D3. Dust his food only one day a week with the vitamin.

Food: varying their diet helps keep them healthy.

Good food choices: earthworms, night crawlers, crickets, dubia roaches. You can cut the worms to size. A good rule of thumb is their food should be no larger than the width between their eyes. Let him eat as much as he wants in 15 minutes, then remove the food items. Feed him once a day. You'll need to find out whether he is diurnal or nocturnal. If he is nocturnal he will want to eat at night.

Avoid mealworms...the chitin in their segments can cause intestinal impaction.

Wax worms and rodents are considered high in fat and should only be used as rare treats.


Hope this helps. The best thing to do is research their care needs for his particular species to ensure good health. I've listed a few basics for you to get started .

[gatorboy]

Heather,

Thank you so much for all of your excellent, informative replies. I think we'll get some earthworms today. Also use an old aquarium for him to live in.

Question: if I heat things up in his environment, will I stop his natural instinct to hibernate?

He's a local froggy, and winter stays in the 40s, occasionally dropping down below freezing at the coldest times.

Thanks,

gatorboy