My frog doesn't eat!

[Tomas Leiva]

Ok, This is a somewhat long story, My bf's mother has an aquatic frog ( I don't know the species) since aprox 6 years. It was in a small tank with nothing else. no plants, no stones, nothing. Just the frog. The point is she (my bf's mother) got sick and can't take care of the frog anymore, so she gave it to us to take care for it. I've had it fro around 1-2 months already. It usually eats everyday some pellets we give it, and the occasional moth, wich it just loves.
Here's how I received it.

But I was feeling a bit sad to see it all day in that small tank with nothing to do, it just sat in the bottom for hours staring at the wall. So I decided to get it a bigger tank, with plants and stones.
Here's the new house:

The problem is that when I changed it to the new tank, it stopped eating. The girl from the store told me that she could take a few days to get used to it, but it has already been a week since I changed it, and still nothing, it doesn't look too stressed, it's not always staring at the wall as before, now it swims a lot, and then rests for a while. When I get close to the tank, it always comes to the surface (it's used to being fed directly in its mouth) but I give it the food and nothing, eit doesn't seem interested. Even the few times it actually puts the food in its mouth, it just chews it for a while and then spits it out. I haven't changed its food or anything. I even tried to give it some moths, and still nothing, it just left them floating around. I've left some food floating to see if it's eating but it doesn't seem to be doing it either.
I don't know if it's still stressed or ill, but it doesn't seem to be ill, it moves a lot, and even seems to like to play with the filter bubbles.
Also, it was used to regular water, I changed it ever week or so, but with no special treatment, now I bought some drops to de-chlorine it (is that how you say it in english?) maybe it has something to do with that too?
I really don't know what to do, I've called some pet stores, but none of them have frogs so they don't know how to take care of them.
I'm felling really bad now, I just bought its new tank because I wanted it to be happier but it seems I messed up big time and I'm very worried about it.
I hope you guys can help me with this.

[Jenste]

Welcome!
From the picture you have an African Clawed frog. They are a great frog to have!

Lots of changes it sounds like and these frogs can be great sulkers when changes happen.

Luckily, they can go weeks with out eating and suffer no ill effects.

You are definitely on the right path - you bought a larger tank, you are filtering it, you are adding decholorinator to the water...

How large is the tank? Please make sure you have a secure lid, they are known jumpers.
What type of pellet are you feeding?
What type of dechlorinator are you using when you change the water?

[Jenste]

I moved your thread to the forum section that is specifically dedicated to your species of frog! This will help get more responses from those who keep African Clawed Frogs.

[Tomas Leiva]

Thanks a lot for your reply Jen!
You can't imagine how better I feel to know they can go weeks without eating, it's probably just adapting to all the changes I made then.
About the tank we don't use gallons in here, but lts, the girl from the store told me the tank made around 24 lts wich seems to be around 6-7 gallons. (which is roughly the double of its old tank.)
About the dechlorinator and the pellets, here's a picture (it's in spanish though) the pellets are basically fish food.

Thanks for moving it to the correct forum too, I had no idea what species it was so I just posted it in general.

[mpmistr]

The frog appears to be of good weight, it will recoup eventually. Xenopus Laevis (Common Name: African Clawed Frog) really do best in at least 10 US Gallons of water with a filter but it sounds like you've definitely improved this frogs life for the better. The old tank appears to be more of a critter carrier than a fish tank. :\

I would try to secure an aquatic turtle/amphibian food if you can. Earthworms are a good feeder for your frogs too, they have a hard time resisting them and could perk up his appetite.

[Tomas Leiva]

Thanks, I would have liked to get something bigger, but I dind't had the money, maybe in a few months I'll do it. I would have to put it on the floor though because I don't have any bigger furniture to hold a bigger tank.
I'll try to see if I can get some turtle/anphibian food. I think they once gave it earthworms and it got stomach sick so I don't know if it's a good idea.
Thanks for the reply

[mpmistr]

May have been Red Rigglers, not a good earthworm. But something like reptomin would work.

[Tomas Leiva]

Okay, something happened last night and now I'm worried for a number of reasons. First of all how smart are frogs?
This is what happened:
She usually spends quite some time under the glass lid opening (where the filter tubes go) looking up, I thought she just liked the tuve vibration or sound, but last night I thought that maybe she liked the air, so I opened a bit the glass lid so she could get some more air. After around 5 mins I heard sounds in the living room, and I went there and saw it had jumped out of the tank. So I grabbed her and put her back in it, and closed the tank, that was funny and unexpected.
But later I went to bed (around 00:30 am) and didn't turn the filter off, I usually do it at night because she always seems to calm down when I do it (most days she gets the most active at night so it's way to get her to sleep) I went to my room and closed the door. I woke up at 2:20am with some weird noses, at first I thought it was just my imagination, the tank was closed and nobody else was in the house, but then I heard like small jumps and realized it HAD to be the frog. So I opened up the door and the first step I make, I just STEP ON HER! I don't think I hurt her, I was barefeet and as soon as my foot touched her I jumped, but what is a small touching with the feet could be a heavy step for a frog, I hope she's okay. She had walked all the way to my bedroom, so I grabbed her and put her back to the (closed) tank. I think she escaped through the small glass lid opening where the tubes go. I saw her swim so it seems she's okay. But I'm worried for several things now.
one, she wasn't completely dry when I took her, but still she wasn't so wet either, so she had to be out of the tank for a while, I hope that's not too bad for her.
second when I put her back in the tank I saw something like black loose skin on her belly (she has a white belly) would it be because she was in contact with the floor or something? I hope it's not because I stepped on it and that is something that should go inside her. she doesn't seemed to be in pain or anything though...
Third, I'm worried and amazed at the same time that she was just in front of my door, pratically scratching it, she mas making sound with the door, could it know I was in there? there are 5 doors in my apartment, but she was right in front of where I was. Are frogs this smart?
BTW I now closed the glass lid opening with something so she can't escape again, but after it happened i couldn't sleep for like an hour because I got very worried...
EDIT: now in the morning she doesn't have the black thing her belly anymore.

[froglover9]

African clawed frogs are fairly intelligent, and if it can escape, it will. You should secure all openings immediatly. Also, I reccommend covering the filter with some pvc piping so your frog doesn't damage it. Also, what is the water temp? Atfs need temps around 75.

[mpmistr]

Okay, something happened last night and now I'm worried for a number of reasons. First of all how smart are frogs?

That's a complicated question, it's difficult to define intelligence unless we put a human point of view on it. I would say compared to most frogs, african clawed frogs are rather smart and become very tame (don't mind human interaction/will come up to you for food). They also seem to have a capacity for learning, something most frogs lack. They always seem to react to me being near the tank, come up to the glass to greet me and become excited (a chance for food!).

Personally I feel they are quite intelligent and social amphibians.

She usually spends quite some time under the glass lid opening (where the filter tubes go) looking up, I thought she just liked the tuve vibration or sound

Probably the opposite.

but last night I thought that maybe she liked the air, so I opened a bit the glass lid so she could get some more air.

Bad move unless you're watching the frog closely, these guys can jump out of water like a freakin' dolphin when they feel like it.

After around 5 mins I heard sounds in the living room, and I went there and saw it had jumped out of the tank. So I grabbed her and put her back in it, and closed the tank, that was funny and unexpected.

I had one of my frogs find a small hole in the lid and manage to escape, fall 4 feet down and go on a small adventure while I was at work. I came home and looked all over for him and found him under my lounge chair..

But later I went to bed (around 00:30 am) and didn't turn the filter off, I usually do it at night because she always seems to calm down when I do it (most days she gets the most active at night so it's way to get her to sleep) I went to my room and closed the door. I woke up at 2:20am with some weird noses, at first I thought it was just my imagination, the tank was closed and nobody else was in the house, but then I heard like small jumps and realized it HAD to be the frog. So I opened up the door and the first step I make, I just STEP ON HER! I don't think I hurt her, I was barefeet and as soon as my foot touched her I jumped, but what is a small touching with the feet could be a heavy step for a frog, I hope she's okay.

If my frog survived falling 4 feet on to a hardwood floor chances are your frog is probably going to be fine too in this circumstance.

She had walked all the way to my bedroom, so I grabbed her and put her back to the (closed) tank. I think she escaped through the small glass lid opening where the tubes go. I saw her swim so it seems she's okay. But I'm worried for several things now.
one, she wasn't completely dry when I took her, but still she wasn't so wet either, so she had to be out of the tank for a while, I hope that's not too bad for her.

Feels like semi-dried out skinless chicken meat. Most likely slightly dehydrated.

second when I put her back in the tank I saw something like black loose skin on her belly (she has a white belly) would it be because she was in contact with the floor or something? I hope it's not because I stepped on it and that is something that should go inside her. she doesn't seemed to be in pain or anything though...

They're slimy little buggers and become sticky if they dry out some, sounds like something 'stuck' to this frog.

Third, I'm worried and amazed at the same time that she was just in front of my door, pratically scratching it, she mas making sound with the door, could it know I was in there? there are 5 doors in my apartment, but she was right in front of where I was. Are frogs this smart?

Probably a coincidence, albeit a very lucky coincidence.

BTW I now closed the glass lid opening with something so she can't escape again, but after it happened i couldn't sleep for like an hour because I got very worried...
EDIT: now in the morning she doesn't have the black thing her belly anymore.

Keep the lid closed, open only if you're in the room and can watch the frog. I open my glass lid some times too to let the tank 'air out' some. It's kind of funny too because they start skimming the surface of the water because they anticipate a meal. I never leave the room though and the tank is in my living room so I keep a close eye on it. These guys CAN and WILL jump out of tanks.

[Tomas Leiva]

Thanks a lot for the reply guys, I really appreciate it.
She seems to be doing alright today, but I was very worried last night and this morning, I felt so sad when I grabbed it to put it back in her tank, usually she doesn't like to be grabbed and tries to escape, but last night when she felt a bit dehidrated, she didn't even resist, I felt bad for her, for what could have happened if I didn't wake up on time
I also feel pretty bad to know she was in that small tank for 6 years with nothing to do, even more now when I see she responds pretty well to human contact, she seems to like me peting it, now that she isn't eating she still comes over to my hand.

[Jenste]

She should recover just fine from her adventure. I would recommend you leaving her filter on all the time though. Do not turn it off at night. The bacteria you require to grow in the filter to help clean the water needs a steady flow of oxygen - turning off the filter stops the flow of water over the bacteria. Best to leave it on and keep the filter as healthy as possible for her.

[Tomas Leiva]

Thanks for the advice, I'll probably leave it on all night long, but I´m a bit worried that she seems to be very active at nights until I turn it off, I guess she'll have to get used to it...

[mpmistr]

make/model of filter?

[LunaDay]

What an adventure! I'm glad to hear your frog is okay. I had an ADF jump out once while I was cleaning the tank. I quickly found her and got her back in but I was so afraid of touching her for a split second I didn't know what to do. I just new she had to go back in the water. I never thought about them coming out the access holes in the lid! I need to figure out a way to cover mine now.

[LunaDay]

Ok, This is a somewhat long story, My bf's mother has an aquatic frog ( I don't know the species) since aprox 6 years. It was in a small tank with nothing else. no plants, no stones, nothing. Just the frog. The point is she (my bf's mother) got sick and can't take care of the frog anymore, so she gave it to us to take care for it. I've had it fro around 1-2 months already. It usually eats everyday some pellets we give it, and the occasional moth, wich it just loves.
Here's how I received it.

But I was feeling a bit sad to see it all day in that small tank with nothing to do, it just sat in the bottom for hours staring at the wall. So I decided to get it a bigger tank, with plants and stones.
Here's the new house:

The problem is that when I changed it to the new tank, it stopped eating. The girl from the store told me that she could take a few days to get used to it, but it has already been a week since I changed it, and still nothing, it doesn't look too stressed, it's not always staring at the wall as before, now it swims a lot, and then rests for a while. When I get close to the tank, it always comes to the surface (it's used to being fed directly in its mouth) but I give it the food and nothing, eit doesn't seem interested. Even the few times it actually puts the food in its mouth, it just chews it for a while and then spits it out. I haven't changed its food or anything. I even tried to give it some moths, and still nothing, it just left them floating around. I've left some food floating to see if it's eating but it doesn't seem to be doing it either.
I don't know if it's still stressed or ill, but it doesn't seem to be ill, it moves a lot, and even seems to like to play with the filter bubbles.
Also, it was used to regular water, I changed it ever week or so, but with no special treatment, now I bought some drops to de-chlorine it (is that how you say it in english?) maybe it has something to do with that too?
I really don't know what to do, I've called some pet stores, but none of them have frogs so they don't know how to take care of them.
I'm felling really bad now, I just bought its new tank because I wanted it to be happier but it seems I messed up big time and I'm very worried about it.
I hope you guys can help me with this.

I think this frog is very lucky to have you!

[froghugger]

Over the years, some of my ACF's have jumped out of their tanks. It's quite scary, but easily preventable, like the previous people said before, you should make sure the WHOLE top of your tank is sealed, also I leave the water level lower than a normal fish tank so that it would be very difficult for the frog to jump out even if there tank was wide open at the top!