Tripod

[mel]

So glad to have found this site.

I have lots of questions and am in need of guidance. I had not intended to take on a frog as a pet but due to a Tragic Lawnmower Incident (that's what my family calls it now) we have welcomed Tripod into our fold. (Quick summary: husband ran him over and picked him up to find his right leg hanging by a piece of skin. We removed it and nursed him back to health.)

A couple of trips to the pet store later, we think we have him (her?) set up well enough but I want to make sure I'm doing everything right.

He (she?) is very small, only a little more than an inch in body length. We lined his/her enclosure with frog moss (the kind that comes freeze-dried) and have kept things moist. Initially, we tried feeding him/her crickets but it took a good four or five days after the "surgery" before he/she started eating. We are now giving him/her 3 or 4 crickets a day.

Clearly, a major question I have relates to gender.

I also have no real idea of what kind of frog this is. We figure it must be a tree frog but that's as far as we've gotten. I also want to make sure I am giving him/her everything necessary and that the current enclosure placement in the kitchen window is okay.

We live in Sherwood, Oregon - which is about 20 miles southwest of Portland.

Any help you could offer would be hugely appreciated.

Here are a couple of photos for reference:

[Jace]

Welcome to the Forum! We have a lot of great people here who are dedicated to not only their frogs and toads, but also to helping others take good care of theirs. As unfortunate as the Tragic Lawnmower Incident was, I am pleased to hear that you tried-and succeeded-in healing this little frog back to health. I have never actually tried to help identify a frog before, but from the pictures, I would have to say it looks like you have a Pacific Chorus Frog. Let's see if I get two thumbs up from the rest of the Forum! I recently became the proud owner of two of these frogs myself, which is the only reason why I am willing to go out on a limb and give it a try. The setup you have looks more than adequate. These little frogs do like to climb sometimes, so anything that would allow them to get off the ground (like an adequate stick or driftwood) might be appreciated by him/her. If your little one is a Pacific Chorus Frog, you can tell the sex by whether it has a dark throat or not. If it does, it is male. If the throat is pure white, you have a girl. The males can be quite vocal, but the sound is amazing. Pacific Chorus Frogs are great little frogs. Just to be sure, I hope someone else will either confirm or deny my identification. Either way, you have a beautiful frog. As for the placement, just be careful the frog is not getting direct sunlight or huge temperature variants. If you haven't already, invest in a temperature strip and a humidity indicatior and you shouldn't have any problems. If it is a Pacific Chorus Frog, NW Amphibian Rescue, another member on the Forum, has lots of experience with these guys and has been a great (and patient!) help to me. Cheers!

[Jace]

One other quick note: the moss you have is great, but does look to be overly wet. When I first set up the enclosure for mine, I had the moss too damp and it fostered mould growth. I had to clean it out and start over. Now, I mist once a day, and the frogs seem to be happier with it being a bit drier on the ground, even though it "rains" daily!

[Paul Rust]

Not much I can add here, Jace nailed it !!!!! Love the name, that is great lol. It is a Pacific Chorus Frog, Pseudacris.regilla . The setup looks great. I would not keep it in the window as it could overheat in direct sunlight. You will need to get supplements like Herptivite and Reptical to give it proper nutrition. You just dust the crickets with it. Good luck with it and it does look good and healthy. It will only get about 2" as an adult. Looks like I need to make a care article for these little guys.

[Jace]

Not much I can add here, Jace nailed it !!!!! Love the name, that is great lol. It is a Pacific Chorus Frog, Pseudacris.regilla . The setup looks great. I would not keep it in the window as it could overheat in direct sunlight. You will need to get supplements like Herptivite and Reptical to give it proper nutrition. You just dust the crickets with it. Good luck with it and it does look good and healthy. It will only get about 2" as an adult. Looks like I need to make a care article for these little guys.

I would love to see an official care article for these little guys. All the info I found on the internet had such a wide range that it would be nice to have something informative all in one spot.

[mel]

Wow. So much great info! Thank you so much.

It looks like Tripod is definitely a boy. His throat is dark and yes, he is pretty vocal. What does it mean when he croaks? Is he hungry or lonely? The times of day that he croaks are pretty inconsistent.

I moved him out of the window and we'll find something for him to climb on. Thanks for the tip about the cricket dust.

The moss probably looked overly wet in the pictures because we had just put it in. I'll be sure to keep it a little more dry. How often should I change out the moss completely? The woman at the pet store (who is a frog owner) said that frogs tend to poop in their water but mine hasn't done that. He just seems to go anywhere so I am worried about the moss getting gross.

You guys are awesome. Thank you so much!

[Jace]

Congratulations on your new boy! This is their mating time of year, so when he calls, he's hoping there is a nice little girl frog hanging around. Both my males call at different times of the day-though I could do without the 3 o'clock in the morning calls! I always take calling as a good sign-if he's going to the effort of looking for a mate, that means all his needs are being met.

Mine mostly poop in the water, but they do occassional soil other parts of their enclosure. Where I can, I simply remove it with a pair of tweezers. Because frogs can be very sensitive to poor conditions, I would do a complete clean at least every couple of months, if not once a month. Paul (NW Amphibian Rescue) might have a better idea on this.

Tripod looks very healthy and content, so I wouldn't worry too much. I think he knows how lucky he is! I hope you enjoy the little guy as much as I have enjoyed mine!

[firefly]

He's lovely - well done

[Paul Rust]

Mine mostly poop in the water, but they do occassional soil other parts of their enclosure. Where I can, I simply remove it with a pair of tweezers. Because frogs can be very sensitive to poor conditions, I would do a complete clean at least every couple of months, if not once a month. Paul (NW Amphibian Rescue) might have a better idea on this.

No pressure huh Jo-Anna? By the way Pip and Yoki look great! They are soooo cute!

Anyway, she is right that the setup you have will need cleaned regularly. There is nothing wrong with it but If you want to upgrade Tripod's digs you could do this:
Put 1" of aquarium gravel in the bottom.
Cover the gravel with 2" of coco-fibre.
Plant several of the cheap petco tropical plants in there.
Bury the water pond up to the edge. Cover the whole thing with moss again.
Criss-cross some sticks for him to climb on.
This should be self sufficient and only need cleaning very rarely except for the water changes.
Then Tripod will have the Hilton of frog homes. All he will need is a cute little girlfriend.
You have done a wonderful thing saving the little guy.
Enjoy!!!

Lastly, if you feel at any time that you can't handle him or just can't take care of him please let me know. I will come and get him. They make wonderful pets so give it a chance. Just don't turn it loose.

[mel]

Well, Paul - does Tripod need a girlfriend? I mean, not that I want any more frogs run over in my yard or anything. Do two of these types of frogs co-exist well? Does it matter if they're male/female or male/male?

Years ago, I kept fish (Cichlids) and I had to be very careful with some of the species. Some were extremely possessive and aggressive toward other fish. Since I don't know anything about frogs, I wouldn't want to either deprive Tripod of companionship or subject him to an adversarial existence.

Btw, I would never consider turning him loose. He's a welcome addition to our home.

[daziladi]

Mel welcome to the forum and congrats on your new family member. I had first seen the chorus frog when Jace posted her photos, hope we get to see more pics of Tripod from time to time. Would be curious to hear the story of your hubby operating on him, that's quite a feat!

[Kurt]

Most frogs do not behave as cichlids do. These fish can be very territorial as you know. Most frogs are not. I have never known a single treefrog to be, while at the same time I have never known one to be social either. So no worries there. The only frogs I know to be territorial are some of the dart frogs.

[Jace]

Mel, I would not worry about getting Tripod another tank mate. If you do, I would get him another Pacific Chorus Frog and not try and mix and match. The only reason I have two is they came for the price of one. Now, because I am hooked on these little frogs, I am trying to find a female, but if I only have these two, I am more than lucky!

Never any pressure, Paul...besides, you always come through!

[Paul Rust]

Most frogs do not behave as cichlids do. These fish can be very territorial as you know. Most frogs are not. I have never known a single treefrog to be, while at the same time I have never known one to be social either. So no worries there. The only frogs I know to be territorial are some of the dart frogs.

Ditto!

Pacific Chorus Frogs are quite social and I have never seen aggression in them, although I have seen males crowding each other for that "perfect" spot by the pool to call from. They are fine alone also. I'm very glad to hear you are keeping him.

[Paul Rust]

I would love to see an official care article for these little guys. All the info I found on the internet had such a wide range that it would be nice to have something informative all in one spot.

I finished a care article and emailed it to John. If he likes it maybe we will see it here soon.

[Jace]

Good to hear! Can't wait to see it (fingers crossed).