Re: Help with advice about poorly frogs
Hello Mentat and thank you so much for replying to me. I am not sure how to load images for you to see, but will do my best to explain the environment etc. I first kept the frogspawn in a big tank, and when they morphed I then moved them to a fantastic plastic tank that had a raised central part, with slope up to it, so I could have an inch or so water in the bottom, and the frogs could stay dry and eat crickets up on the top part. When they got bigger, and they were really doing immensely well and growing a lot, I bought a 4 foot glass tank. I thoroughly cleaned it before use with a bleach solution, then rinsed a couple times, then washed it with a very strong dilution on AquaSafe before using. I did this with all new toys and plastic plants etc I introduced. They continued to thrive for a couple of months, until it started to get hot in early July. I have been keeping an in-depth diary of their progress since the day I brought the frog spawn home, and they have been a major part of my life since. I wanted them to have a decent amount of water to swim in and strengthen their leg muscles, so I used a plastic storage box to raise the level at one end of the tank, and then covered with gravel, creating a gradual slope down to nothing at the other end, meaning the highest end was dry or slightly damp where I kept some moss if they wanted to be dry. I also sunk a couple of feeding bowls into the gravel, so if they didn't want to travel all the way down to the "pond" as I call it, at the other end of the tank, they could dive into the feeding bowl which I filled with water that I changed twice daily. I did a 2 litre (about 25% or slightly more) water change every week to 10 days, as they pooed a lot, and some crickets would drown in there too. I gave them mostly brown and black crickets (2nd moult now they are bigger) fed on calcium jelly pots, potato and bug grub, and once fruit flies - though I think this stressed them out as they hatched too quickly. They seemed really happy, loved climbing over all the toys I got, and were establishing their own little areas in the tank, and some of them were really friendly, although I didn't handle them much. I was using tap water, left overnight and treated with AquaSafe, and then EasyBalance once a week to 10 days. I lost the first frog on 4th July - there was a tiny pink patch on his tummy, poss bleeding inside? Had his head partially open, and his head was stuck in an upward position - I found him floating in the "pond" end of the tank. The next frog died on the 8th July, without the pink belly, open mouth, or stiff head. It was hot, so I thought it was heat stroke. Found him in one of the feeding bowl ponds. 3 frogs then died on 11th July, 2 in the same way as the last and in the same feeding bowl pond, and the 3rd in the "pond". All seemed healthy and well developed. 2 others were not looking great - one had erratic breathing and another seemed to be rubbing his bloated tummy with his hind legs. I researched this, and came across edema, so gave them all a bath in spring water, and since then, have been using spring water, rather than treated tap water. 2 more frogs died on 14th July, both in the "pond" and this was when it was ridiculously hot weather. The other frogs were all still very active and eating well. Another frog died on 15th July. I added extra water to the "pond" so that the whole tank was damp to help keep them cool. I also made them all go in the "pond" twice a day to cool down, and they seemed to enjoy this. But, another one died on the 16th July, in one of the feeding bowl ponds, and a tiny bit of blood came out of his mouth when I put his body on a tissue, although his mouth seemed to be firmly closed, and no more came. Another frog died later that day, with his mouth slightly open and a white tissue (his tongue?) filling it. The rest of the frogs were no longer happy, bunching their legs in close and staying close to the ground, in water, often fully submerged. This is when they started sloughi ng their skin regularly, and another 2 frogs died on the 17th July and another had a pinkish hue to its skin. Another 3 healthy looking frogs died the next day, 3 the day after, 6 the next day. I then did a complete water change, took everything out of the tank, bleached it, rinsed it, soaked it in very strong AquaSafe dilution again. The frogs then seemed a lot happy, and very hungry. No more died until 9th August, a really big frog (when I say big, they are still only about 3 cm long) who seemed healthy. Others seemed OK, but one was rubbing his bloated tummy again with his hind legs, and another was sloughing his skin. In the meantime, I had continued my previous daily cleaning of the tank walls, twice daily water changes in the feeding bowl ponds and weekly to 10 days water change of the "pond". Another frog died on 11th August, with skin shedding off it. The next day, I removed all remaining frogs to a hospital tank and gave them a 1 minute bath in a salt dilution (1 teaspoon salt/1 cup water) followed by 2 rinses in fresh water before going back to the hospital tank whilst I cleaned the entire main tank again. The frogs seemed happier, and I have given them more dilute salt baths for 3 minutes every other day since, as this was recommended to help boost their immune system. They seemed happier, although a couple of them a lighter green colour. A few days later, another frog died! A few more episodes of sloughing skin and tummy rubbing but on the whole they were doing OK. 23rd August, a frog was not happy, and skin looked plastic-y. Next day, he was dead, no physical signs, but head stuck upwards. A couple of the frogs pale and skinny, but most of them active and feeding well. 27th August - another frog died, mouth partly open, and red under skin of belly - not thighs. Another frog had a cloudy right eye. A couple of days later, the cloudy eye was a big bulge! I removed him to the hospital tank, and gave him salt water baths twice daily, which have helped massively - it is now almost gone, although I think he is now blind in that eye as it is marbled, although he became poorly yesterday, and I fear he won't last the night. He has gone very pale, and won't eat or move, and he was one of the most active and friendly of them. Another frog had reddened thighs, so I put him in a different tank on damp kitchen roll, and he was much better in a few days, although now he has golden/pink skin that is stretched so tight on him and dry that it looks like it will burst, and he was also very bolshy but today he is quiet. The last few frogs to die have either faded over several days despite all efforts, or been healthy to the very last and their death was a total shock. Apart from going quiet and lethargic, not eating, and sloughing skin, there haven't been many distinctive symptoms. The pinkish tinge to the skin suggests internal bleeding I guess, together with red veins close to the surface of the skin? There has been some bloating, despite using spring water and changing it regularly. I really don't know what to do. I doubt 2 of these remaining 6 with last the night, and the 2 pink ones seem very unhappy. The one with a massively swollen right leg isn't too great either. Only one seems still active but not eating. Any advice? Happy to send pics if you can tell me how. Thanks again
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so sorry. You took on a massive task.
