Somebody please Help!!

[juice]

Ok so my wife this afternoon called me concerned about my daughters RTF. It seems his/her stomach is enormous out of no where. It is awake right now which is obviously odd for a nocturnal amphibian. See picks below. It has always eaten well! humidity has been really tough to maintain.

Any idea on how I can get it healthy would greatly be apprecied.

[Daru and Tifi]

I only own whites but I know a swelled stomach could be a sign of impaction in them... Usually from things like substrate consumption while hunting :/.

good luck with the little one.

[MantisMan]

it appears bloated! it could be from oversupplimentation or the use of distilled water

[Heatheranne]

She's definitely bloated. Can you please answer these questions so we can help?

Don't feed her tonight. Just mist the tank.
.................................................. ......................

Trouble in the Enclosure:

Please reply to each question so we may help.


1. Size of enclosure?

2. # on inhabitants - specifically (if there is another frog ---size differences ?)

*3. Humidity? How often do you mist? Do you have a fogger or misting system?

4. Temp (day time and night time)?

*5. Water type - for both misting, soaking dish and for moistening and/or preparing substrate?

*How often do you rinse your soaking dish water and change the water?

*Which dechlorinator brand are you using?

6. Materials used for substrate?

How often do you change your substrate?

Do you have a false bottom set-up?

7. Enclosure set up i.e. plants (live or artificial) wood, bark etc. How were things prepared prior to being put into the vivarium/terrarium?

*8. Main food source?

*9. Frog food: how often and if it's diverse what other feeders are used as treats?

*10. Vitamins and calcium?
How often? Brands used?

11. Lighting (what kind)?

Do you follow a day/night lighting schedule?

12. What is, specifically, being used to maintain the temperature of the enclosure?

*13. When is the last time he ate?

*14. Have you found poop lately?

*Did it look normal?

15. A pic of the frog would be great any little cell phone pic is fine.

Please also provide a tank photo if possible.

16. How old is the frog?

17. How long have you owned him?

18. Is the frog wild caught or captive bred?

19. About how often is the frog handled?

Do you wash hands prior and/or use gloves?

20. Is the enclosure is kept in a high or low traffic area?

*21. Describe enclosure maintenance (cleaning etc).

22. For aquatic species:
Have you tested your aquarium water for:

Ph?
Ammonia?
Nitrates?

23. What filtering system are you using for any aquarium or pond areas in the enclosure?

24. How often do you perform water changes and what percentage of water?

[juice]

She's definitely bloated. Can you please answer these questions so we can help?

Don't feed her tonight. Just mist the tank.
.................................................. ......................

Trouble in the Enclosure:

Please reply to each question so we may help.


1. Size of enclosure? Exo-terra 10 gallon vertical

2. # on inhabitants - specifically (if there is another frog ---size differences ?) 1

*3. Humidity? How often do you mist? Do you have a fogger or misting system? Twice a day I bought the monsoon misting system yesterday. Prior to that humidity was always hard to maintain.

4. Temp (day time and night time)? 75 to 80 Night and day

*5. Water type - for both misting, soaking dish and for moistening and/or preparing substrate? Distilled for misting. Bottled water for soaking dish. Substrate tap water (never thoght about the implications on that one )

*How often do you rinse your soaking dish water and change the water? Rinsed every evening with tap and diluted white vinegar then rerinsed.

*Which dechlorinator brand are you using? Not using one as water comes from bottled water.

6. Materials used for substrate? Exo-terra what ever that brown brick looking thing is lol

How often do you change your substrate? Once a month can go over sometimes

Do you have a false bottom set-up? Yes

7. Enclosure set up i.e. plants (live or artificial) wood, bark etc. How were things prepared prior to being put into the vivarium/terrarium? Everything artificial I have been researching to convert to live

*8. Main food source? Crickets sprinkled with vitamins

*9. Frog food: how often and if it's diverse what other feeders are used as treats? Just crickets

*10. Vitamins and calcium? Yes
How often? Brands used? I forget the brand

11. Lighting (what kind)? Low UV for day time and occasionally red warming bulb for night

Do you follow a day/night lighting schedule? I haden't but yesterday I bough a timer to begin one

12. What is, specifically, being used to maintain the temperature of the enclosure? Bulbs

*13. When is the last time he ate? 4 - 5 days

*14. Have you found poop lately? I cleaned his enclosure last night and put down paper towel substrate to see if he is defecating and if any can be found

*Did it look normal?

15. A pic of the frog would be great any little cell phone pic is fine. Provided in post

Please also provide a tank photo if possible. I'll get that tonight when I get home from work

16. How old is the frog? Hard to tell. Was purchased from PETCO he/she was the size of a quater. No he/she is the size of a half dollar maybe.

17. How long have you owned him? Since July 2013

18. Is the frog wild caught or captive bred? Not sure from PETCO I assume captive bred.

19. About how often is the frog handled? Very rarely only when tank is being cleaned and handled with surgical gloves non latex.

Do you wash hands prior and/or use gloves? Gloves always

20. Is the enclosure is kept in a high or low traffic area? Moderate

*21. Describe enclosure maintenance (cleaning etc). once a month everything is removed tank is wiped down with water only. All decorations are soaked and basically power washed. No detergents of any kind.

22. For aquatic species:
Have you tested your aquarium water for:

Ph?
Ammonia?
Nitrates?

23. What filtering system are you using for any aquarium or pond areas in the enclosure?

24. How often do you perform water changes and what percentage of water?

I hope that helps. I wish I had checked this last night as I went and got more crickets. I did forcefully soak him in bottled water. While cleaning his tank. Forcefully by means of filling his temp enclosure (small handheld plastic case with vented top lid) with bottled water although it was clung to the wall his body was submerged minus his head for about 2 hours. He did look a little better but i'm still concerned.

[Heatheranne]

Are you using regular bottled water? Spring water? Are you using any dechlorinating/heavy metal detoxifier?

So far I am wondering 3 things...

If your water has chlorine, chloramines, and/or heavy metals he could be toxing out. The way to treat this is to purchase a dechlorinating solution which also detoxifies heavy metals. this can be found in the reptile section of a pet store. if you cannot find it there, plain aquarium dechlorinator / heavy metal detoxifier can be used, such as the API brand.

This is very important. Give him a gentle soak. Only use dechlorinated tap water or dechlorinated spring water for soaking and for preparing substrate. Distilled water is okay for misting, but also should not be used for soaking water or in water bowl.

I am wondering also is you use any calcium with vitamin D3 supplement on his food?

Another though is are the gloves powder free?

Be careful not to stress him too much.

I work tomorrow, but will look for your answers after work. To be safe, get some dechlorinator/detoxifier and give him a gentle lukewarm 15 minute water soak. Be careful of his skin, they are very fragile.

Good luck! I'll check back soon.

[flybyferns]

4 heads are better than one
This is what makes FF...........great !
Keep us posted.

You are taking good care your frog
As mentioned be sure to change all soaking dishes and substrate water to de-chlorinated.
I use exo-terra Aquatize. The reason I like this product is the very easy directions/ gallon. I make a bunch of gallons ahead of time. ( use empty distilled gallon bottles) Easy !

BTW ... you don't need the soil substrate....dampened paper towel would be just fine... Red eye tree frogs just don't care.

For the sake of eliminating any possibilities.....I would stop using the vinegar ( just in case) ....hottest tap water possible ( daily ) is fine for rinse/cleaning the soaking dishes

I have a few additional questions:

How often are you using the supplements
What brand (s) ?

Have you found any poop ?
If this were my frog I would remove the soil ( even if just temporarily ) to monitor for poop
( replace the soil with plain white paper towel -- well dampened with de-chlor water. Lay it real flat on the bottom of the enclosure and pour the water on. )
When you find a poop make a judgment as to whether it is normal or not ?
You could post a photo if you not sure.

What do you feed your frog....and what size feeder is it ?
And how much?

Humidity ?
Do you have a gauge?
Is the top the enclosure closed off

Today
I would re-do his soak with the following ( as gently as possible !)
Be sure the mixture is luke lukewarm ---not too hot or real cold - comfortable on your wrist
He can remain in the soak for 1/2 hour or so
This should be repeated once tomorrow

As an alternate method ...you could drip ,drip, drip ( for like a 1/2hr ) this solution over his body. Not on his face or near his mouth. The solution will get absorbed. This may save the stress of addition handling. As you know this is really stressful for them. I have success with this....as it can be done while they are sleeping He may shift his position. Just keep the lights bright, wait til he closes his eyes again and continue.

Mix:
plain pedialyte ( supermarket- baby area) with distilled water
1part pedi
10 parts distilled water
use distilled for this----not de-chlor

Then make sure he soaks daily until you FIND poop! Hopefully he gets to his dish on his own

pedi:
http://www.diapers.com/p/pedialyte-unflavored-1-liter-bottle-86047?site=CA&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc_D&u tm_term=AB-211&utm_campaign=GooglePLA&CAWELAID=1338667716&utm _content=pla&ca_sku=AB-211&ca_gpa=pla&ca_kw={keyword}

just a side note
IMO red eye tree frogs are better off fed less food .........more often
I feed mine every night I use 'small crickets'

TTYL
Lynn

[juice]

Are you using regular bottled water? Spring water? Are you using any dechlorinating/heavy metal detoxifier?

So far I am wondering 3 things...

If your water has chlorine, chloramines, and/or heavy metals he could be toxing out. The way to treat this is to purchase a dechlorinating solution which also detoxifies heavy metals. this can be found in the reptile section of a pet store. if you cannot find it there, plain aquarium dechlorinator / heavy metal detoxifier can be used, such as the API brand.

This is very important. Give him a gentle soak. Only use dechlorinated tap water or dechlorinated spring water for soaking and for preparing substrate. Distilled water is okay for misting, but also should not be used for soaking water or in water bowl.

I am wondering also is you use any calcium with vitamin D3 supplement on his food?

Another though is are the gloves powder free?

Be careful not to stress him too much.

I work tomorrow, but will look for your answers after work. To be safe, get some dechlorinator/detoxifier and give him a gentle lukewarm 15 minute water soak. Be careful of his skin, they are very fragile.

Good luck! I'll check back soon.

Thank you for the reply. I don't know if its a boy or a girl so unfortunately i have to refer to it as "IT".

After my first post that evening i cleaned his enclosure used only paper towels for substrate so I could look for poop. Went out and bought a mister using distilled water. Set it to mist every 4 hours with 1 minute misting period.

Humidity i smuch better now I will get you the number later today.

His soaking dish is always with delivered bottled water. I have a water cooler/heater i fill it with cold water and since its obviously to cold i use the hot to make it temped.

The gloves have no powder and again he it is not handled at all unless i'm moving it to the temp enclosure while cleaning his every day home.

We do use a calcium poweder i'll have to get the brand I normally buy 50 to 100 crickets and let them roam in the enclosure so it can hunt them. Can't tell you exactly how many or how often its eating i just know the crickets last about 2 weeks before i have to replenish.

Today i'm converting his vivarium to a live plant set up.

Using Pothos some bromelaids coupe other plants. I'm hopeing this will be healthier for it.

Last most importantly it looks normal again I will post a pic when I get home.

Thank you again for you insight I'm still relatively new at this and your knowledge and experience is always very appreciated.

[Heatheranne]

Great! I'll watch for the photo.

I, like Lynn, use paper towels as substrate too.

My plants are in pots filled with ABG mix. The plants have been thoroughly rinsed of all previous dirt, and possible fertilizers and insecticides, and then I put the plants through a quarantine period just to be extra safe.

All wood is thoroughly prepared also.

A good way to monitor food intake is to feed from a glass bowl. If the sides of the bowl are about 1 1/2" or taller, the crickets can't escape. The frogs learn to eat from the bowl. Rinse the bowl daily to remove any cricket feces and supplement residue. I too use smaller crickets of about 1/2" to no more than 3/4". Even though they can eat larger ones, the incidence of constipation and intestinal impaction increases greatly when the food is larger. Not worth the risk.

I apologize on the water bowl question. I meant to ask, is the bottled water spring water? Or bottled drinking water? The reason I ask is because many brands of drinking water have amounts of chlorine and chloramines in the water, and could have heavy metals. Some drinking waters still need to be dechlorinated. Best to find out which kind you have. Spring water is best. I use dechlorinated tap water, but the fluoride levels are not high here. I do the same as Lynn... I prepare a few gallons at a time . I buy spring water, use it, and then use the jugs to make dechlorinated water. Works great. Of course, we've got quite the families of frogs. Even preparing one gallon at a time is nice though. Makes chores go faster .

Glad to hear he's looking better .

[juice]

Great! I'll watch for the photo.

I, like Lynn, use paper towels as substrate too.

My plants are in pots filled with ABG mix. The plants have been thoroughly rinsed of all previous dirt, and possible fertilizers and insecticides, and then I put the plants through a quarantine period just to be extra safe.

All wood is thoroughly prepared also.

A good way to monitor food intake is to feed from a glass bowl. If the sides of the bowl are about 1 1/2" or taller, the crickets can't escape. The frogs learn to eat from the bowl. Rinse the bowl daily to remove any cricket feces and supplement residue. I too use smaller crickets of about 1/2" to no more than 3/4". Even though they can eat larger ones, the incidence of constipation and intestinal impaction increases greatly when the food is larger. Not worth the risk.

I apologize on the water bowl question. I meant to ask, is the bottled water spring water? Or bottled drinking water? The reason I ask is because many brands of drinking water have amounts of chlorine and chloramines in the water, and could have heavy metals. Some drinking waters still need to be dechlorinated. Best to find out which kind you have. Spring water is best. I use dechlorinated tap water, but the fluoride levels are not high here. I do the same as Lynn... I prepare a few gallons at a time . I buy spring water, use it, and then use the jugs to make dechlorinated water. Works great. Of course, we've got quite the families of frogs. Even preparing one gallon at a time is nice though. Makes chores go faster .

Glad to hear he's looking better .

Thank you for the reply No need to apologize. It's drinking water. From my understanding they put the water through a RO process then add minerals for taste. Not sure about chlorine so I will contact them and find out.
I put down paper towels after cleaning 2 days ago while trying to investigate its issue and found that the tank has a terrible smell in just 2 days. So i'm going to clean it out again tonight. definitely going ot use the bowl trick as the dead crickets are soo much more noticeable.

I want to also clarify my false bottom its about an inch above the tank floor suspended egg crate. Method i used for a saltwater tank i use to maintain. Water would drain through the substrate to the bottom of the tank. I then use a pump to siphon it out every few weeks.

I'm curious about the live viv conversion and cleaning the substrate. Do i continue the same schedule and replant each tie or will that no longer be necessary?

Thanks again for the advice and I'll try and get the pics up as soon as possible.

[Heatheranne]

Any updates?

[juice]

Any updates?

He/she is much better. I'm now using the bowl trick however my mister is drowning the crickets. Humidity is now holding steady. I have bought some dechlorinator reptisafe i think its called.

Overall it look like he is back to normal.

[flybyferns]

Good for you ! So far, so good . This frog looks good !

Misting near the cricket bowl:
The crickets will die very quickly in water.
Cover the bowl prior to misting.
Or mist 1st ; than feed .

Check it out :
http://www.frogforum.net/general-dis...eder-bowl.html
Best, Lynn

[juice]

Thanks Lynn!

Based on those pics can anyone tell the sex?

[DigitalPunk]

From the "Signs" that seem to be guess work at best some times your RETF looks like a female to me. Males have a more point nose and a more slender look to the body, but I am not expert.

[Heatheranne]

He/she looks better. Keep an eye on him just in case.

How long is your frog from nose (snout) to anus (vent)?

Do you know how old he/she is?

Have you heard any calling/croaking?

I looked at the photos. I, at this time, do not yet see any nuptial pads, but if he's a he, he may be too young yet.

In general, females are larger than males. Males often size at about 2 - 2 1/2". Females can grow up to just under 3". Males will call, sing, croak. Their vocal sacks expand into a nice air bubble when croaking. Males also have nuptial pads, which are little brown pads on their inner toe or thumb-like toe/finger of their front foot. This pad helps them to hold onto the female when in amplexus.

[Heatheranne]

Here is a pic of Twig's nuptial pad. It will darken in springtime.