First Post - ADF fungus question

[Evil Nick]

Hi all, I just found this forum because even thought he fish forum Im on is awesome I really wanted a frog one to get an answer to this.

We recently went through 2 ADF's in a new 5 gallon tank.
Our first lasted a NIGHT. It tried to get out of the tank and somehow got into the rear filter compartment and just didnt make it. We just thought that was it.

Our second one was lasting a few weeks GREAT. It was active, fun, and ate like a horse.
Over the weeks though it started to stop eating and shed. I thought this was just part of the process of shedding as I read they will sometimes eat their shedding skin. It got less and less active and eventually started going up for air much more and even staying at the top.
With research I came to a conclusion the shed on it was not a normal shed. It was VERY flaky and did not seem to come off.
I am starting to lean toward a fungus. Hopefully not (but could be) chytrid.
Most of the symptoms seem to go that way.

My thought is the first frog may have actually brought it into the tank and actually tranferred it to the 2nd.
I do not want to get another until I know the disease has died off from the tank but cant find a good answer on how long it will live in the tank with no amphibians. The only answer I seem to find is around 3 months.

I can not drain the tank because I actually have 2 pea puffer babies in there and a guppy.

It may seem crowded to some but I do a 50% WC every week and test levels regularly. All tests great. Its also planted.

Can someone give me some steps to either wait out or kill any diseases that may infect another frog as my GF really loved having a frog in there and we would like another.
On top of clearing the tank, Im thinking maybe a good idea might be to keep the next frog in a separate tupperwear at first with some gravel and java moss and treat it before putting it in the main tank. Is there any process to doing this?

Thanks all

[Crunchy Frog]

I hope you will get it tested ASAP. There are a few places you can order Chytrid test kits from.

Amphibian Chytrid and Ranavirus Testing Kit | Josh's Frogs

dendrobati

If he has it, treatment is pretty straightforward, using Lamisil baths. http://www.frogforum.net/pacman-frog...tml#post135965
I would personally begin right away, as he might not live long enough for you to get the test kit, send it in, and get the results (though you should still test, just after you've begun treatment).

You need to get him into a hospital setup right away, and you will have to thoroughly disinfect it following every treatment. Nothing in it but water and maybe a ceramic hide is probably best, as you would have to discard anything organic after each treatment.

The fish tank in question should not be considered "clean" until everything organic in it has been discarded and it's been completely disinfected. Don't put any other frogs in it until that time. Whenever you do water changes for it, you should always put the waste water into a bleach solution before discarding it, so that you are not releasing the fungus into the environment and potentially infecting local frog populations. Anything you discard from the frog's hospital tank must be treated in the same way.

In the future, whenever you get a new frog, you should always quarantine it, for probably six weeks at minimum, and you should always test it for Chytrid. During quarantine, and before getting test results back, you should always treat the waste water as described above, though many advocate doing that with all frog waste water, as they can be carrying other pathogens that could be harmful if released into the environment.

I hope this isn't more information than what you were looking for, and hopefully you can still save the one little frog. Good luck, and please let us know what happens.

[Crunchy Frog]

I found some additional info, specifically on aquatic frog treatment.

Aquatic frogs, ones that live in water as well as tadpoles can also be treated. Mix a 5 squirts to 200 ML solution. Make as much at this ratio as needed so that your tadpoles or frog can live in it. The solution and frog or tadpole live in the solution full time. Completely change the solution every 3 days doing this three times (9 days).

http://www.frogforum.net/tree-frogs/...tml#post130961

[Evil Nick]

Thanks but the frog already passed before even posting.
I just dont want to dump another frog in there if the fungus is still lingering. Id rather wait out its death and was looking for a time frame of its lifespan with no host.

[Crunchy Frog]

Sorry that you lost both your frogs. As I said before, I would not ever put another frog in that particular tank. The pathogen can persist for very long periods of time, even in the absence of amphibians, possibly through the use of other animals as hosts.

I would not want to risk possibly watching another frog die. If you want to keep frogs, I would strongly suggest setting up a new tank, and make sure to avoid any cross contamination between the two tanks. Also, always quarantine and test new frogs before putting them into a permanent enclosure.