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Thread: ACF Bloat on LEFT SIDE

  1. #1

    Default ACF Bloat on LEFT SIDE

    My 12 y/o female African Clawed Frog is bloated. She has been bloated for two weeks.

    At first, I wasn't sure if it was hard bloat or soft bloat, so I quarantined her and got Maracyn Oxy (couldn't find regular Maracyn) and begun salt baths.
    I did not want to take her to the vet if there was a high chance she was going to die anyway.

    She has survived, but hasn't gotten much better. The bloating has dissipated a little (edit: photos show that it hasn't) except for her left side, which cases her to float slightly sideways. I have stopped treating with Maracyn, as per the instructions. I wasn't sure wether or not to continue the salt baths, so i've stopped that as well.

    Side note: She has had a small bump in her belly for many years. I think it was from swallowing a piece of gravel back before I learned better. It never seemed to cause her any issues, but now I'm thinking it may be complicating things?

    She has refused to eat all this time (she eats Grow-a-Frog food pellets). Her hind legs are now beginning to show it. (edit: I tried feeding her again and she actually ate a few pieces just now)

    I wanted to get her to a vet last week, but **** hit the fan; my sister's truck was totaled (she's ok), lost power for awhile, my Houdini hound escaped twice, all the while I was trying to study for two exams. No one else could take her. Now the local herptology vet is going to be gone for several weeks. I'm going to try for another vet Monday, but I don't know is she will be available and wanted to hear y'all thoughts. Please help.

    I'd rather not euthanize her, but if you know the condition is incurable or if you think she might require surgery and be too weak for it, I'd rather do that then keep her suffering.

    Tank Parameters:
    -She is normally housed in a planted, 55 gallon tank kept at room temperature (66-76 degrees Fahrenheit) with 3 fancy goldfish. It is filtered with an AquaClear 110.
    -I was doing 40-60% water changes every week, but because of school, I was pushing that back to every two weeks. My frog started bloating days after I made a water change after letting it go for almost 3 weeks.
    -Most of the tests I bought when I relocated them to this tank last year turned out to be bad, so I haven't been using them.
    -The PH was 6.0. I know the ammonia was high, because the white tail of my Redcap Oranda goldfish was beginning to show a little red.
    -I treat the water with PRIME dechlorinator.


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    Photos from the day I began treatment.

    I thought I noticed her getting "bigger" a few days previously. I wasn't sure if it was just me, but then my mom noticed it too. I started looking for more information, then following morning we found her struggling to swim and I began treatment.

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    Photos from today (2 weeks later)

    Here you can see that she floats sideways if not supported.
    (the brown dots are food that I just tried feeding her- I'll clean it out once I put her back in the quarantine tank)

    Thanks.
    Last edited by Elyse; November 18th, 2017 at 11:27 AM.

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  3. #2
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    Default Re: ACF Bloat on LEFT SIDE

    Hello Elyse he does look typical of bloat vet would be best and if he's unfamiliar with emergency aspiration procedures I have a post further back explains best method to an unfamiliar Vet, not recommended @ this early stage but if you have to euthenise last resort! Small jar add clove oil enough until frogs sleeping then add vodka seem's mentioned but follow salt baths as below take to vet 1st priority




    This is from Terry (tgampper) back in 2010 reposted by MOD Micheal is about as sound advice as you are going to get. They would treat this frog as described below and I do hope he recovers.

    1) "Hard" bloated frog appears all of a sudden at the surface of the water. If this is the case, you will need to quarantine yor frog. This condition is usually caused by an internal bacterial infection and in nearly all cases it is fatal. There is some success using a product called Maracyn along with a salt bath. Maracyn is a gram-positive antibiotic found in stores that sell tropical fish supplies. Your vet will be able to advise you on a treatment plan.

    2) "Soft, squishy bloat", sometimes known as the "Michelin man syndrome" or hydrops in older amphibian literature, is caused by an excessive amount of fluid accumulation in the body and limbs. Untreated, this can cause liver and kidney damage. Although, frogs can live a long period of time with this condition, it will eventually lead to death. This condition is not associated with any particular pathogen, but it does occur with poor husbandry conditions. Since aquatic frogs live in water, their skin acts as an way for fluids to enter and exit the body (osmosis). When this process is interrupted, the frog begins to swell. The two leading causes of this swelling is poor water conditions and poor diet. Repto-Min is a perfect diet for your clawed frogs. ACFs are both predator and scavenger, so they do not require live foods like other frogs. I have been keeping clawed frogs for over 30 years and only feed Repto-Min. The only other problem could be the water. Make sure you use a good water conditioner, I recommend Stress-Coat. Keep the water clean and siphon any uneaten particles or waste. I would talk to the vet again about draining the fluid, the frog will probably recover without the additional stress. Also, continue the salt bath, ACFs are very salt tolerant and this would reduce the bloat.

    Treatment: The easiest way to treat the frog is to put him in a plastic container (like Rubbermaid) about 3 gallons in size. Put a gallon of conditioned water with about a half-teaspoon of epsom salts. Water temperature should be about 72 degrees. Dissolve the salt before putting the frog in. Don't put anything else in the container. Punch some small holes in the lid for ventilation. Leave the frog in the bath for 1 hour each day until the bloat is clear. Replace fresh water and salts each day. If the bloat isn't cleared within 10 days, then there isn't much more you can do. Don't feed live food. I suggest Tetra's Repto-Min frog pellets.

  4. This member thanks craig121 for this post:


  5. #3

    Default Re: ACF Bloat on LEFT SIDE

    Thanks for the aspiration procedures, craig121. I'll bring them to the vet with me in case they don't know.

    Terry's Instructions was what I was following for treatment. They have helped at least a little. Her belly initially felt very taut and full, but after giving her the salt baths, clean water and using Maracyn Oxy for 5 days, it feels squisher (even through her belly still looks about as big).

    Perhaps I didn't continue the salt baths long enough. I will start-up the salt baths again.

  6. #4
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    Default Re: ACF Bloat on LEFT SIDE

    Hows things Elyse

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