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Thread: ASAP Leopard Frog Habitat/Handling

  1. #1

    Question ASAP Leopard Frog Habitat/Handling

    Hi everyone!

    New to the forum and frogs, so I'm hoping to get a few questions cleared up


    (Need to order supplies ASAP, frogs are coming soon)


    So one of my mothers friends has been raising leopard frogs (presumably northerns) and has to many. Unfortunately despite them being native it is illegal to release captive bred leopard frogs, so I offered to take some off her hands.

    I'm getting between 1 and 3 leopard frogs, with one being my choice but it depends on how many she needs to get rid of. They are just turned to frogs at this point, for age purposes.


    So I had a few questions on whether this is a good habitat setup or not, and later a question on handling and feeding.


    Habitat
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    So I've got a 20 gallon on hand at the moment as well as a 10 gallon tank, but I figured the crickets (food) would be housed in the 10 gallon and the frog(s) in the 20 gallon. I understand they should ideally be in 10 gallons per frog, but my birthdays next month so they will be upgraded soon to a 40 gallon breeder and the 20 gallon re purposed to a betta tank.

    The set up would be 50/50 land and water and depending on what they chose to use more I may change that, but default will be 50/50.

    So now the questions.

    So setup wise I was thinking about doing a layer of large rocks on the bottom throughout the entire cage. So the land side has a drainage layer and the water side has a nice look. The rocks will slope up to prevent the soil from entering the water, but with the 40 breeder I will do a divider when I get it. Then the land side would be eco terra plantation soil (is this ok to use?) so I can do live plants in the near future (birthday) in there, I would also like to do both plants on the land and water side using the appropriate kind of plants. I read the water should be chlorine free (silent killer) and ideally filtered spring water.

    I'm going for a very natural look for these guys as much as possible.

    I was also looking to add Zoo Med frog moss in there as well in between the soil as well as in a corner so they has a humid spot to go if needed.

    Last item I was going to use was the Tetra Repti Filter on the water side so they don't have to much standing water. I am aware this may stress them and will remove if it does, however I have seen a few users mention this so I thought I may get it.

    This will be there setup aside from a few fake plants (hiding spots) until I can purchase real plants.

    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Food
    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



    For food I am going to with a base of crickets with other such things they will eat in the wild as extras. The crickets will be the main food staple however.

    Also I have read that leopard frogs need calcium with D3 to survive so I found Zoo Med Reptile Calcium with D3

    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


    Handling
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Last Question to clear up.

    How much handling should be done with these guys? I want them to feel ok should I need to catch or provide medication to them but I am also aware that they have skin that is special in regards to handling.

    So how much should I be handling these guys if at all?

    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Any opinions would be great! Just trying to make sure my guys have the appropriate setup and diet

    I've never owned frogs before so this is a whole new thing for me, and I want to make sure that I'm giving these guys the best I can.

    -Alyssa

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  3. #2
    100+ Post Member DanDrobates's Avatar
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    Default Re: ASAP Leopard Frog Habitat/Handling

    Kudos to you for taking a proactive approach. As far as your set up goes a 20 gallon is fine for a leopard froglet. I wouldn’t recommend the frog moss though as it usually rots and you’ll end up removing it in a few weeks. Eco earth or plantation soil is fine but use a barrier to prevent it from getting into your water feature. Crickets are a good mainstay for diet but remember to gut load them with fresh vegetables. I would advise against offering wild caught prey though as the risk of contaminants is too great. As far as supplementing goes there is conflicting evidence on amphibians requiring D3. I would recommend using repashy supercal once a week or so. It is possible to over supplement fat soluble vitamins such as A and D so dont over do it. As far as handling goes I recommend not handling any amphibian as their skin is too sensitive and it will only stress them. If you need to handle out of necessity use vinyl gloves moistened with purified water and keep it minimal. Good luck.

  4. #3
    100+ Post Member Larry Wardog's Avatar
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    Default Re: ASAP Leopard Frog Habitat/Handling

    I have kept Northern Leopard Frogs and I can help you. First for 3 adults they will need the 4 foot 40 gallon to have enough space because they like to adventure. Exo Terra UVB lights are good to use. There is no evidence these frogs need uvb but I know first hand they will bask if given the chance. For soil I recommend the plantation soil it's better for growing plants and is more natural. Leopard Frogs are more terrestrial so a 60-40 land to water is more beneficial for them. They will wonder far from water in the wild and captivity. These frogs can get big. The females can get to 5 inches. You should have a staple diet of Earthworms any kind and crickets. Some frogs will eat red wrigglers and some won't. They all take night crawlers. Use wax worms too. They will add a fat food and will make them plump which is good but don't feed them this as a staple diet. You can use some wild insects but be cautious. Contrary to what some believe you should dust your feeders with d3 because it is something that won't hurt them and can be nothing but beneficial. You should not handle these frogs. They are too nervous. Buy a fish net to catch them when they need to be taken out for cleaning. Pothos works for water and land. Water lillies will grow too. If the person collected the frogs as wild tadpoles she can legally release them in some states. In my state it's legal for certain things needing to be done so the frogs are healthy and there are no problems. I recommend mosquito fish to keep in the water. They are native and breed fast and are very hardy. Would be great with the frogs. I recommend if you have 3 frogs a 75 Gallon to enjoy them especially if you get two females or all females!

    Sent from my BLN-L24 using Tapatalk

  5. #4

    Default Re: ASAP Leopard Frog Habitat/Handling

    Quote Originally Posted by Larry Wardog View Post
    I have kept Northern Leopard Frogs and I can help you. First for 3 adults they will need the 4 foot 40 gallon to have enough space because they like to adventure. Exo Terra UVB lights are good to use. There is no evidence these frogs need uvb but I know first hand they will bask if given the chance. For soil I recommend the plantation soil it's better for growing plants and is more natural. Leopard Frogs are more terrestrial so a 60-40 land to water is more beneficial for them. They will wonder far from water in the wild and captivity. These frogs can get big. The females can get to 5 inches. You should have a staple diet of Earthworms any kind and crickets. Some frogs will eat red wrigglers and some won't. They all take night crawlers. Use wax worms too. They will add a fat food and will make them plump which is good but don't feed them this as a staple diet. You can use some wild insects but be cautious. Contrary to what some believe you should dust your feeders with d3 because it is something that won't hurt them and can be nothing but beneficial. You should not handle these frogs. They are too nervous. Buy a fish net to catch them when they need to be taken out for cleaning. Pothos works for water and land. Water lillies will grow too. If the person collected the frogs as wild tadpoles she can legally release them in some states. In my state it's legal for certain things needing to be done so the frogs are healthy and there are no problems. I recommend mosquito fish to keep in the water. They are native and breed fast and are very hardy. Would be great with the frogs. I recommend if you have 3 frogs a 75 Gallon to enjoy them especially if you get two females or all females!

    Sent from my BLN-L24 using Tapatalk

    Thank so much Larry!

    This will definitely help me out

    To clear up the lady bought the frogs in one of the grow your own tadpole kits, but she was unaware at the time it was illegal to release. I believe it's legal to release the ones wild caught, this guys to my knowledge aren't.

    I'm very interested in using a uvb so I may just snag one of those up. As long as they don't hurt them the worst that can happen is they won't use it (I have a feeling these guys would.)

    I don't think I've seen a 40 gallon long before so I just looked up the dimensions and they look very promising. If I see one I'll grab that, but likely a 40 gallon breeder is going to be more common where I live. (I will also look into the 75 gallon)

    I will be picking some earthworms/night crawlers up sometime soon I bet my guys would love them! They seem to do fine on crickets at the moment but I want variety in there diet at some point. My larger one at 3 crickets with body lengths the size of her/his head and I have no clue how, but I'm very proud. The store had a few larger crickets in with the little pinheads I buy, but these guys could probably upgrade to a larger size.

    Thanks so much for your advice it is very much appreciated.

  6. This member thanks Alyssa Martin for this post:


  7. #5

    Default Re: ASAP Leopard Frog Habitat/Handling

    Quote Originally Posted by DanDrobates View Post
    Kudos to you for taking a proactive approach. As far as your set up goes a 20 gallon is fine for a leopard froglet. I wouldn’t recommend the frog moss though as it usually rots and you’ll end up removing it in a few weeks. Eco earth or plantation soil is fine but use a barrier to prevent it from getting into your water feature. Crickets are a good mainstay for diet but remember to gut load them with fresh vegetables. I would advise against offering wild caught prey though as the risk of contaminants is too great. As far as supplementing goes there is conflicting evidence on amphibians requiring D3. I would recommend using repashy supercal once a week or so. It is possible to over supplement fat soluble vitamins such as A and D so dont over do it. As far as handling goes I recommend not handling any amphibian as their skin is too sensitive and it will only stress them. If you need to handle out of necessity use vinyl gloves moistened with purified water and keep it minimal. Good luck.
    Thanks so much Dan!

    I ended up choosing to not go with the moss per your recommendation, and am quite glad I did.

    I did the rocks initally and boy was I wrong to do that. I ended up with mud in the span of an hour! They have a proper barrier and it's much easier to manage now!

    I apologize as I should have said a "natural diet" not wild. Just things naturally found in the wild but not caught outside (bought from a store.)

    Bought the repashy and it works very well as far as I can tell. It should last a good long while to, I got the 3 oz and it's huge!

    I've handled them twice now, but that should be it for the span of their lives. I handled them out of the carrier for a second tops and once today for some pictures for identifying. Otherwise there not handled at all from this point forwards.

    Thanks so much for your advice it was extremely helpful!

  8. #6
    100+ Post Member DanDrobates's Avatar
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    Default Re: ASAP Leopard Frog Habitat/Handling

    Glad I could help. Good luck with everything.

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