New Frog

[1beataway]

Someone gave me a free gray tree frog yesterday. And by the time I bought a new tank and what I needed, he only cost me $70. But he's cute, and I've never had nor seen with my own eyes a gray tree frog before. He seems so small though, which makes me nervous. I'm not even sure if the crickets I got for him are too big or just fine.

This morning, when I checked on him, I see that he has burrowed into the dirt. Is this common? The humidity is high in there right now; I just set the tank up last night so the dirt is moist, and I gave it a decent misting too.

[Jace]

Congrats on your new addition-what a cutie! Yeah, Poe and Finn were "free" too...by the time I am done with them, I don't even want to think about the end bill! Good thing these guys are worth it. Have you decided on a name yet?

[1beataway]

Thanks!

No name yet. I'm still very nervous about him. lol. Anyways, I'm bad with names. My megophrys Nasuta is still nameless.

[bshmerlie]

How could a girl not name her frog? That's what separates us from the men....they're afraid of attatchments...we're not.

[1beataway]

How could a girl not name her frog? That's what separates us from the men....they're afraid of attatchments...we're not.

Point taken! I'll name it soon. :P

I am just horrible at naming pets. And I hate naming something when I don't know what gender it is. lol

[Ebony]

Congratulations Elaine. Very sweet little frog.

[Jace]

Point taken! I'll name it soon. :P

I am just horrible at naming pets. And I hate naming something when I don't know what gender it is. lol

I hate not knowing the gender, too. I try to pick neutral names, but some (like the recently named Taiki) just seem to be more for a girl...thank goodness she was! That is what is bugging me most about Poe and Finn. I'm sure you'll be able to come up with something in no time. Best of luck!

[Kurt]

I hate not knowing the gender, too.

It's especially awkward on a blind date.

[1beataway]

So I wanted to update everyone, because I have some exciting news! I found poop!

This is exciting cause for awhile I wasn't even sure he was eating. He seemed to move only once every few days, and doesn't go right after crickets. But he is still good size and I wouldn't find crickets so I assumed he was (or they were escaping). But last night I looked and found the tiniest froggie poop (I'm so use to my other frogs...they're huge, so....well you can imagine the poop).

Also this morning when I woke up, he wasn't just sleeping on the glass by where the lamp is. He was sitting on top of the temperature gauge.

I think I have figured out a name too. I'm going with "Dan'l Webster." (Any Mark Twain fans?) Hopefully the frog isn't a female. When will I be able to determine the sex?

[Kurt]

Very good.

[Paul Rust]

Very cute frog Elaine. Congrats.

[1beataway]

Thanks!

So when/how do I tell the gender?

[charlamanda]

Congrads. I have lots of these guys and I just love them. Danny can be a girls name too so don't sweat it. Mine are much smaller than Dan'l and they eat several crickets of that size so that size for your's it definately ok. I have them in an old 33 gal fish tank and they perch on anything and everything and are only really active for a few hours at night, the rest of the time they sit around and look really cute and chubby. So far they haven't burried them selves in the dirt, I noticed they hate having anything on them and will clean them selves neurotically if they do, but the one outside burrow into leaves, loose dirt, debris when it got colder out, Maybe check your temp? Good luck I hope you love them as much as I do.

[charlamanda]

Congrats on your new addition-what a cutie! Yeah, Poe and Finn were "free" too...by the time I am done with them, I don't even want to think about the end bill! Good thing these guys are worth it. Have you decided on a name yet?

I got a free cat, Mush, who is now 16, but right after I got him I noticed him walking back and forth to his litter pan every 15-20 min and new something wasn't right.
Turned out he got crystals in his urine, common for persians, and even with the vet diet had a complete blockage of his *****, which after happening 5-6 times had to have it removed...yes, you heard right they had to remove his *****!
Overall this free cat cost somewhere around 20K, probably an under estimation, but I love the fur ball and he's a wonderful cat.
Lesson...nothing is really ever free! but can be loving and worth it!
P.S. the reason they got rid of the cat is because they got a new dog and the cat was peeing on their furniture..turned out the stress of the big puppy caused the crystals and he was peeing on things soft to reduce irratation...not the best pet owners who couldn't figure it out!!!! Their loss, mine and mushies gain!

[bshmerlie]

Did you mean $20,000 dollars? That is one lucky cat.

[Jace]

Wow-that is one lucky kitty! Not many people would have accepted that cost. We saved a kitten from abuse and still have her ourselves-we named her Nevada. She is the most loving if high and mighty cat there is considering what she went through at such a young age. Our other cat, Jersey, has only one kidney and we are expected that when she gets older, she might have issues in the bathroom department as well. Several of my frogs were "lifers" at petstores, and I was asked to give them permanent homes at reduced costs. And my one, Gherkin, was given to me free as his owner could no longer keep him; it took six months to get him back to a decent weight and get him to act like a normal African bullfrog on dirt as he was kept in a bathtub for over 6 months. It's the ones that don't have it easy that tug at my heart, that's for sure.

Elaine, I love the name. Fingers crossed it's a boy!

[charlamanda]

Yup!. Every time he blocked he stayed in the animal hospital for at least a week. He had to be catherized, iv, meds, biopsy's, constant urine analysis's, ultrasouds, xrays, IVP(xray with dye to check the urinary tract system. Had to be on vet prescribed food and life long medication and then finally his P*n*s was removed. He's now a girl, outwardly anyway The $20,000 was incured over the coarse of 5 years, luckily not just one bill, I would have had a heart attack, but he's soooo worth it.

[charlamanda]

Wow-that is one lucky kitty! Not many people would have accepted that cost. We saved a kitten from abuse and still have her ourselves-we named her Nevada. She is the most loving if high and mighty cat there is considering what she went through at such a young age. Our other cat, Jersey, has only one kidney and we are expected that when she gets older, she might have issues in the bathroom department as well. Several of my frogs were "lifers" at petstores, and I was asked to give them permanent homes at reduced costs. And my one, Gherkin, was given to me free as his owner could no longer keep him; it took six months to get him back to a decent weight and get him to act like a normal African bullfrog on dirt as he was kept in a bathtub for over 6 months. It's the ones that don't have it easy that tug at my heart, that's for sure.

Elaine, I love the name. Fingers crossed it's a boy!

Me too! Most of the dogs, cats, and bunnies I've have or had were adopted and many have/had lots of problems. I went to the shelter once to browse and a family friend said that many of the bunnies were scheduled to be euthanized due to over crowding. I ended up taking home 5 and of course 1 was so neglected his front chompers stuck straight out, his nails were not trimmed and the bones of his paws were deformed and he had chronic diarrhea. I can honestly say he was the best bunny I ever had and had the best personality. People don't take the necessary time to learn how to care for their pets, it's a shame.

[1beataway]

He doesn't burrow into the dirt anymore; that was basically just the first night. Maybe a mix of stress and having been in a small container all day. Good to know that yours eat crickets of that size.

And you are a pretty good pet owner.

[1beataway]

What do you think of my gray treefrog, and his home?