Snail tried to dismember my frog

[Jenste]

I came home from work, and as usual I walked into my bedroom to look at my ACF tank.

I notice my young albino male on his back...he then jerks and flails around....His front arm is stuck inside an apple snail!! He must have swam by and scared it, and while it was shutting it's trap door his arm got stuck!

My tank is 20" of water... I started panicking that my frog was going to drown.

I grabbed my net and scooped them out into a kritter keeper I keep next to the tank "just in case". ran them to the kitchen, put half an inch of water in to keep him wet...and froze. how the h@ll was I supposed to get his arm out? he kept flopping around twisting his arm as he dragged the snail.

I called my fiance, he was 45 minutes away on his commute home.
I called my mother and she was over with in 10 minutes after hearing my panic.

we tried to "crowbar" the trap door open with a fork but it was way to big....desperate we grabbed pliers and kept yanking off shell pieces until we could untwist the frogs arm and pull it free.
I held the frog in moist paper towel during the process and now he is sitting in the critter keeper in an inch of water.

his arm is awful red and purple and pinched in half in the middle.

What do I do? I have no idea how long he was trapped...is he going to lose his arm? is he at risk of it rotting off his body from being clamped?


in the snail's evil clutches: (picture taken in case we couldnt free his arm and needed to come on to the forums.)




after. can't get a descent picture of the exact coloring. it's the frog's left forearm

[SethD]

It doesn't look that bad in the picture. If the frog is otherwise healthy(and it appears to be) chances are good nothing will come of it and the arm will heal. It will be easier to tell which way it will go after a couple of days though.

[Jenste]

it was definitely frightening. I keep going to check on him in his temporary tank (the kritter keeper)

he did eat one small earth worm for me, so that is a good sign. I am going to keep the water level low until tomorrow to make sure I don't stress him out too much.

I am somewhat glad I took that first picture - - I have to keep looking back at it to believe it! his arm is looking much better....hopefully he heals swiftly!

[UncleChester]

I hope your frog makes a speedy recovery.

It reminded me of #36 in this fairly disturbing read: Caudata Culture Articles - Species Mixing Disasters

[bshmerlie]

It sounds like he is going to be okay. This is an example of why people say don't mix speices...you just never know. If myself thought about putting a snail in with my firebelly tank...you know...what could happen? I'm sure things like this happen in the wild...we just don't want them to happen to our pets. I'm happy your little Guy is getting better.

[Jenste]

his arm has nearly normal coloring now! I have given the fiance the job of watching him today as I go in for my 14 hour shift at work!

[tgampper]

Jen,

Glad your frog is doing OK. This just proves that these are tough frogs.

[wesleybrouwer]

As you said, without the picture i would have a hard time believing it.
I always knew to check on snails because they can eat into you're clutches.
But into a frog? Who would've tought about that?

Amazing how it got a hold, altough not that nice for you're frog,
i think it is an amazing picture showing where a snail is capable of.

Glad youre frog is all OK now,
and happily for you he didn't got a hold to you're finger
Hope that evil snail is dead now

[Jenste]

We had tried to get his arm out with out killing the snail, but after ten minutes of trying to "crowbar" the trapdoor open, I got some pliers and we sacrificed the snail. That was an ordeal also, we had to keep tearing off tiny pieces so that no jagged pieces tore Louie's arm....then once the shell was lifted away we noticed his arm was twisted INTO the snail where it had retracted itself....so we then had to maneuver his arm out of that!


in the end, Frog Free....Snail Torn Apart.


By this morning he is definitely moving his shoulder, but barely moving the rest of his arm....his fingers stay in a almost clamped position. he has started to shed that arm....but instead of eating the skin like he normally does, he is just letting it hang there. ?

he is eating his worms well and I have raised the water to two inches and he seems to be ok with that....I am still concerned about his arm poor thing

[Jenste]

LOUIE UPDATE

He is still favoring his arm... he moves his shoulder but barely moves the rest of his arm... he has a slight lump near his "elbow area"...compare it to his normal right arm in the second picture

[bshmerlie]

I think his arm actually looks pretty good, all things considered. Of course its going to be majorly bruised but the color on his hand looks pretty good. Even if it's broken it doesn't look like its gotten any worse and chances are it would heal over time. Give him time. Great job getting him out it could have been a lot worse.

[tgampper]

I am glad your frog is doing better. Here is a recommended treatment for Xenopus injuries from the RSPCA:

A salt bath is also a good treatment for many of the problems that are found in
amphibians. Treatment may either be a 10- minute dip in a solution of 25g salt/L or a bath
for up to 3-5 days in a solution of 5-10g salt/L.

Xenopus are tolerant of high salt levels (up to 40% sea water). You can try this treatment if the wound doesn't clear up within the next few days.

[Jenste]

Thanks Terry....I am not sure how much the salt bath will help - It is not an open wound as much as just bruising. His skin is intact just discolored.

It is amazingly better since the weekend...but still being favored by Louie as he swims around.

[tgampper]

Thanks Terry....I am not sure how much the salt bath will help - It is not an open wound as much as just bruising. His skin is intact just discolored.

It is amazingly better since the weekend...but still being favored by Louie as he swims around.

Hi Jen:

Looking good! I just wanted to cover all the bases. I know you love these frogs as much as I do

[Jenste]

Oh I do!

Have you ever heard of a "mini" ACF?

An albino female that I bought at the same time as 3 of my other frogs, is still only an inch or so in body length. I have had it for a good 8 months!

Eats with gusto, sheds normally, has a 10 gallon tank all to itself...and it has only grown about 1/3 of an inch since I have gotten it...

The froglets I have from an egg laying on July 25th 2010 are about 3/4s her size...

its the most bizarre thing!


It just goes to show that with ACF you can never predict what is going to happen!
it also seems like it has not gone through sexual maturation - no nuptial pads or noticeable cloaca. It seems like my frogs are testing me!