My first White's TF,, need more? brown/gray/red coloration, bad?

[Linzizzle]

Hello, I just recently received a WHTF from a lady giving him away. He came in an absolutely DISGUSTING cage, with maybe a year's worth of ****, cricket guts, mold, and parasites crawling around. Poor Mitch! The lady was so concerned about me using de-cholorinators in his water and to not handle him, but didnt do anything right elsewhere. He had no heat source, and he only had filthy gravel and rocks in there to sit on, and a waterdish. Severe animal neglect!
Anyways, I completely bleached out his cage (did the smell test before putting him back in), threw away the rocks, and I got him a side-of-the-tank heating pad, a live plant, half coconut husk substrate (pre-soaked), half moss substrate, a climbing stick, and fake ivy, and i also put a dark green pillowcase behind the cage. I'm also misting the cage once a day. I'm hoping he'll finally be happy like he deserves!
My question for you then is, do White's tree frogs do okay by themselves or is it recommended bringing in more? His cage is maybe 25-30 gallon so i think only one more will fit. I believe he is around 9 years old, he might have been alone his whole life, will it be too traumatizing to bring in another?
Another question, i have been researching and getting many different answers for. Mitch is a deep brown color. His owner said she had seen him be red, gray, and green before. I have never seen or heard of a WHTF being red or gray! What would those colors possibly mean?

Thanks!

[Kerry1968]

Sorry I don't have any answers for you, but I just wanted to say good on you for giving this poor frog a decent home.

[Kurt]

Ok as far as the color change, a White's will be brown against a dark background and green against a light one. They are never gray or red, and the lady who told you this is talking out of her ***.

As far as getting your frog a roommate, it doesn't really matter. They are not social, nor are they territorial. You should quarantine any new frog before introduction to your old frog. Also with the conditions the frog came out of, it might be a good idea to get it checked out by a vet.

[into]

I have never seen or heard of a WHTF being red or gray! What would those colors possibly mean?

I think it's a matter of color perception. Dumper, my whites was a brownish purplish color the first day I got him.... he's been green or blue ever since. attached is a picture of him starting to change color

[Kurt]

Yeah but thats still not red or gray. Purplish brown is still brown.

[into]

True Kurt, but have you seen the red looking whites tree frog on you tube? he's probably brown, but because of lighting and background, he appears red.... it's all in perception.

YouTube - Whites Tree Frog Eats A Pinkie

[Kurt]

True. Under one of those purple night lights green frogs do look red.

[Hannah Wilbanks]

If a cage mate is purchased, shouldn't they be of similar size? I have read that it is possible for the bigger frog eat or try to eat a smaller one. Is this true?

Also, I wanted to say as well, good for you for giving the little guy a much cleaner, better home!! I hope he does well!!

[Kurt]

If a cage mate is purchased, shouldn't they be of similar size? I have read that it is possible for the bigger frog eat or try to eat a smaller one. Is this true?

Yes they should be. It is true with most species. In Ceratophrys species its not quite true. In pac-man frogs size doesn't matter too much as they will even try to eat frogs of the same size. That's why you never see them housed together.

[Linzizzle]

I think it's a matter of color perception. Dumper, my whites was a brownish purplish color the first day I got him.... he's been green or blue ever since. attached is a picture of him starting to change color

Wow! Thank you all for your replys! I didn't get them in my email for some odd reason.

Chris, I think my frog is starting to look like yours in the picture (*think, because he only comes out in the dark and is disturbed by lights and flashlights so I'm giving him some more time to settle in, meanwhile I dont' know his updated coloration yet, lol)

and Thank you Hannah and Kurt. I probably will not get another frog because he is older and would be hard to find one of a similar age.
and yeah, idk why the lady thought he was gray or red lol thats crazy. However, maybe he was gray because all the rocks were gray?

**Mitch is doing much better, he and I will even have a good loud croaking conversation a couple times a day! **

[John]

Email notification is turned off by default - you need to turn it on. For new users now though I've turned it on (but not for anyone who has already got a membership here, including all of us) - thanks for pointing it out.

[Linzizzle]

Hey again everyone,, i have a new question about Mitch-- it appears he has a lumpy throat. *see pictures* does anybody know if this should be a hazard? Thanks!

[into]

That's normal for a male. Look at my guy's throat... sometimes it's tight, sometimes lumpy, but mostly his is saggy.

[Linzizzle]

Oh ok, thats a relief!! Thanks! (:

[Linzizzle]

Another question, i'm noticing that Mitch isn't able to grip onto the glass in his cage. He'll climb up a ways but then slowly starts sliding down. Is this normal? Is it something on the glass that shouldn't be? (I cleaned cage with vinegar)

[into]

Is the glass wet? that could be the cause. My WTF is not much of a climber either. He's a little clumpsy and falls at times trying to reach places he can't/shouldn't (like climbing areas that would cause him to be upside down) I feel bad for him sometimes and realize his perches are still not optimum for his size, I replaced his rock floor with moss to cushion his falls.