I swear this frog is driving me nuts

[Rocko]

So I've had bad luck with blue phase white's and their ability to eat. The first, a baby never ate, didn't matter small crickets, pinheads, fruit flies, or any of a number of species of worms, just refused to eat and eventually passed on. The second that I bought was a juvenile and has never eaten well, maybe 5 crickets in the span of 3-4 days. Every so often some more and other times it'll seem like a week between eating. I know it's not impacted, i have to clean poop out reasonably often. Even when I do get it to eat, it has to be crickets because it scared of worms, like literally backs away from them when they are in the enclosure, and the crickets have to be in a glass bowl because it is terrible at catching them when they have enough room to escape. While I have been willing to accommodate these needs, I'm just at why wit's end with trying to encourage eating. It looks to be losing weight and I just don't know what to do. I know it's not my set up as my regular white's is a happy fat aggressive eater. The environments stay 75-80 degrees 70% humidity at all times. I mean could it just be that a lot of the blue phase are kind of inbred at this point? Does anyone have any tricks that really entice their more skittish frogs to eat? I just don't know what to do anymore.

[Kisa]

I picked up my blue phase as a baby and have never had a problem with her (I think it's a girl now...) eating. She went through a week where she wouldn't try to go for the food, but this was very soon after I got her and I'm assuming this was just a part of her adjustment period.

What I would try first is to give your frog a bath of honey or electrolyte water. These can give a lethargic frog a little boost. For the honey heat a bath of water to 80 degrees, melt a few drops of honey (there is no exact measurement for this, just a drop of honey per ounce of water) and let the water cool a little before bathing your frog. For the electrolytes, lots of people use unflavored pedialite (which is what I use). Stay away from the flavored stuff, no telling what that has in it. Unflavored pedialite looks like water and has barely any taste. Drop this in warm water (mid-70s or room temp) at a 10/1 ratio (10 water, 1 pedialite, so like...10 ounces of water, one ounce of pedialite) and mix it in, then give the frog a bath for 10-20 minutes to let it soak in the nutrients.

I've used both these methods before to success. If this doesn't work, I would suggest finding a herp vet and taking your frog in for an examination. D:

Good luck, I hope you get the little guy/gal eating soon! D:

[DonLisk]

Environment, loneliness, and then health are some reasons she my not be eating.

Although we try to keep them at specific levels of humidity and temp, sometimes something like dropping humidity or temp brings them out of their shell.
One of my frogs I never saw until I added a tank mate and a few days later they were hanging together in plain sight. Tough to say what will bring one out but I would try dropping temp to 70 at night and humidity to about 50 in the day time to see what happens.


If Kisa's suggestions don't work, try some changes in the environment or introduce a friend.

[Immortal]

Neat method Kisa, I need to keep that in mind, it may come in handy some day.

Good luck with your frog Rocko!

[Kurt]

Frogs don't get lonely. I would bring it to a vet. There is got to be reason for the lack of appetite. It can be as simple as a change in its surroundings or it can be more sinister, like an illness. I would've bet a large sum of money that the first one was sick when it died. I suspect this one is too, but that is for a vet to decide.

[Kisa]

Frogs don't get lonely.

How do you know that Kurt? You should change your title to "The Tree Frog Whisperer"

I think my White's get lonely sometimes. Both Bruce Campbell and Bruce Wayne are alone in their vivs and are always rubbing their noses around on the bottom of their tanks as they're trying to escape, and I know their tanks aren't too small, they're well fed and otherwise really healthy. The other frogs I have are kept in pairs and they don't do that. I have never once seen them rub their faces around the glass or look for ways out.

I think they're capable of loneliness, they're awful smart after all.

[DonLisk]

Should we change loneliness to competition for food?

My first Agalychnis callidryas wouldn't come out and eat or show its face for almost a month. I knew it was eating since there were droppings to be found. The day after the addition of anotherAgalychnis callidryas, the 1st one came right out and sat along the water dish edge and waited to watch the 2nd. Soon after both would come out together and sit side by side at the water, looking at the cricket bowl.

They now usually sleep nose to butt on the same leaf or on each side of the same leaf.
Its rare for me to see one out without the other.

[Rocko]

Sorry for the delay, just an update color has returned and appetite is back to its usual, albeit slow pace. I had soaked her in the pedialyte mixture during this time period but it didn't show immediate effects. Right now it is living in the 2.5 gal travel terrarium in a quarantine set up. That being the case the frog is definitely back to being active again, ate a silkworm for the first as soon as it hit the enclosure floor! Though a bowl of crickets is still taking multiple days to consume. It may have been environmental I guess but I am considering the vet checkup soon.

[Kisa]

I'm glad your frog is doing OK again Rocko!

I'm having problems with one of my White's too now...so we're in the same boat. S/he's lost weight and won't eat, is having trouble shedding and climbing. So sad, but I'm trying to nurse her back to health.