Stress?

[elliotulysses]

I figured this may help the situation, giving the exact details of how my frogs are living.
SOME INFO MAY CHANGE. I'M GETTING MY WATER CHANGED TONIGHT.

1. Tank Size and volume of water in it (full, 1/2 filled, etc.)? Nearly full, but with enough room for them to breathe.

2. Number of inhabitants including all frogs and any fish?: Two juvenile ACFs

3. Water source and any conditioner treatments? : Distilled, no additives water or tap water. Both get treated with Seachem Prime before being added to a tank.

4. Water Temperature and how is it heated (if so)? Room temperature, heat does not get overly hot, does not get overly cold.

5. Water chemistry levels: pH; Ammonia (NH3); Nitrites (NO2); Nitrates (NO3)? Note that if you do not have test kits, most aquariums/pet shops will do complimentary tests if you take a clean water sample. : Going to the pet store today to get an accurate reading.

6. Describe any filter system including model and media? No filter, the tank is 2.5 gallons. I do daily water changes of about 20%[/COLOR]

7. Substrate type? bare bottom

8. Tank set-up (plants (live or artificial), driftwood, hide outs and other decor? - How were things prepared prior to being put into the tank? : All rinsed with chlorinated water, then put in empty tank. There is one vase with two entrance and exit holes.

9. Main frog staple food and any treats? How often you feed? Reptomin Floating sticks and shrimp pellets. I feed them about every other day or every three days.

10. CA, vitamins, and any other additives used (how often)? There is calcium in the reptomin.

11. Lighting set-up and hours it's used? Regular daily lighting of on/off.

12. When is the last time frog ate? They both ate last night

13. Have you found poop lately? I am not too sure what ACF poop looks like! I may have or I may have not. Someone please describe this to me?

14. A picture would be helpful including frog and tank (any including cell phone pics are fine). I think I have fairly recent (about a week or two old) pictures on my photo album.

15. How old is the frog? : Unsure! My guess is about one and a half to two months. It was unclear how old they were when purchased

16. How long have you owned him/her? I have owned Carlos for over a month and Cecil for almost a month.

17. Is the frog wild caught or captive bred? : I believe they are captive.

18. Any medications in the water (treatment dosis and for how long)? : No medicine

19. Any salt in water (how much)? None

20. Is the tank kept in a high or low traffic area? : A fair traffic area

21. Describe tank maintenance to include water changes, cleaning, media changes, etc.): I clean excess food or (presummably) waste daily with a turkey baster. Then I make sure the water is about 20% down and I do a water change with Seachem Prime treated water.

[elliotulysses]

Also, here are some links to videos if this helps anyone determine if they look stressed or if it is normal behavior

Instagram

Instagram

[carsona246]

Make sure the temperature is the same, but in a small tank it's normal for most aquatic things to be a little more active when you are doing a waterchange. I wouldn't worry about it unless they start to show signs of illness.

[elliotulysses]

Make sure the temperature is the same, but in a small tank it's normal for most aquatic things to be a little more active when you are doing a waterchange. I wouldn't worry about it unless they start to show signs of illness.

My apartment tends to get a little warm during the day, but I just direct a tank to their holding area. The temperature is around 74 F

[Mentat]

Hi Eli, frogs in video look fine. Answered some of your questions below. If it was me; would move the frogs into the larger tank now. Get a small bottle of Seachem Stability and follow the label instruction and treat new tank with frogs in it for two weeks or until nitrites hit zero. Then follow on with normal water changes (around 20% weekly) using dechlorinated tap water. Seachem Prime is good and would stay away from any conditioners with Aloe due to binders interfering with frogs skin functions .

...

3. Water source and any conditioner treatments? : Distilled, no additives water or tap water. Both get treated with Seachem Prime before being added to a tank.
Should not use distilled water with frogs, live plants, or fish.

6. Describe any filter system including model and media? No filter, the tank is 2.5 gallons. I do daily water changes of about 20%
Frogs being more "active" during your cleaning or water changes is normal. They are just trying to get away from the giant hands and can't.

13. Have you found poop lately? I am not too sure what ACF poop looks like! I may have or I may have not. Someone please describe this to me?
When feeding ReptoMin poop looks similar to it.

[elliotulysses]

Hi Eli, frogs in video look fine. Answered some of your questions below. If it was me; would move the frogs into the larger tank now. Get a small bottle of Seachem Stability and follow the label instruction and treat new tank with frogs in it for two weeks or until nitrites hit zero. Then follow on with normal water changes (around 20% weekly) using dechlorinated tap water. Seachem Prime is good and would stay away from any conditioners with Aloe due to binders interfering with frogs skin functions .

What I've been finding as stool ends up being kind of dust-like.
I did at a tiny bit of API's Stress Coat + because they seemed a little upset, but it does make sense as to why they are scared.

My big tank is not completely cycled and I was using janitorial ammonia to get the biofilter started. Should I do a complete, or nearly complete change then use Seachem?

[elliotulysses]

Also it is very reassuring to see that their behavior is pretty normal! And they look so majestic when they swim.
Should Prime be a good product to deal with stress? It is supposed to help with reducing stress.

[mpmistr]

You may be over thinking your approach to these frogs. They are actually quite easy to keep. The room temperature of 74F is a bit warmer than Xenopus prefer but it's not life threatening, if you could get it a few degrees lower in your home they'd probably appreciate it.

Anyways, ACF to swim around a lot, they're also very skittish. My small male is kept in a 10 gallon tank so he can grow large enough to join my big tank.. at night he swims around like a total spaz. They like to swim, they're fairly active frogs actually.

I believe these frogs are being kept in 2.5 gallons? Way too small for these guys, but I know it's a temporary home until your larger tank cycles. That being said, they probably aren't jumping for joy being in such a small tank right now.

In my opinion ACF with a good 'run away' reflex is a sign of a healthy frog. If the frog did not react to stimuli, I'd be worried. In the wild things that scare them should induce a flight instinct, it's in essence how they keep alive. Of course they shouldn't be startled often but it does happen. (My frogs freak when I close the living room door some times)

If you are using Prime don't bother with Stress Coat, they in essence do the same thing.

[elliotulysses]

You may be over thinking your approach to these frogs. They are actually quite easy to keep. The room temperature of 74F is a bit warmer than Xenopus prefer but it's not life threatening, if you could get it a few degrees lower in your home they'd probably appreciate it.

Anyways, ACF to swim around a lot, they're also very skittish. My small male is kept in a 10 gallon tank so he can grow large enough to join my big tank.. at night he swims around like a total spaz. They like to swim, they're fairly active frogs actually.

I believe these frogs are being kept in 2.5 gallons? Way too small for these guys, but I know it's a temporary home until your larger tank cycles. That being said, they probably aren't jumping for joy being in such a small tank right now.

In my opinion ACF with a good 'run away' reflex is a sign of a healthy frog. If the frog did not react to stimuli, I'd be worried. In the wild things that scare them should induce a flight instinct, it's in essence how they keep alive. Of course they shouldn't be startled often but it does happen. (My frogs freak when I close the living room door some times)

If you are using Prime don't bother with Stress Coat, they in essence do the same thing.

Unfortunately I don't have much control over my heat except for turning on/off a fan which is directed towards the tank. Later on, when they are in their bigger tank I can get the water to cool down to 68 F or so, which should be better?

And to be clear, they aren't fully grown, just kind of in a baby stage still. I would put them in the tank I'm cycling, but I would worry about their health! And I would have to probably do something like a 100% water change. And then, my aquarium is still not fully cycled.

[elliotulysses]

You may be over thinking your approach to these frogs. They are actually quite easy to keep. The room temperature of 74F is a bit warmer than Xenopus prefer but it's not life threatening, if you could get it a few degrees lower in your home they'd probably appreciate it.

Anyways, ACF to swim around a lot, they're also very skittish. My small male is kept in a 10 gallon tank so he can grow large enough to join my big tank.. at night he swims around like a total spaz. They like to swim, they're fairly active frogs actually.

I believe these frogs are being kept in 2.5 gallons? Way too small for these guys, but I know it's a temporary home until your larger tank cycles. That being said, they probably aren't jumping for joy being in such a small tank right now.

In my opinion ACF with a good 'run away' reflex is a sign of a healthy frog. If the frog did not react to stimuli, I'd be worried. In the wild things that scare them should induce a flight instinct, it's in essence how they keep alive. Of course they shouldn't be startled often but it does happen. (My frogs freak when I close the living room door some times)

If you are using Prime don't bother with Stress Coat, they in essence do the same thing.

Also I may look into something like this Marineland Classic 4 Gallon Hidden LED Desktop Kit at PETCO as a temporary home. Should I do something like purchase this and get Seachem Stability? Or, as I am waiting to find out
Just do a water change and use the Stability.

[Mentat]

Agree with Michael; these frogs are not fragile. The transfer can be done right now. Do not add any more ammonia to 20G and wait until ammonia reads 0. Make sure that janitorial ammonia has no other cleaning ingredients on it; if so, that could be very bad.

If 20G is full of distilled water do a 50% water change with dechlorinated tap before transferring frogs. Move frogs and start using the Seachem Stability for 2 weeks. You are done .

[elliotulysses]

You may be over thinking your approach to these frogs. They are actually quite easy to keep. The room temperature of 74F is a bit warmer than Xenopus prefer but it's not life threatening, if you could get it a few degrees lower in your home they'd probably appreciate it.

Anyways, ACF to swim around a lot, they're also very skittish. My small male is kept in a 10 gallon tank so he can grow large enough to join my big tank.. at night he swims around like a total spaz. They like to swim, they're fairly active frogs actually.

I believe these frogs are being kept in 2.5 gallons? Way too small for these guys, but I know it's a temporary home until your larger tank cycles. That being said, they probably aren't jumping for joy being in such a small tank right now.

In my opinion ACF with a good 'run away' reflex is a sign of a healthy frog. If the frog did not react to stimuli, I'd be worried. In the wild things that scare them should induce a flight instinct, it's in essence how they keep alive. Of course they shouldn't be startled often but it does happen. (My frogs freak when I close the living room door some times)

If you are using Prime don't bother with Stress Coat, they in essence do the same thing.

Also the stress coat adds aloe, which isn't so great for the fish.

I suppose being in a cramped, slightly warm space would make them stressed out, but hopefully not stressed out enough to get some sort of disease. As a new owner, I'm sure it's common to fear disease, but I should give them more credit. They are a popular lab animal after all. Especially with some genetic experiments and optogenetics.
It's pretty cool to think that you can have a pet that holds the future in it's hands--maybe even giving sight to the blind!