Check This Frog Out!!!

My parents live in town and have a small fish pond in their yard. When they dumped the pond out for the winter they found this in there!!! How on earth does something like this find it's way to the middle of town?!?!?




Oh yeah, that's my sister, in my old room......

wow - what a pretty little "big" frog. Whatcha gonna do with him?

He's in the tank.....I think he will survive the winter inside???

I think your parents need to find out the species .... and go from there ...

It's hard to tell from the picture, but from the speckled belly, he/she/it looks like a plain ole' American bullfrog to me I have a family of them living in the drain tile underneath my driveway. They burrow deep, deep into the mud for the winter, below the frost line. I'm not sure how he would fare inside. They are carnivores, they eat bugs, grubs, smaller amphibs.

Sis has a small pond/water feature and frogs have moved in. One was named Jeremiah (what else? ) but their cat Packy did him in.

So Jeremiah really was a bullfrog...

Originally Posted by Skippymjp

It's hard to tell from the picture, but from the speckled belly, he/she/it looks like a plain ole' American bullfrog to me

I have a family of them living in the drain tile underneath my driveway. They burrow deep, deep into the mud for the winter, below the frost line. I'm not sure how he would fare inside. They are carnivores, they eat bugs, grubs, smaller amphibs.

Click to expand...

Hmm....maybe if they keep buying small fish he will be ok? I think he's been in there about 2 months now.

grubs( simliar to a meal worm) and crickets are avail at the local pet store

Another good feeder is superworms, they're very active. Crickets move a lot too.
Waxworms - probably what sharky is thinking of since they sort of look like grubs, are not really good for a main staple feeder -too fatty.
There's also butterworms, silkworms, phoenix worms (black soldier fly larvae), and nightcrawlers. The first 3 might be harder for them to find, but nightcrawlers shouldn't be.

Tell your parents and sis to look up care sheets for the frog. What are they keeping it in? size?


And it's no surprise that the frog was making a home in their little pond. We've moved into their territory and are steadily taking away more of it. They adapt the best they can or disappear from some areas all together.

If he's in the tank behind your sis, do not assume that those fish are safe
Frogs can and will eat anything that will fit in their mouth.
This means that they can eat things as big and sometimes bigger than they are.

Originally Posted by Arlyn

If he's in the tank behind your sis, do not assume that those fish are safe

Frogs can and will eat anything that will fit in their mouth.
This means that they can eat things as big and sometimes bigger than they are.

Click to expand...

Oh my!!!! I didn't even think about that! That would explain why the fish pond outside seemed to have less fish!!! Those are the fish from the pond as well I think I might have to tell them to make another tank just for him!

please remember the frog needs land also

feed him small fish that will be good enough for him, like feeder goldfish and some big worms

Preferably not feeder goldfish. These are often kept in dirty conditions and are high in fat. Minnows are a better choice.

its a wild bullfrog its probably been eating a lot less healthy things then pet store bred feeder goldfish

Originally Posted by chausiefan

its a wild bullfrog its probably been eating a lot less healthy things then pet store bred feeder goldfish

Click to expand...

There are different bacteria that can be found in captive environments that aren't in the wild.
Think of it as when a person travels from one region to another and often gets mildly sick from the food or water.
The frog may not have a very good immunity against something it's never been exposed to. This is why many, if not all, states don't want you releasing animals back into the wild. They could be carrying something the local population isn't immune to.

And as I already said, goldfish are a poor choice for a feeder. Ask anyone that keeps herps and they'll tell you the same.

Thats one super froggie!!!

From my experience with bullfrogs they can be hard to keep inside.

#1- Bullfrog tadpoles thrive in fish ponds outside, you must have a wild pond very close by and a bullfrog layed eggs in your pond or a frog "moved" into your pond, OR you somehow purchased a small tadpole with your goldfish and it grew unnoticed in the pond, bullfrog tads are commonly sold in with the goldfish.

#2- In captivity, 1 adult bullfrog needs 20 gallons or more, they hop so hard, if they arent given enough room they knock themselves against the tank so hard and so often they can break their bones or have serious head trauma. They like deep water to swim in, but also need land to rest (more water than land)

#3- Bullfrogs will eat anything, but sometimes they do poor in captivity and wont eat and will starve to death, especially tadpoles you raised that turn into tiny bullfrogs. But being yours is from the wild, most likely it will have a hearty appetite.

What to feed looking at its size- large crickets,minnows (not goldfish they carry so much disease),silkworms,large earthworms,cockroaches (not the pest roaches in your house!),waxworms as a treat they are very fatty and bullfrogs will always beg for food and become overweight, even pinkie mice (frozen), I guess it would have to thaw out and you would have to move it in front of the frog so it sees it (but you DONT NEED to feed mice the other stuff is fine given variety)

It will eat your fish if kept in the same tank!

#4- Bullfrogs do hibernate, so if you release him now he will die, it's too cold for him. Thats why he was under the mud at the bottom of your pond, he was hibernating.

You could try keeping him until next year when you see the wild frogs come out of hibernation.

This site is good on basic care, though when they say a 10 gallon is ok thats incorrect.
http://www.grizzlyrun.com/Pets/Amphi...og/Default.htm

Thanks everyone! They have him in a toute now with land and water. We'll see how he does I guess. They went to their local pet store to get some help from the owner there.