African Clawed Frogs - big one keeps messing with the baby

hello! I just bought 2 clawed frogs. one is pretty big and the other one is a baby. they are in a 10 gal very happy with plenty room to swim. The big one keeps messing with the baby and eating all the food before the baby gets any. he also nibbles on the baby and I have to tap the glass to break them up. help!

 

Ten gallons is WAAAAAY too small for African clawed frogs. They get like the size of a softball.
African DWARF frogs can be in a 10g, but not the African CLAWED frogs.

You can try hand feeding the little one. But it sounds like the bigger one might end up killing him anyway. Especially due to the small tank size. You need a much larger tank if you want to keep African clawed frogs.

 

I have my adf in a 20 gallon and it seems they even need more space then the 20. I'm sure for now a 10 will work, but you should think about upgrading or at the very least only keeping one in the 10 gallon. Just a thought. Also, I have to target feed my adf because they can't c well and other fish and inverts steal his food, it can be a pain but I love my frog and want him to live a long happy life. Best of luck.

 

Ten gallons is WAAAAAY too small for African clawed frogs. They get like the size of a softball.
African DWARF frogs can be in a 10g, but not the African CLAWED frogs.

You can try hand feeding the little one. But it sounds like the bigger one might end up killing him anyway. Especially due to the small tank size. You need a much larger tank if you want to keep African clawed frogs.

do all of them get the size of a golf all?!!!!??!?? oh geez what did I get myself into

 

do all of them get the size of a golf all?!!!!??!?? oh geez what did I get myself into

No not golf ball, even bigger....softball. Which is even bigger than a baseball!
Baseball sized might be a bit more accurate on average. (assuming they are fed properly and kept in appropriate tank size) Sadly they will not do well in a 10g. And based on what you describe, the little one might not last much longer at all. :-(

I'd suggest you rehome them. Bring them back to the store. If you like frogs and 10 gallon is the best you can do, try and find some African dwarf frogs. They stay very small and two would be fine in a 10 gallon

I have my adf in a 20 gallon and it seems they even need more space then the 20. I'm sure for now a 10 will work, but you should think about upgrading or at the very least only keeping one in the 10 gallon. Just a thought. Also, I have to target feed my adf because they can't c well and other fish and inverts steal his food, it can be a pain but I love my frog and want him to live a long happy life. Best of luck.

These are not ADFs. They are much much MUUUCH larger than ADFs.

 

i’ll get my baby out of there asap. I had a clawedfrog a little while ago and he grew a little bigger then a gold ball. he was in a 3 gal and did fine. I have done so so much research and everyone said 10 gal per frog. maybe it’s different frogs. I don’t think all of them get to be as big as a softball just some.

These are not ADFs. They are much much MUUUCH larger than ADFs.

I know i’ve had one before who only grew the size of a golf ball and lived in a 3 gal and was the happiest thing ever.

 

LilBlub has ACF, maybe she can be of assistance.

 

These are not ADFs. They are much much MUUUCH larger than ADFs.

Yeah I was just saying adf even need larger tanks as mine is needing more space, so I can only imagine aa frog much larger in a tank half the size of mine. No offence to op, I been thete where my tank wasn't suitable for the pet I kept.

 

I know i’ve had one before who only grew the size of a golf ball and lived in a 3 gal and was the happiest thing ever.

Probably only got as big as a golfball due to the tank being extremely small. He was likely stunted. And lifespan likely shortened :-(

Yeah I was just saying adf even need larger tanks as mine is needing more space, so I can only imagine aa frog much larger in a tank half the size of mine. No offence to op, I been thete where my tank wasn't suitable for the pet I kept.

OH! I see. I was just making sure!! Its easy to overlook the middle word "clawed" and just thnk African dwarf frog. In fact, I was hoping that the OP may have had it wrong. LOL (no offense OP)

 

Yes I agree with bizaliz3 , this is not to offend you at all op, but stunted growth is a very real thing in all aquatic life. Most of us have made the mistake of cramming them into a tank not suited for their full grown self. Its an issue that's easily fixed, if you can't afford more tanks then you can use a plastic tub, I have used them as qt for my ill fish in the past, just a thought. But it is ultimatly up to you (op) to either take the advice or continue on as you are. Either way I would separate the baby just to give it better odds.

 

I did some reading and discovered that the males do stay much smaller than the females (I had a female years ago but had to rehome her)....so maybe it was a boy you had in the 3 gallon. Either way, did it live 10+ years? Because they are supposedly able to live 10-20 years. If it only lasted a couple years, then the argument that it was perfectly fine doesn't apply :-(

During my reading it seems that most websites feel that 10 gallon is the minimum for ONE African clawed frog. Maybe for a male. but females can get like 6 inches. I don't think a 6 inch frog should be in a 10g. But maybe that's just me. No one would be ok with a 6 inch fish in a 10g. But I suppose frogs are different.

Based on the size of the female I had years ago....I just can't imagine them being kept in such a small tank

 

That's interesting to know. Keep in mind op, larger tanks are easier to maintain also. So it may benifit both you and the frogs to go larger. But if this is not an option then just take the wee baby out for now and keep up on water changes. Best of luck. I love the aquatic frogs, they have so much personality.

 

Yeah, I have five of these, they’re gigantic. They’re in a 40 gallon tank. Here’s my biggest female:


That being said, they will not become stunted the way fish are. I had mine in a 20 gallon for years and they all wound up huge. So if you need to temporarily keep them in a 10 gallon, they will be fine until you can get a bigger tank.

Also, if there is too much of a size difference the baby might get eaten. If not, then the biting is pretty normal. Mine have flung each other around! But they have no teeth and they’re fairly flexible and squishy, so they’ve never been hurt. If you’re worried he’s not getting enough food, hand-feeding would work. They’re very smart and easy to train, so you could teach him to swim up to your fingers.

If you do rehome the baby, make sure you get a companion for the bigger one. They’re very social frogs.

 

Oh gawd, I just got the heebie jeebies

 

omg so they are like adf but much MUCH bigger? that's crazy huge. verry cool for sure

 

They’re essentially huge ADFs (with some minor differences, but the same general look). They’re very unique frogs, both in appearance and behavior. For example, when they’re kept with other ACFs (which they should be) they’ll make “stacks”!:

 

mine are babies right now. they have warmed up to each other and are doing fine. since they are babies i’m keeping them in the 10 gal for now, but when they grow in a few months i’ll get a 30 gal. they have a heater and plenty of room to swim with each other since they are small.


there are over 20 species of clawed frogs so depending on the specie of your frog, they will grow big. mine are Xenopus Laevis so they will get like the picture one of you sent. one they start growing like I said I will get a 30 gal.

the last frog I had was super healthy he was a western clawed frog (Xenopus Tropicalis) he lived to be 5 and 1/2 but I forgot to put the lid on one night and we’ll you know what happened.

also LilBlub you can hold them when they’re older?

LilBlub and was that a tuttI fruitI clawed frog in the background? I was going to get one but people said they I next then with dyes so later on the get sick and dye, don’t last long.
but how is yours doing??

do you keep males and females together in the same 40 gal?

 

I have one male and four females (the male is itty bitty compared to them!). They actually just had babies, so don’t keep them together unless you want to care for a whole lot of tadpoles someday.

Yes, you can pick them up, but they feel like raw egg. Very slimy and squishy! You shouldn’t hold them for too long, since they’re amphibians, but handling them for a few seconds now and then is fine.

The frog in the background is albino, she just looks kinda yellow under certain lighting. You definitely shouldn’t get “tuttI fruiti” frogs. Here’s a better picture of her:


And here’s all five of mine together (they like to cuddle):

 

OMG THATS SO CUTE!! Yesterday mine held hands literally it was so cute

3DB1CAFC-E3B7-476E-AD3D-9EE9FBF77C48

• Sofievinson7787
• May 17, 2018

2D008498-B211-4E23-92B6-C4E25D832FC3

• Sofievinson7787
• May 17, 2018

this is murphy and then the albino one is chicken strip (CS) don’t ask lol my sister wouldn’t let me name him anything different other then that even tho it’s mt frog

 

They’re so cute! I love it when they hold hands.

Looking at the pictures, there definitely isn’t too much of a size difference. I wouldn’t worry about Murphy getting hurt. They’re shockingly hardy animals.

 

Thanks so much! i’ll update in a few months on size!

 

I hope your guys do really well! They do grow quick, I’ve had mine for five years and they did most of their growing in the first year or two.

 

Thank you so so much for all of your help!! it’s super reassuring! once they start growing i’ll for sure get 30 gallons!

 

hey again! okay so I have a few questions! My african clawed tank is super dirty. I just took out 50% of their water and it’s still a freaking mess! plants tipped over gravel uneven and everywhere and heater half submerged! they seem so happy with it half full tho! even my baby who is always hiding he’s out swimming! but my heater is half submerged and needs to be 100% so I was thinking to do a full water change but people say not to do that with clawed frogs? also should I put a filter in?? i’ve heard to clawed frogs it’s like a jack hammer to human ears. do I need a heater? do I need a filter? they are supposed to be kept 68-70 degrees and their tank is at 72 and without heater it’s at 67.. if I don’t need a heater I can leave the water where it is or can I do a 100% water change ??

ONLY PEOPLE WITH AFRICAN CLAWED FROGS HELP PLS! LilBlub

 

I don't know much so I'm sporry I can't really help, but all aquatics pets need a filter. I would ditch the heater til winter as optimal temp ( for an adf) is 78f I assume they are similar.

 

I have a filter with my frogs, and they don’t seem to mind it. In fact, sometimes they enjoy sitting under it. I’ve read the same things about them being very sensitive to water movement, but as long as you don’t have an excessively disruptive filter they should be okay.

I have my heater set at 72, so that should be fine. Keep in mind, they live in tropical Africa, so the water would get a lot warmer than 72 degrees in the wild!

Your frogs are exploring right now because you just did a water change, and they’re very curious about those sorts of things. It’s not necessarily that they like the water level better, and I’d recommend filling it up more so the heater doesn’t malfunction. I once forgot to turn off a heater when doing a 100% water change on a fish tank and it got so hot it melted the rubber suction cups keeping it on the glass!

As for the gravel and the plants, you may want to just remove those and try them in a different tank. African clawed frogs will eventually uproot any plants you have with them. I strongly recommend sand or bare bottom substrate because once the frogs get big enough, they’ll start swallowing the gravel.

 

LilBlub you’re a live saver.
another question tho.. can I do a 100% water change? I think I would have to so I can get all of the gravel out and stuff but my sister and won’t let me because she thinks it will hurt them to do 100% water changes. i’ve read that it can stress them out enough to kill them because it’s 100% new.. i’m so stressed lol idk what to do

 

That’s definitely not true. I used to keep mine in a 20 gallon with no filter, and every couple weeks I had to do 100% water changes. I just scooped them out (with my hands, as nets can hurt them) and put them in a little bucket while I cleaned the tank. Moving them to the bigger tank with a filter definitely improved both their lives and mine!

 

I always took my frogs fully out of the water and put them in a small container while I did complete water changes once a week or two (not a very good idea tbh), but they were adfs, not acfs. I really don't think it'll stress them out a ton, but every frog is different. i'd definitely get a good filter though. sponge filters work better for frogs than hob or whatever.

 

really! that’s so good to know!! after you get the tank set up do you have to wait like 1-2 days before putting them in?

I always took my frogs fully out of the water and put them in a small container while I did complete water changes once a week or two (not a very good idea tbh), but they were adfs, not acfs. I really don't think it'll stress them out a ton, but every frog is different. i'd definitely get a good filter though. sponge filters work better for frogs than hob or whatever.

I have a tetra 2-10I internal filter

 

ohhh, I thought I read that you didn't have a filter. nvm then.

 

I put mine in right away and just monitored the parameters really closely. If there was ammonia I would do a partial water change. ACFs are super hardy, so they don’t really mind if the parameters get a little weird. Just treat it the way you would a fish-in cycle.

 

I put mine in right away and just monitored the parameters really closely. If there was ammonia I would do a partial water change. ACFs are super hardy, so they don’t really mind if the parameters get a little weird. Just treat it the way you would a fish-in cycle.

thank youuuuuuu!!

so i’ll do a 100% water change tonight, take plants and gravel out and leave some hiding spaces and do a bare bottom !

 

You’re planning to get a bigger tank soon, right? If that’s the case, you may be able to leave the gravel in because they’ll be in a new tank by the time they’re big enough to swallow it.

 

probably not for about 3-4 more months! I know I know it’s a long ways away but i’m in a apt rn and we’re moving to our new house in 4 months so i’ll have enough space. my baby (murphy) is 3-4 weeks and chicken strip is 5 months



that’s how big they are murphy’s the green and chicken strip is the golden albino

 

I just bout a set of 4 great 10 gallon sponge filters of ebay for,, wait for it..... $8!!! they are great and nicly made. work wonderfully incase you are in the marke. I too thought you said you DIDNT have a filter. sorry my comment wasn't helpful at all. but maybe this one will be lol

hhahahahah HICKEN STRIP!!!!???? HAHAHAHA that's so funny

 

I just bout a set of 4 great 10 gallon sponge filters of ebay for,, wait for it..... $8!!! they are great and nicly made. work wonderfully incase you are in the marke. I too thought you said you DIDNT have a filter. sorry my comment wasn't helpful at all. but maybe this one will be lol

I don’t have a filter in their tank but I do have one I just don’t use it but LilBlub said to put it in so tonight when I do my 100% water change I will put a filter and keep their heater in

hhahahahah HICKEN STRIP!!!!???? HAHAHAHA that's so funny

Lol! he looks like a uncooked chicken strip lol!

 

Yeah... You definitely should take all the gravel out. They’ll be able to swallow the smaller pieces within a month or two.

 

omg ok ok i’ll take it all out tonight
yikes I feel like i’ve been abusing my froggos

 

What I mean by hicken is......chicken lol

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