African Dwarf Frogs Questions! Someone With Adfs Please Help.

Hey, so I've been researching African Dwarf Frogs for a while, maybe about two months now. I finally went out today and bought two, and placed them in my 5 gallon tank with my betta. I know they can carry diseases, I knew long before I bought them. But when the worker at PetSmart made me sign the waiver, it started to frighten me. HOW LIKELY IS IT ADFs CARRY AND TRANSMIT DISEASES?? Like from a 1 to 10?? Idk I'm just becoming really paranoid that my frogs might carry diseases and not only pass it to me, but may pass it to my betta. Am I just being paranoid, or is it really likely that these frogs have diseases? Can it spread to my betta? What about fungus? How likely are they to have fungus? I've done my research, but no where says how likely they are to have diseases. They just say "they can carry diseases." I know all animals can carry and transmit diseases, but I'm really panicking that the frogs have like a 90% chance of carrying. Anyone who has Dwarf Frogs, have they ever had any diseases??? Thank you.

 

Uh, salmonella seems to have a small chance. I have owned at least 25 frogs, and have not gotten it. That doesn't mean they have it, though. I'd say usually you don't need to worry. If you don't handle them with your hands, it will be fine

 

Uh, salmonella seems to have a small chance. I have owned at least 25 frogs, and have not gotten it. That doesn't mean they have it, though. I'd say usually you don't need to worry. If you don't handle them with your hands, it will be fine

Thank you, it's just that now that I actually put them in my tank, my brain is coming with scenarios of how they have a disease. Now I feel kind of grossed out. With my betta, I handle the water with my bare hands ( I was it before touching the water and again after touching the water). Now I feel like its gonna be hard to maintain the tank without touching the water with my bare hands. I just read an article that the 2013 Salmonella Outbreak came directly from African Dwarf Frogs. Like I mentioned, I knew they could carry this, but now bc I actually have them, I'm starting to worry about the risks. Have your frogs lived with fish?

How do you clean your tank with them? With my betta, I just use a siphon to vacuum the water and then add new dechlorinated water. And that's it. I couldn't find info on how to clean tanks with dwarf frogs.

 

Are you talking about chytrid fungus? They won't be able to pass it to bettas, it only affects amphibians, and only some amphibians at that. ACFs are known to be immune. If your frogs come from a chain pet store, the likelihood that they have chytrid is much higher than if you got them from a private breeder or a LFS, but it's definitely not to say that they have it for sure. I've gotten frogs from two chain pet stores (will be getting them from breeders in the future), one batch had chytrid and the other didn't.

I clean the tank the same way with frogs as with fish, just be careful not to suck them up when you do gravel vacs. And you will definitely need to do gravel vacs, feeding frogs can be a bit messy and you don't want old food that they didn't catch to sink down into the substrate and start rotting. They usually kind of get out of the way for me during a WC though, and my siphon is small and nowhere near strong enough to suck them up. As for salmonella, I've not owned frogs for long but I've never had an issue with it. Just wash your hands every time you touch their water.

I keep frogs with fish. It's definitely a bit harder and if I were to start over I'd love a species-only tank, but it's possible to keep them together even if it's not recommended.

 

Just so you know, Petsmart has you sign those because frogs are pets and fish can be considered food (such as feeder fish and minnows). The waivers are there as a promise that you are going to take care of the animal to the best of your ability, not harm it by feeding it to another creature, and giving it love and attention. The part about diseases and stuff goes along the same lines as "making sure you take care of it" and that you know what you've gotten yourself into. It's an attempt to make sure their animals are going to homes and not to an animal's stomach. They also keep track of how many you buy, at least ours does.

 

Are you talking about chytrid fungus? They won't be able to pass it to bettas, it only affects amphibians, and only some amphibians at that. ACFs are known to be immune. If your frogs come from a chain pet store, the likelihood that they have chytrid is much higher than if you got them from a private breeder or a LFS, but it's definitely not to say that they have it for sure. I've gotten frogs from two chain pet stores (will be getting them from breeders in the future), one batch had chytrid and the other didn't.

I clean the tank the same way with frogs as with fish, just be careful not to suck them up when you do gravel vacs. And you will definitely need to do gravel vacs, feeding frogs can be a bit messy and you don't want old food that they didn't catch to sink down into the substrate and start rotting. They usually kind of get out of the way for me during a WC though, and my siphon is small and nowhere near strong enough to suck them up. As for salmonella, I've not owned frogs for long but I've never had an issue with it. Just wash your hands every time you touch their water.

I keep frogs with fish. It's definitely a bit harder and if I were to start over I'd love a species-only tank, but it's possible to keep them together even if it's not recommended.

Thank you so much. I wasn't sure what kind of fungus they had exactly, but can they have any type of disease that can potentially be passed on to fish? It's been about an hour or so since they've been in my tank and my betta seems annoyed. They're going to all my bettas "favorite spots". There's fake plant with leaves on it, and my betta LOVES to lay on the leaf at the very top. One of the frog's was laying on it and the betta flared at it. I might remove the frogs and return them to the store. I don't want my betta to be stressed by the frog's even the slightest. I'm not sure if PetSmart will let me return them, but I'll call them tomorrow. I'm gonna put the frog's in a separate tank bc my betta seemed so much happier alone. And I don't want to purchase another tank for the frog's bc now I'm having my doubts about them. Thank you so much for you help

 

I’ve kept seven ADFS during my life and five ACFS. My ADFS have lived with other ADFS, bettas, goldfish (temporarily), guppies and snails. I handle the water and the animals with my bare hands and often forget to wash myself off well afterwards. I have never gotten sick, nor had a fish or other amphibian get sick from the introduction of them. It’s okay to worry, but I’d say it’s a pretty slI'm chance of them transmitting anything to you or your fish. They should be just fine . I also have geckos, which everyone is worried about getting salmonella from, but I have never gotten it.

The betta is probably just worried about the new arrivals, you don’t need to return them unless one animal starts being aggressive towards the other. Otherwise they’ll adjust to each other being around and be fine.

 

If you do decide to keep them, wouldn’t worry too much hun. They make you sign those bc they don’t wanna get sued if someone does get a disease allegedly from a frog the store sold them. Of course they can carry diseases but so can any pet. As long as you take proper precautions like plenty of hand washing I’m sure you’ll be just fine.

 

Just so you know, Petsmart has you sign those because frogs are pets and fish can be considered food (such as feeder fish and minnows). The waivers are there as a promise that you are going to take care of the animal to the best of your ability, not harm it by feeding it to another creature, and giving it love and attention. The part about diseases and stuff goes along the same lines as "making sure you take care of it" and that you know what you've gotten yourself into. It's an attempt to make sure their animals are going to homes and not to an animal's stomach. They also keep track of how many you buy, at least ours does.

Maybe it could be that as well, but when reading the waiver, it only talks about the risks of diseases being transferred to humans. I'm 50/50 on whether I should return the frogs or not. I actually bought this tank FOR the frogs, but my local pet store didn't have any. So I bought a betta instead. And I've had him for maybe two weeks and today I finally got the frogs. But I'm not sure what to do.

 

Just so you know, Petsmart has you sign those because frogs are pets and fish can be considered food (such as feeder fish and minnows). The waivers are there as a promise that you are going to take care of the animal to the best of your ability, not harm it by feeding it to another creature, and giving it love and attention. The part about diseases and stuff goes along the same lines as "making sure you take care of it" and that you know what you've gotten yourself into. It's an attempt to make sure their animals are going to homes and not to an animal's stomach. They also keep track of how many you buy, at least ours does.

So does mine. I've gotten 5; shame that they came with chytrid. I lost 2 of the 5 and the other 3 are in post-treatment quarantine, but their whole stock is probably infected.

If your betta doesn't calm down in a few days, I would agree with your decision to separate them. Another reason to separate them is if the frogs start lunging at the betta; their eyesight is bad and they can mistake long flowing fins for food. I wouldn't worry too much about transmitting diseases to fish though, the only thing I might worry about is chytrid which doesn't affect fish or humans but is fatal for ADFs.

 

I’ve kept seven ADFS during my life and five ACFS. My ADFS have lived with other ADFS, bettas, goldfish (temporarily), guppies and snails. I handle the water and the animals with my bare hands and often forget to wash myself off well afterwards. I have never gotten sick, nor had a fish or other amphibian get sick from the introduction of them. It’s okay to worry, but I’d say it’s a pretty slI'm chance of them transmitting anything to you or your fish. They should be just fine . I also have geckos, which everyone is worried about getting salmonella from, but I have never gotten it.

The betta is probably just worried about the new arrivals, you don’t need to return them unless one animal starts being aggressive towards the other. Otherwise they’ll adjust to each other being around and be fine.

Thank you for your response, my sister told me the same thing, that the betta was just "checking them out". That's why I'm 50/50 on returning them. Maybe I'll give it a few more days and see how they are. Maybe I am worrying a bit too much. I'll give it a couple more days before returning.

 

I agree with Fizzfrog, I actually volunteered in a lab for three years studying chytrid and it is only dangerous to amphibians. And salmonella does not effect fish, only humans. You can avoid that as long as you wash your hands after handling them. Oh, and I have found bettas and ADFS to be quite compatible. In fact, one of my bettas and ADF became best friends after just a few weeks living together. Give it some time, hopefully he’ll warm up to them.

 

So does mine. I've gotten 5; shame that they came with chytrid. I lost 2 of the 5 and the other 3 are in post-treatment quarantine, but their whole stock is probably infected.

If your betta doesn't calm down in a few days, I would agree with your decision to separate them. Another reason to separate them is if the frogs start lunging at the betta; their eyesight is bad and they can mistake long flowing fins for food. I wouldn't worry too much about transmitting diseases to fish though, the only thing I might worry about is chytrid which doesn't affect fish or humans but is fatal for ADFs.

Thank you, I actually never heard/read about that type of fungus until that response from the user. I'll look into it. I was mostly worried about any type of fungus bc I read they are prone to it. They haven't bothered my betta yet, just his favorite hangout areas. I'll give it a few days.

I agree with Fizzfrog, I actually volunteered in a lab for three years studying chytrid and it is only dangerous to amphibians. And salmonella does not effect fish, only humans. You can avoid that as long as you wash your hands after handling them. Oh, and I have found bettas and ADFS to be quite compatible. In fact, one of my bettas and ADF became best friends after just a few weeks living together. Give it some time, hopefully he’ll warm up to them.

Thank you so much. Yeah I'm gonna give it a few days. I'm certain if I return them I'll regret it lol. I'll see how they get along for the next few days.

So now, not only is my betta flaring at the frogs, but he's starting to physically attack them. He flares, then nips them or headbutts them. I can't really tell if he's biting them or just headbutting because my betta is almost completely black around the face, so it's hard to tell. So I decided it's best for both the frogs and betta if I separate them.
I grabbed a small tank I had from an old fish from when I was a kid. And placed them in there. Now I don't know what to do. I'll keep them for a couple days and see whether I should return or keep them in a separate tank.

Thanks again to everyone who replied to my thread. I'm "new" to aquatics. Obviously I've had fish before, like most people, but haven't since I was in middle school, and now I'm old enough to know the "proper care" of animals. So all the advice given to me is really appreciated

 

Good thing you separated them. I had to get a new tank for my Betta. He was eating the frogs. They CAN get along, but often do not. In our case, they didn't.

 

Thank you, it's just that now that I actually put them in my tank, my brain is coming with scenarios of how they have a disease. Now I feel kind of grossed out. With my betta, I handle the water with my bare hands ( I was it before touching the water and again after touching the water). Now I feel like its gonna be hard to maintain the tank without touching the water with my bare hands. I just read an article that the 2013 Salmonella Outbreak came directly from African Dwarf Frogs. Like I mentioned, I knew they could carry this, but now bc I actually have them, I'm starting to worry about the risks. Have your frogs lived with fish?

How do you clean your tank with them? With my betta, I just use a siphon to vacuum the water and then add new dechlorinated water. And that's it. I couldn't find info on how to clean tanks with dwarf frogs.

wash your hands with soap and water when your done. No big deal. My friend has turtles they are worse. Same answer.

 

Well it sounds like the betta was more of an impulse buy whereas the ADF were what you had wanted all along so if you were going to return one you might want to think about which one you really want to keep, not which one you bought first.

 

So I placed the frogs back in the betta tank and have been watching them for the past two days (the tank is on my study desk, which is where I am most of the day). And my betta has been completely ignoring them. He doesn't flare at them or anything anymore. He doesn't even pay attention to them period. Just swims around the tank like the frogs aren't even there. I guess he was just investigating them the other day.

But I've noticed one of my frogs have been in the Hideout all day. Like I've been studying for hours now, and not once did I see the frog even come up for air. But it is moving around and will come out the Hideout slightly then go back in. It is shedding. And I read that excessive shedding can be caused by chytrid. So now I think my frogs might have it, especially since I got them from PetSmart . What are some other symptoms of chytrid?

They have been eating. And the second frog, a male, is swimming around, going up for air and is singing.

I'm just hoping it's only in the Hideout because it's in a new environment and wants to get use to the tank. I did change the water yesterday and had to take them out. Maybe because I had to take them out and put them back in caused stressed and that's why it's hiding? Or maybe it's scared of my betta? Also, I know they're nocturnal, so maybe it's just resting and will be more active when the room is darker? I just hope it's one of these reasons and not chytrid.

 

My ADFs would shed occasionally because they’re amphibians, and all amphibians shed. The flaky skin associated with chytrid doesn’t look like regular shedding, it looks like the frog tried to shed and got stuck in the middle for days or weeks on end. Unless the frog continues to show flaky and unhealthy looking skin for a prolonged period of time, it is probably fine. A frog with chytrid would be lethargic and sit in awkward postures, interspersed by periods of thrashing and trying to climb out of the tank. It also typically infects the belly of the frog first, and it would’ve most likely been displaying these symptoms before you noticed flaky skin.

I have also noticed that some ADFs are just more shy. They would frequently hide during the day, hardly ever coming up for air, and then get more active at night. Some are more outgoing, spending their time exploring the tank even during daylight hours. Keep an eye on your frog, but he is probably just a shy guy who is in the middle of a good shed .

 

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My ADFs would shed occasionally because they’re amphibians, and all amphibians shed. The flaky skin associated with chytrid doesn’t look like regular shedding, it looks like the frog tried to shed and got stuck in the middle for days or weeks on end. Unless the frog continues to show flaky and unhealthy looking skin for a prolonged period of time, it is probably fine. A frog with chytrid would be lethargic and sit in awkward postures, interspersed by periods of thrashing and trying to climb out of the tank. It also typically infects the belly of the frog first, and it would’ve most likely been displaying these symptoms before you noticed flaky skin.

I have also noticed that some ADFs are just more shy. They would frequently hide during the day, hardly ever coming up for air, and then get more active at night. Some are more outgoing, spending their time exploring the tank even during daylight hours. Keep an eye on your frog, but he is probably just a shy guy who is in the middle of a good shed .

Yeah, after my post I read some more about chytrid and what you said is exactly what I read lol. So it finally came out when I started feeding them! It's swimming around, eating, and most importantly, it finally came up for air. I think you're right, maybe it was just a little shy. Because as soon a a pellet went near the Hideout, it came out immediately lol. It doesn't appear to have shedding skin anymore, it looks fine. And none have tried to "crawl out".

Thanks for the advice, hopefully they don't have chytrid bc it usually doesn't show symptoms until two months. So I won't be at ease until I've had them for three months haha.

And thankfully, my betta doesn't even like their food, so I don't have to worry about him eating their food.

 

I’m glad hes looking better and has an appetite, that’s always a good sign! I know where you’re coming from, I was introduced to chytrid when I was very young via a documentary and I was always concerned a frog of mine would get it. But, so far, even after years of keeping them, I’ve never had one contract it.

Oh, and I know I mentioned I studied chytrid in a lab for a bit, and part of that project was actually researching a cure. Hopefully some day that’ll get made, and then we don’t have to worry anymore!

 

So I placed the frogs back in the betta tank and have been watching them for the past two days (the tank is on my study desk, which is where I am most of the day). And my betta has been completely ignoring them. He doesn't flare at them or anything anymore. He doesn't even pay attention to them period. Just swims around the tank like the frogs aren't even there. I guess he was just investigating them the other day.

But I've noticed one of my frogs have been in the Hideout all day. Like I've been studying for hours now, and not once did I see the frog even come up for air. But it is moving around and will come out the Hideout slightly then go back in. It is shedding. And I read that excessive shedding can be caused by chytrid. So now I think my frogs might have it, especially since I got them from PetSmart . What are some other symptoms of chytrid?

They have been eating. And the second frog, a male, is swimming around, going up for air and is singing.

I'm just hoping it's only in the Hideout because it's in a new environment and wants to get use to the tank. I did change the water yesterday and had to take them out. Maybe because I had to take them out and put them back in caused stressed and that's why it's hiding? Or maybe it's scared of my betta? Also, I know they're nocturnal, so maybe it's just resting and will be more active when the room is darker? I just hope it's one of these reasons and not chytrid.

They shed more when stressed. Which is normal when they are in a new environment. I wouldn’t worry about the fact that one of them shedded. Also it’s fine that one of them is hiding out. They hide out a lot. When I first got my ADFs my betta flared at them. And they lunged at him and tour the betas fin. And now they’re all friends. I’m actually having issues keeping them on the same tank for other reasons but I’m gonna try and keep them together because they are now a family and are connected to each other. Just my experience. I am new as well and by no means am I doing a good job with my ADFs This is just what I’ve learned.

 

Thanks for everyone's help. It's been a week now and they are getting along fine. No flaring or anything. They stay out of each other's way for the most part. Theres no trouble feeding them either. So everyone's pretty much happy.