How do I feed my African Dwarf Frogs?

I have three African Dwarf frogs and I am very confused about how to feed them. The food that I have for them is frog and tadpole pellets. I would really like to know how people feed their frogs, how often and how many pellets. Do guys recommend buying frozen blood worms for my frogs to eat?

 

I've always just fed them frozen bloodworms. If you have fish in the tank, you'll probably have to spot-feed the frogs, as they're much slower than the fish when it comes to food. Here's how I do it with bloodworms:

I take a portion of a block and bury it in the gravel/sand. As it thaws, you might have to waft your finger over that spot to free the food a bit, but it should eventually start to appear out of the substrate at the frog's eye-level. The fish might get some, but that usually gives the frogs a chance.

 

I've always just fed them frozen bloodworms. If you have fish in the tank, you'll probably have to spot-feed the frogs, as they're much slower than the fish when it comes to food. Here's how I do it with bloodworms:

I take a portion of a block and bury it in the gravel/sand. As it thaws, you might have to waft your finger over that spot to free the food a bit, but it should eventually start to appear out of the substrate at the frog's eye-level. The fish might get some, but that usually gives the frogs a chance.

How many frogs do you have?

 

I work in a store, so there's usually a bunch (10-20) in there.

 

They may eat the pellets but they may not. My guy loves the frozen bloodworms and he also eagerly devours mysis shrimp. I cut small pieces of the cube off with a razor blade, let it thaw first and then drop small pieces in with tweezers. It usually takes him a while to actually find them. He can crawl right over them a few times without detecting that they're food. When he does actually find them, he strikes like a snake and gulps them down. It's fun to watch. He also will eat pellets but if they're too hard he keeps coming back and nipping at them until they soften up and they eventually are gone.

 

They may eat the pellets but they may not. My guy loves the frozen bloodworms and he also eagerly devours mysis shrimp. I thaw it first and drop small pieces in with tweezers. It usually takes him a while to actually find them. He can crawl right over them a few times without detecting that they're food. When he does actually find them, he strikes like a snake and gulps them down. It's fun to watch. He also will eat pellets but if they're too hard he keeps coming back and nipping at them until they soften up and they eventually are gone.

I am soon planning to buy frozen foods. How often to feed your frog and exactly how much food do you give him?

 

You can feed them every day or every other day. I give mine 3 or 4 bloodworms or 5 or 6 mysis shrimp at a time. He has a slight bulge to his belly which is good. He also seems to be developing two ridges on his back which I think is where frogs store fat. I've only had him 19 days now but he's doing great so far. I got him at PetSmart.

 

I find tweezer feeding a few (thawed, 4-5/frog) bloodworms is best for my 4 ADF's. I feed them every other day. It is somewhat tedious (tbh lol), but this way I can make sure each frog is actually eating, and they get pretty excited around feeding time! I found the frog/tadpole pellets would end up falling between gravel pebbles, burying them, and made it tough for my guys to eat. A feeding tube and dish (search on Amazon for shrimp feeding tube), could also make feeding easier if you want to stick with the pellets.
Enjoy your new friends!

 

I find tweezer feeding a few (thawed, 4-5/frog) bloodworms is best for my 4 ADF's. I feed them every other day. It is somewhat tedious (tbh lol), but this way I can make sure each frog is actually eating, and they get pretty excited around feeding time! I found the frog/tadpole pellets would end up falling between gravel pebbles, burying them, and made it tough for my guys to eat. A feeding tube and dish (search on Amazon for shrimp feeding tube), could also make feeding easier if you want to stick with the pellets.
Enjoy your new friends!

That was super helpful, thanks! I have a question about the tweezers you use because I am soon purchasing a pair for my frogs. How big are the tweezers? Are they plastic or metal?

 

That was super helpful, thanks! I have a question about the tweezers you use because I am soon purchasing a pair for my frogs. How big are the tweezers? Are they plastic or metal?

I purchased some from Amazon similar to the set pictured. They are metal. I found reptile tweezers PetsMart, but they were too large for the worms. They're long so you don't have to stick your whole arm in the tank Wave the worms on the tweezers in front of each frog, and they'll smell them! Yummy!

 

I have the same type of tweezers but the set of tools I bought also includes a pair of long scissors for trimming plants and a gravel/sand smoother. The tweezers are stainless steel but I make sure to dry them with paper towels after use.

 

I got the Omega One Frog and Tadpole pellets but Freddy doesn't seem to like them much. They're too big to be swallowed whole so he has to wait until they start to break up. Even then, he takes in a piece and spits most of it back out in smaller pieces. He'll go back and try to eat the smaller pieces and winds up spitting out some even smaller ones. He does like the HikarI Micro-Pellets I have though. Those he grabs and swallows right away. They're made for fish but he likes them. His favorite though is still frozen Mysis shrimp. He literally inhales those and seems to like them more than frozen bloodworms which he also readily consumes.

I'd kind of like to get him a buddy but the tank is only 3.5 gallons so I'm a little hesitant. I like the blonde colored variety that are sometimes available but again I'm concerned with the size of the tank. The price label on the tank at PetSmart says the minimum size is only one gallon but then their own care sheet says each frog needs about 2.5 gallons and other sources seem to agree. His only company now is a Tiger Nerite snail that I've had now for well over a year. The tank is pretty densely planted so he has lots of places to explore and hide in. I've had him 3 weeks now and he's doing great so I don't want to upset the applecart.

 

Anyonel keep ADFs with amanos? We have a small army of amanos that take about four seconds to jump on ANY food - we're thinking of adding a couple of ADFs but worried the amanos will steal the food out of their mouths like they do with the cories :/

 

They will most likely get the food before the frogs even find it. There frogs will often pass by or even over their food several times before actually finding it. It doesn't sound like a good combination to me.

 

What about another ADF? Although, your 2.5 g is a little small for that type of community (Hmm)

 

It's 3.5 but still small , Most places say 5 gallons for 2 frogs.

 

It's 3.5 but still small , Most places say 5 gallons for 2 frogs.

Imo, they don't really need that much room since they produce very little waste, are not territorial, and their swimming needs are mostly vertical. However, small tanks scare me because they're far more unstable and unforgiving than larger volumes of water. Prone to fluctuating conditions, less robust biofilters, and possible temperature swings, I've heard it said that small tanks should only be attempted by experts, but in reality it's just the opposite.

 

Imo, they don't really need that much room since they produce very little waste, are not territorial, and their swimming needs are mostly vertical. However, small tanks scare me because they're far more unstable and unforgiving than larger volumes of water. Prone to fluctuating conditions, less robust biofilters, and possible temperature swings, I've heard it said that small tanks should only be attempted by experts, but in reality it's just the opposite.

I don't get what you mean by the opposite. I have had no problems maintaining water quality in a 3.5 gallon tank. I change out a quarter to a third of the water every Saturday and my nitrate levels have never even reached 20 and there has been no detectable ammonia for well over a year in both of the tanks. I have Plants in both tanks that are flourishing but really have only had luck with 4 kinds. My Anubias grow like weeds. Java Ferns do okay. I have a Banana plant in one that is flourishing and the Java Moss in the one tank has made a strong comeback lately. I don't count the Marimo balls because if they die, you really have problems. Plants that give me problems are the rooted stem kinds. Hornwort is a no go. I had some Myrio that was doing great and then mysteriously deteriorated and anacharis does not last long.

My frog is very active and swims through the entire tank. He seems to enjoy threading his way through the leaves and roots of the Anubias. He is always on the hunt for food. Another frog in with him would probably be okay but I'm leery of taking the chance. If I do get another one , I'd like it to be a Blonde variant so I could tell them apart easily. I have also read that the Blonde ones don't get as big for some reason. Possibly because of the inbreeding required to get them to reproduce true to color.

 

I just added a small group (7) male Guppies to my ADF planted tank, and 3 Horned Nerite snails. I highly recommended the Guppies as a tankmate for ADF's! (I'll share a video soon). They definitely add some vibrancy (and excitement).
I think I want a bigger tank already LOL