Strange Behavior in African Dwarf Frog

Hello everyone, I've never posted to any forum before but I am very concerned so I apologize if I posted this in the wrong area or did anything else wrong.

I would also like to mention that these frogs were an office pet at my place of work and while we are closed due to the pandemic they have been placed in my care so I am inexperienced in caring for ADFs, but I do love the little guys and just want the best for them. As for testing the water, as I said they were only supposed to be with me for a short time (though it seems it will be longer than originally anticipated) and I do not currently have a way to test the water at my home, I have purchased a kit online since stores are closed but it will take a few days to arrive and I'd like to know what I should do, if anything, in the meantime. It's only been going on for a short time but if winds up being serious I'd like to treat it as early as possible.


Issue:

My primary concern is that one of the african dwarf frogs I am caring for since this morning (5/5/20) has been clinging to the side of the tank, partially out of the water for a few hours. I have seen him go back to the bottom of the tank a little bit, but for the most part he is hanging out around the sides of the tank right at the surface. To clarify he is not floating along the surface nor is he completely out of the water but he tend to cling the tank walls or to the aquarium decor while only partially submerged.

Additional Context:

- Tank is filtered & heated to a little under 80 degrees F (current read on thermometer as of writing this is about 78, but it can fluctuate a little)

- There is also a moss ball in the tank to further assist water quality

-There are two other ADFs in the tank who are behaving completely normally which leads me to believe that the issue is with this specific frog and not a larger issue with the tank

-In response to his behavior this morning I already performed a partial water change

-He doesn't appear to have any external injuries, no weird shed, no tears in his webbing etc.

- He is the smallest of the 3 frogs, could a lack of food caused from competition from the other 2 cause strange behavior like this?

Conclusion:

To those with more experience caring for ADFs, should I be concerned? If the answer is yes, what steps can I take in the meantime before my water test kit arrives to help my frog?

Sorry for the very long post and thank you.

 

I don't think this is something you have to worry about, unless there's any other unusual behavior. African dwarf frogs need air, so they'll come up to the surface. My frogs did this (hanging out on plants) as did ones at the store. This is normal behavior I believe.

 

I really don't think there is anything wrong, but if you are scared you could put some kind of floating plant, or java moss as both of those would help the water quality immensely. Another thing that could help would be some kind of shrimp, because they clean up all kinds of detritus.

 

I have had a.d.f for a little over a year now...they all have different personalities
Some of mine...I have 8 stay at the bottom and only come up for a little gulp of air and the others hang out on my blue lights I have at the top of the tank and just stay up there.
I would not stress or worry over it.
What you described seems like a normal behavior.

 

Thank you all for the replies, but it seems like he's close to death now. I felt hopeful yesterday because it seemed like he was spending less time at the top of the tank, but today he just started floating around lifelessly, only kicking around occasionally. For the time being i've quarantined him in a plastic cup inside the tank kind of like a nursery setup so he stays warm but has less distance from the floor to the surface of the water. He doesn't seem to have good motor control and he sometimes floats belly up/ when he does swim it seems sporadic and out out of his control.

So things aren't looking great, I'll keep updated so if anyone else comes across this thread it might help them.

Good news is that the other two frogs are still looking great so I don't think it's anything contagious at least.

 

I appreciate everyone's advice. Sadly shortly after that last post I made he did in fact pass away. For anyone possibly reading this in the future know that if your frog is not acting like their usual self, even if it's normal for other frogs, something may be wrong so be cautious.