Cleaning your frog's Terrarium

Cleaning your frog's terrarium is not always the most pleasant task but is necessary and well worth the effort (if you're looking for a healthy and happy frog!). In this article, you will find out what you need in order to clean a frog terrarium and what the necessary steps are.

In order to clean out the terrarium thoroughly, you will need to transfer the frog to another place that he can't get out of. Never ever use soap or any other kind of chemical (such as Windex or Lysol for example) when cleaning the frog terrarium.

Before you start cleaning, prepare a plastic cup with seran wrap over the top. If the frog is a small frog, you can use a small cup without a rubber band to secure the seran wrap. But if you own a larger frog that could plow through the seran wrap, you'll need something other than a plastic cup that he could knock over, such as a large styrofoam bowl (cover it with seran wrap and rubber band, too). Rinse your hands (if you wash them with soap, they could easily irritate your frog's skin) then gently, using the thumb, index finger and middle finger, pick up the frog and place him on the palm of your opposite hand. For large frogs, pick them up using all your fingers either in a scooping motion or a lifting motion. Place them gently in the container.

You can purchase a cleaning chemical from the ZooMed company called Wipe Out. You can use it in cleaning your terrarium by squirting everything (it acts as a deodorizer) but I don't recommend this because frogs absorb everything through their skin.

What you need to clean a frog terrarium:

• Cloth or paper towels
• Warm water

How to clean a frog terrarium:
After picking up your frog and gently placing him in the temporary container, remove all plants (live or plastic) and rinse them with hot water (room temperature if they are live). Run the cloth or paper towel over the leaves, roots, stems and anything else on the plants to remove any frog waste.

Remove all logs, stumps, water dishes, food dishes, bedding (if you are doing a thorough cleaning) etc. and throw out the bedding. Run the water dishes and food dishes under hot water and wipe with the cloth/paper towel. After a few years, logs and wood stumps will start to rot and turn moldy. You will need to replace them when this happens. To preserve your logs/wood stumps, run a damp cloth over them and set them in the sun to dry.

Once everything is removed from the terrarium, wipe out the bottom and sides with a damp cloth. Warm water loosens things up better, but cold will work fine, too. Dry with a paper towel immediately after wiping the inside of the terrarium.

Replace the bedding with new and set up your terrarium with all the plants, dishes, etc. again. Mist it lightly and add your frog back into his home. Then mist the frog.

Things to keep in mind:
The bedding you use in your frog's terrarium will rot and mold much faster the more you mist it. To prevent the bedding from rotting quickly, mist the terrarium only 3 times a day generously. If your frog still seems dry, mist him more often but more sparingly. Also, keep a heat lamp turned on during the day to help evaporate any excess moisture that can cause mold to grow. Turn the lamp off during the night, especially if your frog is nocturnal.

The Frog's Life Cycle

When frogs lay eggs, they can lay thousands at a time. Sadly, usually more than half of the eggs are eaten before becoming adults. Even once the eggs are hatched, the young, unexperienced tadpole faces many dangers. Frogs usually lay eggs in masses (called the frog spawn), but toads lay them in long chains.

The cell in the egg splits in two, then four, then eight and so on until it begins to look more and more like a tadpole floating around inside the egg. The mass of cells begins to form and embryo. Gills and organs start to grow. The eggs usually take 6-21 days to hatch for the average frog.

After developing for 21 days (living off the yolk in the egg), the egg hatches and the tadpole attaches himself to a weed in the water (for most frogs, not all). Then, the tadpoles grow until they are large enough to break free into the water, and this can take from 3-21 days. The tadpole really only consists of a gill, some organs, a mouth and a tail. He is very sensitive at this point and prone to many dangers. The tadpole feeds on smaller plants in the water.

The gills, at this point, start to get grown over by the skin and tiny teeth that grind food and turn it into oxygenated particles form.

After a while, little legs and arms start to pop out of the tadpole's skin and the head becomes more distinct. The little body grows longer. Lungs begin to develop, which prepares the baby frog for his life on the land. By this time, the tadpole looks like a frog with a long tail.

The frog starts to shed his skin and lips. Their mouths widen, and they lose their teeth. The tail grows much smaller. Tadpoles will not eat while their tail is shortening, because they get all the nutrients they need from the tail.

After a strenuous 11-16 weeks, the frog is now an adult ready to lay eggs and start the process over. The tail is either a tiny stub or gone completely. The frog has all it needs to survive on land.

(Click on the image to enlarge it.)

Frog FAQs

There are many frequently asked questions about frogs. There are so many, in fact, that there isn't enough room on my blog to cover all of them! However, I will cover the most common ones. If you have any FAQs about frogs, feel free to leave a comment about it (I check regularly!).

What should I feed my frogs?
Many frogs eat live insects, but some eat dead ones. Frogs will eat mealworms, crickets, waxworms and grasshoppers.

What should I do if my frog won't eat?
If you feed your frog live food, it's very possible that your frog is eating, but you just aren't seeing it. However, if you're positive that your frog won't eat, he is probably indicating an illness. When the frog recovers, the appetite returns. You can try to hand-feed your frog or force-feeding him if he won't eat. This can be done by putting your thumb on the top of the frog's head and the index finger under his mouth. Gently pry open his mouth using a Q-tip, then clamp his mouth around it. With a pair of tweezers, grab an insect and gently open the frog's mouth again. Pull the Q-tip out (you may have to set down the tweezers) and put the worm in. The frog should swallow it. Remember, this procedure should only happen if you're absolutely desperate to feed your frog! Frogs DON'T like to be handled. In case your frog is sick, always rinse your hands before and wash them afterwards!

How long do frogs live?
This depends on the type of frog you own and how well he has been cared for. If you are lax in cleaning his tank and caring for him, chances are that he probably won't live a very long life. A well-cared-for frog will probably live longer than one who is ignored.

Do frogs shed?
Yes, all frogs shed (even aquatic ones)! Frogs can look quite alarming when they are shedding...but don't panic! They look like they are bloating, coughing, stretching, sneezing and trying to take off an invisible sweater. In spite of this, they are only trying to stretch out of their old skin. Sometimes shedding is confused with skin disease, but shedding is a natural occurence that happens every week for some frogs and every day for others. And when the shedding is done, the frog usually eats his old skin.

How do I tell which frog I've got?
If you purchased your frog from the petstore, you should already know what frog you have. But... if you caught your frog from your local pond or backyard, it's nearly impossible to determine which specie of frog you have (since there are about 5,000 different species of frogs).

Is my frog male or female?
Determining if your frog is male or female can be challenging, since there are many different types of frogs that share common characteristics. Males are typically smaller than female frogs and have a darker skin tone. Also, if your frog croaks, sings or blurps during the night, he is most likely a male, although there are some female species that do this. And, if your frog's ears are smaller than his eyes, it is most likely a female, but there are a few male frogs that have small ears.

Can I release my non-native pet frog free?
If your frog is not native to where you live, do not release him into the wild. In an unfamiliar habitat, a frog can panic; also the food supply could be different than what he would receive in his natural habitat. The climate could be different from what he is used to. Also, native frogs are much hardier than captive bred and owned frogs. Non-native frogs most likely won't find shelter and food that they're used to in an unfamiliar habitat.

Is my frog sick?
Determining if your frog is sick is risky business! Many diseases can be confused with the natural colors and occurences of frogs (such as red leg and skin disease). Some diseases' symptoms are easier to see than others. If your frog is sick, he will probably let you know by his colors, activity and appearance. If you notice anything wrong with your frog, call the vet or the petstore that you bought him from to see if they can diagnose the disease.

What do I do if my frog is sick?
Don't panic. Once frogs are sick, they are usually very hard to cure, but it is possible. You will need the proper kind of medicine and you must be very sure of what your frog is sick with. If your frog is sick, do not let him come in contact with any other frogs. ALWAYS wear disposable gloves when handling a sick frog. Some frog diseases can be transferred to humans, and although not common, can be fatal. Wash your hands thoroughly before and especially afterwards. Make sure the terrarium that he is staying in is absolutely clean.

How should I set up my frog terrarium?
You'll need at least a 2 gallon terrarium and some bedding (moss, alfalfa leaves, wood shavings, etc. Don't use small pebbles or something that can harm the frog if swallowed). Also, have a food dish and water dish prepared. You will need a heat lamp unless you keep the room your frog is staying in between 70 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit. If your frog is a tree frog, provide lots of climbing plants, sticks, logs and vines for him to climb up. Frogs should always have some sort of way to get closer to the heat lamp. Don't put the heat lamp in a location where your frog can touch it. Heat lamps will get very hot and can burn the frog's skin.

Frogs are Insectivores

Many frogs are insectivores, meaning they eat living insects. Many people will not own frogs because they are insectivores and they eat live insects. However, not all frogs eat live insects. There are a few that don't eat live insects, such as the African Clawed Frog and the African Dwarf Frog.

Tree frogs that need to eat live insects can eat mealworms, waxworms, crickets and red wigglers. If you would like to own a frog that doesn't need to eat live insects, you can purchase freeze-dried crickets, mealworms and brine shrimp at the petstore in the reptile/amphibian section.

When feeding your frog, you need to have lots of variety in the frog's diet. I own a Blue Bumpy (aka Dumpy) Frog that eats live insects, and I've heard that mealworms are almost nutritionless. Alternate between mealworms and crickets for a balanced diet.

If you are like me, you don't prefer to touch or have to handle live insects of any kind. So here is my suggestion to you. Either purchase a frog that doesn't have to eat live insects, or make this easy insect container that prevents you from touching/handling live insects.

Using a yogurt container (plastic cups work great too), punch holes with a thumbtack in the sides of the top. Make them small enough so that worms/crickets cannot get out/eat their way out, but so they can still breathe. Also punch holes in a strong, tight fitting lid that even a large cricket could not get through.

Cut a large hole in the side of the container near the top. You need to plug this with a cork or rubber stopper so the insects can't get out.

Finally, when you purchase your next batch of insects at the petstore, dump them into the container and store it somewhere warm and dry. When your frog is ready to eat, unplug the cork and sprinkle a few insects in the terrarium through the hole that you cut and plug the hole back up.

Housing Crickets

Crickets need to be kept in someplace like a garage. I have heard that crickets stink, but have never experienced it. I purchase small crickets and keep them in my basement. If your frog is small, purchase small crickets and feed him 2-3 a day. You will also need to purchase gut-loading food for the crickets, such as Fluker's Cricket Calcium Fortified.

If you add this insect food to the container before adding the crickets, it stuffs the crickets' guts full of calcium that is excellent nutrition for your frog. Make sure to add this to the crickets the day before feeding your frog so they have a chance to get "fattened up."

The image to the left is Fluker's Cricket Calcium Fortified Gel. It is not food, however it is water for the crickets. If you don't want to purchase cricket food, crickets will also eat potatoes, carrots and other vegetables. Put a chunk of vegetable in your cricket container.

It is possible to kill off your crickets by overfeeding and overwatering them.

Housing Mealworms
Mealworms are much easier to house than crickets; however, they don't provide your frog with half the nutrition. Mealworms can be stored in the refrigerator where they are put into an induced hibernation. The worms will begin to wake up once they start to warm when taken out of the fridge.

Mealworms, since they can't be gut-loaded like the crickets, need to be sprinkled with calcium dust. You can take a plastic spoon and put some mealworms in a plastic ziplock bag. Add a pinch of calcium and "Shake and Bake" the mealworms.

The calcium on the worms provides the frog with a little more nutrition than he would otherwise get, but I still suggest alternating between crickets and mealworms.

How many insects to feed?
This is probably one of the most common questions ever asked about frogs! What your frog eats and how much he eats depends on the frog alone (what kind of frog he is, what he likes/dislikes). Your best bet is going to be to experiment and see how much your frog will eat.

Start by feeding your frog 3 insects the first time. If he consumes all of these without a problem, you can add 4 insects the next time. If your frog still looks hungry or underfed, boost up the number of insects in his diet. I keep mealworms and crickets at the same time to accommodate what my frog wants to eat (i.e. if he won't eat mealworms, I switch to crickets).

You will know if you're feeding your frog too much if there are still insects crawling around the terrarium 2-3 days after you fed him. And sometimes the frog might have missed a few in his hunts. I feed my frog every two days and it seems to work well.

Raising a Tadpole

Raising a tadpole is fun and easy. There are a few basic rules, but they will all pay off when you see your little baby tadpole turn into a grown frog! Tadpoles can live in plastic cups with seran wrap covering the top until they grow into frogs.

It usually takes eggs 6-12 weeks to hatch into tadpoles. If you happen to get your tadpoles in the winter, don't worry. Tadpoles usually grow slower when it's cold. When tadpoles grow legs, you will need a container where they can climb out of the water to breathe. Otherwise, they will drown.

Clean Water
One of the first and most important things you need to maintain is clean water. Tadpoles thrive in clean water, and, just like any other animal, don't do that well in dirty water. You should clean the water only when it really looks dirty, not just on a regular basis. Otherwise you might stress your tadpole.



Cleaning the Water
Cleaning the water for a tadpole is much easier than cleaning the terrarium for a frog.

• Ziploc bag (make sure it has NO holes)


• Fresh water that is the same temperature of the water your tadpole has been staying in.


• Plastic cup


• Plastic spoon


• Seran wrap

Take some of the dirty water from the tadpole's cup (it needs to be enough to cover your tadpole). Zip the bag shut and pour the dirty water out. Fill a new cup with fresh water and gently pour your tadpole (there will be a little dirty water added to the clean water, but there's not much you can do about it) into the clean cup with fresh water. Cover the cup with seran wrap.

Feeding
Your tadpole will first have to eat lettuce until he is bigger. Then he can start to eat small crickets and fruit flies, and bloodworms later. Tadpoles love lettuce and the best way to feed it to them is to first boil it for ten to fifteen minutes. After you boil it, chop it into tiny pieces and freeze it. Feed your tadpole a pinch of the frozen lettuce every day.

Tadpoles will also eat spinach (prepared the same way as the lettuce), tadpole food or fish flakes. Feed the flakes to the tadpole every other day. When the tadpole starts to grow legs and is able to climb out of his container, you can start feeding it small insects, like fruit flies or gnats, every two days.

Don't overfeed your frog. This enables the water to get dirtier much faster.

Water
When housing your tadpole, never ever use chlorinated or distilled water. Distilled water is sometimes said to have nothing harmful in it. The fact is, it has nothing in it at all, not even good minerals. Use dechlorinated tap water.

Signs of a Healthy Frog

Some frog illnesses' symptoms are easy to see; others are very difficult. You should probably check your frog everyday to make sure all is well.

Signs of a healthy frog:

• Eats like a little piggy. Frog should be very enthusiastic about "feeding time", and should eat as much as he can in 3-5 minutes. Some resources suggest feeding your frog as much as he can eat in fifteen minutes. I don't recommend this. Your frog can eat much more than what's good for him in 15 minutes.
• Frog's skin should be clean and bright, without scratches, lumps, irritations, or dryness. If your frog's skin is dry, you probably need to mist him with lukewarm water.
• The skin on your frog's belly and thighs should not be bright red and/or irritated. This is most definitely a symptom of Red Leg, a common disease found in many frogs. However, do not confuse Red Leg symptoms with the natural colors of some frogs!
• Frog's eyes should be clear, not hazy or cloudy. Hazy and cloudy eyes can indicate an illness.
• Frog's waste shouldn't be runny or have red streaks.
• Frog should be active. Nocturnal frogs (such as the Blue Bumpy Frog) are mostly active during the night.
• Frog should shed at least once a week. Some frogs are known to shed every day.

Signs of an unhealthy frog:

• Frog is lethargic, bloated, uncomfortable or lazy. Lethargy and bloating are symptoms of Dropsy, a frog disease. If you notice that your frog is uncomfortable, he is probably shedding, which is natural. But if your frog is overly uncomfrotable, something might be wrong. And, if your frog is just plain lazy, he could be stressed, depressed, full of food or tired, especially if he is a nocturnal frog.
• Lack of appetite. Cut back on the feedings. If your frog is new, he is probably stressed from being transported and having new surroundings. You might want to try a variety in his diet. He may be tired of eating the same old thing.
• Frog has hazy eyes. This is usually a sign of infection.
• Frog's skin is lumpy, dried, irritated, etc. Frog is probably thirsty. Squirt him down with lukewarm water. However, if your frog's skin is irritated, he is probably indicating an illness.

Dos and Don'ts About Frogs

Frogs are a fairly easy animal to care for, however, they do have likes, dislikes and needs. Here is a basic list that is easy to follow for frogs.


Dos about Frogs:

• Do feed your frog once a day. Some frogs can go every two days, but this is not recommended.
• Do a daily health check of your frog to make sure everything is well.
• Do keep your frog's tank clean to prevent infection and other diseases.
• Do use common sense in when to clean your frog's tank. This is a tricky business, because most frogs are terrified when being transported, and many are afraid of humans. Only clean the frog's tank when it is mildly dirty, not filthy. This can be achieved by cleaning the frog's tank every five days.
• Do keep your frog's tank (it doesn't matter what kind of frog unless it is used to a drier climate or is an aquatic frog) moist and humid. Frogs should be misted at least three times a day, to prevent drying of the skin. Frogs also don't drink water, they soak it up through their skin.
• Do always wash your hands before and after handling your frog. Frogs can come down with illnesses that can easily be transferred to mammals, so keep any pets away from frogs when sick. Also, if your frog is sick, hold him as little as possible. If you must clean the terrarium, use gloves and wash your hands even if wearing gloves. Some frogs can be easily irritated by the salts or oils on our skin and some frogs produce toxins. Washing your hands before and after frog handling is a very critical step in owning a frog.

Don'ts about Frogs:

• Don't ever use chemicals of any kind (windex, soap, etc.) when cleaning your frog's terrarium.
• Don't hold your frog every day! Some frogs are scared by humans, as stated above.
• Don't administer any kind of treatment to a sick frog until you're sure what your frog is sick with! Adding medicine unnecessarily to a frog can be fatal.
• Don't overfeed your frog. Overfeeding frogs is dangerous, and can be fatal.
• Don't use a habitat without a well-ventilated top. Without this, your frog can easily overheat and die.

Remember, by following these simple, common-sense directions, it will help your frog live a long, happy life with you.