Bloated albino clawed frog

[Pleco1415]

My ACF has been bloated for a month now and no one seems to know very much about these guys. I recently started using aquarium salts but no improvement has been seen in the frog's bloat. I know the water quality is not an issue so I have to assume he already had this when I bought him. The frog still eats and behaves like usual the only symptom he appears to have is this bloat. Any advice is greatly appreciated, thanks


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[joeyjoelyjoepro]

Does he eat freeze dried flood worms? because that would be the problem if they are like African dwarf frogs.

 

[sarahle]

this is probably way too late, but in case anyone else has this problem and ~stumbles~ into this thread, here is some advice I found (source: http://www.fishlore.com/fishforum/amphibians/82321-care-sheet-african-clawed-frogs.html)

Diseases
Bloat, aka Dropsy
* Characterized by serious swelling of the limbs and body. Frog literally looks like it is puffing up. (Think of a resemblance to the Stay Puff Marshmallow Man from Ghost Busters). Unless diagnosed and treated in the early stages, it is most often fatal.
* Fluid begins to build under the skin. The frog's body is unable to process the fluids and the fluid begins to pool under the skin and around the internal organs.
* Thought to be related to kidney and liver genetic abnormalities or diseases.
* Has been found to occur more in frogs primarily fed fatty foods such as bloodworm and beef heart.
* A high quality pelleted diet and clean water are recommended preventative measures.
* Does not spread from frog to frog - separation is needed to not stress healthy frogs by treating them for something they do not have.
* TREATMENT:
1. If frog is in a community tank then set up a treatment/quarantine tank, 10 gallons is sufficient. If the frog is the sole inhabitant of its own tank it may remain in there. If there is carbon in the filter then remove it prior to treatment. Filter not needed for treatment tank.
2. Start a round of treatment with Maracyn II or Maracyn Plus. Dose as described on package.
3. Daily salt baths. Take a spare container (Tupperware or a Kritter Keeper) - add one gallon of dechlorinated water around 72* and 1/2 Teaspoon of Epsom Salt. Let the frog remain in here for an hour. The discard the water and return the frog to its treatment tank.
4. If no improvement after 10-14 days, the case may be considered incurable. Continue the salt dips for the frog's comfort and keep separated and comfortable. Depending on the severity of the bloat the frog's lifespan is indeterminable. The frog may last a few weeks, to a few months, to the better part of a year. If it was caught early and the bloats progression halted, the frog may live a few years if lucky.



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[liberty711]

Success story!!!

*** I am not a vet. take my advice with a grain of salt, this just worked for me ****

Hi everyone!! So all of the threads on various websites about bloated African Clawed Frogs are years old, and when I began this issue a few weeks ago I really wanted recent advice, and now I have some to share with someone else experiencing this problem! Heads up this is going to be a long post lol.

My frog is: 11 years old, lives alone in 10 gallon tank, male, eats Tetra ReptoMin Floating Food Sticks. I use tap water with API Stress Coat to treat the water, I feed every day and then skip a day after 4/5 days. I break up the sticks so it's easier for him to eat.

So I noticed he was bloated because I looked at him one night and freaked out that he gained so much weight... seemingly overnight. I forgot about it when I went to bed, and noticed it again when I went to feed him the next day. I did some Googling and found out he was bloated. To my understanding, there's soft bloat which is fluid under the skin and hard bloat which is typically due to bacterial infection, the latter being more difficult to treat. I had no idea which type of bloated he was...his back was raised from the bloating and his legs were jiggly. Some websites said the frog could be constipated but I don't believe this was his problem.

Online websites told me to add salt to his tank to draw out some of the fluid under his skin, so I got API Aquarium salt (do not use table salt, but 100% pure Epsom salt (no fragrance) is okay) and I did the recommended dose of salt listed the carton, which is 1 tablespoon per five gallons. I left this overnight and then got nervous about having him sit in the salt tank 24/7. I do not recommend this.

Here's why: Suppose this salt dose is too potent for the frog... I mean frogs are small. Having it sit in this toxic water 24/7 could kill the frog. So salt dips/baths are a better idea, because after a short amount of time in the salt water, the frog is back in his normal water.

Plus, I did not notice any change in the bloat so I began to fear it was bacterial. So I threw out everything inside the tank. I got rid of the gravel, filter, heater, and plants. I took the tank outside and washed it with antibacterial soap and put in five fresh gallons of water. I threw everything out in case any bacteria was lingering in the filter or something. ***people say its bad to use soap inside a tank so I don't recommend this***
So now it is only my frog and 5 gallons of water inside the tank.
I did only five gallons because I was changing the water frequently and less water is easier, and my frog was so buoyant because of the bloating that he just stayed at the top so it didn't bother him.

I started doing a salt bath for 15 mins, with 2 cups of spring water and about 1/4 a tablespoon of aquarium salt once a day. This ratio of salt and water is totally made up by me.. it's similar to what else is online but I kinda modified it. Later I randomly found pure Epsom salt in my house and used that instead of the aquarium salt because some websites said the Epsom salt a better "drawing effect" of the fluid.

I looked online and ordered Maracyn 2 fish medicine to treat any bacterial infection and bought a new filter and heater.

Long story short, I was so worried about my frog that I couldn't wait for the shipping and just took him to the vet.
Here is a summary of that:

-so I had previously used distilled water in the tank for all 11 years... turns out that's wrong and he said to use spring water so I began using tap water with Stress Coat to treat the water... the vet said the distilled water could have caused an electrolyte imbalance in my frog and caused the bloating
-vet noticed red spots on the frogs belly, Septicemia
-said continue doing salt baths with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 2 cups of water, said Epsom or aquarium salt it doesn't matter
-prescribed Enrofloxacin 0.5mg/mL, put frog on wet paper towel and put the medicine on his back for 30 min, 2x per day 12 hours apart for two weeks
-I did a schedule of 9 am treatment, 3 pm salt bath, 9 pm treatment

I have followed these directions, and I went 4/10 to the vet and I began to notice a positive change on 4/19. So it took nine days for the treatment to show it was working, don't get discouraged!!

I still have 3 days of treatment left and my frog is looking so much better. He is a little lopsided right now, hes still a little bloated on one side and not on the other. I assume that will be fixed in the final days of treatment. So we are not out of the woods yet, but I was so excited to share that my frog is doing better!! I wanted to share this for anyone else going through the same situation.

In summary....
spring water for frog
don't clean with soap
only do a salt bath for 15 mins not longer
do not use table salt
**I can not say if Maracyn 2 is effective as I did not end up using it**
vet treatment worked!!
There is hope for your frog!!
Thank anyone for reading and please reply if I can clarify anything!!