what are the risks if any of introducing african dwarf frogs to community tank?

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an interest in aquariums or fish keeping!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

piao liang yu

Aquarium Advice Freak
Joined
Dec 25, 2012
Messages
445
I was thinking about adding two or three ADF to my 60 gallon planted community that includes angelicus botia, red wag platies, guppies, neon tetras and a beautiful dwarf gourami. also large colony of rcs with lots of moss and hiding places (driftwood, plants etc.) do ADF need to be quarantined first? what are the risks of introducing them to my community?
 
How tall is your tank? It's probably too talk for frogs to live in. They need to swim up for oxygen and anything too tall they struggle to get up for air. Also you need a lid !!! I just had a frog last week escape because there was a tiny hole in the lid by the filter.. But good luck!
 
How tall is your tank? It's probably too talk for frogs to live in. They need to swim up for oxygen and anything too tall they struggle to get up for air. Also you need a lid !!! I just had a frog last week escape because there was a tiny hole in the lid by the filter.. But good luck!

my tank top to bottom is 24inches. wikipedia says they live in conditions 24 iinches or shallower.
 
I still think that it too tall though. 18 would be the limit in my opinion. Wiki really isn't trustworthy
 
I still think that it too tall though. 18 would be the limit in my opinion. Wiki really isn't trustworthy

I have driftwood in places that range from a few inches from the top to maybe 12 inches from the top. I figured they would stay perched on driftwood. But I am very unfamiliar with their behavior and I am not sure if they could possibly introduce disease to my tank. Anyone with actual experience with these guys in that regard?
 
I have driftwood in places that range from a few inches from the top to maybe 12 inches from the top. I figured they would stay perched on driftwood. But I am very unfamiliar with their behavior and I am not sure if they could possibly introduce disease to my tank. Anyone with actual experience with these guys in that regard?


I would not do it. With the Angelicus loach he will be quickly out competed for food. A 24" tank IMO is still way too tall for one. I'd say don't get one.
 
I would not do it. With the Angelicus loach he will be quickly out competed for food. A 24" tank IMO is still way too tall for one. I'd say don't get one.

I agree with the height.
My ADF has a slight challenge just trying to get up my 16" tank.
 
Yes, you can do it, but you would need to take some special care to be successful. I managed to keep frogs in my 75 gallon community, but I definitely wouldn't consider it the ideal setup. Main concerns...
1) Height: 24" is ok (not ideal) for a full grown frog to get to the top, but a juvenile would spend almost all it's energy trying to get to the top. Frogs aren't the brightest and don't always realize that they can climb things to the top. This can be mitigated somewhat by having a bubbler underneath an overhang to create a "bubble pocket" lower in the tank. Frogs can usually figure out from the bubbler sound that there's oxygen there and will actually gulp down the bubbles. Between that and having things to climb they should manage.

2) Food competition: Frogs are VERY poor at competing for food. I've seen many occasions where a frog is sitting with a pile of brine shrimp in front of him and a loach scurries right under it's face to snatch up the food before the frog can grab it. The only way to keep frogs from starving in a busy community is to spot feed them with frozen food via tweezers or a turkey baster. You'll have to distract the rest of the tank with food first, then you can hold the food in front of their noses without having it stolen.

3) General size of tank: Frogs hide. A lot. Even well fed and happy frogs will spend a lot of their time under plants and decorations, not lounging in the open. A 60 gallon tank is a lot of space for them to disappear into. If you don't mind them hiding then this isn't as much of an issue, but if you're trying to find them to spot feed them it may be a bit of a headache. My frogs were always good at being front and center or at least coming out of hiding come feeding time if they were hungry, but if you have a more shy frog this might cause issues.

If you like frogs and don't have any other tanks that you can put them in, the 60 gallon tank will work so long as you mitigate the above issues. That said, I've definitely been enjoying my frogs more since I moved them to a 20 gallon long community... They spend less energy getting to the top, which leaves more energy for wandering around the tank and getting into goofy zen poses. I see them out in the open far more, plus they're easier to find when they do go into hiding.

Hope this helps :)
 
Yes, you can do it, but you would need to take some special care to be successful. I managed to keep frogs in my 75 gallon community, but I definitely wouldn't consider it the ideal setup. Main concerns...
1) Height: 24" is ok (not ideal) for a full grown frog to get to the top, but a juvenile would spend almost all it's energy trying to get to the top. Frogs aren't the brightest and don't always realize that they can climb things to the top. This can be mitigated somewhat by having a bubbler underneath an overhang to create a "bubble pocket" lower in the tank. Frogs can usually figure out from the bubbler sound that there's oxygen there and will actually gulp down the bubbles. Between that and having things to climb they should manage.

2) Food competition: Frogs are VERY poor at competing for food. I've seen many occasions where a frog is sitting with a pile of brine shrimp in front of him and a loach scurries right under it's face to snatch up the food before the frog can grab it. The only way to keep frogs from starving in a busy community is to spot feed them with frozen food via tweezers or a turkey baster. You'll have to distract the rest of the tank with food first, then you can hold the food in front of their noses without having it stolen.

3) General size of tank: Frogs hide. A lot. Even well fed and happy frogs will spend a lot of their time under plants and decorations, not lounging in the open. A 60 gallon tank is a lot of space for them to disappear into. If you don't mind them hiding then this isn't as much of an issue, but if you're trying to find them to spot feed them it may be a bit of a headache. My frogs were always good at being front and center or at least coming out of hiding come feeding time if they were hungry, but if you have a more shy frog this might cause issues.

If you like frogs and don't have any other tanks that you can put them in, the 60 gallon tank will work so long as you mitigate the above issues. That said, I've definitely been enjoying my frogs more since I moved them to a 20 gallon long community... They spend less energy getting to the top, which leaves more energy for wandering around the tank and getting into goofy zen poses. I see them out in the open far more, plus they're easier to find when they do go into hiding.

Hope this helps :)

Thanks. I have decided against it for my 60 gallon. I was using a 16 gallon bowfront for my QT tank. I am thinking about setting it back up just as a smaller stock tank and maybe having some frogs in that one. I can always pick up just a plain jane QT tank to replace what I have been using.

Anybody have any suggestions for a 16 gallon bowfront to stock with maybe three ADF's?
 
Thanks. I have decided against it for my 60 gallon. I was using a 16 gallon bowfront for my QT tank. I am thinking about setting it back up just as a smaller stock tank and maybe having some frogs in that one. I can always pick up just a plain jane QT tank to replace what I have been using.

Anybody have any suggestions for a 16 gallon bowfront to stock with maybe three ADF's?

Are you willing to spot feed the frogs? If so you have a lot more options for the tank. If not, I'd stick to very calm/slow feeders like licorice or sparkling gourami and avoid other bottom dwellers other than shrimp or snails.
 
Back
Top Bottom