# ADF Care



## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

Tell me about ADFs? I ended up with one, and I'm not sure how to care for it.


----------



## MattsBettas (Dec 18, 2012)

This thread is great-

http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=84033

Good luck


----------



## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

Thanks MattsBettas . Well... fail already on my part. I only have a 1 g bowl with no lid to QT in (but I plan on moving him/her into the tank with Neptune once he/she's QT period is over, which according to that might be up 3 mos :shock. I'll have to cover it with something, maybe I can get plexiglass.


----------



## MattsBettas (Dec 18, 2012)

Even Saran Wrap or a big book would work. They will last in a bowl until you can get him a proper home.


----------



## SerenaRena (Apr 27, 2013)

ADF do better in wider tanks than taller ones because they come up to breathe air as well. They are cute little guys and are pretty easy to care for. Just make sure that when you feed them, they are getting food because the fish get to the food first and then there may not be anything left for these little guys.


----------



## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

Nice guide, but there are things I don't agree with. Like was said, they do better in shallower tanks. Too, in my experience, dry pellets do not lead to death. I DO agree with quarantining for at least 3 months before adding a frog to a tank with established frogs.


----------



## Skyewillow (Dec 28, 2012)

some of the food on the recommended list IS pelleted


----------



## Chesh (Feb 17, 2012)

Three cheers for ADF! One of my favorite critters  How did you 'accidentally' get him? The link that Matt posted is a good one, but the information on the front page is somewhat out of date - much of it still applies, but you'll find out more about the frogs if you read through the *many* pages of postings! I've been working on an updated version, but am not ready to post it just yet. . . feel free to post any questions you have there, several of our froggy loving members monitor that thread, and we're always happy to help out!

I personally wouldn't be comfortable keeping him in QT in a 1g bowl, but it can be done - you'll have to really be on top of water changes, same as you would a fish. Frogs are pretty tough, but poor water quality will kill them pretty quickly. As for the length of QT time, 3 months is really only necessary (to my understanding) if you're QTing a frog that will be kept with other frogs. This is mostly because of the Chitrid fungus, which can take up to 3 months to manifest itself. Apart from that, there are very few things that a frog could carry to a fish (again, that I have found in my research), so what you're doing by keeping him in QT now is ensuring that any fish pathogens that he may have eaten or carried in on his skin or in the water are cleared out of the system. As he's in a fish-less QT, one month should do nicely for this. . . where did he come from? And where will you be keeping him?

Pellets are okay, if you have a frog that will eat them. Mine don't seem to recognize them as a food source! I would presoak the pellets before feeding JUST to be sure - the concern people have with them is that they can cause problems by expanding in the frog's intestine - freeze-dried foods carry with them the same concern. If you don't overfeed, this *shouldn't* be an issue, I'd _think_ - but again, my frogs don't eat pellets, so I have no experience with that. I feed mine a mix of various 'meaty' foods - all of the wet frozen goodies from the freezer section. Juvies can be fed every day, but adult frogs can skip a day or two between feedings. . . what has been said about being SURE to target-feed in a tank with fish is absolutely correct - and you'll have to be careful not to over-feed your fish, too!

I hope this helps? ADF are about the sweetest little things! Congrats on your 'accidental' new arrival!


----------



## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

Chesherca said:


> Three cheers for ADF! One of my favorite critters  How did you 'accidentally' get him? The link that Matt posted is a good one, but the information on the front page is somewhat out of date - much of it still applies, but you'll find out more about the frogs if you read through the *many* pages of postings! I've been working on an updated version, but am not ready to post it just yet. . . feel free to post any questions you have there, several of our froggy loving members monitor that thread, and we're always happy to help out!
> 
> I personally wouldn't be comfortable keeping him in QT in a 1g bowl, but it can be done - you'll have to really be on top of water changes, same as you would a fish. Frogs are pretty tough, but poor water quality will kill them pretty quickly. As for the length of QT time, 3 months is really only necessary (to my understanding) if you're QTing a frog that will be kept with other frogs. This is mostly because of the Chitrid fungus, which can take up to 3 months to manifest itself. Apart from that, there are very few things that a frog could carry to a fish (again, that I have found in my research), so what you're doing by keeping him in QT now is ensuring that any fish pathogens that he may have eaten or carried in on his skin or in the water are cleared out of the system. As he's in a fish-less QT, one month should do nicely for this. . . where did he come from? And where will you be keeping him?
> 
> ...


My cousin got the frog for his 50 g, then decided he didn't want it. He was going to "flush it", so once I heard about this I frantically called and said I'd take her. I think it's a her because she's got front webbed feed and a little tail. Anyway, she came from PetSmart about a week ago, but I ended up with her on Friday night. 

She was moved into a heated divided 10 g with one side to herself. She wouldn't eat. So, I thought I would get her a friend. I went and got her a friend, and the next morning one of the two were dead. Not sure which one. So, at this point one is still alive. I'm not sure what is going on but the water is a milky white color. It keep doing 2 g water changes (it's about 6 g full at this time), but the milky color won't go away. I am out of test strips (I'll pick some up today). There are 4 mystery snails on the other side of the divider (although I plan on moving them once I figure out what to do with them). But, they have been in that tank for a long while and the water has never turned that color before. The only thing I can think is that it is the Instant Ocean Holdfast Epoxy I used to divide the tank leaching into the water. Which kinda freaks me out. 

Oh, I got a terracotta plate and put some bloodworms and pellets in the plate. They are all eaten this morning. So yay!


----------



## Chesh (Feb 17, 2012)

:-( Sorry to hear you lost one of them. . . It's so sad that your cousin would consider flushing a living animal! I'm happy that you stepped in to prevent that from happening. *sigh*

REALLY glad to hear you got the remaining one eating, though! That's a very good sign. Using a terra cotta pot to feed in is a great idea, you'll find that it won't take her very long to 'train' into going there for feeding. I've kept frogs with snails and have never had any problems, you'd probably be fine to remove the divider and leave the Apples in if you want to. . . though it might be a good idea to keep them separated for a while until the frog becomes used to the feeding routine. Typically, snails won't out-compete frogs for food like fish will, but it's always good to watch the frog eat so that you can be positive she is. I understand that this can be tricky if you have a nervous newbie, though. . .

As a general rule, mixing 'batches' of frogs without a QT period is exactly what you want to avoid. Just as with fish, the new addition could very easily bring in a pathogen that will harm the current, older resident. In this case, it is also entirely possible that the original frog was affected by stress caused by frequent moving and/or rapidly shifting parameters in a 1g bowl. Very happy to hear the survivor is in a 10g tank now. It's a much safer environment. ADF are perfectly content to live their lives out alone or with other frogs, but this doesn't seem in any way to affect their 'happiness.' I doubt that the lack of a 'friend' had anything to do with her refusal to eat, more likely to be stress related, they often will refuse to feed for a few days after being moved. Whats done is done, but I'd recommend you stick to this one frog for now, and not add another until you're more familiar with their needs and care. If in the future you decide to bring a buddy home for her, you will have to strictly QT for 3 months, being sure to keep all nets/buckets/siphons completely separate between the two tanks. 

I don't know anything about the epoxy that you used, it claims to be non-toxic. Both frogs and snails are very sensitive to contaminates in the water, so I'd be looking further into that, too. That said, depending on how much you disturbed things while putting the divider in, it's possible that the haze is caused by nothing more than a simple bacterial bloom, which won't harm anything and should clear itself out after a few days. Definitely look into the epoxy, though. . . that makes me nervous.

The easiest way to tell the gender of ADF is to look for the post axillary subdermal gland - that's a super fancy word for what appears to be a small white or pink pimple. Males will have one just behind/beneath their 'arms,' pretty much in their armpit - females don't have one at all. :-D

Good luck with the little one, and keep us posted on how she's doing, please!


----------



## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

I normally would've QT'd her but I knew she came from the same tank as the other frog. If there was something in the tank she was already exposed as was the new frog. Both came from the same PetSmart about a week apart from each other. 

I was shocked about my cousin. I could see some of my other family members doing it, but not him. He's 22 years old. Old enough to take responsibility for the animals he brings into his life. It's not her fault he chose her.

Thanks to everyone for all their help by the way!


----------



## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

We are still alive today. Woo Hoo!! But, I am not sure if we are eating. I noticed the pond snails are still in the tank. Which really frustrates me because I took all the tank decorations outside, washed them with a hose, and let them dry in the sun for like 10 hours. The tank was out there too. How the heck did those little *#(*@$ survive? Anyway, I'm not sure if the food being gone is pond snails or ADF. I would assume if she hadn't eaten in a week she would've crossed rainbow bridge by now.


----------



## Skyewillow (Dec 28, 2012)

NeptunesMom said:


> I noticed the pond snails are still in the tank. Which really frustrates me because I took all the tank decorations outside, washed them with a hose, and let them dry in the sun for like 10 hours.


You have to blanch (pour boiling water on) or bleach everything to get rid of them. Even with that, it took us 2 months to eradicate them. ._.

I'm glad to hear that he/she is still alive, as long as it's not getting any thinner, it's eating.


----------



## NeptunesMom (May 4, 2012)

I can't really tell. It doesn't appear to be getting thinner, but it still hides when it sees me. It is still alive, and I caught him/her today looking on the plate for food. So, I'm assuming she/he has realized the routine. 

I'm now thinking of getting him/her a friend. I've pulled two of the mystery snails from the tank (so now two mystery snails, one ADF and however many evil little pond snails exist in that tank). It's a 10 g when I take the divider out (which I plan on doing). Should I QT a new ADF? It would be coming from the same tank at PetSmart as this one came from. I just don't really have anywhere to QT for 3 mos. So, if I have to QT I'll probably have to skip the friend. I will say the ADF and ACF are in tanks right next to each other (which I know is not ideal).

ETA: I should clarify, I don't have ACF, it's the ACF and ADF at PetSmart that are next to each other.


----------



## Skyewillow (Dec 28, 2012)

While you SHOULD quarantine if you have an established system, since this frog is only a couple of weeks out of those conditions, you could probably QT for a couple of days to look for other obvious signs of illness before putting them together.

NORMALLY I wouldn't suggest this, but she's still new.


----------

