# Frogs & Toads > Frogs >  Is it possible to take care of a wild caught frog?

## jeromeetabuzo

So i found two frogs from my dad's pond filter (got stuck possibly), and caught one and let the other one go , and I plan to buy a vivarium for him , So is it possible to take care of that frog , its a Rana Erythraea.
its a juveneile , oh and also it was so fat and thinking if I can take care of the frog and will it accept my food like crickets? Please reply so that I wont waste my money buying a vivarium if it isnt possible.
I promise to follow advice..I changed already , so pls anyone help

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## Ryan

Hi there
Smaller rana species will most likely be much easier to take care of.
It will be happy in a 10 to 15 gallon tank with a large water portion 
with cork bark and a filter. The tank can be divided by sloping a 
piece of cork bark in the center of the tank with silicon or wedged
 into place. His land area can have soil without vermiculite or 
pesdicides and insecticides, You can use live or fake plants
and a hide, keep the frog near 75 degrees and feed small
 dusted crickets daily to every other day, if he dose not 
get use to captivity, its best to let him go.

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## Sherry

I think you should let him go. :Frown:  He belongs out in the wild.

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## Caspian

Sherry has a point. Unless the frog is invasive to your area, or has been injured, it is best you let him go, and especially so if he/she hates captivity.

If it is invasive, keep it. For his/her setup, I'd get a 20-25 gallon long, nothing smaller. I use smooth pond stones too big to be eaten for both my bullfrog and green frog's setups, ramping up to form a land area, which is attached to a piece of thoroughly washed driftwood. I highly advise adding fake water lilies and reeds to place crickets on.  Here's a list of things you will need in order to keep your frog, with some links on where to get some of the supplies:

1 20-25 gallon long tank
1-2 bags of smooth pond stones (if from outside, boil for 5-10 minutes)
Amphibian water conditioner: Mr.Pet's
Filter: Mr.Pet's OR U2 Underwater Filter - Petcetera
Aquarium background: Mr.Pet's
Aquarium lid
(Optional) Fake plants
(Optional) Fake water reeds/lilies
2 empty 4 liter milk/water jugs
2 large buckets
2.5 or 5 gallon tank for the crickets
2-3 empty egg cartons.
30 crickets (weekly) that are smaller than the space between the frogs eyes
Lettuce, carrots, various fruits, and oats to feed the crickets.
(Optional) Dew/Earthworms

Feed the frog daily on a basis of 2-5 crickets, and an earthworm every other day. Dust his crickets with a calcium + vitamin D3 mix every other day, with a multivitamin mix dust every week. 

Refresh 25% of his water every 2 days and 50-100% weekly for the first 2 months to keep ph and ammonia levels, then switch to 50% every 5 days, as by then your filter would've cycled enough.

Closely monitor your frogs behavior in the first few months of captivity. Any abnormalities and let us know.

*DO NOT USE TAP WATER!!!!!* *ALWAYS CONDITION IT FIRST.* If you cannot find a place to buy the water conditioner, use water without chlorine (bottled spring water - make SURE it has been ozonated or has gone through reverse osmosis. Do not use distilled) or pond water, though not from stillwater.

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## jeromeetabuzo

uh what do you mean , does not get used to captivity like it doesnt eat?

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## Sherry

It is best to leave wild animals in the wild. If you had found it as a tadpole and raised it in captivity, it would at least be used to being in a tank but since it is already used to being outside, you may have problems with it adjusting and getting it to eat.

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## jeromeetabuzo

Hi  Sherry , I have them when they were tadpoles i released them in my house , so can i still take care of it or no? maybe cause i raised it when its a tadpole?

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## Sherry

I'm confused. You said you found them as juveniles in the filter of your dads pond. Now you are saying you raised them as tadpoles, released them in your house and are wondering if you can keep them as pets?

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## Jared

I think it would be best for him if you release him back into his natural habitat  :Smile:

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## jeromeetabuzo

I mean is , I raised him last time when he was still an egg and popped to a tadpole and became a baby frog. So i released him when he was a baby . And i found him as a juveneile and took him and thinking if he can still accept to be my pet

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## Caspian

My question is: How do you know it is the same frog?

Jero, despite the fact you raised the frogs from tadpoles into froglets, and released them into your pond, and now found them some time later, the frogs have probably acclimated to the environment, and taking them from it would be a traumatic experience for the frog, and possibly one that the frog would take a long time to recover from. I don't think that the fact that you raised them into froglets will affect how they are as frogs. Perhaps, you could try raising a very young froglet of whom still has his/her tail, since it would adapt to captivity easier.

It is your choice, but please regard our advice.

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## jeromeetabuzo

Hi , I released him !!!

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## Michel

So glad you were able to release the frog.  I read all the replies and wish I had that option.  I'm in FL and about 2 1/2 months ago I found a frog with paralyzed back legs.  It wasn't possible to release it and when I contacted a University professor, an expert, he recommended humane euthanasia if it didn't improve.  I just couldn't do it and still have this paralyzed frog. Is it ok to keep one frog?  I'm willing to care for the frog but wonder if others following this thread could advise me or comment.  I'd appreciate any help since I've never had a frog before and this one is just so cute.  Thank you.

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## AAron

It would have been acceptable if you kept the frog. As long as you legally do things according to how your state sets the law you are doing nothing wrong. The idea of not keeping wild caught animals can't hold any weight. Even frogs that are captive bred started off as wild and frogs like the Whites Tree Frog they are having trouble with the gene pool so they need wild frogs to help the captive population. It's also important to note that a lot of exotic frogs are imported and sold which does there native ecosystem harm just like ours. 

I am very passionate about keeping native frogs and toads as I like them more then exotics and I find it easier to care for them with being able to observe them in their natural habitat. As I said before if it's legal then there is no problem with keeping the native frogs. This also helps us to understand how to care for them more in captivity because people will always keep native species. Us keeping them and giving care tips can help other keepers and help their pets. 

Sent from my BLN-L24 using Tapatalk

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## Michel

Thanks for your reply.  I know releasing this frog, which looks like a FL bullfrog, would have been a death sentence, but I was also concerned about this frog being alone.  Is it cruel to keep a frog by itself with no interaction with other frogs?  I'd like to do the right thing.  Thanks again for your input.

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## Dace

> Thanks for your reply.  I know releasing this frog, which looks like a FL bullfrog, would have been a death sentence, but I was also concerned about this frog being alone.  Is it cruel to keep a frog by itself with no interaction with other frogs?  I'd like to do the right thing.  Thanks again for your input.


It'll be fine without other frogs. Most frogs are more or less asocial.

A bullfrog with paralyzed legs is pretty bad though. If it can't move around and catch prey by itself I would put it down if there's no signs of improvement.

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## Michel

Even though the frog is doing okay in my makeshift tank, I did hope it would recover, but I'm pretty sure after 2 1/2 months of care, it won't improve.  It is strong and gets around and has been eating, so I made the decision to take care of it as long as it lived.   It doesn't have to catch any prey since I feed it and I only handle it when I need to clean the tank.  Trying to keep it quiet and stress free. I struggle with the idea of putting it down, but I will think about it.  Thank you very much for taking the time to answer.  Also, I haven't been able to definitively identify the species.  I wish I knew the species and gender, but it doesn't look like any of the frogs listed for central FL.  It may be a pinewoods tree frog.  Regardless, I will try to do the right thing.  Thank you.

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## AAron

If you have a paralyzed frog then it would be kept best alone. With medium sized frogs and toads I don't think anyone would be opposed to keeping a male and female together. Most people have the wrong g idea about frogs and toads. They don't mind having a mate. Whites Tree Frogs are a communal species meaning they can be kept with more of the same species and they enjoy it. I have found research to make the case for American Toads and Gray Tree Frogs that they enjoy the companionship of another one of the same species. A frog like a bullfrog is very aggressive and territorial so it could live alone and be perfectly fine. 

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## Michel

I appreciate your response.  It didn't occur to me that a paralyzed frog might be at risk with a companion frog, so it makes me feel better about my frog being alone.  I did think I had a bullfrog, but I read they get to 8 inches long.  My frog is no more than 3 inches and I just can't match the coloring and markings to anything.  I'll keep doing what I can to keep it safe and comfortable, for as long as it lives.  Thanks for your help.

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