# Frogs & Toads > Other Frogs & Toads >  African Dwarf Frog - tadpole/froglet tank and feeding conditions

## RandaRM

Hey everyone. I'm posting in multiple forums in hopes of an answer since ADF's don't have their own forum.

I have African Dwarf Frogs, a male and a female. Everytime they mate the tadpoles die within a week. So when they started mating in September I decided to keep a bunch of the eggs with the expectation that only a few would live...WRONG!!! I know have about 60 tadpoles/froglets all between 5 and 6 weeks of age (from mulitple hatchings). Does anyone know how deep the water can be? They're all in the same 5 gallon tank. I'm afraid to fill it up too high in fear that the smaller ones might drown but I feel bad because it's a bit crowded in there. I have 5 that are significantly bigger than the rest with arms and legs and the rest are growing very slowly. No arms or legs yet. They are currently eating bbs, at which point shold I switch them over to different food? My older frogs eat a mixture of dried blood worms and the micro pellets but the older ones eat anything, sometimes they eat the fish's food.

Another issue which might be related to not enough tank space, for the last 2 weeks or so a few of them appear to be developing dropsy (bloat) but they're still very much alive.....if I touch them they freak out like a frog with ADHD and swim off. Any ideas? Any and all help is appreciated. Thank you!

Randa

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## Michael

I don't know too much about ADF raising ADF tadpoles but the 'Aquatic Frog' forum would yield a better response.

(The Aquatic Frog forum is for Xenopus, Hymenochirus, and Pipa -- though Budgett's Frogs have their own forum)

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## RandaRM

I tried that forum before but they never give me a response other than "google it"

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## Terry

Hi Randa:

I posted this thread a couple of years ago. It should answer most of your questions about ADFs:

The care of the eggs is fairly easy. Make sure you remove the adults now to prevent any disasters. Keep the temperature around 80 (F) and the eggs will hatch in 2-6 days. The tadpoles will be quite small, about 4 mm. They are carnivorous - feeding on microscopic protozoans. Have plenty of infusoria ready to go. As they get older progress to larger aquatic invertebrates. Metamorphosis usually takes place in about 6 weeks. Survival rate is about 20%.

Even though these frogs are similar to their larger cousins, the African clawed frogs (Xenopus), their tadpoles are very different. They have big heads with upward turning mouths (Xenopus tadpoles look like small fish). As the tadpoles progress, you will be able to determine which species they are. H. boettgeri has a long, pigmented tail; while H. curtipes has a broad, unpigmented tip. H. curtipes seems to be more difficult to raise. After a month or so, they will be able to feed on tubiflex and brine shrimp. Keep the water level low (about 3 inches), so the froglets can easily get to the surface to breathe. Once the froglets reach a half inch, they are hardy and the critical period is over. Sexual maturity takes place in a year and their lifespan is 4-5 years. 

Hind legs appear in 20 days, front legs 15 days later; then metamorphosis takes place about 16 days after all four legs appear. Good luck as raising tadpoles can be a bit tricky.

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## Tony

> I tried that forum before but they never give me a response other than "google it"


I do not see where anyone said that to you in this thread: http://www.frogforum.net/aquatic-cla...onditions.html

I will admit there were no useful replies, but just 2 threads down a lot of your feeding concerns are addressed in a thread that was just days older than yours. Terry has also provided some great info here.

In regard to your question about bloating- Are you talking about your adults of the tadpoles? If adults you should consider laying off the bloodworms. Dried anything is a recipe for disasterwith these guys.

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## Terry

> In regard to your question about bloating- Are you talking about your adults of the tadpoles? If adults you should consider laying off the bloodworms. Dried anything is a recipe for disaster with these guys.


I agree with Tony. Freeze-dried foods are a no-no for aquatic frogs of any species. There are two kinds of bloat. One is soft bloat where the frog takes the appearance of the "Michelin-man" and the other is hard bloat where the frog looks like it's shrink wrapped. Both types of bloat is serious and easily prevented with proper husbandry. Treatment for both is a salt bath. If hard bloat is involved then the addition of Maracyn to the water is required since this type of bloat is caused by a bacterial infection. Untreated, it is fatal.

On the other hand, soft bloat is caused by improper osmotic imbalances (in other words, the frog is holding water). This is caused by improper husbandry and treated with a salt bath. This type of bloat is not as serious and treatment works in most cases.

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