# Frogs & Toads > African Bullfrogs >  Loose stools?

## NialR35

Hello guys,

Around 85% of the time, my pixie does loose stools. He's on the same staple as my ornate yet my ornate does big solid ones. Now I know nightcrawlers are supposed to be stool softeners but is this normal considering my other frog doesn't have loose stools?

Other than that, the pyxie eats well, and seems to be thriving but should I be worried about this? I currently feed night crawlers as staple, some waxworms/hornworms here and there, Dubias are illegal and can't find any other roach type. Crickets are just horrible.

Thanks in advance.

----------


## Jack

You could try some locusts. Since roaches are illegal I would suggest crickets but if you dont like them then I cant think of much else. I think you just need to feed it something with an exoskeleton. Worms are great staples but they are so soft. When I feed my bullfrog canadian nightcrawlers his poop is soft too. When he eats roaches, crickets or locusts his poop is harded with lots of little bits of wings in it...gross.

----------


## NialR35

Yea I thought of locusts but they are impossible to get around here. Only thing that should help is crickets....

Its weird my ornate doesn't do this though.

----------


## Lija

i saw somewhere something about one type of roach legal in FL, don't remember which one. I'll tell you this all of mine are more or less on a same diet too, ornates with rare occasion poop into their water, pixie on the other hand goes only into the water. that might be a reason you see difference in a presents consistency. 

i got a lot of crickets the other day, so my big girl was on a cricket diet for like last 3 days, she ate at least 200 ( may be more, didn't count) of them during that time. i have no idea why, but she loves them, and that is the only way to get her take Ca and vitamins, her nightcrawlers have to be served in a water and then she dives for them.  anyway she left me a nice formed present in her water tonight probably first time in very long time. don''t stress out about it much, as long as you see a happy frog that has no problem eating it is all good.

 edit - cc from different forum -_ Discoids are the only species you can legally obtain in FL, they are similar to dubias, but larger. Their care is the same._ 

 it seems that might be a solution for you.

----------


## Colleen/Jerrod

If your pyxi has diarrhea you need to get a sample of the stool and have a vet test it for parasites and bacterial infections. This is a sign of some serious bacterial infections.

----------


## NialR35

Well its not diarrhea, its just loose. Most of the time it gets dissolved in the water. 

Now if it was a serious infection, his behavior wouldn't be the way it is now right? I mean he would not be eating, would look different, lethargic and so on....or am I wrong?

This was his first week eating horn worms, could this new food item be causing this or maybe lack of food with exoskeletons? All they eat is mostly night crawlers but his stool has been loose since I got him yet he looks healthy.

----------


## Lija

not always, he might have bacterial or protozoa diarrhea and look all right at the beginning. however usually you can visually tell if it is diarrhea or just a loose poop due to nightcrawler diet + dissolving in the water. diarrhea usually go along with  gas, so a frog look bloated or poop comes out with  a lot of bubbles. Most of the time appetite decreases ( not always) and you can tell that something is off.
one way or another fecal test will never hurt, but I'm thinking it is not necessary in your case. try cricket diet  :Smile:  or get these discoids for a week and see what's up.

----------


## NialR35

Yea, I will try to add some crickets this week for dusting days just to see if it will make it solid or any difference...if not then I will get a sample just to be safe. I just need to buy some cricket food because I heard the orange cubes I'm using is really bad.

Also any things I should look out for as far as behavior and so on in case an infection is present?

Any recommendation for cricket food that is not repashys? I need a good gutload...is that flukers high calcium one good?

----------


## Lija

orange cubes are the worst, i had a very high mortality rate of crickets and my geckos that are fed supplementary with crickets had a very soft stools. fluckers ca is good, but i like natural way: lettuce, carrots, apples, oranges, as a dry foods sometimes i do grind cereal with some spirulina, tropical fish flakes and small percentage of cat food. works for me  :Smile: 
 try to feed exclusively crickets for a week, you should see the difference in stool consistency, if added just occasionally- not so much. 

 behavior - if a frog has infection - you will see that something is off, sometimes that something you can't put your finger on but it is off. if it has infection in digestive track - his poop will stink, more then usually and consistency will be runny, not just loose and dissolving in water.

 but it is always is better to be safe then sorry, get a sample tested, you'll sleep better at night  :Smile:

----------


## NialR35

Okay just a quick update about this topic.

Poop always seems to be soft but with shape....he mostly eats night crawlers and hornworms as treats. I don't do waxworms because they are too small.

Now, every other day I find this chunk of poop in his water and then the water gets soiled most likely because he dissolves the rest when he jumps out.  Is it normal for some frogs to go more often than other? My ornate goes once a week and does a huge one that looks like a cylinder but this one goes every other day and does small ones. I thought every frog regardless of species would have the same bowel movements?

It does not stink or has this nasty odor. Also his eating kinda slowed down a bit in the last two days. Normally he would eat around 2 1/2 night crawlers and in the last two days it only ate one and refused to eat more. I remember my ornate doing this before and now he just eats a lot...but usually they should come out when the lights are out and the temps lowered right? For some reason I feel something might not be right so I hope he starts eating like before.

----------


## Carlos

> ...Is it normal for some frogs to go more often than other? ...


Yes, it is.  Think would just get a fecal done and if negative; then it's loose stools due to diet.  However you could find out nasties in it's intestines (worms, protozoa, bacteria) and can deal with them before they get out of control.  Medicating a frog that eats it's lot easier than when it is not.  The fecal can be done locally by a veterinary or you can contact Dr. Frye and see if he does them by mail and how: Milan Area Animal Hospital, David M. Frye, DVM, Veterinary services in Milan, MI, Home page .  Good luck  :Smile:  !

----------

GrifTheGreat

----------


## NialR35

Okay I found poop outside of the water bowl. It looked like a balloon with some mucus in it and it was like a green/gray army color. Now it makes sense why it dissolves most of the time. Sometimes I find chunks and sometimes the water is just soiled.

It did not have a strong odor or stench but I know a fecal is recommended but what couldve caused this? Could it be my pyxie came with a condition from LLL reptiles? I've had him for 6 weeks and never once did I find a solid poop like my ornate's. He's been getting the same top notch care as my ornate and I always sanitize everything to prevent bacteria, stench, fungi and so on. So considering how my pyxie never had a solid poop.....I meant at all since I got him...what are your thoughts and how can I fix this?

----------


## NialR35

Any thoughts on my last update?  Also what are repta-boost and pedialyte baths exactly for?

----------


## Carlos

> Okay I found poop outside of the water bowl. It looked like a balloon with some mucus in it and it was like a green/gray army color. Now it makes sense why it dissolves most of the time. Sometimes I find chunks and sometimes the water is just soiled.
> 
> It did not have a strong odor or stench but I know a fecal is recommended but what couldve caused this? Could it be my pyxie came with a condition from LLL reptiles? I've had him for 6 weeks and never once did I find a solid poop like my ornate's. He's been getting the same top notch care as my ornate and I always sanitize everything to prevent bacteria, stench, fungi and so on. So considering how my pyxie never had a solid poop.....I meant at all since I got him...what are your thoughts and how can I fix this?





> Any thoughts on my last update?  Also what are repta-boost and pedialyte baths exactly for?


To medicate for intestinal problems without a fecal analysis could make things worse if you treat against the wrong pathogen.  Also, don't even know yet if frog is sick to blame condition on seller.  They could have sent you a visually healthy and thriving frog and the trip stress give the upper hand to an opportunistic bug.

Repta Boost is a powdered nutrient for non-eating or very malnourished reptiles/amphibians.  A Pedialyte (or similar baby unflavored electrolyte formula) bath is mixed at 1:10 ratio with 80F dechlorinated  for 20 minutes or until cool; and it's objective is to hydrate, energize and provide a short term boost to help frog perk up and eat by itself.  Good luck with fecal  :Big Grin:  !

----------


## NialR35

> To medicate for intestinal problems without a fecal analysis could make things worse if you treat against the wrong pathogen.  Also, don't even know yet if frog is sick to blame condition on seller.  They could have sent you a visually healthy and thriving frog and the trip stress give the upper hand to an opportunistic bug.
> 
> Repta Boost is a powdered nutrient for non-eating or very malnourished reptiles/amphibians.  A Pedialyte (or similar baby unflavored electrolyte formula) bath is mixed at 1:10 ratio with 80F dechlorinated  for 20 minutes or until cool; and it's objective is to hydrate, energize and provide a short term boost to help frog perk up and eat by itself.  Good luck with fecal  !



Okay but what do you think about the poop I found lately? Looked like a balloon coated with mucus, dark green/grey but nothing red or pink. Eating has slowed down a bit on and off lately and my frog has been in the water the past two days after a while of not using it.

----------


## SCF

completely normal. nothing is wrong with your frog.

----------


## Colleen/Jerrod

> completely normal. nothing is wrong with your frog.


Agreed! Your panic is probably causing the frog stress. They can pick up on your emotions.

----------



----------


## NialR35

This is a pic I took yesterday of a stool I found outside the water bowl. It's just that stools like these as compared to the solid ones from my Ornate that eats the same things, then the fact that his eating aggressiveness slowed down along with his appetite for a couple of days made me worried. I'm just going to feed it a pinkie like a friend suggested to make sure the poop comes out solid.

Well Grif, you were the first person to recommend me a fecal  :Smile:

----------


## Colleen/Jerrod

> This is a pic I took yesterday of a stool I found outside the water bowl. It's just that stools like these as compared to the solid ones from my Ornate that eats the same things, then the fact that his eating aggressiveness slowed down along with his appetite for a couple of days made me worried. I'm just going to feed it a pinkie like a friend suggested to make sure the poop comes out solid.
> 
> Well Grif, you were the first person to recommend me a fecal


First off fecals are always recomended especially if your frog has never had one. Parasites and bacteria cannot always be seen by the naked eye hense why I recomended the fecal. If you are this worried then there is really only two things to do. 

Get a fecal and eliminate all possibilities of a internal parasite or bacterial infection or 2 take the new thoughts on the matter and let it be. Either way ifnyou have not done the first suggestion of having fecals done then you must not really believe something is wrong and are just panicing over nothing. I gave you advice and you chose not to accept it and take others advice. Don't call me out because you didn't take the advice I recomended without photo evidence to back it up like now.

No matter what anyone says here. Having a fecal exam performed should always be done on a frog that you feel is acting strangely or a new frog period. Better to waste money on a clean bill of health than wait and spend hundreds on a sick frog after its too late.

----------


## NialR35

Woah, no need to be so hostile. I was not calling you out, hence the happy face I meant it as a joke. 

Also, I never discarded the idea of getting a fecal done at all.

----------


## Colleen/Jerrod

> Woah, no need to be so hostile. I was not calling you out, hence the happy face I meant it as a joke. 
> 
> Also, I never discarded the idea of getting a fecal done at all.


Ok then.

There will always be different opinions, BUT if you are really this worried that you have a thread that is nearly starting two pages about the same problem that may or may not be there it would be easy to just take that fecal sample in and rule out any further thought of something causing the frog to be sick would it not?

You can take everyones opinion here against a fecal and them be wrong and the frog pay the price or you can have the fecal done and be at ease. It is a simple matter.

Sorry about the hostile post. Sometimes these things can be frustrating.

----------


## NialR35

Yea its cool, don't worry . But by looking at the pic, does it look normal to you? I was able to snap a shot to show it to you guys.

----------


## Lija

> Sorry about the hostile post. Sometimes these things can be frustrating.


 lol we all have our moments  :Smile:  

 all right since it is all peace, love and rainbows  :Smile: 
Nial, look, the less you worry the better. I know very well and first hand that it is easier said then done. the poop looks just fine. 
 i don't monitor when they poop or how they poop, i track their weight ( once a month) and only because i do it for my other animals, so i might as well do everybody, also i track their feeding, dusting, substrate changes. 
 on a daily basis i look for everything out of ordinary, how they feel, if they bloated, if they refuse to eat for longer periods, if they seem not their normal themselves.
 as Grif said they have an ability to pick up on your emotions and stress, gosh i have no idea how, but they do. i had problems feeding cornuta until my hubby started doing it, he is way calmer and laid back person then me lol and cornuta eats for him, but not for me, i'm just getting screaming sessions if i do anything to its tank. last time i changed its water the little monster got out of a hide and yelled at me....

----------


## NialR35

LOL@ Lija. That is hilarious.

But yea maybe I'm over stressing it but you made a great point that as long as the frog grows and eats properly then its doing good. 

I also track their feeding/dusting/poop/substrate patterns because I have a bad memory  :Stick Out Tongue:

----------


## NialR35

Well after seeing his poops back in shape (literally), with the typical capsule-looking shape I did not do a fecal but recently( last two days) they started being lose again( brown color but no shape at all, with some mucus) I recently have been feeding in the water for the past 5 days so I was wondering if this can cause that too because he seems to swallow water when I feed him in his water bowl.

 I'm going to do a fecal this week because I'm tired of this and I'm starting to get this gut feeling that something might be a bit off even though he still eats like crazy,  but I was wondering if the recent "feeding in the water bowl" technique (because he does not want to eat from tongs anymore but eats aggressively when I drop the worms in the water) has anything to do with this.....Any thoughts?

----------


## Dr. Matt

> Hello guys,
> 
> Around 85% of the time, my pixie does loose stools. He's on the same staple as my ornate yet my ornate does big solid ones. Now I know nightcrawlers are supposed to be stool softeners but is this normal considering my other frog doesn't have loose stools?
> 
> Other than that, the pyxie eats well, and seems to be thriving but should I be worried about this? I currently feed night crawlers as staple, some waxworms/hornworms here and there, Dubias are illegal and can't find any other roach type. Crickets are just horrible.
> 
> Thanks in advance.


You all know what im about to preach,  EXPAND YOUR FROGS DIET.  Mr. Pickles blasts out hotdogs after almost every meal.  Find a way to sterilize birds, snakes, fish or what ever else so you feel safe feeding these vitamin packed critters to your frog.  Worms are his main diet?  that is crazy to me. These guys have had millions of years to become what they are, and what they are are eating machines.  they have an immune system that would baffle peoples minds.  they come from an area on this planet that is full of multiple food sources and are fully equipt to handle them.  yet it seems like alot of you use white gloves around them.  loosen up and feed your frog.  
Now pass the collection plate!  (:

----------

