Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a Whites Dumpy Tree Frog and need help if anyone knows anything about them. I got him about 7 years ago, and he was already an adult when I got him. He's always been acting fine. I would take him out and he would look ok, and move around, but during this past week hes been acting really weird.
I noticed it when he wasnt eating his crickets and they would just die in the tank. Usually he takes the crickets when he first sees them, but not this time. I havent seen him eat any crickets even tho they pass right in front of him. I took him out to see what was wrong and saw that he was very stiff. Usually he wraps around my hand or finger, but this time he was just very stiff and his legs and arms would be spread out and he wouldnt move them. I took him to my sink and gave him a "bath" and rinsed him with warm water. I found out today that that was a bad idea since the water has things in it that my frog would absorb through his skin. So after I washed him down, he started to let out this sticky filmy stuff from his skin and still wouldnt move. I even laid him flat on my hand and he didnt move. Hes still alive, breathing and eyes will open occasionally, but im worried. I put him back in his tank and he was still stiff and didnt move. Then his stomach started to bulge out and move. Also, I started seeing these little white bugs in his tank too. I was gonna clean out the bedding today to take care of them, but im not sure if there is a connection. Is my frog just getting old, or is there something very wrong with him. Thank you-Anthony

http://allaboutfrogs.org/info/doctor/sick.html
http://www.geocities.com/heartland/meadows/5741/sikfrog.html
http://members.aol.com/sirchin/prevent.htm

thanks for the reply, but none of those fit what was wrong with my frog. Is this common signs of getting old?

is he shedding his skin? the white bugs are probally springtails, they come into tanks with high humididy, wet or rotting wood, or feces. they aren't harmful to the frog and they usually die off within a month or two, but if you're worried they arn't these, then air on the side of caution and clean the tank. i would suggest putting him in a quarentine tank with higher temps, mid 90's and see what happens, make sure there's planty of water and that there's an area to cool down. it helps to have a paper towel substrate for cleaning and monitoring food/feces ect. how do his feces look? any diorhea? is he going at all? good luck with him!

When you say rinsed with warm water.. do you mean warm to the touch??

You could have significantly thermally stressed the frog as warm to human touch is typically at a temperature greater than 85 F (and usually higher than 98 F as it has to be warmer than body temperature to be warmer...)

The longevity record for this species is 21 years but the average (median) longevity is about ten years so your frog could very well be considered an old frog.

Ed