Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a small problem. My sons White Tree Frog has somehow gotten a swollen leg. It is twice the size as the other one. Any ideas on how I can heal this?

Kathy

I think it's time for a vet trip!

Can you describe the leg better, the frog's overall condition better, and the tank and its conditions better? You will probably have to go to a vet, anyway, but it will give people here an idea and maybe save you some $$ or time.
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Got hips like Cinderella / Must be having a good shame / Talking sweet about nothing / Cookie I think you're Tame

Ok, here goes. At first she was in a tank with 2 fire belly toads. She stayed up in the corner of the tank most of the time. She was taken out of the tank to go to school and when she came home it appeared "pinkish". She had stopped eating for a couple days and started to look thin so we put her into her own tank thinking that maybe the other 2 weren't letting her eat. It took about 4 days and she has started eating again. The leg is still swollen but she is able to still stick to the walls of the tank. It is swollen from the first joint up to the pads of its fingers.

Kathy

Ok, here goes. At first she was in a tank with 2 fire belly toads. She stayed up in the corner of the tank most of the time. She was taken out of the tank to go to school and when she came home it appeared "pinkish". She had stopped eating for a couple days and started to look thin so we put her into her own tank thinking that maybe the other 2 weren't letting her eat. It took about 4 days and she has started eating again. The leg is still swollen but she is able to still stick to the walls of the tank. It is swollen from the first joint up to the pads of its fingers.

Well, Firebellied toads are fire-bellied for a reason... they're quite toxic. Also, you can't take a frog to school. Not only is doing that extremely stressful for the frog, holding a frog is terrible for it. They have permeable skin and anything that's on your hands, including your natural oils, will get into its skin and do harm. I'd think, although I rather have someone back me up on this before I make the assertion, that your frog is swollen from a reaction to toxins. Your best bet, then, is to put it in treated water to soak in. Change the water as often as possible and it will help release toxins from the body. Also, a possibility is that the frog also has Redleg, which would be expected from the conditions you've been keeping it in.

You can't mix anything with Firebellied toads, and you shouldn't mix at all. Not only are the toads very toxic (that means one frog going into their water can kill it), but they require completely different conditions than a White's treefrog. To have water at the bottom of a tank for the toads is no good for the White's, who needs relatively low humidity for a frog.

White's treefrogs need at least a 20-gallon enclosure to themselves (one frog) at adult size and there are plenty of caresheets available on their care. Hardy as they may be, you can't expect an animal to thrive under the wrong conditions, with toxic animals, and being handled, in this case. Frogs are not to be handled (permeable skin)... they're not really good for kids because of that, unless the child understands that you can't touch a frog and expect it to be healthy. That, and people don't realize the amount of care they need. Water has to be changed at least every-other-day, kids can't forget to treat it, crickets have to be gut-loaded and dusted with calcium, temps and humidity have to be watched closely, substrates have to be chosen carefully, etc. Frogs are also not an inexpensive animal to keep. They'll probably require a vet trip, and herp vets aren't cheap. The tanks and furnishings for them are expensive as well.

I'm pretty sure the frog will need a vet trip, and I'm damned sure it deserves one after that! I know pet stores don't really explain any of this, so it's understandable that you bring home common pets and have a situation like this come out of it, but that's why researching these animals is so important. Which, at this moment, is what you're doing on here, anyway. This could be a chance for the frog to start getting the right care.

Good luck with the frog and I really hope it survives and gets all better. I don't know the chances for that, so I just hope, but I think there's a chance.

Here's an excellent care sheet and guide for keeping White's treefrogs. The page belongs to Becki, who uses these forums as well, and you can navigate the page at the bottom by clicking on the pictures or words for what you need to learn about.
White's

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Got hips like Cinderella / Must be having a good shame / Talking sweet about nothing / Cookie I think you're Tame