Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a four year old WTF and he has never been sick really. Two days ago he was fine, nothing appeared wrong with him, then the day before yesterday he started acting like his feet were cramping up. He would ball his hands up into little fists and try to walk/crawl like that. Of course it freaked me out. I put him in his water dish (he had been out awhile) because at first I thought maybe he was just too dry and his fingers were sticking together. He also would twitch a couple of times during this. He then acted fine for awhile, toes extended like usual, then he would "cramp" up again. He is still doing this and I am worried sick. He will only eat one cricket at feeding time, then it is like he loses interest. Please help!

sounds like he's shedding.

my guy goes through that when he sheds. looks like convulsions.

then after a few minutes he's OK.

Here's a photo of him.

It could also be something more serious than shedding. Hopefully not, though. I have seen this tyoe of twitching in a pac man frog, who the vet said was calcium deficient and hypo-gycemic(sp?). Do you ever supplement his feedings and is he eating normally? Also, do you gutload his prey? How old is the frog? If he is still growing, then it could be the calcium thing.

I have had him for four years, I know what shedding looks like and he is not shedding.

It is quite possible he has injured his hands. If all four are abnormal, it is quite more likely to be a heat or chemical burn. Any access to light or heating equipment? Cleaners? THe twitching could be related to pain, or it could be completely something else. The best bet for a diagnoses and treatment plan is a vet visit. He/she will be able to look at your animal up close, and a blood sample will be able to measure blood calcium and glucose, as well as many other factors. An experienced frog/herp vet should be sought, as getting samples from a frog is never easy.
Ian

Yeah, I took him to the vet last Monday and he is doing a lot better. Back to normal better. He gave him a shot of vitamins and we changed his light.

What kind of light did he suggest?

UVB, which I had, but I was not aware that they lose their strength so fast and that you should change them about every six months. I just picked up another one at the pet store and this one came with a sticker to remind you to change it, so I won't forget. He is doing great now, up climbing around, calling for a girlfriend (ok so I could do without that part at 2am ), and eating like a tiger.