Does anyone here have any african dwarf frogs as pets? Are they hard to take care of? I’m thinking about getting a couple, and don’t know much about them. I have been researching, but there are differing opinions about a few things.
I’ve had some. They’re cute little buggers. I had them in my 29 gallon tank with my other fish.
Very cute. I had about 5, then one of them out grew all the others and ate them. Then he ate all my fish.
He was the biggest African Dwarf Frog I’ve ever seen.
I think I may have been sold a bum ADF.
Some pet stores will sell African Clawed Frogs as Dwarfs. They grow much larger and are agressive.
I was just wondering how many gallons of water in which I should keep two frogs. Some folks say one gallon per frog, some say 2.5 gallons per frog.
alice, it does sound like you had an African Clawed Frog. I’ve heard they will definitely eat Dwarf frogs.
Here is a page with pictures of both kinds:
Are they crunchy?
I’d go with the bigger ratio, and add live plants. I’ve had lots of african dwarf frogs as pets, I used to have 105 gallon tank with 5 or 6 of them and a bunch of small fish and lots of live plants next to my computer. It was like looking into another world, no room for the tank now though. 
NoClueBoy Yep, they’re crunchy! 
I have one in a small tank. He had a fish in there for a while, and they seemed to get along alright, now he just has a snail.
His name is Mr. Sparkle. Can’t you see he is serious? Join him or die, you slackers!
They’re good pets, and fairly easy to take care of- but whatever you do, don’t keep them in a tank with fish. Not with fish you hope to keep alive, anyway. African clawed frogs have voracious appetites: they’ll eat anything smaller than they are, and they’ll TRY to eat anything that moves.
Years ago, my family had a tank of fish, and foolishly introduced a tiny African frog. Over the enxt few days, the other fish kept dying, and no one knew why. Eventually, I found out: I saw that little frog with an entire angelfish in is mouth, with just the tail sticking out. Now, the frog couldn’t swallow it, so he eventually coughed it up. The fish was dead by this point, and immediately floated to the surface.
If I hadn’t SEEN this, if I’d arrived just a few minutes later, all I’d have seen was another mysteriously dead fish.
Anyway, over time, I saw this frog attempt to eat every fish in the tank. It regularly attacked a gourami much larger than it was (the gourami was a tougher customer- the frog usually backed off, eventually).
Slight hijack- I’m amazed I haven’t yet heard any stories of African frogs working their way into American lakes and streams, and becoming an environmental nuisance. I’m sure it’s only a matter of time. If and when they get into American ecosystems, I have no doubt they’ll kill off a host of small fish, and other aquatic animals.
astorian: make sure you differentiate between African Dwarf Frogs and African Clawed Frogs. You just say “African frogs” in most of your post.
Oh! Almost forgot. Make sure that your tank HAS A LID. They are totally aquatic but they’re just stupid enough to occassionally jump and then they land on the floor and get crunchy. Ask me how I know this
Fair enough- I’m referring to the clawed variety. I have no experience with “dwarf frogs.”
But from the little I’ve seen, pet stores don’t label them very clearly either- “African Miniature Frogs” (or something equally generic) is about all you’re likely to see on the sign at the pet store.
If you buy one, be sure to ask how it will handle company. (Unless you get a thrill from seeing your goldfish eaten.)
We have one African Dwarf Frog named Bob in our 10 gallon tank along with 3 black phantom tetras, 3 neon tetras, a black mystery snail and 2 clown loaches. He’s absolutely adorable and hilarious to watch! He’s not the least bit agressive – in fact, he adores Stanley the snail, as he can often be found “snuggling” with him.
Then we have another African Dwarf Frog named Barney in a 3 gallon tank with a small, yellow mystery snail and 2 rainbow furcatas.
We don’t have any live plants in our tanks and that doesn’t seem to cause any problems. Just be sure to have some type of plant (be it silk or plastic) so they have someplace to hide, as they can be quite shy and timid. Also, keep in mind that they’re bottom feeders and need either live or frozen food – preferably brine shrimp or blood worms.
I say give it a try – I think you’ll enjoy the little buggers!
astorian: that is odd. Here they’re clearly labelled.
Thanks for all the advice guys!!
Lorie
We had an African dwarf frog for 10 years. Kept him in a 5-gallon tank. We’d been told to be careful about keeping him with fish, so we didn’t try it. We also found out that the tank needed a lid - found the frog under my computer chair one day. I’m glad I saw him there because I could have squished him by pulling out the chair.
He was neat to watch - he’d come up to the top of the tank and hunt - body below the surface and eyes just above. And very late at night, he’d sing. We fed him food we bought from the frog farm he came from as a tadpole. He came from Three Rivers of Brooksville as a Grow-A-Frog:
My African dwarf frogs have gotten along swimmingly with the other small fish that have occupied the tank over the years. They were fine eating the fish flakes and continue being fine eating the fish pellets. It takes a little while for the pellets to sink but the frogs do eat them, sometimes while the pellets are still floating.
Just one note: The frogs can live for several years. One frog has been with me for three years. Romansperson’s lasted ten.