Budgett's Frog Care Article

Here's a Budgett's frog care article I wrote myself. Enjoy.


Budgett’s Frog Care Sheet

Housing

A single adult Budgett’s frog can live happily in a 10-15 gallon aquarium, as these frogs don’t move around a lot despite their large size. In their “active” state (more on that later), they are totally aquatic and require a water depth of 5 to 7 inches. The water must be dechlorinated, filtered, and heated to 78-84 degrees, and you want to aim for a very efficient submersible filter that pumps 30 to 50 gallons per hour. Even with a good filter, you still want to pay close attention to your frog’s tank hygiene, as these frogs produce a lot of waste and are (conveniently) sensitive to bacterial infections and other problems that can result from dirty water. I recommend checking the tank for poop and spot-cleaning with a turkey baster every day or as often as your frog decides to take care of its business. You should also do a 25% water change every 3 to 4 days, and a complete water change every 1 to 2 weeks. You be the judge of when to do a complete water change-if your frog’s water has a fairly noticeable odor, then you have some business to take care of.

You will also want to keep tank decorations to a minimum, because Budgett’s frogs produce a lot of waste. As such, you want to make tank maintenance as easy on yourself as possible. If you feel like you absolutely have to use a substrate, then do not use anything small enough for the frog to eat. Budgett’s frogs carry a large impaction risk due to their cavernous mouths and violent feeding responses. Don’t bother with live plants, either-these are boisterous frogs that can destroy a planted aquarium with ease.

Feeding

This has to be the primary reason that people love these frogs-they love to eat. They live to eat. They’ll eat until they explode. Not literally, I hope, but they really don’t know when to stop eating. Although it is fun to feed these frogs, you have to avoid obesity and other food-related problems by being the judge of how much and how often your frog eats. The best staple diet for a Budgett’s frog of any size is appropriately sized crickets for a frog up to 3 inches and nightcrawlers for a frog 3 inches and up. When you’re feeding crickets to your frog, remove the back legs first, as those tend to come out in the frog’s poop. Plus, I imagine the spiky little legs can’t feel too good coming out. A baby Budgett should be fed as many crickets as it will eat in 10 minutes every day, with the addition of calcium-dusted crickets and appropriately sized fish (guppies and other livebearers-NO GOLDFISH) every 3 days. A juvenile/adult specimen should be fed as many nightcrawlers as it can eat in 10 minutes, with the occasional addition of fish and shrimp. A word about serving mice-do not feed your frog any mice larger than half the size of the frog. A growing baby (smaller than 2 inches) can be fed a pinky or fuzzy mouse as often as every 10 days, but any frog larger than that should not be allowed to eat rodents more than once a month. These frogs have evolved to eat mostly frogs, fish, and various invertebrates, so their bodies have a harder ngtime processing mammalian hair, fat, and tissue.

Handling

Budgett’s frogs are not supposed to be handled, except when necessary. If you do have to hold your frog, rinse your hands under warm water for at least 30 seconds to wash off as many chemicals as possible. Pick the frog up from the sides towards the back, as a Budgett’s frog picked up from the front will bite. It’s not that these frogs are particularly aggressive, they just think that everything that moves is a potential meal.

Estivation

If you want to enjoy your Budgett’s frog for as long as possible, then you will need to let it estivate every year starting when your frog reaches 3 inches in length. Choose a date in mid-October to early November when you think you can put the frog under. For the first 3 weeks before estivation, feed the frog twice as much as you usually do. This is done to build up adequate fat reserves. For the last 5 days before estivation, stop feeding your frog completely. This gives the frog a chance to completely clean waste from its system. On your chosen date, fill a bucket to the top with ORGANIC topsoil, making sure that the bucket has absolutely no traces of cleaners or other harmful chemicals. Dig a small depression in the soil, place your frog in, and it will do the rest. Be sure to check on it and give it a light misting every hour or so. Once your frog buries itself, then all you have to do is wait and lightly moisten the soil every other day. Pick a date 3 to 4 months from your frog’s estivation day to revive your frog. Here’s what you do then-very gently, dig up your frog and place it in a Tupperware container big enough for the frog to move around. Pour cool, dechlorinated water on the frog until the water level almost reaches the frog’s nostrils. Keep scooping water and pouring it on the frog until it starts to wake up. By the way, do this on a weekend where you don’t have plans-this process is going to take most of the day. Once the frog is fully awake and removes its cocoon, then place it back in its tank with all of its equipment, changing the water as often as every couple hours. During this time, your frog will be getting rid of 3 months’ worth of dead skin and pee. In 2 to 3 days, you frog will be very hungry and you can resume everything as it used to be.

Final Word

This is, hands-down, the best exotic pet I’ve ever had the pleasure of keeping. With their extremely comical behavior and appearance, it’s almost easy to forget that this is one of the most voracious, predatory frogs you can buy! In my knowledge there’s no other frog that greets you by ramming into the sides of its tank or hurling itself out of the water in an effort to eat you. With their reasonable price, huge appetites, and comical looks, there are not many reasons not to want a Budgett’s frog! I promise you will not be disappointed if you get one.