Grow A Frog kit? Uh, what do you do with the frog when you've grown it?

[JudoMom]

We're doing RS4K Level 1 this year. I'd planned to get a grow a frog kit as recommended.

 

Then I read on Amazon that people still have the huge frogs years later.

 

I don't want a pet frog.

 

How do others handle this?

[Chris in VA]

Creek out back.

[Renthead Mommy]

If it's true Grow a Frog brand, those suckers live for years.

 

They are also not regular 'creek out back' frogs, so you can't just let them go in the wild.

 

Which is really something you should never do anyway. Pet animals should be just let go in nature.

 

If you don't want a pet frog, that will last a few years, then don't get a Grow a Frog.

 

If you only want one long enough to watch it change, get your self a bucket, a net and tank of sorts, go find a pond and start looking for tadpoles.

 

We brought home a small clutch of eggs (turned out to be closer to 30) one year and watched them hatch. As the tads developed into full frogs, we then released them back into the same creek we found them in.

 

You need to feed them either creek alge or boiled lettuce and make sure you have an area they can climb on to get out of the water. And don't forget water conditioner if you are using tap water, not just creek water.

[Chris in VA]

Of course you are right--I was being facitious. Sorry.

[Aunty Social]

Well, if you have cats, they'll take care of the problem. Ask me how I know.:glare:

 

Seriously, The frogs require almost no maintenance. And my kids loved having them. They do live for years though (if you don't have cats). The tadpoles from the creek might be a better solution.

[Renthead Mommy]

Of course you are right--I was being facitious. Sorry.

 

Oh I didn't think you were being serious! LOL!

 

And once you actually SEE those frogs, you know they aren't the type that just hang out in local ponds. But that's not something people think about when buying those types of things.

 

 

 

I agree about the cats, that's how one of my cousin's went. I will warn you, if it's still like it was, it stinks. I think my aunt said it was the food that stank. If you don't scoop out the extra it really smells.

 

I used to get fairly regular updates from my aunt about the stinky frogs. I was the one who gave my then 6yo cousin the frogs for a gift. Apparently that means I then had to hear about how stinky they were, what a pain the water was, how heartbroken he was when one jumped out of the bowl and the cat got it 3 years later.... you get the idea.

 

I was 19 when I bought them. I quickly learned that lesson that you don't buy pets as gifts!

[TravelingChris]

WE did this long time ago with a kit and they were the same as the local frogs because I checked before ordering. That said, it is very easy to get tadpoles from your local area. If you are in some areas, ask on the homeschooling forums in your area and you will get offers. In Florida, they are everywhere.

[Heather in AL]

I've not done the Grow A Frog, but have cyber-friends who have. The frogs are African Clawed Frogs (no webbing between their front toes) and get pretty big. They are not indigenous to the States, thus, like any 'pet' really, shouldn't be let go.

 

These frogs NEED a 10 gallon tank...minimum! Anything smaller is cruel. They are FAST movers and need the space to stretch out and roam. They are messy eaters and, yes, the tank needs to be cycled and cleaned like any aquarium. They do live for a long time, if treated well.

 

If you want more info, below is a sight I visited often when I had a smaller cousin of the ACF....I had the ADF (African Dwarf Frog) which is usually an inch or so in length (not including legs). My ADFs lived an average of two years each, but 7 isn't unheard of.

 

Please research the ACF before you decide to get one. The company may have changed their species, but the last I heard (a year or so ago), they were still ACFs in the kit. It's a big pet peeve of mine to hear people who keep them in shoe box sized habitats... I know it's a bit of ignorance on the part of the pet owner, but it's mostly the companies who sell the animals. I loathe companies/pet stores who sell live animals without proper information on caring for them (don't go asking the pet store people...they don't know much, either!). We actually got our first ADF from the public school my ds was in....the wrong info was sent with the frog (it didn't say how to clean the water it was kept in, etc), and it died. How sad to think of how many HUNDRED frogs died in due to neglect, just in my son's school!!

 

Despite the negatives, they are fun critters (at least my ADFs were, and I"ve heard the ACFs are, too). They love to interact with each other, so two are great to have. One of mine would even swim into my hand whenever I reached in the tank to rearrange the decorations. It was cute!!

 

Here is the site....don't be afraid to sign up and post a question. The people are very nice and VERY knowledgeable! At the very least, you can search and learn a lot. It's mostly a fish forum, but there is a frog board, as well (which is the direct link I'm including).

 

http://www.aquamaniacs.net/forum/viewforum.php?f=23&sid=c202a1bf073f80b9a964c5e3b63a9b45

 

Have fun!

[Heather in AL]

I just did a search, and found that the company is still selling ACFs. They are considered invasive species. Here is the info I found:

 

"Grow-a-Frog is a company that sells Xenopus laevis tadpoles, also known as African clawed frogs, with a ready-made kit that allows the user to raise the tadpole through metamorphosis into an adult frog. Xenopus are a fully aquatic species, and the kit includes a tank and specially designed food packets.

Allegedly, the average lifespan of a Grow-a-Frog is 5 years. However, Xenopus have been known to live over 20 years. According to the company, one such frog from Washington, NJ named Alphonse (after the tadpole in Steven Kellogg's The Mysterious Tadpole) died on July 27, 2007 at the age of 23. Xenopus are also considered invasive species outside their natural habitat, and are illegal to own as pets in several US states. Regardless, Grow a Frog ships to all 50 states.

The Three Rivers Mail Order Corp. based out of Florida has had to stop selling their Grow-a-Frog product in Montana as the species is prohibited. The Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks in Montana sent letters to 65 Grow-a-Frog customers, asking them to euthanize their frogs or send them back to the supplier."

 

 

HTH!!

[Dobela]

We got tadpoles from a locally owned pet store. He bought fish from an outdoor breeder and tadpoles were regularly hidden in orders. He gave us ours for free. Just make sure they can climb out of the water for air once the start developing frog parts. They will drown if you don't.

[Plucky]

We kept ours for 3 years and just recently gave it away. A lot of people wanted my free frog so it wasn't a problem.

[Renthead Mommy]

Just make sure they can climb out of the water for air once the start developing frog parts. They will drown if you don't.

 

 

We had a good sized aquarium. And we started off with 30 eggs so they had a decent amount of water. (I really thought that whole survial of the fittest would kick in, but we only lost a grand total of 1 tad/frog!) Instead of trying to pile up rocks or things, I used the disposable ziplock storage containers. I filled them with water so they wouldn't float, and stacked 3 on top of each other. They had room to swim around behind the containers, a flat surface on top that I put rocks on (plus the little lip helped keep them there) and it was way easier to clean. I didn't have to use anywhere near the amount of rocks I would have needed if I just tried to pile them up high enough .

[scubamama]

Well my .02 I got a grow a frog in 2nd grade and it was still going strong when I left for college! My parents refused to care for it from the start so I had to find a home for it before I went off to college. Lucky for me I had a neighbor who was really into her aquarium hobby. She took Croaker and he actually was STILL ALIVE when I got married at age 22. That's one hardy tadpole! After 14 years Croaker went to the big pond in the sky :)

My kids would like one and were bugging dh...I immediately got the net and we caught one from the creek. No bionic grow a frogs for us!

[Tree House Academy]

Oh my! I didn't know this existed!!! Now I have to have one. ;) Let's see...that will make 2 cats, 1 dog, 30 hens, 1 rooster, 3 pigs, a gecko, and a frog. (and a Partridge in a Pear Tree...)

 

Can you tell I love critters?

[Luanne]

We have three Grow-a-Frog frogs. They are a little over 2 years old now. The male is quite a bit smaller than the two females. ... and yes, they do stink. We won't give them up though. They are quite entertaining actually. :001_smile:

[Riverfront Headmistress]

I killed mine. :lol:Actually, it was a total accident, but the booger did die.

[Scuff]

Grow-a-Frog will take them back when you don't want them anymore.

 

We had 2. A girl and a boy. They laid eggs once, too. But the cat knocked over the eggs, so we didn't get to see them grow :( Tad, the girl, died a few months later. Fred is still going strong.

[TravelingChris]

I didn't do that program. I don't think it was around when I did this which would be something like 13 years ago. The one I did had tadpoles or eggs for something like leopard frogs. They were native American frogs though some states did not allow them since they weren't native there. They either substituted other native frogs or simply didn't send them to those states.

[ELaurie]

at a local per store - they are a species that can be released in Northern IL.

 

You might check with pet stores in your area.

[Nicole M]

My boys were reading over my shoulder and said, "Dinner?"

 

:blink:

 

 

:scared:

 

 

:svengo: