I bought the 'illegal' Fat Frogs (60 day experiment)

Do Rain Frogs make good pets? No one can seem to agree, so let's find out. Enclosure build, feeding, tiny insects, and so much more

[leafystreet]

I'm very determined to get these thickies breeding

[terabeatnik]

Afaik nobody has managed to breed them succesfully. They got so far as to the females actually carrying eggs (you can see them through their translucent bellies!) but nothing came of them. My theory as to why is that they didn't use an enclosure DEEP enough. These frogs dig a cave for their babies (who actually skip the usual tadpole stage and are born fully formed, legs and all) that is way below their usual sleeping burrow depth. I'd go with at least 1m/3ft of soil.
Hope you read this and best of luck!

[ocarinacat]

It’s actually ethically good for someone with reptile keeping experience to try to breed healthy specimens like this to help stop more of them from being wild caught

[mirkkulainen]

Try to simulate their natural environment as far as you can. Including morning mist and rain. Africa is hot, but it also has the day-night cycle of moisture and heat coolness, which are important for the frogs.
These frogs also lay their eggs inside the soil and guard them, so avoid digging them up and touching them at all costs. Before breeding, try to create a bioactive container, so you can rest easy with the soils not going bad and enduring the moisture levels and the frogs (and their waste) themself better. Their skin is delicate, so the hard and sharp gravel in the tank is not the best possible choice. The noises the frogs make might be because of breeding. Frogs usually make noise to attract a mate. Please keep on reporting how things are going!

[SpicyCactus]

"They die super easy"

**stuffs them into a box and hucks them into a delivery truck**

[Youxshii]

8:18 it’s like aliens picking you up, you pissing your pants in fear, getting a bath then you get showered in fruit loops

[TheDrPlants]

Name them Tubs, Lubs, and Chubs. All nicknames for my mother-in-law

[taxman]

I never thought I'd be so invested in whether a frog eats or not...

[SuperDuckyWho]

Having specialists keep animals for pets actually can help figure out why certain populations might be struggling and how to help them (emphasis on specialists). The figuring out how to simulate when they know to feed is genius and things like someone down further suggesting breeding maybe has been unsuccessful because they lay eggs deeper than normal burrows can be clues as well for where to look if something is going on (for example if a population doesn't seem to be laying eggs). It's a lot harder than people think to just observe them in the wild... there's so much we don't even know about animals that are everywhere (like crows and all their practices as an example) and if you can simulate their environment you understand their environment. I definitely don't think your average person should keep these as pets but this is a fascinating attempt to figure these little guys out. There's also the fact that if you can breed it you can save it.

[biosparkles]

For future reference, try to avoid swabbing frogs with dirt on them when you're taking swabs for disease testing. Dirt can inhibit the PCR reaction and result in a false negative. For best results, gently rinse your frogs off with distilled water before swabbing. You're trying to collect skin cells when you swab your frogs, so it's fine if you rinse them off first, just make sure to use gentle pressure when swabbing.

[spotpz]

They probably need deep soil that holds their burrows as stable as natural African soil would. A mother Rain Frog digs a 2-story burrow when she breeds. The deeper downstairs burrow is for the eggs and higher upstairs one is for mom to stay and keep an eye on things. When the babies have their legs and are ready to come out, the whole family leaves the burrow together. I would guess it's also important not to dig up the mom while she's looking after her babies. Being dug up all the time probably makes the females feel too insecure to breed. In the wild, they can hibernate for weeks waiting for rain.

[jasondelong]

You triggered her instinct to eat after the rain which she only does if she doesn't sense any predatorss, (you). It might just be that her family line is a bit more scared than those other two you got, so she was a little more scared, but that probably saved some of her ancestors too.

[Ghost-xyff]

Professional rain frog expert pro here, these frogs have insatiable hunger, and if they go unfed for at least 12 minutes they will consume their enclosure, room containing them, and eventually the house. Good luck!

[ncdiscus]

Hey! I’m the owner of r/frogs! Definitely share your findings with the subreddit or post your video; I’m sure they’ll all enjoy the wealth of knowledge you’ve provided already. Rain Frogs are definitely talked about at least daily; I don’t feel like people know what really goes into caring for them! Keep
It up great video.

[robertthor]

It may sound like a dog toy, but this is the sonorous war cry, of a very angry frog...

[Jaygandr]

11/10 video absolute chad editing, narrative and topic.

[apollofell]

You should name them Meatball, Tater, and Dumpling

[Taradoxxi]

I didn’t know these cute little guys were all wild caught, that makes me sad. but hopefully responsible herp owners like you can establish a healthy breeding population and make sure they go to people who will take proper care of them.
Also, for names: Nugget, Clod, and Glorbo

[Digitalhunny]

I really think that you should not only try breeding them _but, _ be one of the 1st ever, to write a book about them, their care & everything that you learn! This could be to help boost their populations in the wild. ❤❤❤😊

[GrandeAdventure]

I got to see Breviceps in the wild when I lived in Malawi. They are similar to North American spadefiot toads, in that they spend 90% of their time buried under the soil and sleeping. When the rains come and the smaller termites fly out en-mass, they come out at night and gorge themselves on ants, termites, and other small insects before mating and then going back to sleep. Their alarm call is wildly loud, bizarre, and alarming, and some species also emit a thick mucous substance when harassed by a predator that makes them slimy and hard to latch onto or swallow.

Such a cool group of frogs.