# African Clawed Frog URGENT Bacterial Treatment



## hanuman (Jan 10, 2013)

Hi all,

I hope I can get a response quickly...

I have an African Clawed Frog and one of his eyes has gone horribly red/swollen/weird.

I have done some research and now I reckon that it is a bacterial infection - everyone reccomends using Mardel® Maroxy® to treat it. However, you cannot seem to buy this in the UK so I need an alternative that I can get here on next day delivery or something. HAS ANYONE GOT ANY EXPERIENCE WITH TREATING THIS KIND OF THING??

Please bear the following in mind:

The frog is kept in a huge tank with other animals - the health/compatability of medicine with the other animals must be taken into consideration. The frogs new friends include:
***Florida Soft Shell Turtle,
Plecostomus,
Shrimps,
Loaches,
Various Tropical Fish.

The health of the turtle is the highest priority I'm afraid Thankyou in advance for any help.


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## fatlad69 (Oct 22, 2009)

Sorry i have no idea for treatment of aquatic frogs but probably worth asking Ron Magpie, he has some beauties. 

Do you think the soft shelled turtle may be responsible for the damage to the frog. I used to keep one years back and they can be quite aggressive ( hence their Latin name) and I would not recommend keeping them with frogs as the frog will eventually become food! As will the other tank mates.


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## TIMOTHY AND MATILDA (Oct 31, 2008)

I have 9 of these,if it happened to one of mine I would put it in a separate tank with safe water and see how he is tomorrow,have you got a photo?I would not put anything into the water,you could telephone a vet for advice,is he ok in every other way?Is he eating?
The main thing would be to separate to help the eye heal but prevent the infection spreading to others


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## hanuman (Jan 10, 2013)

Hi Fatlad69, Is Ron Magpie a user on this forum?

Yes the turtle can be aggressive but they put up with each other fine.
The turtle didn't do the damage, it is too localised to eye, that was my initial thought though.


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## hanuman (Jan 10, 2013)

Hi Tim and Matilda 

We haven't got another tank... I will see what I can sort out for him though as you are right, there is no point treating the entire aquarium and risking any weird side effects when he can be isolated and treated individually. 

There is no vets nearby that deal with amphibians  I will get a photo together after work and post it up here to see if anyone has any other thoughts on the situation.

Thanks for your reply.


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## fatlad69 (Oct 22, 2009)

hanuman said:


> Hi Fatlad69, Is Ron Magpie a user on this forum?
> 
> Yes the turtle can be aggressive but they put up with each other fine.
> The turtle didn't do the damage, it is too localised to eye, that was my initial thought though.


Yes Ron is a regular user of the forum. Personally I wouldn't bother with the vets, they will charge you a fortune and probably won't have the experience of any of the guys on here.

Adam


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## Wolfenrook (Jul 2, 2010)

Dartrfrog sell Bactyfec Fertilisers & Feeds Price List I don't know how well it works though having never used it.

I've also read that frogs can be treated with chloramphenicol eye drops, including for chytrid infection. HOWEVER I haven't a clue as to required dilution, dosage, regime etc, and can find no documented cases of it's use by hobbyists.

Been a realist, given the low cost of these frogs the Bactyfec is probably worth a shot. Or if the frog has value beyond the monetary to you, it may be worth trying to get a telephone consultation with a vet who actually has experience with treating amphibians. However this will end up costing a LOT more than the frog cost in the first place.

From personal experience, often one of the best routes to take with bacterial infections is to quarantine the effected animal (a small plastic tank is all you need) and see if it gets any worst. You are going to need an isolation tank anyway in order to treat the frog.


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## hanuman (Jan 10, 2013)

Wolfenrook said:


> Dartrfrog sell Bactyfec Fertilisers & Feeds Price List I don't know how well it works though having never used it.
> ...
> 
> Been a realist, given the low cost of these frogs the Bactyfec is probably worth a shot. Or if the frog has value beyond the monetary to you, it may be worth trying to get a telephone consultation with a vet who actually has experience with treating amphibians. However this will end up costing a LOT more than the frog cost in the first place.
> ...


I won't be going to the vet as there isn't one around... it would probably cost more money than I have anyway.

I've got my self one of those clear plastic 80 gallon storage boxes, that should do the trick 

Are there no suggestions towards a particular anti-bacterial/fungal treatment that someone on here has used successfully? Anyone got experience with Bactyfec?


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## Wolfenrook (Jul 2, 2010)

Found this that might help http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/forums/amphibians/857103-melafix-treat-eye-infections.html.

Ade


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## Terrarium Supplies (May 12, 2012)

Wolfenrook said:


> Found this that might help http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/forums/amphibians/857103-melafix-treat-eye-infections.html.
> 
> Ade


Quite an easy fix really - I've used Melafix to treat a wide spectrum of problems, these include but are not isolated to:

Bacterial (inc eye) infections
Skin legions and ulcers
Open wounds and tags

5ml for every 10 gallon or 45lt in UK term. It is a safe and stable way to treat amphibians, both semi and aquatic and will not harm your other inhabitants. The active ingredient in Melafix is 1% 'Melaleuca' and is an all natural Aboriginal fern.


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## hanuman (Jan 10, 2013)

*some pics*

Hi all,

Thank you 'terrarium supplies'. We have now got another tank set up and the water is getting up to temp. We are going to isolate it and treat it with Melafix. Fingers crossed he makes it - everyone says these frogs are tough fighters so I'm positive he will 

Got some photo's here for a second opinion, if anyone thinks I'm about to take the wrong course of action then please let me know:


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## Terrarium Supplies (May 12, 2012)

Oooo that looks worse than I thought. Having not seen the picture till now I thought that the eye would be milky dark and not so blood red. In fact the whole eye seems to have reverted back into the socket and seems local to the Iris and Aqueius humor. 

Without a doubt get your little guy removed as soon as possible. Making sure you treat with the Melafix solution for at least 14 days. If there is no signs of improvement then follow up the treatment plan with a course of Pimafix as both the two can be used in conjunction to cover a very wide spectrum (also may be worth having these in your stock cupboard for any future use).

On a side note it would be wise to treat the communal using the same course of Melafix solution per cubic gallon. Better to be safe than sorry as we have all lost loved ones and learnt the hard way.


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## hanuman (Jan 10, 2013)

Terrarium Supplies said:


> Oooo that looks worse than I thought. Having not seen the picture till now I thought that the eye would be milky dark and not so blood red. In fact the whole eye seems to have reverted back into the socket and seems local to the Iris and Aqueius humor.
> 
> Without a doubt get your little guy removed as soon as possible. Making sure you treat with the Melafix solution for at least 14 days. If there is no signs of improvement then follow up the treatment plan with a course of Pimafix as both the two can be used in conjunction to cover a very wide spectrum (also may be worth having these in your stock cupboard for any future use).
> 
> On a side note it would be wise to treat the communal using the same course of Melafix solution per cubic gallon. Better to be safe than sorry as we have all lost loved ones and learnt the hard way.


Yeh it's quite bad... he'll be moving into his new tank after work today, I'm just about to pop to the pet store to see if they have melafix, if not then it's a next day delivery order job. 

I was thinking to treat the main tank as well so I'm glad you have suggested that, there's no point healing him then putting back in a tank that could possibly be infected. I would be devastated if the turtle showed signs of catching anything too so better to be safe than sorry!

(on a side note his eye looks a bit healthier this morning than when we first noticed it two mornings ago 

Thanks for your advise and I'll keep updates on this post and show some before and after picks so that anyone else with the same problem can see what happens.


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## Ron Magpie (Oct 11, 2009)

hanuman said:


> Hi all,
> 
> I hope I can get a response quickly...
> 
> ...


 Ok, so you have the infection treatment in hand, good. Now, you need to *seriously* rethink your set-up, I'm afraid. I can tell you that most turtle keepers wouldn't even keep softshells with _other turtles_- they can be very snappy indeed, and in the confines of a tank, a soft-bodied frog is just a snack on the swim; in the end this will also be the fate of your fish and shrimps. Also bear in mind, if you do decide to treat the main tank, that shrimp are highly susceptible to a lot of common treatments.


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## Wolfenrook (Jul 2, 2010)

I doubt that freshwater shrimp will tolerate melafix at a strong enough dosage to do the frog any good to be honest. Mainly though it's copper based remedies that are the problem, eg. whitespot treatments, anti snail treatments etc.

Totally with you though Ron, turtles, frogs, fish and shrimp in one tank? A match made in hell to be sure, not a good mix. It's more luck than judgement that it's been ok so far, which it hasn't given the frog clear has a problem...


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