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Can Isopods Kill a Frog?

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Frogs are beautiful pets and you will enjoy raising them. But you need to make sure that you have planned what you will feed your frogs. Some people buy live feed for their frogs while others culture insects themselves.

What if you have isopods? Can you feed your frogs with isopods or do isopods kill frogs?

Isopods are safe for frogs. As scavenging invertebrates, isopods do not eat frogs and other living animals. If your frogs are dying, there could be other causes.

Isopod - Dairy Cow, On the bark in the deep forest

Why could your frogs be dying? If isopods are safe and frogs do not die from eating them, how do you feed them to your frogs? We’ll answer these questions and more in this article.

Can Isopods Kill Frogs?

Isopods are not predatory invertebrates. They do not attack or kill frogs. Even if you have a lot of isopods in your frog cage, they will not harm your frogs.

Isopods eat dead or decaying materials, so they are not the reason your frogs are dying. Even though isopods do not kill frogs, are they safe feed for frogs?

Should You Feed Isopods to Your Frogs?

Here are some reasons why you should feed your frogs with isopods:

  • Source of Calcium: Isopods are rich in calcium and other nutrients. They make a great calcium supplement for frogs and you do not need any other source of calcium when you feed your frogs with isopods.
  • Cleaning Services: Isopods exhibit a behavior called “Coprophagy’. Coprophagy refers to the ability of some organisms to eat poop. As poop eaters, isopods can help clean your frog tank. Even though you still need to regularly clean the tank yourself, isopods can help retain the hygiene of the tank for a while.
  • Free Feed: You do not need to spend so much when raising isopods. Raising isopods to feed your frogs is just like getting free food for the frogs.

Why Are Your Frogs Dying?

Here are some common reasons your frogs may be dying:

1. Toxic Foods

Praying Mantis Sitting on a Tree Frogs

What are you feeding your frogs? Make sure that you give them live insects. First of all, frogs will not eat dead insects. Also, the insects could have died because of toxic pesticides that can also kill the frogs.

Make sure that every food given to your frogs is live, fresh, and free from toxins.

2. Not Enough Food (Starvation)

Frogs eat a lot of insects and invertebrates in a day. Make sure that there is enough food in your frog tank. Frogs can die of starvation if you do not give them enough food to eat.

3. Moisture

Something very important that you must pay attention to when raising frogs is moisture.

Never wait until your frog tank is dry before you add water. The skin of frogs is permeable and it permits moisture to escape from the frog’s body quickly. This is why frogs always live around water. If your frogs do not have access to water in their tank, they can die of dehydration.

Always make sure that there is clean water in your frog tank.

4. Electric Shock

frog in cage

If you are installing electric bulbs in your frog tank, make sure that you cover them properly so that they do not shock your frogs. Remember that frogs’ bodies are mostly moist and can quickly conduct electricity. Frogs can die of electric shock.

5. Bacteria and Harmful Microbes

The frog tank is moist most of the time, so you cannot prevent bacteria from growing in the tank even if you clean the tank regularly. Just make sure that you do not fail to clean the tank because if you don’t, harmful bacteria can infect your frogs. Your frogs may be dying of an infection.

You should contact a vet for better support. There are more reasons why your frogs may be dying. Make sure that you call the vet.

How Do You Feed frogs with Isopods?

isopods woodlouse pill bugs

Here are essential tips when feeding your frogs with isopods:

  • Feed Them with Living Isopods: Frogs prefer live feed. Make sure that the isopods are still alive so that they can get the attention of your frogs.
  • Throw in More Than Enough Isopods: Your frogs may not quickly find all the isopods, so you should give them more than they need so that they can start eating before the isopods start to burrow.
  • Install a Dim Light in the Cage: Isopods are usually nocturnal invertebrates. This means that they are more active at night. To help your frogs find the isopods at night, you should consider installing a dim light in the tank so that you can switch it on at night.
  • You Can Raise Them in the Same Tank: Raising isopods and frogs in the same tank is possible. Isopods can help clean your frog tank while they serve as a live feed.
  • Know the History of Your Isopods: You should only feed your frogs with your cultured isopods or isopods with recorded history. This means that you should not bring wild isopods into your frog tank. Isopods eat a lot of stuff in the wild and some can even eat heavy metals (toxins). Do not feed your frogs with just any isopod that you find.

With the tips above, you can feed your frogs with isopods and your frogs should be safe from toxins.

Here are answers to some questions that you might ask:

1. What Can You Feed Your Isopods with?

Here are examples of food materials for isopods:

  • Plant Products: Pill bugs or isopods can eat leaves, flowers, fruits, and other plant products. You should give them a lot of plant products.
  • Humus: If you are cultivating your isopods with loam soil, you do not need to bother so much about feeding them. There is a lot of humus in loam soil and your isopods do love their nutrient-rich humus.
  • Other Organically-Rich Products: Isopods are scavengers and they can eat anything that is decaying so long as it is organic. This is why they are good tank cleaners.

2. Can Baby Frogs Eat Isopods?

Tiny baby frog rest on edge of pond

Tadpoles usually eat plant-based foods such as leaves, algae, and other aquatic plants. When they grow to become frogs, they can eat isopods as well as other invertebrates. You do not need to introduce isopods into your frog tank if your frogs are still tadpoles.

3. What Other Pets or Farm Animals Can You Feed with Isopods?

Here are more animals that you can feed using isopods:

  • Birds
  • Pigs
  • Toads
  • Lizards
  • Praying mantises
  • Grasshoppers
  • Predatory insects and invertebrates

Remember that isopods are rich in calcium. Note, however, that isopods are not so rich in proteins, so you need to provide good protein sources of food for your pets.

Plant-based sources of proteins are seeds, peas, and grains. Animal-based sources of proteins are insect larvae and smaller animals.

4. Can Isopods Eat Dead Frogs?

Isopods are scavengers and eat anything that is decomposing. This can also include animal products such as skin and other organs. Even though isopods can eat dead frogs, you should consider the safety.

Decaying animal products can encourage the growth of harmful microbes in your isopod tank and they can make your isopods inedible for other animals (i.e. your isopods can become toxic).

Also, you should consider the smell of decaying flesh in your home. It is better to dispose of the dead frog unless you know what you are doing.

5. What Insects Can You Feed Your Frogs With?

Frog Eating Butterfly On LilyPad Leaf In Pond

Here are more insects to feed your frogs with:

  • Crickets (very essential)
  • Mealworms
  • Waxworms
  • Grasshoppers
  • Praying mantises
  • Ants
  • Termites

Make sure that you feed your frogs with nutrient-rich insects. Crickets are essential for frogs as they are popular in pet shops and are protein-rich.

Final Thoughts

Isopods are safe for frogs especially when you culture them yourself. Do not be afraid that isopods will attack or kill your frogs.

Just make sure that you raise your frogs in the right environment and give them enough food to eat. If your frogs continue to die, call the vet.

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