Can I keep other aquatic life with my ADF?

In Depth Information on Common Aquatic Clawed Frogs

Can I keep other aquatic life with my ADF?

Hymenochirus

In most cases YES!

African Dwarf Frogs are very docile tank mates for a tropical community fish aquarium. They will not bother fish at all. Since they stay small you can have quite a few in you tank as well. But since they are shy you must offer lots of places for them to hide in. Terra cotta pots turned sideways, decorative caves and hollowed out logs, lots of plants and rocks all make great places for them to hide.

The only drawback to keeping fish and ADF together is that the fish will consume all the food before the dwarf frog gets any. Please make sure your frog is getting his share of food.

Hexagon and Tall tanks are not sutable for dwarf frogs. They are not the strongest swimmers and it is stressful on them to be straining with all their might to reach the surface for a breath of air. Tank height should not be any more then 16-18 inches, with the ideal height being around 12 inches.

DO NOT HOUSE DWARF FROGS WITH AFRICAN CLAWED FROGS or NEWT SPECIES.

Eventually the African Clawed Frog and Newt will eat or seriously hurt the dwarf frog. Different species of amphibians should always be kept seperate.

hymenochirus boettgeri

This Dwarf had her left hand bitten off by a xenopus tank mate in a petstore

GULP

A Newt consuming an African Dwarf Frog

What fish can NOT be kept with African Dwarf Frogs

Large Fish
Aggressive Fish
Goldfish
Plecos
Crayfish
Turtles
Other amphibians (newts, salamanders, African Clawed Frogs, etc)

1. Fish are are very large can eat dwarf frogs! The fish's mouth shouldn't be any larger then a pea, if it is that fish could easily eat or kill a dwarf frog.

2. Aggressive fish such as cichilds, etc. will attack and kill dwarf frogs. Also, the large tank requirements for these fish are not sutable for keeping ADF either. Chinese Algea eaters are semiaggressive and should not be kept with dwarfs as well.

3. Crayfish will EAT live african dwarf frogs, I recieved an email about this happeneing so I decided to include this. But I figured anyone with common sense would know better then to mix preditorial crayfish with a small bottom dwelling creature.

4. Turtles will eat up ADF before you can even blink. In the wild turtles eat small aquatic creatures such as frogs, tadpoles, fish, etc. These two species should never ever be mixed.

5. ADF are too small to defend themselves against stronger, more aggressive amphibians and will quickly end up as food. Do not mix them with other amphibians.

What fish can I keep with my African Dwarf Frog

Any type of tropical community tank fish. Tetras, barbs, live bearers, etc. Just make sure your frog is getting his share of the food and that none of the fish are picking on the dwarfs.

Otto cat algea eaters are perfect companions for ADF, they are small and don't threaten the dwarfs. They are also great algea eaters and will help keep you tank algea free.

Guppies are great tank mates as well. They are colorful and prolific breeders so they will supply the ADF with a live guppy fry treat they can hunt and catch on their own.

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I strongly suggest keeping African Dwarf Frogs in a tank by themselves. They are much easier to observe and more active when in their own tank. I personaly think they do better off in their own tank with other dwarfs as company. I keep my dwarfs in a tank to themselves with a few otto cats for algea clean up, it is a great setup and the frogs are thriving.