# Tips for treating hookworm



## DeeVas (Jul 2, 2005)

Hey All,

I'm looking for some tips on how to treat frogs for hookworm. I recently set up a quarantine tank that contained a few film canisters for hiding and used wet paper towels to line the qt tank which would allow me to easily clean and sanitize the qt tank during the treatment period. The one major issue I ran into is getting the frogs to eat. The frogs were in the qt tank for about a week but wouldn't eat. I let the frogs get settled in for the first few days and only added a few flies during the first feeding but they made zero attempt to eat any. I assume the stress of moving to a new tank caused this ( they never had this issue in the tank that previously housed them) which makes me wonder how people constantly change the paper towels, and move the frogs every few days to a new qt so the old one can be sanitized without stressing the frogs out.


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## oldlady25715 (Nov 17, 2007)

One method is to include some pothos without soil, wrapped in moist paper towel. It can either be removed once they are eating the ff with panacur, or it can be sterilized between cleanings. Fake plants and other easy-to-bleach furniture also help, but they should be replaced in same position as they were before the cleaning so the frogs don't get additionally stressed.

I also include a water dish, but they often shed the worms in water, so this needs changing/sanitizing just as frequently.


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## Reef_Haven (Jan 19, 2011)

Sounds like your frogs have another issue besides hookworms. Frogs with just worms usually continue to eat just fine, but continue to lose weight.
A little more details might be helpful; some history on the frogs, species, age, if a fecal was ran, if you're trying to treat with dusted flies or ivermectin?
I would add some fly larvae in a small lid to try to stimulate them to eat. Maybe a little piece of banana in a lid for the flies.


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## DeeVas (Jul 2, 2005)

Prior to being placed in the qt tank the frogs never experienced any issues with eating or any weight loss. The citronellas are about 6 months old and I've had them for about 4 months without any issues. They were originally housed in a 10 gallon tank with some leaf litter along with creeping figs and a pothos plant. Temp ranged between 60-70 with humidity between 75%- 90%. I had fecals run about 2 months ago and it was determined they had hookworm. Due to my schedule I was unable to begin treatment right away but there was no change in behavior or weight loss in the frogs. The only time they stopped eating is when I placed them in their qt tank to begin treatment. I kept them in the qt tank for about a week and did not observe any eating behaviour so I moved them back to their original 10 gallon tank.


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## DeeVas (Jul 2, 2005)

Below is a back pic of the frogs that best shows their weight


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## DeeVas (Jul 2, 2005)

And a pic from above for one of them


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## Reef_Haven (Jan 19, 2011)

They look great to me. Some worms can be normal and does not necessarily mean they need to be treated. Depending on how the fecals were collected, the worms could have entered after the fecals were passed. Did the vet give you the count or a treatment plan? The count should be something like X number of worms in the viewing field at 40X. 
Are your frogs back to eating normally now?


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## DeeVas (Jul 2, 2005)

I don't have the exact count but Dr Frye stated the frogs have a heavy worm burden. The frogs started eating within 2 days of being placed in their original enclosure which leads me to believe the issue is with their qt tank. Maybe I need larger qt tanks, or to line it with something other than wet papers towels. Just trying to get some ideas. From what I've been reading the frogs are moved to a new qt tank every few days but if it's takes them more than a week to get comfortable then that's not viable option.


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

You can always use some of the plastic hide boxes used for snakes as refuges for the frogs. They are easy to disinfect and in my experience the frogs use them just fine. 

As for not eating in the tub. Try putting the tub in a less traveled area and try not to check on them any more than absolutely necessary. 

Are you using bleached or unbleached paper towels? There are some reports in the literature that the bleached (white) paper towels can cause irritation which would contribute to more stress. 

some comments 

Ed


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## DeeVas (Jul 2, 2005)

What size tub would you recommend Ed? The frogs are housed in an area with very very low traffic so that's not the issue. I will try using I unbleached paper towels, hopefully that helps along with more hiding spots. Do you recommend I try treating again right away or should I let them calm down a bit. The last thing I want to do is stress them out some more.


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

I've used everything from plastic shoeboxes up to large rubbermaid totes for this sort of thing. 

You can even use a small aquarium like a 5.5 gallon one. The important thing is that you need to be able to strip it and disinfect it before reuse. 

You need to follow the treatment schedule as prescribed by the vet otherwise you may not be able to clear the frogs. 

some comments 

Ed


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## oldlady25715 (Nov 17, 2007)

If you have identical bins it makes it easier because you can move the frogs into the new one and put the old aside for cleaning at a convienent time.


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