Frogs are amphibians that live around the world and are adopted as great pets for those that want to have them as one due to their harmless nature and have a long life span and are generally of low maintenance as far as they are being supplied food in the right proportion with a comfortable environment.
They have short bodies and front legs, and long back legs that fold up close to their bellies. Based on this shape, many people wonder if these creatures excrete feces or not and if they do, what does their poop look like?
What Does Frog Poop Look Like?
A freshly excreted frog poop is a semi-solid cylindrical dark black to brown color with a shiny coat that can be found in smaller parts or as a whole and measures half a quarter of the frog’s weight though it losses its weight and glossiness as soon as it is exposed to air.
However, the color and consistency of the poop can change based on different things such as hydration and change in diet.
What Is The Size Of A Frogs Poop?
A frog’s poop is relatively larger than a quarter compared to other amphibians, birds, or reptiles’ poop. When you see a frog’s poop, you will hardly believe the poop came from a small creature. The poop is about 1 inchÂ
Why Is A Frog Poop So Big?
The frog has a big stomach and is voracious, it will not stop eating until its stomach is full and this occurs as a result of its fear of not coming across food again for the rest of the day or predators coming after the food when in the wild.
The amount of food digested is the size of the poop and urine it will excrete out at once as they always excrete their feces wholly without any painful experience as their body is shaped to bring out the big size of poop.
A frog can almost double in size as a result of the food it has packed into its stomach, so do not be worried when you notice your frog is twice its weight just in a couple of hours.
How Do Frog Excrete?
Just like other amphibians, the frog has a cloaca which is an opening through which urine and feces are excreted out of its body, and just as digestion takes place in humans, it also takes place in a frog starting from the mouth to the stomach with the digestive enzyme, trypsin, amylopsin, and lipase acting on the food, performing their function which enables it to pass out semi-solid poop instead of the solid food it fed upon.
How Often Do Frogs Poop?
Frogs poop depending on their age and the amount of food being consumed. According to their age, younger frogs poop more than adult frogs. Baby frogs poop regularly unlike adult frogs that poop once or twice a week. They might even poop just once in two weeks as the rate at which they poop decreases as they grow older.
Based on the amount of food consumed at once, a frog that fills up its stomach always will defecate regularly more than a frog that does not have its stomach filled up.
Does a Frog Poop Smell?
Yes, it has a pungent smell. Studies have proved that it smells like the poop of a dog. So if you have a dog in your garden, you will hardly know if a frog has pooped on your basement except for the size which is relatively different from dog poop.
Is Frog Poop Dangerous?
Frog poop could be harmful to humans if handled carelessly as the frog itself carries salmonella bacteria on its body and also on its poop.
Salmonella bacteria bring about a contagious infection called Salmonellosis which affects the intestine and bloodstream of the contact. When healthy adults or young children come in contact with it, they experience mild or severe diarrhea, fever, abdominal pain, and vomiting but low-immune adults might lose their lives as a result. Frogs also carry pathogens and bacteria that can cause several illnesses.
Where Do Frogs Poop?
Frogs’ poop can be found anywhere as far as there are frogs there and they poop anywhere they want when nature calls. However, their poop can be found mostly on the side of ponds or lakes, tanks, stagnant water, or moist or dark places as well as swimming pools.
Are There Differences Between Frog and Toad Poop?
Yes, although they are so much alike as they are both voracious. Toads will consume anything not minding the volume as much as their stomach can accommodate it.
However, the difference is in the size of the poop, a toad’s poop is also half a quarter of its body and a toad is larger than a frog, so its poop is also larger than a frog’s poop.
What Happens If A Frog Poop In Your Pool?
A frog’s poop in your pool will bring about contamination to the pool and it must be treated immediately as the pool would have been contaminated with a contagious disease.
The first thing to do is to flush out the water, collect the poop with a nest and dispose of it correctly before you disinfect the pool tub appropriately and construct a fence around it to prevent another occurrence. Make sure your gloves are on to prevent the spread of disease from poop and contaminated water.
How To Get Rid Of Frog Poop?
When getting rid of frogs’ poop, you need to be careful not to hurt the frog in the process as frogs can easily provoke you when you see them poop on the rug in your living room or on your plate in the kitchen, the only solution that will come to you at that moment is to get them killed.
However, there are perfect ways of getting rid of a frog without killing them which include spraying insecticide on the side and edges of doors, tanks, pools, windows, or passages where they have been sighted previously.
Using an ultrasonic repellant or natural repellants such as salt and citric acid will be of help as this will repel them away from the environment and also keep them from being killed as they might ingest the insecticide due to their voracious nature.
Clearing debris and getting rid of waterlogged around the environment could help distract them as they are always found in areas where they can get food or a moist environment.
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Conclusion
I believe this article has been able to enlighten you more on your frog pet and its poop, how they look like, how they smell, and how they are being handled to get rid of the poop.
