mixing frogs with fish??

Question
I put a 10 gallon tank in my son's room.  We are still in the beginning stages.  I have 2 platies and one catfish.  
He would love a frog/tadpole or both.  However some store owners tell me the frogs will get too big and eat the fish.  Yet I see some frogs mixed in with fish in pet store tanks.  I don't want to kill anything so we are moving slowly.  Can you recommend any type of frogs that would go with what I have or even other types of fish that would work with a frog/tadpole?

Thanks
Happy holidays

Julie

Answer
Hi Julie, welcome to this wonderful hobby!
First of all, it's in the frogs best interest to wait until your aquarium has fully cycled or established by means of allowing the beneficial bacterial colony to convert waste produced by the fish into less harmful compounds. If you do not know much about this, let me know and I will gladely explain simply the processes into fuller detail. If you already know lots about cycling, you should keep in mind that frogs won't tolerate any levels of ammonia or nitrite, few fish will either so you should take things slow like you are doing nicely already. Lets get to the frogs now....

The African Dwarf frog would be a wonderful choice in your aquarium. They stay very small, around 2 inches... Are totally aquatic which means they don't have to come out on land like other frog species do. And dwarf frogs are relatively easy to keep and are widely available. African dwarf frogs are cute as can be and spend a lot of their time kicking around in the aquarium just like normal frogs do. They need to breath air so you must leave space at the top for them to be able to surface. These little frogs need thick bunches of plants, either plastic or preferably live in which to rest on and play around in. One of the problems with these frogs is feeding them. Sometimes it can be hard to feed them because any fish in the aquarium will often gobble up the food before it reaches the froggies. They thrive on live brine shrimp or black worms. They may accept frozen foods of the same sort as well. These little frogs should be fed about every other day. A good solution to keep the fish from getting the food first is to use a turkey baster (one that is clean and unused)and squirt some thawed frozen or live food near your frogs. This method usually works. Dwarf frogs do appreciate some company. And they will gladely congregate in a corner grouped around each-other. So I think it's better to give them friends rather than just keep one alone. These mild mannered creatures should also be only kept with small docile fish. Your current fish should be just fine. Other fish you might want to include also are smaller tetras like Neons and Glowlights, white clouds, harlequin rasboras, zebra danios, and corydoras catfish.

These relatively easy to care for frogs would make an ideal addition to your aquarium. But you need to give your aquarium some time and test the water for ammonia and nitrite to watch the cycling period. When ammonia and nitrite levels are stable at zero--your aquarium should be safe to add a couple of African dwarf frogs.

Don't ever get the African dwarf frog look-alike-the African CLAWED frog. These creatures grow far too large, much larger than the peaceful dwarfs and can have a aggressive personality. One way you might be able to tell the differance between the two is the Clawed species have bigger eyes and is or course larger than the dwarf.

Most of the tadpoles sold in pet shops will eventually metamorphisize into an  frog. Usually a leopard frog. These types of frogs need a paludarium type aquarium. One that consists of partland--part water. Probably not the best choice in your setup. ~

I really hope this helps! If you have anymore questions, feel free to email me...

My best wishes,
Happy holidays and happy fishkeeping!
Karen~
ps: for a bit more information about dwarf frogs-- You may want to visit "www.allaboutfrogs.org" best wishes,