You just saw your African dwarf frog getting at the top for air, didn’t you? Don’t be spooked, nothing is wrong. That’s a normal phenomenon for this aquatic frog as they are not blessed with any gills. They use this time to come up and breathe.
African dwarf frogs are best able to breath for 15-20 minutes at a time. If your frog shows up less than 5 minutes or 2-3 minutes then it’s having health issues. That’s when you should worry.
You want to know more about african dwarf frogs coming up for air? I got you. Just go down below…
How often do African dwarf frogs come up for air?
Due to the lack of gills, African dwarf frogs breathe through their lungs. So they have to go to the top water surface for air every 15-20 minutes.
Though they spend a significant time in the bottom part of their habitat, lung breathing makes them visit the top many times a day. Sometimes you notice them swimming in the top area which is part of their normal activity.
How can you detect that an African dwarf frog is having a problem with breathing?
Some owners find their African dwarf frog comes to the top frequently which is a bad sign.
If you find your frog to come to the top around after every 15 seconds, 20 seconds, or 30 seconds that means your frog is having some problem down there at the bottom of the aquarium, so it’s coming to the top and requires urgent attention.
When your frog starts eating less, with too much floating on top, and not responsive like before then you should call a vet to treat the frog properly.
Does an adult African dwarf frog need to come up to the top more than a young frog?
If you are a beginner you might fail to understand the behavior of your small aquatic pet.
Especially their breathing pattern can be confusing if you keep two different-age frogs in two tanks or the same tank. You will see the young one will come up more than the adult African dwarf frog.
As African dwarf frog starts to grow their ability to stay underwater increases.
Why does an African dwarf frog stick its nose on surface water in their aquarium?
Just because you’ve seen your friend coming up to the surface doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with it, or the water in the tank.. There is a casual attitude among African dwarf frogs, and they like to relax by keeping the nose out of water & the rest of the body submerged underwater.
This behavior is okay if you find them once in a while. But if it is for a prolonged time then something is surely wrong with your African dwarf frog.
How can you help African dwarf frogs to make their air-breathing process easy?
This species comes to the surface water for breathing so adding 2-3 floating plants will be helpful for them. Your African dwarf frog can get on the leaf and keep breathing air while resting.
Moreover, the water quality of the frog tanks is very important. If the level of nitrate & ammonia rises too high then your frog will become sick so it will appear more & more on the surface water for breathing. So you must ensure that every parameter is within the maximum range.
How to know if your African dwarf frog is happy?
As long as your frog is visiting the top water surface each 15-20 minutes, active in eating food & swimming then you can be sure they are happy & healthy.
Final words
If you had any confusion regarding the breathing of African dwarf frogs hopefully it became clear.
So, there’s nothing to panic about as long as you monitor the water quality properly. The only time when you need to be serious is when they stop eating and start floating on top for a long time.
