I built my pond last year. Dug from Memorial Day until Labor day.
It's 9' x 5' x 4 ' deep. It also has a raised hill behind with with a
waterfall. I used a rubbermaid tub and build rocks and land against it
to make it look more natural. I didnt put fish in it last year as I
wanted to pond to "settle" and make sure everything was working
properly. It was beautiful, and sounded lovely, and I enjoyed it the
way it was, planning on putting fish in it this year. Oh, I live in
Buffalo, NY. if that makes a difference. As I didnt have fish yet, I
did not keep the filter/pump running all winter.

Today was so nice I went out to clean up my yard. I was wondering if
the water in the piping to the waterfall was still frozen, and I
plugged in the pump. It seemed really quiet, so I decided to take off
the filter lid and clean out the filters-maybe leaves got stuck in
there. When I took off the lid, there was this big, I mean really big
frog laying in the back of the filter, filtered side of the water. He
wasnt moving, just all stretched out. I am a city kid and and have
never seen a frog on the loose. I used my garden trowel to get him out
of the filter and he was so big he fell off the trowel. I watched him
for a while to see if he was breathing or going to move and he just
layed there. So I through him out in the garbage thinking he was dead.
Well, a little while later, I went to look at the pond and there was
another big frog laying on the first drop from the waterfall, stretched
out and his eyes open. I dont know if he is dead or what.

Do frogs go into that "suspended animation" state like the fish do? I
cant even believe that I had any frogs in there because the pond was
new and clean in November.

Can anyone here fill me in on frogs? Oh, and the water stinks bad. I
was going to do a complete draining of the pond when it gets a little
warmer, because my neighbor's tree shedded in January and now the pond
has tons of leaves in it. (My fault-I will get a screened cover for
next fall). How do I go about cleaning the pond and knowing if there
are more frogs in there? From reading a few posts in the archives, it
seems that they like to live in the muck in the bottom of the pond. I
dont want to suck up any frongs. Will the smell go away before a water
change?

Can anyone help me?

Thanks in advance,

Patty

frogs are dead. fish dont go into suspended animation. they move at bottom of pond
all winter.
if your ponds stinks it could be 1. dead frogs, 2. dead snails, 3. dead water. Water
needs to be moving and aerated all year or it stagnates. With no fish in there go
ahead and start removing the leaves. Get a cheap kmart double outlet air pump, add a
couple big stones and drop them down to aerate the water. aerobic bacteria working
dont smell, anaerobic bacteria make sulfur compounds that stink.
I bring my cyperus plants into the house in fall, stick them into a 150 gallon stock
tank with a foot of water. sometime in january it began to stink so I got the air
pump going and within 24 hours it quit smelling.
dont change the water right now, use the aeration and later the pump circulation and
the pond will clear up. your filter should get rid of the silt and crud.
Ingrid

"Mikasa" wrote:
When I took off the lid, there was this big, I mean really big
frog laying in the back of the filter, filtered side of the water.
another big frog laying on the first drop from the waterfall, stretched
out and his eyes open. I dont know if he is dead or what.

Do frogs go into that "suspended animation" state like the fish do?
.. Will the smell go away before a water
change?


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Hi Mikasa,
Check out this awesome site for frog info.
http://www.fishpondinfo.com/frog3.htm

They do go into a dormant state for winter. The frogs you find may not be
dead.
I think you're actually very lucky to have them. Frogs are the coolest
critters and their numbers are dwindling in the wild.
Hope this helps!
Angie

"Mikasa" wrote in message
ups.com...
I built my pond last year. Dug from Memorial Day until Labor day.
It's 9' x 5' x 4 ' deep. It also has a raised hill behind with with a
waterfall. I used a rubbermaid tub and build rocks and land against it
to make it look more natural. I didnt put fish in it last year as I
wanted to pond to "settle" and make sure everything was working
properly. It was beautiful, and sounded lovely, and I enjoyed it the
way it was, planning on putting fish in it this year. Oh, I live in
Buffalo, NY. if that makes a difference. As I didnt have fish yet, I
did not keep the filter/pump running all winter.

Today was so nice I went out to clean up my yard. I was wondering if
the water in the piping to the waterfall was still frozen, and I
plugged in the pump. It seemed really quiet, so I decided to take off
the filter lid and clean out the filters-maybe leaves got stuck in
there. When I took off the lid, there was this big, I mean really big
frog laying in the back of the filter, filtered side of the water. He
wasnt moving, just all stretched out. I am a city kid and and have
never seen a frog on the loose. I used my garden trowel to get him out
of the filter and he was so big he fell off the trowel. I watched him
for a while to see if he was breathing or going to move and he just
layed there. So I through him out in the garbage thinking he was dead.
Well, a little while later, I went to look at the pond and there was
another big frog laying on the first drop from the waterfall, stretched
out and his eyes open. I dont know if he is dead or what.

Do frogs go into that "suspended animation" state like the fish do? I
cant even believe that I had any frogs in there because the pond was
new and clean in November.

Can anyone here fill me in on frogs? Oh, and the water stinks bad. I
was going to do a complete draining of the pond when it gets a little
warmer, because my neighbor's tree shedded in January and now the pond
has tons of leaves in it. (My fault-I will get a screened cover for
next fall). How do I go about cleaning the pond and knowing if there
are more frogs in there? From reading a few posts in the archives, it
seems that they like to live in the muck in the bottom of the pond. I
dont want to suck up any frongs. Will the smell go away before a water
change?

Can anyone help me?

Thanks in advance,

Patty

Thank you both for all of your info. I find myself going out there
every day to look for more.

Patty

You're welcome
Good luck with your frogs. From all I've read, bullfrogs are the only frogs
that may go after fish. We have leapord and green frogs in our pond.
All the best,
Angie

"Mikasa" wrote in message
ups.com...
Thank you both for all of your info. I find myself going out there
every day to look for more.

Patty