by A.E. Derby

Created on: February 10, 2007   Last Updated: April 02, 2007

My first pet frog was a green tree frog named Kermit. Although it is generally hard to determine the sex of a frog, I quickly found out that my frog was a boy because he barked. Yes, barked - like a seal. I later learned that only the male tree frogs bark - in the wild they do this to call out to a mate. We was a lone-frog, and living in Chicago, I can only assume the closest potential mates for him lived a few miles down the street at the nearest pet store, but he didn't give up. Every day, he barked and barked. While I, as a kid, found his barking very amusing, my mother did not. It truly was amazing that something the size of a quarter could be that loud.

My next pet frogs came from the lake. My father and I went on a trip and brought back ten large tadpoles in a bucket. My mother was not amused, but we kept them anyway. It was very interesting to watch the frogs grow from little swimming things with tails into large frogs - and do I mean large! Turns out, the tadpoles I brought home were bullfrogs. Big ones. Soon, as they grew, my bedroom floor became a sea of terrariums for the various stages of growing frogs - some still with attached tails and others with full bodies. The apartment was full of loud croaking (I'm sure my neighbors just loved me as a kid). These frogs lived for between one and three years.

My advice to parents? Don't bring home a tadpole. And if you're going to let Junior spend his allowance on a tree frog, make sure you get a girl.

Learn more about this author, A.E. Derby.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.