The Story of Max

Max's journey with us began at his ripe old age of 15. He came into our lives from a family whose son was off to college, and his parents knew Victoria loved reptiles. They weren’t interested in having Max for themselves while their son was away at college, and she was eager to say yes! It was an unexpected twist of fate that brought Max into our home, but little did Victoria know, he would soon become an integral member of the family.

Max landed his first home as an elementary school prize for good performance in 2006. His story sheds light on a crucial issue in education, fairs, etc. - the practice of gifting live animals as prizes. While usually well-intentioned, this tradition can often lead to negative unintended consequences for the animals and the recipients.

The parents of the child who won Max were not prepared to have a pet frog. They were entirely uninformed about the proper care and keeping of this precious and sensitive animal. The teacher did not ask if the family wanted a pet frog, nor did she send home any proper care guidelines. As a result, he lived in a mere 2-gallon tank for 14 years.

His previous caretakers never upgraded his environment and food was never gut-loaded or vitamin-dusted, which both led to health issues aging him at an accelerated pace.

Victoria was told he had everything he needed, so she was surprised to receive him in this “enclosure” with a water dish and rock.

This is the tank where Max lived most of his life, just missing the water dish and too-small rock hide he came with. Victoria added the heating pad she had offhand as a temporary band-aid to provide a heat source overnight while she got his new enclosure ready.

Max was a dull brown color and didn’t have a very alert posture.

As responsible pet owners who are deciding to keep animals, we have a duty to provide that life with the most natural environment possible to how they would live in the wild. We should try to replicate where they naturally live in the wild to the max that we reasonably can, or we should not have that pet.

Victoria quickly sprang into action, giving Max a new, spacious home fit for the frog king he was. The name Max originated as a play on his behavior - he barked like a dog every night, often catching visiting guests off guard.

Despite his age and history, Max still had plenty of spirit left in him. While most adult tree frogs are known for their lively antics, Max was seldom very active (besides occasional zoomies). He had limited eyesight from the cataracts that had developed over the years, preventing him from wanting to adventure very far or high in his enclosure. Even placing him on a branch would send him into a brief panic - he never once climbed a branch on his own.

That didn't stop him from serenading us with melodic croaks, especially in the wee hours of the night when he was calling for a mate to visit him. We shared countless moments of joy with Max, from watching him explore the grounds and glass of his habitat to feeding him his favorite snack….crickets!

In just minutes after transferring Max to his new enclosure, his color completely changed and he went on high alert - he looked like a different frog taking in his new home.

In September of 2023 at the age of 18, our time with Max came to an end. It was absolutely devastating to find he had passed away overnight.

Though Max may no longer be with us in body, his spirit lives on in our memories and greatly influences how we care for our animals today. He taught us valuable lessons about animal husbandry that motivate us to do the best we can for every animal we bring home, and to keep up with new information to keep improving.

Here's to you, Max. Thank you for the memories and our time together. Your impact on our lives was immeasurable.

One of the final pictures taken of Max.

And to the family who decided to rehome him, thank you for trusting Victoria to do right by Max.