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Safely Remove Frogs From Your Pool

If you were ready to hop into your pool and found frogs, tadpoles, or frog eggs floating around, then you are in the right place.

Do not wait around for them to disappear or die on their own. If you found frogs in your pool and want to ensure your and their safety, here is what needs to be done.

If you found frogs, tadpoles or frog eggs in your pool, there is a source of water generally within 1km (.62 mile) of your home from which the frogs originated. With a net with holes up to 1mm (0.0393”) put the frogs in a bucket with water from the source, and relocate them to their original source.

One of the best ways to keep frogs out is with a FrogLog:

FrogLog Escape Ramp for Critters in Pools

  • Save Frogs & Small Animals
  • Easy Setup
  • Simple Design
  • Keep Water Clean

A FrogLog is an easy, passive way to help frogs and other animals out of your pool.

Moving frogs to another location other than their original body of water can result in deaths in the population of frogs due to diseases or parasites.

Frogs may also attempt to return to their original body of water and die in the process while crossing roads or coming across predators. 

So here are steps you can take to safely save the frogs in your pool and increase their chances of survival.

1. Relocate The Frogs to Their Original Pond

Generally, if frogs are in your pool their original body of water is within a 1km (.62 miles) radius around your pool. To safely save the frogs, use a tight knit mesh-hole net to scoop the frogs into a bucket containing water from their original source, then relocate them to the source.

How to Save Frogs, Tadpoles or Frog Eggs From Your Pool

  1. Go to Google Maps > Look for your home
  2. Locate the nearest natural source of still or very slow moving freshwater close within a 1km radius. This may be a pond, marsh, bog or fen
  3. Go to that location and fill a bucket to the halfway line with water from the source
  4. Scoop the frogs out of your pool using a tight-knit net and place them in the bucket of water
  5. Release the frogs or tadpoles into their original water source in shade, near vegetation, and away from predators

Be sure the net is very tight-knit like the one above, or has holes up to to 1mm (0.0393”) in order to not get the frog’s toes or legs caught and injure them.

Use a deep enough bucket so that the frogs will not be able to jump out.

Aquatic frogs have sensitive webbed feet and may get caught and hurt themselves or permanently break a limb if they get caught in a net with holes that are too large.

Ensure The Frogs Are Safe Once Removed From Your Pool

Before going to scoop the frogs out of your pool, make sure the bucket has water from their original source in it since frogs, their tadpoles and eggs require chlorine and pollution-free water to survive.

Frogs may become dehydrated and die without water. 

If you only want to make one trip to the frog’s original location, you could keep them in some pool water until you finally release the frogs, but do not dump your pool water into nature.

The harsh chemicals from your pool can kill a variety of wildlife if released directly into their water.

Depending on the frog’s life cycle stage, here are things you can do to further help ensure their survival:

  • Adult Frogs or Toads: Adult frogs and froglets can be released at the water’s edge, near vegetation, ideally in the shade in an area where there are none to very few predators. Toads and toadlets should be released on land, ideally in forested areas with leaf litter since they only require permanent bodies of water for spawning.

  • Tadpoles: Tadpoles should be released in very calm water since they cannot swim against strong currents. Tadpoles should be placed near vegetation since this is their primary source of food.

  • Frog or Toad Eggs: Eggs should be released in water among vegetation since they need to anchor down in order to not float away. If you release eggs in a stream, brook or creek with a flow they could wash downstream. Be sure to place them in water with abundant vegetation where they will not get swept away.

How well the tadpoles or eggs will survive depends on their level of acclamation to their new surroundings, but will also depend on the presence of predators.

However, by following these steps, you will be further helping increase their chances of survival.

Since adult frogs and toads have more defense mechanisms, they generally have higher chances of survival (CTNF).

2. Put The Frogs in a Frog Pond on Your Property

If you do not mind having the frogs in your yard, but want to keep them out of your pool, you could relocate them to a dedicated frog pond in your yard.

We have a complete guide on creating a pond that can naturally accommodate frogs in your yard.

Inviting the frogs to your yard with a dedicated area can be an excellent way to enjoy their presence in a safer way for you and them.

Be sure to keep your pets away from their pond since they are predators and can get sick from ingesting or licking them.

Once your frog pond is up and running, you also want to be sure the frogs do not migrate back to your pool.

See how to keep frogs out of your pool or read on for a summary below

3. Call Your Local Wildlife Department For Help

In some cases, the frogs may be endangered, protected, or invasive species.

You may want to get in touch with your local wildlife department, especially if you are located in Florida, Texas or Australia which have all of these types of frogs.

Here are phone numbers you can call for tailored help on removing frogs from your pool:

NameLocationPhone
Canadian Wildlife ServiceCanada1-800-668-6767
U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServiceUSA1‑800‑344‑WILD
Department of Biodiversity, Conservation & AttractionsAustralia(08) 9219 9000
Department for Environment Food & Rural AffairsUK03459 33 55 77

If the frogs or toads are not endangered, protected or invasive species, the general guidelines provided above will certainly suffice.

However, it is your responsibility to ensure you are following your local laws and regulations with regards to removing wildlife from your yard.

Here are some other ways you can get help to remove frogs from your pool and ensure you are following the rules in your jurisdiction.

4. An Ethical Service May Save Frogs in a Pool

Some local services can assist you in safely removing frogs from your pool while respecting local laws for a fee.

However, if your goal is to ensure the survival of the frogs, then you may want to double check some things depending on who you call. 

An ethical service may safely remove and relocate the frogs to help save them, but most will kill them.

Some local services you can call to remove frogs from your pool include:

  • An animal control service
  • A pest control service
  • A pool management service

These services should only be used as a last resort since they can be costly, and generally result in the frogs being killed.

Clean Your Pool Once The Frogs Are Gone

Once the frogs are safely relcoated and out of your pool, you can take some time to ensure the safety of your family and carry out regular pool maintenance. 

Like any wild animals, frogs may carry viral or baterial diseases.

But the risks are lesser because of the chlorine and cleaning chemicals in your pool.

For your family’s safety, you could do the following things to clean your pool after removing frogs, tadpoeles or frogspawn:

  • Heat the pool water above 27°C (82°F)
  • Make sure there is enough chlorine
  • Check the PH balance of the pool
  • Ensure the filter is clean and the water is circulating
  • Brush the sides of the pool the frog may have touched
  • Vaccume the pool

You could also let the pool sit for 24 to 48h and come back to carry out your maintenance routine a few days after things have settled.

Prevent Frogs From Coming Back to Your Pool

Now that the frogs are out of your pool you probably want to keep things that way.

We have a dedicated article on how to keep frogs out of your pool but here is a quick readers digest of the content:

  • Add FrogLogs
  • Keep your pool heated
  • Keep your pool covered

  • Keep the water circulating in the pool
  • Turn off the lights in your pool
  • Add a Frog Log to your pool

Be sure to check out our 11 Ways to Keep Frogs Out of Your Pool guide for more.

What Not to Do With The Frogs in Your Pool

Here are some things you should not do with the frogs, toads, tadpoles or eggs you found in your pool:

  • Do not kill them

  • Do not relocate them to another part of town

  • Do not relocate them during hibernation or estivation seasons

  • Do not pour chlorine or harsh chemicals in your pool while they are there

  • Do not pour chlorine or harsh chemicals directly onto them

  • Do not pour any home remedies directly on the frogs

  • Do not put them in a kiddy pool in your yard

Contrary to popular belief, putting the frogs, their eggs or tadpoles into a kiddie pool in your yard is not a way to help them and will result in their death.

Kiddie pools quickly dry up, contain no vegetation or protection from predators, and do not have a slope to allow frogs to easily exit the water.

Learn more about safely relocating frogs on our blog

Common Questions About Frogs in Pools

What to do if you find a frog in your pool? If you found frogs, tadpoles or frog eggs in your pool, there is a source of water generally within 1km (.62 mile) of your home from which the frogs originated. With a net with holes up to 1mm (0.0393”) put the frogs in a bucket with water from the source, and relocate them to their original source.

Can frogs survive in a pool? Frogs cannot survive in a pool because the water contains harsh chemicals including chlorine and salt which can kill frogs and hinder their vital fuchtions like breathing and drinking. Pools generally do not allow frogs to easily escape, and lack what frogs need to live including shelter and food.

Do frogs lay eggs in swimming pools? Frogs may lay eggs in swimming pools since it is a source of water that is generally located close to their original water source. If a frog laid eggs in your pool, scoop them into a bucket with water from the source, and relocate them to their original source.

Do frogs poop in pools? Frogs may defecate in a pool if they are stuck or cannot escape. Frogs generally do not like to be in pools due to the presence of chlorine and salt. Remove the frogs from the pool to and prevent their return to avoid frogs defecating in your pool.

Why are there dead frogs in my pool? Generally, dead frogs are found in pools due to their accidentally falling in and not being able to escape. The sides of pools are generally too high for frogs to climb out. Adding a ramp or taking measures to avoid frogs falling into your pool can help avoid dead frogs in your pool in the future.

Does chlorine kill frogs? Chlorine is a harsh chemical that can penetrate a frog’s skin and result in a slow death. Frogs drink and breathe through their skin, therefore chlorine can enter their vital organs. Do not direcly put chlorine on frogs since this is inhumane behavior, and safely remove frogs from your pool.

Sources

A Biologist we talked to from The Direction de l’expertise sur la faune terrestre, l’herpĂ©tofaune et l’avifaune, MinistĂšre des ForĂȘts, de la Faune et des Parcs, Quebec

Tier II, Citizen Service, Headquarters, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Daniella Master Herpetologist

Daniella is a Master Herpetologist and the founder of toadsnfrogs.com, a website dedicated to educating the general population on frogs by meeting them where they are in their online Google Search. Daniella is passionate about frogs and put her digital marketing skills and teaching experience to good use by creating these helpful resources to encourage better education, understanding, and care for frogs.