A woman has melted hearts online after buying a pair of frogs at the food market to give them a future at home, even building them a pond.
In a post shared on TikTok on Tuesday under the username @Annanoelle0.0, the woman from Louisiana can be seen purchasing the two frogs at the food market, building an entire pond for them from scratch, and then releasing them in it.
The heartwarming clip came with a caption that read: “Buying live frogs from [the] food market and giving them a better life,” followed by: “Couldn’t leave without them.”
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While frogs are usually associated with French cuisine, they’re actually consumed across the world, including areas of Asia, America, and Europe. In America, they are particularly common in the former French colony of Louisiana, and other states where the French influence was prominent.
According to the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC), frog legs found in America for eating are mainly supplied by Bangladesh, Belgium, China, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico, and Taiwan through international seafood marketing channels. In recent years, imported frog legs have totaled between 1.1 million and 3.3 million pounds.
While frogs are a delicatessen for some, there are instances when they can also pose major health risks.
MDC said that frogs held at high densities are vulnerable to a number of common bacterial infections, most of which are highly contagious and fatal.
“The most common infections are those caused by the common soil and water bacteria Areomonas spp. Of these, Areomonas hydrophila causes “red leg” which is the congestion and hemorrhaging of the blood vessels on the ventral or under-side of the frog. The frog becomes swollen due to the absorption of water without compensatory release by the kidneys. The disease in the wild is invariably fatal.
“Fungus infections are also a problem. One, Saprolegnia spp., causes felt-like blotches on the frog’s skin, especially in crowded conditions. This disease is highly contagious and usually fatal since there is no known cure.”
The video quickly went viral on social media, getting viewers from across TikTok. It has so far received over 1.8 million views and 90,000 likes on the platform.
One user, KJ Jackson, commented: “You’re gonna have a huge mansion in heaven I just know it.” And Jamie Lee said: “I’m ready for all the frog updates!!”
Heaven added: “Unfortunately frog farming won’t be changed by the purchase of only two frogs. but it certainly changed EVERYTHING for these babies, it’s a step!”
Newsweek reached out to Annanoelle0.0 for comment via TikTok chat. We could not verify the details of the case.
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