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Mom's epic quest to rescue her son's pet frog has become a viral sensation

“This. This is motherhood."

@brigthsignslearning/TikTok

Not on my watch!

How’s this for the world’s greatest understatement? Moms do a lot for their kids.

Seriously, beyond the obvious sacrifices of, you know, bringing a child into this world through their own body, moms go to almost cartoonish lengths to keep their little ones happy and safe—quite literally wrangling wild animals if they have to.

Or, in this case, luring them out with crickets.

A mom named Shelby Rideout is going viral on TikTok for hilariously documenting her determination, torment—and ultimately, utter exhaustion—while trying to rescue her son’s pet frog who went rogue by hopping into a nearby hole in the bathroom.

Bizarre? Yes. But still relatable? Absolutely.

The whole fiasco started, apparently, when her son wanted to take the frog (aptly named Kermit) out of his habitat to play in the bathroom. You can see how this would be a recipe for disaster.

“The frog jumps around. Literally three seconds. It jumps to the vanity. There’s a freaking construction hole under the vanity. This big frog jumps and is lost in the wall,” Rideout says in the clip.

With her son in “hysterics” over the M.I.A. amphibian, Rideout became hellbent on saving the day, which is why we find her in the video hunkered down in the bathroom closet, trying to wait Kermit out.

“My son’s asleep in hysterics, thinking he’s going to have a dead frog in the wall — not on my watch,” she declares.

@brightsignslearning I am over 1 hour into a legit stand off. #frog #momlife #longnight #momsoftiktok #fyp #standoff ♬ original sound - brightsignslearning

You’d think a trap with a delicious cricket waiting inside and a bowl of water would do the trick. But sadly, no luck. Rideout even “prayed to Saint Anthony.” Still nadda.

“I wish I could tell you I was joking. I’ve been in the closet for an hour,” she says. But since the frog began popping its head out, there’s no way she can give up.

“This. This is motherhood,” one person commented.

Another hour goes by, and Rideout posts a follow-up video. At this point, her original video has been viewed 8.9 million times.

Voice gravelly, eyes bloodshot, Rideout has tried using various other strategies—more crickets, a plastic fish tank tube, fake sounds to make him think he’s being chased—all to no avail.

Luckily, someone suggests that Rideout turn off the lights to make Kermit more comfortable. Sure enough, that works.

@brightsignslearning UPDATE- Frog in the wall! #momlife #frog #standoff #rescue #momsoftiktok #fyp ♬ original sound - brightsignslearning

“I got him! Got him! I got him! I got him! I got him!” Rideout cries right before admitting, “We had a fish die from mouth to mouth. I could not have two deaths on me this week.” That in itself is a whole other crazy story.

All in all, people were just as thrilled about Rideout’s victory as she was. And they couldn’t help but commend her dedication.

One person wrote, “And the award for the best mom ever goes out to…”

Another added, “Your son will never forget how much effort you put in for him.”

It might not always involve frog rescues, but so many moms out there would do equally crazy things for their kids. God bless their resolve.

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It's not easy being green, but sometimes you have help.

In a small town in Queensland, Australia, a woman was mowing her lawn when something went horribly wrong: She ran over a frog.

Photo by Mark Runnacles/Getty Images.

Apparently, the frog had been sitting in her yard in the bright sun, which isn't a normal behavior for a healthy frog.

The woman was worried about the little guy, so she immediately sprang into action, calling her niece to ask what to do. And that's when she got transferred to a frog rescue organization called Frog Safe Inc.

Enter Deborah Pergolotti, the president of the Cairns Frog Hospital, who makes it her priority to rescue frogs near and far.

Unfortunately, this particular little guy was found very far from their facility. He was in Mount Isa, which is 776 miles from Cairns, the city where the frog hospital is located. But if anyone could find a way around the distance, it was Deborah.

"We have run a frog rescue and rehab facility for the past 17 years, and we are pretty much all there is in the northern half of Queensland who specializes in this type of wildlife rescue," Deborah told Upworthy.

That means that Deborah and her team ended up doing the majority of the frog rescue work for the northern half of Australia. And if you've been there, you know that area has a ton of frogs!

Lots of swamp land equals tons of frogs. Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images.

But how would they get the frog to Cairns? Deborah put on her thinking cap and came up with a plan: They would airlift the injured frog to the frog hospital.

Rex Airways immediately volunteered their services free of charge, but since transporting wildlife of any size in Australia is complicated, two other businesses needed to step in to help get the little frog on his way.

After a great deal of back and forth (literally), the frog found himself at the Cairns Frog Hospital and in Deborah's skillful hands soon after his accident. It turns out that he was suffering from not one but two parasitic infections, along with the external injury from the lawn mower. And that's why he was baking out in the sun in the first place.

And after about five weeks, the frog is recovering nicely. His wound is healing, and the infections have cleared up completely.

Healing frog. Photo Courtesy of Deborah Pergolotti.

At this point, you might be wondering: Why all this fuss over one small creature?

The best way to answer that might be with a famous parable about a starfish.

There are many iterations of it, but the basic message is this:

A man goes to a beach and sees that it's covered in dying starfish. Then he notices another man throwing the starfish back into the ocean, one at a time. When the first man asks the second man why he's doing this, the second explains that if he doesn't, the starfish will die.

The first man responds: "But there are miles of beach and thousands of starfish. You can't possibly make a difference."

And the second man picks up another starfish, throws it back into the ocean and replies, "It made a difference to that one."

Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images.

Saving small creatures like this two-inch green frog could also, in turn, save us.

According to Deborah, Australia already has seven frog species on the brink of extinction, which no doubt will leave a sizable hole in the Australian ecosystem.

"Certainly frogs, as a 'lower' animal are depended upon as food by other species so their absence creates a demand for something else to feed on which could start a chain reaction of ecological malfunctions," Deborah told Upworthy.

The green frog is not yet considered endangered in Australia, but when hurt or sick frogs are left to die, the more likely that becomes.

Deborah has committed 17 years to rescuing and rehabilitating frogs for this reason.

Despite being a fraction of their size, frogs are just as important to save as tigers, polar bears, and wales. Each species serves a purpose, no matter how small.

Deborah put it succinctly using a metaphor from Paul Ehrlich's book "Extinction" about losing species, where he compared it to rivets holding a plane together:

A few rivets might be missing and the plane still flies, but once a certain number has fallen out, the plane crashes.

29 awesome frogs celebrating Leap Day.

No one loves Leap Day more than frogs. This is just a fact*.

* That I made up.

Yes, frogs. Those throaty little professional long jumpers who, as 1980s arcade culture taught us, are always trying to cross major highways to their infinite peril.

Leap Day is a day added to the calendar every four years; it's necessary because the Earth actually does a full rotation around the sun every 365.24 days and doesn't seem to care about the nice round 365 number we've come up with. Every four years, we add an extra day to the calendar to catch up. Otherwise we'd actually get ahead of ourselves — there would be snowstorms in June and droughts in November, and New Year's Eve celebrations would be even more disorienting and morally ambiguous than they are now.

In fact, without leap days, right now we would be in the middle of July 2017, by one calculation anyway.

A lot has happened for frogs since the last leap day four years ago.

In the past couple of years alone, six new frog species have been discovered, and conservation efforts have stepped up to save the banana frog in Ethiopia.

Those efforts are just the beginning, and no matter what, the biggest threat to the health of frog species is human activity.

To celebrate Leap Day, here are 29 frogs who just can't stop jumping for joy:

(Oh, and don't worry, we're obviously going to start with the awesome poisonous ones).

1. Golden frog can out-jump and out-poison you!

Photo by Luis Robayo/AFP/Getty Images.

This frog, the most venomous species in the world, was photographed at the laboratory in the zoo of Cali, Colombia. The Zoo of Cali has the largest amphibian collection in the country and studies them for conservation efforts.

2. This strawberry poison-dart frog is also brilliantly toxic.

Photo by Yuri Cortez/AFP/Getty Images.

As with most frogs this colorful, the skin of the Strawberry poison dart frog is highly toxic. They live in rainforest habitats and sometimes in banana groves.

3. This cocoi frog could totally ruin your day (but doesn't want to).

Photo by Luis Robayo/AFP/Getty Images.

Also known as the harlequin poison frog, this dangerous little guy is native to Columbia and lives on the rainforest floor. Its bright colors and patterns indicate its ability to totally ruin your day if you pick it up.

4. Check out this Lehmann's poison frog.

Photo by Luis Robayo/AFP/Getty Images

Another frog of the "seriously, don't mess with me, dude" variety, Lehmann's poison frog is native to Columbia and is, unfortunately, critically endangered due to habitat loss.

5. This red oophaga sylvatica is tiny but mighty.

Photo by Luis Robayo/AFP/Getty Images.

Sometimes known as "diabilito," meaning "little devil," this species of poison frog is also threatened by habitat loss and deforestation.

6. Here's a black-legged dart frog.

Photo by Luis Robayo/AFP/Getty Images.

This species is native to the rainforest and enjoys warm, moist conditions. It also listed as a threatened species, again, due to loss of habitat.

7. These piggybacking frogs in Estonia know to bring company along for long trips.

Photo by Raigo Pajula/AFP/Getty Images.

In 2012, volunteers decided to play real life Frogger and carried over 19,000 frogs across highways in Estonia. Without human intervention, it's estimated that nearly all of the frogs attempting the migratory journey would get run over.

8. Check out this sand frog leaping across the desert.

Photo by Feng Li/Getty Images.

Native to Africa, this particular desert-dwelling sand frog was photographed in the Xiangshawan Desert in China.

9. Recognize this green tree frog?

Photo by Stefan Sauer/AFP/Getty Images.

One of the most common frogs, the green tree frog can actually be found in many American backyards.

10. This Chinese flying frog is a big Leap Day fan.

Photo by Chris Hondros/Getty Images.

The Chinese flying frog lives in natural lowland forests, and is thankfully not endangered. However, it is cool and blue.

11. This monkey frog though? Not so much.

Photo by Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP/Getty Images.

The grumpy guy is native to South America and is a nocturnal tree climber. He's not a huge fan of Leap Day, though. He thinks it's a fake holiday made up by the greeting card companies.

12. This waxy tree frog is pretty cool.

Photo by Carl Court/AFP/Getty Images.

Native to Central and South America, the waxy tree frog lives mostly in trees and vegetation near water sources.

13. Look how tiny this poison dart frog is!

Photo by Andrew Cowie/AFP/Getty Images.

Despite his size, this frog is actually a really big deal. He was the first to be born at The London Aquarium after a successful breeding program for conservation.

14. Here's a gliding tree frog.

Photo by Carlos Julio Martinez/AFP/Getty Images.

Found primarily in Costa Rica, male gliding tree frogs can grow up to 56 millimeters from vent to snout — or, to put it colloquially, ass to nose.

15. OK, wait ... here's that tiny poison dart frog again.

Photo by Andrew Cowie/AFP/Getty Images.

This time he's sitting on a five pence piece! Look how tiny he is!!! So tiny!!! So deadly!!!

16. Did you know there's even a frog jumping competition in Slovenia?

Photo by STR/AFP/Getty Images

It's called Frognight, and it's absolutely the biggest and most famous event in the small town of Lokve.

17. These bullfrogs live together on a farm in Singapore.

Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images.

The Jurong Frog Farm started in 1981 and is Singapore's only frog farm. If you're ever in Singapore, you can take a tour of the place.

18. This little baby frog is catching a ride.

Photo by Sena Vidanagama/AFP/Getty Images.

This pair was photographed in Colombo, Sri Lanka. In 1999, scientists found Sri Lanka to be the #1 nation for frog diversity. It's home to over 200 species of frogs. Unfortunately, several species have died out since then due to a shrinking habitat.

19. This bull frog is accounted for.

Photo by Ben Stansall/AFP/Getty Images.

The zookeeper holding up this frog was participating in London Zoo's annual stocktake. Which is an exhaustive and complete headcount of every animal at the zoo.

20. The London Zoo also has a weigh in. A spoon weigh in.

Photo by Carl Court/AFP/Getty Images.

Animals like this mossy frog in a weighing spoon have to be weighed to record the animal's vital statistics. It's all part of the effort to make sure animals at the zoo are well cared for.

21. This tree frog lives in Maryland.

Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images.

Maryland is actually home to dozens of species of frogs and toads. Though as far as scientists know, they don't ride tandem bicycles together Despite what a certain children's book series would lead you to believe.

22. Oh yikes, the Prince Charles stream tree frog is kinda creepy.

Photo by Arthur Edwards, WPA Pool/Getty Images.

It was actually only discovered in 2008 and is still very endangered. Conservation efforts are ongoing to help protect the species. It's also really unsettling looking. Is that just me? It looks like it's going to leap out of the picture. *shudder*

23. This frog was just saved from poachers.

Photo by Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP/Getty Images.

Although frogs legs are a delicacy in India, the government clamped down on the hunting of frogs in 1985 amid concerns over their falling numbers.

24. Here are some Moor frogs.

Photo by Sebastian Willnow/AFP/Getty Images.

Get it? Moor frogs? These frogs are excellent swimmers and mostly live in water. If found on land, they'll bury themselves quickly in soil or sand.

25. Aww, look, here are a few more colorful poison dart frogs.

Photo by Chris Hondros/Getty Images.

These colorful characters were on display as part of "Frogs: A Chorus of Colors " at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. The museum has one of the largest frog collections in the world.

26. Check out this White tree frog.

Photo by Jeff J. Mitchell/Getty Images.

The white tree frog is unique. It's rather large, ranging in length from 3 to 4.5 inches, and females are usually bigger than males. They can be found in northern Australia and New Zealand, but this one was photographed in Scotland.

27. The coolest little poisonous frog.

Photo by Fredy Amariles/AFP/Getty Images.

As cool as his patterns are, he's also highly poisonous. Also, the species is in danger due to their popularity as pets as well as the disappearance of their habitat.

28. This frog hangin' at a wildlife refuge in San Jose.

Yuri Cortez/AFP/Getty Images.

La Paz Waterfall Gardens, a wildlife refuge in Costa Rica, is also a popular tourist destination. It also has an aviary that acts as a refuge for wild birds that have been illegally hunted.

29. And, finally, that monkey frog who has still not warmed up to Leap Day. He'll get there eventually.

Photo by Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP/Getty Images.

I mean, really. He's just super not into it. If you ask him, he'd say the world is better off letting the calendar just fly off the handle. Who needs all that organization and consistency? Just eat some flies and relax.

In short, Leap Day is necessary and frogs are awesome.

They're colorful, adorable, sometimes extremely badass and dangerous, and there are over 4,700 species of them.

Unfortunately, if deforestation continues, a lot of frogs could lose their habitats. Many species have already died out, and roughly 1,900 species are in a threatened state.

However you celebrate Leap Day, I encourage you to take a moment to think about the world's best leapers. They could really use your help.