Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just got a pacman frog at size 1.3" two days ago. Since then, i have fed it 3 small fishes, but till today, it has not pooped. there is no gravel in the tank, just a piece of wet sponge which covers the entire tank bottom, and a water dish. Is there a problem with it?

Also, at the back of the frog near the hind, there is some sort of pelvic bone jutting out on just one side. i have attached a pic of it. hope it helps.

thanks for any help in advance.

this is a common problem with horned frogs......main reason being calcium deficiency. this will most probably stay with your frog almost forever......if you still wanna keep the frogs, dust your feeder fish with calcium powder that consist of Vit D3. Vit D3 will help the frogs absorb the calcium , unless you are keeping them under the sun from some period of the day. without sun, the frog cannot produce D3 to absorb the calcium.

cheers
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The GodFather

but it is only at 1.3 inch. calcium deficiency occurs so quickly? i just got it for a few days... guess I will have to search high and low for calcium powder now, Singapore has very little of such stuff.

What about calcium in liquid form? Can i use those and put it in their water bowl and let them absorb through their skin? Thanks.

There are other possible causes than "MBD" (which by the way is a number of syndromes/diseases that get lumped under one generic term that all need a different treatment see http://www.tracyhicks.com/FFAQ.htm ) The other probable causes are a recent or past break in that bone or a developmental abnormality. The only way to determine if it is MBD would be to have it x-rayed to determine the density of the bone.
Exposure to sun may be hazordous to the frog due to overheating and if the sunlight (or any other kind of light for that matter) passes through glass or plastic then the UVB required for vitamin D3 synthesis is prevented from passing through.
I would be careful of the type of fish used as goldfish are too high in saturated fats to make up the majority of the frogs diet. If you can get access to other feeder fish I would strongly suggest using them.
At least in bullfrogs fed a diet of live fish there was no incidence of "MBD" unlike those fed solely on unsupplemented crickets or earthworms (a sole diet of earthworms has been linked to muscle problems in bullfrogs).
I would suggest either getting the problem correctly diagnosed as too much calcium and D3 can be just as harmful as too little (see the above referenced article for more information).

Ed

Just keep feeding it. It will start growing, start pooping, and the pelvic bone won't be a problem. Just dust your meals with some calcium and vitamins. Don't bother with the liquid vitamins. They suck. Stick with the powder.

Lay off the fish (especially goldfish). I'd go with crickets, earthworms, a FEW mealworms (until it gets large enough to switch over to superworms), and any other feeder insect you can think of.

Is there a reason that only a FEW mealworms should be fed? I just bought a whole box of it. Guess i will continue to take good care of it and hope it has a happy life... Really love it alot...

The mealies have a hard outer shell that can be internally irritating if fed often. Kind of like us eating popcorn every day, if you get my drift.
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hey,im from singapore too.....i can get u the calcium powder with Vit D3 if you want.......
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The GodFather

He probably wants someplace to bury himself. I use coconut fiber that you buy in a brick form, and add water and it expands and softens. A few inches of that should be OK. It is normal for them to bury themselves for long periods, sometimes weeks. As long as they are kept moist (but Not sopping wet) it's OK.
I would try feeding crickets first, and avoid using fish. It's often debated whether fish are good or bad feeders (I avoid them beause they are usually full of parasites.) I feed only nightcrawlers, and occasional crix.
Make sure his water bowl is sunken into the substrate so he can asily enter/exit it.; and not too deep so he could drown; these frogs cannot swim well.
Good luck!
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I also find it normal for them not to poop regularly. I have an adult who eats every 7 days, but only poops 1 or 2 times a month. Once, she pooped so much, it seriously was big & long enough to have come from my cat!! We gained a new respect for her after that!! LOL
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1.1 Corn snakes Snake Plissken & Abby
0.1 Hog Island Boa Isaboa
1.3.0 leos, Yoda, Geo, Tang, Ginger
1.0 Blue Tongue Skink Indigo (Indy)
0.1.1 frogs Buffy the Cricket Slayer, Butrose Butrose Froggy
1.1.4 firebelly newts Wayne Newton, Isaac Newton, Fig Newton, Juice Newton, Olivia Newton John & Helmut Newton
1.1.0 cats Gus & Mena

could it not just be that the frog is a little undernourished and u are seeing the pelvic bone ? i cant really tell from the pic

when i got mines it was a little on the skinny side, i used earth worms to get its size back up !!!

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