Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Someone dumped a couple of pacman frogs off at my local petstore and I was offered one. I'm good with animals and it looked so pitiful in it's teeny tiny kritter keeper, so I took it home. I've just been reading up on its care.

I think I know what to do about its home. I'm going to get a ten gallon tank, screen top. Some pebbles, forest bed, and spagnam moss on top for substrate, shallow water bowl and a broad leaf plant for hiding spot. Is this correct?

The frog is about 2.5 inches right now. I gave it crickets and will be feeding it an assortment including fish, pinkies, etc. I just read below that it gets to be the size of a pie plate and eats rats. Is this true? If so, this is where the trouble starts as I keep rats as pets and no way will I feed this thing rats. When it gets big, are there any other alternatives to feeding it rats? Also, if it gets that big, is a ten gallon really big enough? Where can I get really good info on its care? Are there any particularly good websites or books that you would recommend? PLMK, THANKS!!!!

Also, when I transfer it out of its current home to the tank do I use my hands, this guy looks to be all MOUTH, will he bite me? I must confess I'm a bit ascared.

I forgot to mention that I have the smallest size t-rex cobra heat mat, but I probably won't need to use it much as my apartment is really warm. Is this ok? They don't work the same way as regular UTHs, I think they are better for burrowing animals.

Here's my care sheet for them http://joshmilliken.tripod.com/id23.html
And I still wouldn't use an undertank heating source, if you must, put it on the side of the tank.
If you want to put your frog in a bigger tank nothing is stopping you, but generally all they need is a 10 gallon tank.
-----
http://herpchat.mywowbb.com/

I just adopted my first pacman too...congrats on the rescue.. First, you should realize that they do not move...or do anything other than eat... I fed my pacman a fuzzy mouse, I swear this frog did NOT move, he opened his mouth and the mouse fell into it...AND he did NOT MOVE THE ENTIRE TIME....

Yes, pacman frogs get large. Female will reach plate size, males about half that size..BUT this is several years of age...if You still have it in a small petkeeper..you have time to adjust your mind...

I too love rats and refuse to feed rats to any of my animals. You can use large insects, such as silkworms, crickets, even Hissing Cockroaches(YUK!!) I would NEVER feed a LIVE adult mouse to the frog...Since it is able to eat its way back out.

Now, as for the biting...Always touch the frog from behind...and work your way up to rest of body. It is VERY possible to tame these blobs of warts..lol Biting usually happens when you come hand first(fingers look like pinkies) and frog tries to EAT YOU...

hope this helps,

Harpy
-----
Have You Hugged Your Herp Today?

As to the idea of a mouse eating it's way back out. That is one of the most unlikely scenarios ever. Horned Frogs hold onto and suffocate ant prey that is large and moving, so the mouse is dead by the time it reaches the frogs stomach. It would have to be a huge frog and a tiny mouse for that to happen.

I myself had a pacman who was about 5 inches wide. They are never required to eat rodents, since there is such a huge variety of insects out their to suit their needs. Plus, rodents are also very high in fat and since pacmans can be relatively obese, its best to not give them rodents at all. I myself keep rats, hamsters, and a mouse as pets only, and would never consider feeding any of my herps live rodents. If you still think you must do this, get a frozen/thawed one. Even then, don't worry about it. They don't need rodents at all. Better nutrition would include such things are dusted crickets, superworms, and silkworms as part of a balanced and varied diet.

but sometimes when a pacman gets larger he will refuse the small bugs such as crickets and etc, least mine did, so he gets 2 mice a month and is healthy and not overweight! and yes i feed em live and they do not injure the frog at all, i have had him for over a year and a half and when i left for boot camp a year ago my friend watched him and started feeding him mice and now thats all he eats. doesn't seem to bother him at all. just my opion

snip "Plus, rodents are also very high in fat and since pacmans can be relatively obese, its best to not give them rodents at all."

Actually on a caloric basis, most of the commonly used feeder insects are just as fatty (and are linked to corneal lipidosis deposition in anurans fed solely on insects). If you feed equivalent calories of crickets for example, the there is pretty much the same amount of fat in the diet (see Mader's chapter on Nutrition for a excellant breakdown and caloric comparision).
The reason the frogs get fat is not that they are fed rodents at all but they are fed them too frequently.
The only real downside to feeding rodents is that commercial rodent diets result in a high vitamin A content in the mice (particuarly fat/obese mice) and require that D3 be supplemented when feeding the mice.

You are correct, they do not need to be fed mice but there is nothing inherently wrong with feeding rodent (particuarly as Ceratophrys are vertebrate specialists with over 90% of the volume of the diet consisting of vertebrates (including anurans, rodents and birds)). I would also strongly agree with the recommendation using frozen thawed mice to prevent the risk of injury to the frog.

Ed