Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just got a green pacman frog recently and I was wondering if you all could critique my set-up.......12 quart rubbermaid,small water bowl, paper towel substrate, a butter tub w/ peat moss for him to burrow in and a plastic leaf to hide under. I am heating him with a small UTH under one end of the cage. I will try and get some pics up........any tips or advice you guys could give me?

Personally i would suggest not using an undertank heater. Here is a good set up for horned frogs, 10 gallon aquarium, with 1" of substrate a water dish and a heat lamp. Usually I keep a new horned frog in a small critter keeper for the first month I have it so i can keep and eye on it and how it moves and eats. oh by the way I currently own 4 of these frogs 2 are adults.

Wouldn't a heat lamp dry out the ambient humidity in the cage? I have had much more bad experience with bulbs than with heating pads (bulbs burning into the socket of the fixture, shorting out, breaking, etc.) I just don't trust heat bulbs anymore. The average temp in my cage is 82F with a warm spot of about 88. Plus a 10 gallon would be WAY too big for this frog, as it is only slightly bigger than a quarter, I think.

Temp. in the 888's...that's way too hot. It should be around 78-80 degree. Amphibian like moderately cool temp. because they loose moisture with the high temp. and heat that reptile loves. The key to keep amphibian is moisture. They need to keep their sking wet, but make sure their is a lot of ventalaiton. Stagnant air, high humidity, and warm air is a breeding ground for germs, that can cause red leg, and fungus. Skin condition is fatal in Amphibian. If you keep your substrate moist the humidity should be high enough without having to use plastic wrap. and make you do a very good spot cleaning where the frog goes to the bathroom and change the substrate when you think is necessary.

Actually 88 degrees is a bit too warm, try not to get it over 82 degrees. And i use low wattage normal light bulbs about 40 watts or so. And my new baby is in a 10 gallon, they like to move around a lot more than adults. And yes it does dry out the enclosure, but a heat pad does more. I mist my frogs at least 2 times a day by the way. Hope this helps. Oh and put a lid on the tank so nothing can get in. we had an incident on here where someones firbellied toad got in with their horned frog and got eaten.

Just to clarify.....the whole cage isn't 88, just about 1/4 of it. Should I just take the heat pad off? Do you heat the cage 24/7 or just in the day?

It just depends on the temperature in your room as to how long to heat the cage. And these frogs generally burrow to get out of the heat so a heat pad is a bad idea, plus the frog can burn itself on them. And no part of it's tank should be over 82 degrees.

Ok.....I will take the heat pad off. I am still confused about whether or not I should heat the cage 24/7.........my room stays around 77 so would that be ok? Also, how often should I be feeding the frog? Every day?

Actually, at 77 degree is good, but I think it should go up to about 80 part of the days. If it's cold, you should heat the cage 24/7, unless you're planning to breed them then you can mess around with the temp., but really you don't have to let the temp. drop.

Sorry, didn't read it carefully...77 degree is a bit too cold for horned frog. they are from the tropic.

Thanks for all the help guys. I just want to have as close to a perfect set-up as possible. These little guys sure are fun and I want the best for him. Thanks again!

You I think the amphibians do well at room temp. I read that they can tolerate the cold...in fact they like moderately cold tempture and are active at this.

For my babies I feed them 2-3 small goldfish every monday wednesday and friday, and give them the other days to digest completely. The schedule really depends on the frog though.