Reptile & Amphibian Forums

went to a local "chain" petstore and discovered a somewhat dehydrated pac man frog on the floor! with noone around, i cupped the bugger in my hands and brought him home. after spending 2 days in some distilled water, the frog is looking pretty good. despite a thin layerof skin (milky-clear) coming off, the frog looks bright eyed, plump, and ok.

now, how do i care for it? i have it now in a tank with moist paper towels (distilled water)as bedding, a smooth water saucer, a plastic flower pot for shelter, and a long strand of pothos for cover and fun.

what do i need? he hasn't moved much, but eyes are wide and alert. i mist him daily.

any advice?

i prefer wet paper towels over anything. use spring water instead of distilled, i know distilled can be bad for things like betta fish so i would assume it wouldnt be great for pacmans. if the towels are wet enough you wont need the water dish. shelter is good but optional, i wouldnt give them any and they would just burrow under the paper towels. feed crickets about as long as his mouth is wide. you can also try things like rosey reds or super small goldfish. as varied a diet as possible is best. dont feed wild things this can introduce disease and pesticides. keep him warm. upper 70's at least, lower to mid 80's is better. a low watt heat lamp may be necesary but i have never needed one for pacmans. my room stays pretty warm. if you have any other questions just post them.

That is so cool! Good for you on rescuing that guy, hope that all works out well
I could never get that lucky

Nice of you to help the little guy...BUT
Distilled water can kill your frog! The minerals are removed through the distallation process, and when your frog is placed in the water, the minerals from your frog will pass through it's skin into the water.
The minerals pass from the higher concentration to the lower.
This is known as osmosis.
I know everyone will scream at me, but for years, I have been using regular tap water for my frogs.
Pac Man and Pyxies I keep.
If you are uncomfortable using tap water...bottled water will work just fine.
Distilled water is better suited to car batteries.

that is diffusion, osmosis is only for water. you can use tap water if you treat it for chlorine with reptisafe or a similar product, or if you are making enough at a time you can use an aquarium conditioner. spring water is a good too.

You're correct! I went back and checked osmosis, and diffusion, hypertonic vs hypotonic. Etc.
Amazing what one forgets after 25 years!
Either way, I've used untreated tap water for eons with no ill effects.
My water here is around 7.5pH

i wouldnt risk it. my cousin treated his city water and still killed two budgetts frogs i had going for a long time. either there was way too much chlorine in his water or there were other chemistry problems going on. i think for the price of store brand spring water it is worth getting over the risks of tap water.