Info On Pacman Frogs?

[Tim Benzedrine]

Crisis averted?

My brother in-law got word that I was having a feeding crisis and dropped off a couple of dozen crickets and also some superworms. Now, I'm a little bit leery of meal and superworms due to their hard chitonous shells, but I'm going to at least try a few and see how that goes If he will accept them at all, that is. I figure it beats starving and hopefully in a few weeks I'll be able to get my hands on some nightcrawlers. Maybe I'll catch some of the superworms moulting, eliminating the chitin concern.
The crickets are the back-up plan, but they are far too small to even bother offering. They'll need a couple weeks growth at least. I needed some for the T anyway, so they'll still be used iven if the pac isn't interested.

Hey Ren, are you still following this? If so, have you had any experience with your pacs and superworms?

 

[Tim Benzedrine]

I just had to bring this video back to this thread. It provides an excellent example of why you should not use wood chunks, pebbles, or other small particulates as substrate.
The video is of a pac being fed a worm. Pretty standard feeding behaviour, but watch what happens at about 15 seconds into the video.


[YOUTUBE]GXGugUCDOaA&feature=player_embedded#[/YOUTUBE]

The person feeding the frog managed to retrieve the chunk of wood with a bit of effort, but that frog could have been in real trouble if it had managed to swallow it.
(The handling in the end doesn't win any prizes from me either.)
The moral of the story is no wood-chunks, pebbles or similar items for substrate. Moss is a bad idea as well. As a rule of thumb, anything that is indigestible should be avoided as much as possible. Small amounts of coco-fibre usually will pass thru, but there have even been cases of it clogging up the frog's plumbing. It's considered the best and safest substrate currently out there, but you should still keep an eye on your frog's consumption. Tong feeding can help minimize substrate ingestion.

And one of the most important things to remember is this: Just because a product shows a picture of your pet on the packaging, that does NOT mean it is suitable for your pet!

 

[lester]

try feeding mice

 

[Tim Benzedrine]

Well, that's an option, but one that should be used in moderation.

I took mine out for a visual inspection and substrate cleaning today. He looks to be in great health. He lost little to no body mass, his underside is clean and free of sores or wounds, all limbs are functioning strongly and his eyes are clear and alert. And while he soaked as I did maintenance, he had a decent bowel movement.

Worrisome as it may have been, he probably benefited from his dormancy period as it is a natural process. I'm guessing that what prompted him to enter it was the transitory period was this past fall when it was beginning to cool down here in the house, but was not cool enough to start turning on the heat. This caused the temperatures in his cage to drop to the low 70's for awhile. Of course the humidity the humidity dropped in turn, so it was a recipe for estivation, probably.

That's a nicely marked and coloured cranwelli, by the way.