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Thread: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

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    Unhappy New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    Hi all, we are so new to having frog as a pet and need your help. We just got Pacman frog (1.5in) last Sunday from Pet Smart and set up everything as we were told but seems to have made some mistakes here and there. First, we used a tap water to fill his pool and mist. Secondly, we couldn't make the heat pat stuck on the bottom of the tank (adhesive is not strong enough and keeps falling) so it was probably cold at night after we turned off the light. He was moving around when we put him in the tank. That night, he buried himself halfway. The next morning (day 2), we couldn't see him at all in day time while light was on but saw him at night sticking his head out from substrate. Day 2 evening, we gave him 4 young crickets and two seem to be gone but other 2 are still in tank alive. Then yesterday to until now, we cannot see him. He is completely buried in substrate and not moving at all.
    All though the heat pad wasn't working, our place is central heated so temperature was definitely warmer than 65F. Has it been too cold? Also we are having hard time to keep humidity bet 70%-80% with light on. Any advice will be appreciated.

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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    Since you just got him/her it is probably just adjusting to its new home. For now I would just cover 3-4 sides of the tank with black paper to help speed up the process And another thing, pacmans generally aren't active frogs in the first place
    0.1.0 Pseudacris regilla (r.i.p. Green Beauty)
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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    The heat mat should never be on the bottom anyway in case they burrow they could potentially burn themselves. I agree with covering 3-4 sides of the tank. Take any uneaten crickets out so they do not bite your frog and stress him out more. You can cover the top of the tank with saran wrap or a piece of glass, or something of the sort to help hold in moisture (keep an opening for the light.)

    Read this -- Frog Forum - Pacman and Horned Frogs - Ceratophrys - Care and Breeding
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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    Hi and welcome to the forum!


    Petsmart..... Again.....

    you got some great advise already. Would you please answer these questions, Along with pics of a frog and enclosure. Thank you.

    “Trouble in the Frog Enclosure”
    The following information will be very helpful if provided when requesting assistance with either your frog or enclosure. To help with your questions, please utilize the below list and post the information in the proper forum area to get advice from FF members that keep the same frog. This will allow for little confusion and a faster more informed response.

    1. Size of enclosure
    2. # of inhabitants - specifically other frogs and size differences
    3. Humidity
    4. Temperature
    5. Water - type - for both misting and soaking dish
    6. Materials used for substrate
    7. Enclosure set up i.e. plants (live or artificial), wood, bark and other materials.
    - How were things prepared prior to being put into the viv.
    8. Main food source
    9. Vitamins and calcium? (how often)
    10. Lighting
    11. What is being used to maintain the temperature of the enclosure
    12. When is the last time he/she ate
    13. Have you found poop lately
    14. A pic would be helpful including frog and enclosure (any including cell phone pic is fine)
    15. Describe frog's symptoms and/or recent physical changes; to include it's ventral/belly area.
    16. How old is the frog
    17. How long have you owned him/her
    18. Is the frog wild caught or captive bred
    19. Frog food- how often and if it is diverse, what other feeders are used as treats
    20. How often the frog is handled
    21. Is the enclosure kept in a high or low traffic area
    22. Describe enclosure maintenance (water changes, cleaning, etc)

    by Lynn(Flybyferns) and GrifTheGreat.
    Save one animal and it doesn't change the world, but it surely changes the world for that one animal!

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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    Hi Everyone,

    Thanks for all of your advice. I have read many articles about care of Pacman before I post my thread but some said it's okay to do that or never do it. I was confused. I will cover tank with black paper now!

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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    Hi Lynn,

    Seems Pet Smart is not a great place to get a pet frog?...

    Here is my answers;

    1. 10G terrarium (Zilla 10 Tropical Starter Kits)
    2. 1 Pacman frog sized 1.5 inch
    3. 50%-70%
    4. 65F-75F
    5. First we did tap water for both his pool and mist. Now 100% natural spring water
    6. Eco earth
    7. Artificial plant, plastic rock look like hiding and some decorative slates.
    8. young crickets (small and pale color ones)
    9. never
    10. a day blue bulb which came with kit (Zilla 1- tropical starter kit)
    11. a day blue bulb and heat mat which didn't stick on the wall so it might not have done anything.
    12. possibly 2 nights ago but no one saw he actually ate. Put 4 crickets and 2 seem to be gone.
    13. No
    14. will try it tomorrow when I have light.
    15. He buried himself completely and can't be seen at all. Also there is no sign of him having moved and changed his place to burrow.
    16. We are not sure- his size is about 1.5in.
    17. 4days
    18. Captive bred
    19. We fed him 2 nights ago for the first time at our home but not since then (there are still 2 crickets in tank that I will take out tomorrow)
    20. One time when I put him into tank
    21. low traffic area in sunroom
    22. changing pool water everyday and mist 4-5 times a day to maintain even 50% of himidity

    Thanks for your help, Lynn. I will try to post some pics of enclosure tomorrow. We really hope he is only adjusting himself to his new home, not being sick!!! Can I have advice for how to keep temperature warm enough without the useless heat pad never sticks on tank wall at night and also humidity in daytime with light on. Do I need to dump eco earth?

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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    Quote Originally Posted by bluebeetle View Post
    Hi Lynn, will I do instead lol

    Seems Pet Smart is not a great place to get a pet frog?... we have a very long history with pet stores...

    Here is my answers;

    1. 10G terrarium (Zilla 10 Tropical Starter Kit
    too big for a baby, you need smaller, medium sized kritter keeper for example. You can use it later too, for baths or smth.

    2. 1 Pacman frog sized 1.5 inch

    3. 50%-70%
    you want 70-80%,

    4. 65F-75F
    That is dangerously too low, you want 76-78 (night) and 80-82 ( day)

    5. First we did tap water for both his pool and mist. Now 100% natural spring water
    you need to get a water conditioner, Prime, aquatize, anything that would work for fish tank water will do. Use it for your tap water or bottled water.


    6. Eco earth
    7. Artificial plant, plastic rock look like hiding and some decorative slates.
    8. young crickets (small and pale color ones)
    9. never
    you need to get multivitamins and ca/vitd3 powder. Use ca/vitd3 2xweek and multivitamins 1xweek, but don't mix powders on a same day

    10. a day blue bulb which came with kit (Zilla 1- tropical starter kit)
    11. a day blue bulb and heat mat which didn't stick on the wall so it might not have done anything.
    12. possibly 2 nights ago but no one saw he actually ate. Put 4 crickets and 2 seem to be gone.
    13. No
    14. will try it tomorrow when I have light.
    15. He buried himself completely and can't be seen at all. Also there is no sign of him having moved and changed his place to burrow.
    16. We are not sure- his size is about 1.5in.
    17. 4days
    18. Captive bred
    19. We fed him 2 nights ago for the first time at our home but not since then (there are still 2 crickets in tank that I will take out tomorrow)
    20. One time when I put him into tank
    21. low traffic area in sunroom
    22. changing pool water everyday and mist 4-5 times a day to maintain even 50% of himidity

    Thanks for your help, Lynn. I will try to post some pics of enclosure tomorrow. We really hope he is only adjusting himself to his new home, not being sick!!! Can I have advice for how to keep temperature warm enough without the useless heat pad never sticks on tank wall at night and also humidity in daytime with light on. Do I need to dump eco earth?

    in blue
    to summarize it is not too bad. Yet. But you have to fix things asap. 65f and 50% humidity are very very dangerous.

    temp - infrared heat lamp or ceramic heater, plugged into a dome with a dimmer,bigger sized heat pad attached to a side.

    you can get fogger, plug it into hydrotherm along with your heat lamp and nkt to worry about humidity or temps again.

    Humidity can be kept more stable if you cover 2/3 or more of a lid wirh foil or plastic wrap.

    you need to get a smaller tank and cover 3 sides if it.

    most importantly you need to have proper humidifier and thermometer to know correct readings, not these analog ones that come with a kit.
    Save one animal and it doesn't change the world, but it surely changes the world for that one animal!

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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    Quote Originally Posted by Lija View Post
    in blue
    to summarize it is not too bad. Yet. But you have to fix things asap. 65f and 50% humidity are very very dangerous.

    temp - infrared heat lamp or ceramic heater, plugged into a dome with a dimmer,bigger sized heat pad attached to a side.

    you can get fogger, plug it into hydrotherm along with your heat lamp and nkt to worry about humidity or temps again.

    Humidity can be kept more stable if you cover 2/3 or more of a lid wirh foil or plastic wrap.

    you need to get a smaller tank and cover 3 sides if it.

    most importantly you need to have proper humidifier and thermometer to know correct readings, not these analog ones that come with a kit.
    Thank you so much!!! I will get everything tomorrow. Supposed I did set up the smaller tank well, what should I do with him? Transfer? How?

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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    Yes, get one of those plastic kritter keepers, medium sized or large might work too for 1.5" baby. Get more Exo earth or plantation soil that you need to expand with conditioned water. Then put some in, not a lot, no more then 2", shallow water dish with the same conditioned water, plant of sorts, to create a hide. Cover part of the top with something., cover 3 sides with anything not see through. What is home humidity? If it is bad you can wet a towel and out on top of a cage. It is really try and see. Don't overdo though, aim for 75%.

    now all exo earth from tank he is in, take out and let it dry, you will use it later when you need to change the substrate, you will add dechlor water and it will be all right.

    You can put plastic cage inside the big one, sometimes it helps maintaining temps and humidity.
    Please when you get a chance post a pic of a frog himself. Before transfering him into his new home do a bath for him. Warm water ( same conditioned one), water level no higher then frogs chin, keep him in there for about 20 min. Warm water 80-84F. It will give you enough time to clean the tank he is in now and to set up a new one.

    oh and one more thing, when touching a frog, transfering him, etc, wash your hands and use non powdered disposable gloves, or after washing hands well, rinse them with conditioned water. Oils on your skin are better be in no contact with a frog.

    good luck!
    Save one animal and it doesn't change the world, but it surely changes the world for that one animal!

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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    Hi! I just managed to re-equip our Pacman's enclosure following the advise. First of all, I was wrong about his size- he was bigger than I remember and was about 2.5-3in. As I couldn't find a good smaller size tank, I kept the 10G for now. I bought fogger and better thermometer. No one had hydrotherm at store today so couldn't pick up. Also bought water conditioner and infrared lamp along with a done with on/off switch. There was no dimmer with or sold separately. Got bigger heat pad and stuck on the side of the tank. Pecman was completely hiding but careful took him out with glove on and gave him a bath. He looked happier. He ate about 5 little pale crickets and now buried himself in halfway. The temp is about 80F and humidity is 75-78%. Hope he will adjust himself soon.

    I cover 2 narrow sides with black paper. Should I cover the front one too? Name:  image.jpg
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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    That is perfect! And the guy looks great! But cover 4 sides, anything would do, I like these fish tank backgrounds that they cut at the stores, cheap and looks awesome.

    hydrotherm - You will love that thing! Check Amazon or ebay, you can find it for 50$ ish.
    You don't need a dimmer if you have hydrotherm, that thing will control everything, including night temp drop.

    Also if he is closer to 2,5-3" ( he looks more like 2", but it's just a pic) he can easily take adult sized crickets. And it is amazing he is eating now. you see, when he got used to his tank in a few days try to tong feed nightcrawlers.

    i have a very strong feeling,mthis is going to be another happy story around here. And it is so great you came here when it wasn't too late.
    Save one animal and it doesn't change the world, but it surely changes the world for that one animal!

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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    Quote Originally Posted by Lija View Post
    That is perfect! And the guy looks great! But cover 4 sides, anything would do, I like these fish tank backgrounds that they cut at the stores, cheap and looks awesome.

    hydrotherm - You will love that thing! Check Amazon or ebay, you can find it for 50$ ish.
    You don't need a dimmer if you have hydrotherm, that thing will control everything, including night temp drop.

    Also if he is closer to 2,5-3" ( he looks more like 2", but it's just a pic) he can easily take adult sized crickets. And it is amazing he is eating now. you see, when he got used to his tank in a few days try to tong feed nightcrawlers.

    i have a very strong feeling,mthis is going to be another happy story around here. And it is so great you came here when it wasn't too late.
    Thank you, thank you thank you!!! I am soooo glad that I found here and quickly got help. I ordered hydrotherm online and it is coming tomorrow! Also the fogger is such a convenient thing. Hope he will be a happy froggy and be with us for a long time.
    Okay, I will cover 3 sides and get the scenery pic paper on back. Thanks again!

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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    No problem glad both of you are ok

    and i must say right there... Not everyone would respond like you unfortunately and we see lots of not so happy stories here....
    so im really happy for your froggy, keep up good work, and updates with pics would be really nice too
    Save one animal and it doesn't change the world, but it surely changes the world for that one animal!

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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    Hello and welcome to FF! Lija helped you lot's; just wanted to give you feeding advice. Best food for Pacmans are not dyed night crawlers. Can get those at Walmart or a local bait shop. A 3 in. frog should handle whole ones; but you can cut the worm with scissors into frog length pieces from pointy end for smaller ones. Insects like crickets should be sized same as or smaller than distance between frog's eyes and gut loaded with carrots, lettuce, and cherios cereal 24-48 hours before feeding frog. Feed early evening and remove any uneaten crickets in the morning after. Keeping the substrate depth same as frog's height will prevent it from burying too deeply and provide for better monitoring. Good luck !
    Remember to take care of the enclosure and it will take care of your frog !​

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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    Quote Originally Posted by Mentat View Post
    Hello and welcome to FF! Lija helped you lot's; just wanted to give you feeding advice. Best food for Pacmans are not dyed night crawlers. Can get those at Walmart or a local bait shop. A 3 in. frog should handle whole ones; but you can cut the worm with scissors into frog length pieces from pointy end for smaller ones. Insects like crickets should be sized same as or smaller than distance between frog's eyes and gut loaded with carrots, lettuce, and cherios cereal 24-48 hours before feeding frog. Feed early evening and remove any uneaten crickets in the morning after. Keeping the substrate depth same as frog's height will prevent it from burying too deeply and provide for better monitoring. Good luck !
    Great! I haven't gotten worms yet but will try as soon as I get chance. And thank you for the feeding advice for what time of the day- Tonight, I thought I will coat the criekts with Calcium powder and give them to him. I still have some more baby/young crickets that I am feeding orange foods. Let me know if i have anything else keep in mind!

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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    Quote Originally Posted by Lija View Post
    No problem glad both of you are ok

    and i must say right there... Not everyone would respond like you unfortunately and we see lots of not so happy stories here....
    so im really happy for your froggy, keep up good work, and updates with pics would be really nice too
    I am glad that I AM okay! As you see, I was in panic! He is half buried and look comfy in there. I cover all sides so just checking from above. Ans I covered partially the top with foil for humidity. Can't wait to have hydrotherm thou!

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    Default Re: New Pacman Frog buried and not moving at all.

    Okay, I set up the hydrotherm and it is awesome! So convenient. A couple of more questions-

    1.Your suggestion of what kind of heating device should be plugged into hydrotherm. I need to know between these:
    -Day light which I am using to heat and to create "day" effect
    -infrared light that I am using at night to heat

    for now, I plugged the infrared light for night temp.

    2. What does his poop look like and how often does he do or do I need to scoop out? What if it's buried as he did under there?

    3. How many baby/young crickets should be fed? Tonight, I accidentally put 7 of them and couldn't take out (they were moving too fast) but thought if he wasn't hungry, I could take uneaten ones out tomorrow. They seem all gone by now. Does he get sick by eating too much?

    thanks in advance for reply!!!

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