Do Pacmans hibernate?

[mzajmyers]

Hi guys,

So my fat man was eating like a pig a week ago, like 7 crickets a night! All of a sudden he slowed his eating and one morning I couldn't find him. I dug around his cage and finally found him burried deep in the cocohusk. It had gotten a little cool in the house since it has become cold outside, but I had started switching from a white to a red light 12 hours and 12 hours so he had heat at all times. He hasn't come out in three days and I don't know if I should disturb him or if he is hibernating. When I checked on him three days ago he didn't seem to have a film around him like everyone seems to be talking about, has he maybe built it up? I don't know what to do! HELP PLEASE!

[GrifTheGreat]

First of all I hope you mean he's on coconut fiber not coconut husk. Husk is bad if they accidentally eat a piece. It can cause impaction and death. What are your day time temps/night time temps/ humidity levels? They do hibernate but the conditions have to be right otherwise they don't go into hibernation mode. How old is your frog? When you unburied him was he still breathing?

[mzajmyers]

Yeah, hes in the coconut dirt stuff not the wood looking stuff sorry about that! Didn't mean to scare you! During the day his temp is right around 75 and at night around 80. The humidity levels range from 75-85% (I spray as needed). I bought him in April of this year and am not exactly sure how old he was but he was not the size of the babies I have seen. When I unburied him he was breathing and his eyes moved a little too but he didn't feel slimmy or wet, just damp.

[GrifTheGreat]

You have your temps backwards. Its supposed to be warmer during the day and cooler at night. 80 to85 during the day and 75 to 79 at night. You may have his day night cycle messed up due to this. They are nocturnal so they are active at night. How long has it been since your frog has eaten? Do you de-chlorinate your frogs water? You may have to dig him up and soak him in some luke warm de-chlorinated water. No deeper than up to his chin. If you have honey you can put 2 to 3 drops in the water and disolve it. Then soak the frog for a few minutes to see if he comes out of it.

[mzajmyers]

Ok I will do that; Thank you so much. Why did the lady at the store give me a red bulb for at night that burns hotter than the white one then? Should I be having the red one on during the day and the white one on at night? Is there a better way to be sure he is warm without using a light; our house is old and drafty. Even four hours without a light I saw his temp on the weekend go down to 70 once which is why I went and bought the additional light. ---He hasn't eaten in 3 days he has been buried in the dirt and I was scared to bother him.

[GrifTheGreat]

Ok I will do that; Thank you so much. Why did the lady at the store give me a red bulb for at night that burns hotter than the white one then? Should I be having the red one on during the day and the white one on at night? Is there a better way to be sure he is warm without using a light; our house is old and drafty. Even four hours without a light I saw his temp on the weekend go down to 70 once which is why I went and bought the additional light. ---He hasn't eaten in 3 days he has been buried in the dirt and I was scared to bother him.

Wattage has a lot to do with it. You need a lamp that has a dimmer switch. The bulb wattage should be no less than 25 watts and no more than 50 watts for day and night bulbs. You can use the red one for day and night if needs be. The reason you buy a lamp with a dimmer switch is so you can adjust the amount of light and heat coming from the bulb. This way if you don't need the bulb up to full strength to produce the amount of heat needed then you don't have too. Do you have a Under Tank Heater (UTH)? you need one of these to help keep the tank warm because they need a constant heat source. DO NOT! place the UTH on the bottom of the tank despite the name of the heater being "under tank" these as you know are burrowing frogs and can easily be burned or overheated if they burrow over the heater if its placed on the bottom. What is the wattage of your bulbs?

[mzajmyers]

Well thank goodness for you! The lady who is supposed to be an expert in such things at the store told me that he needs a 75 watt bulb which is what I use, and not to use an under the tank warmer. I also do not have a dimmer switch. Looks like its going to be froggie shopping for me!

[GrifTheGreat]

Well thank goodness for you! The lady who is supposed to be an expert in such things at the store told me that he needs a 75 watt bulb which is what I use, and not to use an under the tank warmer. I also do not have a dimmer switch. Looks like its going to be froggie shopping for me!

Well not all so called experts at pet stores really are experts. I am no expert by far but do have more than common knowlege about their care as do many others on this forum. She was dead wrong and obviously didn't have much experiance with Pacmans. There is also a Pacman frog care sheet on the forum under the care articles. You should read it and get some much needed care info for your Pacman. Any more questions just ask. You didn't answer me whether you de-chlorinate your frogs water though. You must de-chlorinate your tap water before using it for your frog. You have to buy a water conditioner/de-chlorinator. Look for Prime,Zoo Med Reptisafe,TetraFauna Aqua-Safe just to name a few for you.

[mzajmyers]

Hey there,
Sorry about missing your question, yes I do dechlorinate his water. I followed your advice and last night dug him out, gave him a luke warm bath and he is a new man He ate last night 4 crickets and did not rebury himself deep, just the normal back-up burying. He is active this evening jumping after crickets and I couldn't be happier! Thank you so much for your advice! I will be reading the frog care sheet so I can be sure I have everything I need for him so this doesn't happen again.

[GrifTheGreat]

You are very welcome and I'm. Happy that your Pac is doing well. Now you'll think twice before believing a so called expert at a pet store. Its not always this way though. There are real experts out there that work at pet stores. Usually they are found at privately owned stores not chain stores like Petsmart or Petco. Anything else you need to know just ask. If I don't know there is certain to be someone with more expreriance than i who can.

[GrifTheGreat]

Also be sure to keep the little guy's/girl's substrate moist not mud. That's the saying that goes for the substrate.

[mzajmyers]

Yes! I read tht in the care sheet on this site and have been doing it all wrong! Today is Christmas shopping for Pacman! (By the way happily named by my children! lol) Thanks everyone!

[GrifTheGreat]

Lol! That's awesome. Don't use moss of any kind in his home. If he accidentally eats a piece while chasing his food he could become impacted(severly constipated) which can cause death. You should be on your way to keeping him safe warm and happy now. Good luck with the Christmas shopping. Maybe Santa will get your chubby Pac some good stuff.

[mzajmyers]

Wait! No moss either? I have been misled completely!! His cage has moss per the "experts" for added moisture. Is the large clump of moss ok, just not the shredded? Holy cow This lady is starting from scatch! I will send pictures as soon as I can!

[GrifTheGreat]

Wait! No moss eit/bark/woodchips/sandher? I have been misled completely!! His cage has moss per the "experts" for added moisture. Is the large clump of moss ok, just not the shredded? Holy cow This lady is starting from scatch! I will send pictures as soon as I can!

Its only ok if you feed your frog in a separate container. A feeding tank. Removing them from their home even to feed can cause stress if the frog isn't used to it. Moss us great for added humidity but is risky if the frog is fed in its home when it contains moss. These are aggressive eaters and do accidentally eat substrate when feeding. The coco fiber is ok and easy for them to pass but moss is not. No stones/moss/sharp objects/sand/wood chips/bark/etc. She really had that only partly right. Its only fine if your frog is fed in a feeding tank. They do enjoy moss and sometimes burrow in the soil near it or in it but you're better safe than sorry.

[En333]

Haha is "pacman" as a plural "pacmen"? Lol JKJK just wanted to say that

[GrifTheGreat]

Haha is "pacman" as a plural "pacmen"? Lol JKJK just wanted to say that

I guess that is correct. Lol!! Most of us just say Pacs so we don't have to type the full word. Good question though.

[Heatheranne]

Lol!!!
Excellent advice as always . Everyone on here helped me too and my pacs are happy and healthy as ever

Hope you'll post some pictures for us. I'd love to see your little guy.

[nlopez]

Speaking of burying themselves, my pac did this thing last night I had never seen him do before. He was out in the open, in his favorite corner. But instead of burying himself with just the little backwards burying, he was FULLY covered. Just his little snout sticking out of the dirt! To be honest, it was pretty cute, but is this normal? Like a sleeping position? I know they bury themselves to cool off, so maybe he felt extra warm? Also, last night is when I started using an infrared bulb at night, so maybe he was just able to get into "sleep mode" or something? haha He has since come out when I put his daylight lamp on, and is only semi buried as I have seen him do all the time. Just wondering if the amount of burying (if that makes sense) has to do with my pacman's mood or sleep cycle. Thanks!

[GrifTheGreat]

Speaking of burying themselves, my pac did this thing last night I had never seen him do before. He was out in the open, in his favorite corner. But instead of burying himself with just the little backwards burying, he was FULLY covered. Just his little snout sticking out of the dirt! To be honest, it was pretty cute, but is this normal? Like a sleeping position? I know they bury themselves to cool off, so maybe he felt extra warm? Also, last night is when I started using an infrared bulb at night, so maybe he was just able to get into "sleep mode" or something? haha He has since come out when I put his daylight lamp on, and is only semi buried as I have seen him do all the time. Just wondering if the amount of burying (if that makes sense) has to do with my pacman's mood or sleep cycle. Thanks!

Burrowing during the day is normal and sometimes they will completely bury themselves and other times they will leave their heads out. They should not be up during the day because they're nocturnal so only be awake at night which is where you feed them. Its normal for them to burrow like this though.