Please advise on the behalf of my Pacman frog

[BigBlue83]

Hello, my name is Trey. I am new here. I own two firebelly toads, two african dwarf frogs, and just yesterday got myself an albino pacman. I love this new pacman she is great! picked her up yesterday from a local reptile amphibian store. Shes not really a baby but shes still young. i brought her home yesterday in the small rubber tub they sold me her in. i also picked up some stuff for that i would need.
so this is my set up. I AM OPEN FOR SUGGESTIONS SO PLEASE FEEL FREE.
i have a glass ten gallon tank. I put a little less than a brick of eco earth. (id say about two inches of substrate some parts a little more. i LIGHTLY packed the first layer, than add more to that. If your looking at the tank on the back right hand side i put the shallow water dish with bottled water. On the back left corner is a nest of Moss that i got from the store (dont remember what its called but was highly recomended from the owner, the store specializes in custom vivariums) on that same back corner on the outside of the tank is an 8 whatt heating pad (its on the back wall, not bellow the tank)
I have a hydrometer to check for humidity. right now its reading about 70 that is on the inside of the tank but close to the top. I also have an electric battery operated thermometer. the thermometer is the brand marina. the base part that tells the temp is on the outside and the wire goes into the tank and stuck to the side of the tank with a suction cup. on the end of the wire is a metal pc that picks up the temp it is about 1/3 of the way to the bottom of the tank. right now the temp is reading 77.2 f.
after bringing my pacman home yesterday i set up the tank and put her in it she barried herself little by little in the moss eventually ending up under it. she was down low so her eyes could be out, however now shes so low you cant even see her.
I know that this is a new home new envirement for her its only been about 24hrs she been in this new home. I just want to make sure im doing the best i can to make her happy and comfy.
if anyone has any tips id be much appreciated. when i picked her up yesterday they said they fed her every other day, but how can i feed her if i cant even see her, most likely she cant even see me. I just want to make sure she's ok.
any thoughts any comments???
i will take pictures soon....

[BigBlue83]

so i couldnt get my temp. up it seemed a little low. I moved my frogs dwellings to the basement Its alot warmer down there. shes been down there for about two hrs and the tank now has a temp of 80.1 f. i moved the moss that was ontop of her (shes barried deep) even with that moss moved you still cant see her. not at all! i didnt move any of the substrate that is on her, should I? can she breathe? i know shes new to the home should i just let her be for another day?

[GrifTheGreat]

Hello BigBlue83,

Well if you are planning to feed her in the tank you have to get rid of the moss. These frogs are veratious eaters and if she eats any of the moss she could become impacted(severe constipation) which can cause death. Temps should be 80 to 85 during the day and 75 to 79 at night. These frogs are also nocturnal so they are only active at night. Babies and juviniles can be offered food daily? But every other day is fine. They do occasionally bury themselves completely so that's not bad. Also it takes them time to adjust to a new home. It takes some and hour and others a week. Substrate needs to be moist or heavily damp, not muddy.

You can unbury the top of her head so she can see and offer food. I can not stress enough that you need to get rid of the moss to feed her in her home. Be sure to cover 3 sides of the tank with some sort of background. This makes them feedl more secure. Purchase a lamp with a dimmer switch. Fluker's makes a good one. You need an infrared bulb for the heat lamp that is no less than 25 watts and no more than 50 watts.

Food items should be of appropriate size. Crickets should be no larger than the distance between the frogs eyes. You can also feed her chunks of night crawlers. Also cut in appropriates size. About 1 inch is fine for worms.

The heat lamp will burn off humidity. To help maintain humidity cover 3/4 or 1/3 with plastic wrap. Poke holes in the plastic wrap. Leave space in the center of the the screen top for the lamp to be placed. Do not set the lamp directly on the plastic wrap.

For a more accurate temp and humidity reading the gauges should be placed in the center of the back wall of the enclosure an inch and a half to 2 inches above the substrate.

Look in the care article section of the forum for basic info on Pacman care. There is a Pacman Care Sheet. I don't have the link to post here.

Any indepth questions just ask. There are plenty of experienced keepers here.

[BigBlue83]

first off i truly thank you for acknowledging my post. im new to this forum, however am member of another forum (for my truck) and responses here seem few and far in between.
as for the moss i will take care of that. i did read that a couple times. but one thing ive noticed is theres a wide variety of care sheets and info, and alot of the stuff conflict each other. thats why its good to have a forum.
as for the temp, i know where the temp is supposed to be, i just coulndt get it to there. thats why i moved her and her set up to the basement for now. as i said in the first post i have a heat pad thats on the back wall, it just doesnt seem to be doing the job.
i want to invest in a light however i have heard half and half some say to use them others say no because itll cook the froggy. so i just dont know what to do on that matter. honestly im not smart/knowledgeable on UVB or UVA or any of the lights so i dont know how to shop for them. any help would be much appreciated.
lastly thanks for that bit of info regarding placement of the gauges. i will move them closer to the substrate (farther from the top)

Thank You again,
Trey

[GrifTheGreat]

first off i truly thank you for acknowledging my post. im new to this forum, however am member of another forum (for my truck) and responses here seem few and far in between.
as for the moss i will take care of that. i did read that a couple times. but one thing ive noticed is theres a wide variety of care sheets and info, and alot of the stuff conflict each other. thats why its good to have a forum.
as for the temp, i know where the temp is supposed to be, i just coulndt get it to there. thats why i moved her and her set up to the basement for now. as i said in the first post i have a heat pad thats on the back wall, it just doesnt seem to be doing the job.
i want to invest in a light however i have heard half and half some say to use them others say no because itll cook the froggy. so i just dont know what to do on that matter. honestly im not smart/knowledgeable on UVB or UVA or any of the lights so i dont know how to shop for them. any help would be much appreciated.
lastly thanks for that bit of info regarding placement of the gauges. i will move them closer to the substrate (farther from the top)

Thank You again,
Trey

The lights won't cook the frog unless they are above the wattage range. 25 watts lowest and 50 watts highest. Stay within that range and all will be fine. The point of buying a lamp with a dimmer switch is so you can control the amount of light and heat coming from the bulb. They need a 12 hour day/night cycle so a well lit room during the day and a daytime bulb help with this. Zoo Med and Exo Terra are a couple good brands for bulbs and Fluker's makes a good dome lamp that has a dimmer switch. Infrared bulbs are what you need if you can't reach appropriate temps and they can be used day and night. You could also buy a Ceramic Heat Emitter which produces only heat and no light. You have to be careful with them though as they get pretty hot and its hard to find one that isn't 75 watts and up. If you can't find one of those in the proper wattage range you can hang the lamp over the enclosure so that its isn't creating an oven within the tank. 80 is fine though if you can maintain it. That's the average daytime temp for these frogs. You may not need a lamp if you can keep the temps up. Since you have an Albino you can't use basking bulbs because all theses will harm your frogs eyes. If you deside to go with a lamp(if needed for extra heat) buy infrared bulbs or ceramic heat emitter.

Be sure your frogs water dish is opposite the UTH so there is a temp gradient.

There is a lot of conflicting info on these frogs out there and I can assure you that finding this forum is probably your best bet to getting good care info on all your frogs. Plus everyone here is friendly and willing to help and answer any questions you might have.

[BigBlue83]

yes i have heat pad on the left and the water dish on the right. i just went down to check on her and she was in the same exact spot as before. identicle however i noticed that there was eco earth in her water dish. this is a good sings i hope. she was at the place i got her for about three months so the move was probly ruff on her to go from a small home with plants and water dishes to being put in a rubber tub and driven around in my truck than the hole new home. i have her in a ten gallon. she was in a small like 2 gallon thing before. Im going to feed her tomorrow. i have to get crickets, the ones i have now are small. hopefully shell come around. cant wait to get pics

[GrifTheGreat]

yes i have heat pad on the left and the water dish on the right. i just went down to check on her and she was in the same exact spot as before. identicle however i noticed that there was eco earth in her water dish. this is a good sings i hope. she was at the place i got her for about three months so the move was probly ruff on her to go from a small home with plants and water dishes to being put in a rubber tub and driven around in my truck than the hole new home. i have her in a ten gallon. she was in a small like 2 gallon thing before. Im going to feed her tomorrow. i have to get crickets, the ones i have now are small. hopefully shell come around. cant wait to get pics

She might have gotten thirsty and snuck in the water dish while you were away. Changing homes and environments causes stress and it takes them some time to get used to their new surroundings. Just keep an eye on her and keep us posted.

We love pics so we can't wait either.

[Mentat]

Hello Trey! Only thing can add to Grif's information is to make sure your bottled water is "spring water." If treated water; might contain chloramines and still require a conditioner. Myself use tap water with a Seachem aquarium conditioner and frogs are fine.

IRT heating, having good results by using the Fluker's Dimmer Dome with a ceramic heat emitter. Recently found a source for 50W one's made by Zilla; here's a link to supplier but might find at local shop too: Reptile Heating and Lighting: Zilla Ceramic Heat Emitter at Drs. Foster and Smith . IMO, those emitters evaporate less water than red lights and are more efficient warming up tank. The 50W should be enough to warm your tank by itself; have a 100W on a 20 gal. in a 70F room and it does fine. Good luck!

[BigBlue83]

yes i only use spring water even with my firebellies i always use spring water. when i was a kid, my frogs never lasted to their full potential. i am a firm believer in the fact that they key ingrediant to healthy frogs is the water supply

[GrifTheGreat]

yes i only use spring water even with my firebellies i always use spring water. when i was a kid, my frogs never lasted to their full potential. i am a firm believer in the fact that they key ingrediant to healthy frogs is the water supply

That it is. Also a diverse diet and good husbandry.

[BigBlue83]

i tryed to feed the pacman today. it was a no go. not yet anyways. shes been fully barried for another day or two so i uncovered her head last night. she stayed there with her eyes closed. this morning she was sitting there with her head uncovered with her eyes open. theyre are all red (from the albino. it looks so good)... shes so beautiful wish shed show herself to the world... at least me ... so tonight she was same way head uncovered eyes open. so i tryed to feed her a cricket, bye hand. didnt take it. so i broke the leg off and dropped it in, also put a second cricket. closed everything up and sat back from a distance. still nothing so i let her be. ill go down later and check for crickets...

on another note i know its wrong species but urlacher ate today!

[GrifTheGreat]

i tryed to feed the pacman today. it was a no go. not yet anyways. shes been fully barried for another day or two so i uncovered her head last night. she stayed there with her eyes closed. this morning she was sitting there with her head uncovered with her eyes open. theyre are all red (from the albino. it looks so good)... shes so beautiful wish shed show herself to the world... at least me ... so tonight she was same way head uncovered eyes open. so i tryed to feed her a cricket, bye hand. didnt take it. so i broke the leg off and dropped it in, also put a second cricket. closed everything up and sat back from a distance. still nothing so i let her be. ill go down later and check for crickets...

on another note i know its wrong species but urlacher ate today!

You may need to get the temps up alil higher in her tank to help spark an appetite and feeding responce.

O) I'm so glad Urlacher ate. Great that he's doing better.

[BigBlue83]

just went to the basement and to my surprise the albino was in the whole but completely uncovered. the crickets were gone too. (unless their in the substrate but if that was the case i doubt the frog would be uncovered like that. however im taking nothing for granted. lets hope for some poop tomorrow and maybe she let me watch her feed. my phone has no flash sorry. soon.

[BigBlue83]

when i went to work at 6:30 am i whent down stairs and she was still uncovered so i snapped a few shots. a couple things though in one of the pictures you can see i have nothing put around three walls for a back drop. and i bet the cat walks around the cage. on top of it, her cage is around 81 to 79 at all times. so i use the basement light as her 12 and 12. i think these things are contributing to her secretive ways. i havent named her yet, maybe i should give her a spy name lol. anyways here are some pics...

[GrifTheGreat]

when i went to work at 6:30 am i whent down stairs and she was still uncovered so i snapped a few shots. a couple things though in one of the pictures you can see i have nothing put around three walls for a back drop. and i bet the cat walks around the cage. on top of it, her cage is around 81 to 79 at all times. so i use the basement light as her 12 and 12. i think these things are contributing to her secretive ways. i havent named her yet, maybe i should give her a spy name lol. anyways here are some pics...

Very beautiful Albino Trey. I can surely help you with your frog's acclimation with his/her new home. I see that you don't have a background on the sides of your tank and on the back. Placing a background on 3 sides of the enclosure will make him/her feel more secure and safe. This will help him/her want to come out more and possibley eat without stress and you may catch him/her in the act.

[BigBlue83]

Very beautiful Albino Trey. I can surely help you with your frog's acclimation with his/her new home. I see that you don't have a background on the sides of your tank and on the back. Placing a background on 3 sides of the enclosure will make him/her feel more secure and safe. This will help him/her want to come out more and possibley eat without stress and you may catch him/her in the act.

yea i know if you read the post i mentioned that i just havent had time to get to the store. hopefully soon (like tomorrow)
i wanna get her a light too and bring her upstairs

[GrifTheGreat]

yea i know if you read the post i mentioned that i just havent had time to get to the store. hopefully soon (like tomorrow)
i wanna get her a light too and bring her upstairs

I read that. Any background will do. You can even temporarily tape pictures from magazines on the sides. I have done that and it works well. They just need to feel like they are hidden. This way you can reduce stress. Being able to see outside the tank in every direction make him/her feel out in the open and exposed. That is why she buries him/herself all the way and ony eats in darkness. I'm just offering advice . You said you wanted to be able to see him/her more and this is one way that may remedy this for you.

[BigBlue83]

I truly do appreciate the advice i never thought of using cut out from magazine too bad i have none lol. thats why i dryd to drape a towel over three sides of the tank a dark green one

[GrifTheGreat]

These frogs love to be hidden and just to feel hidden. They don't like change either. They get stressed very easily. Once he/she gets used to you he/she will eat infront of you and not see you as a threat. It takes time, but its worth every second you spend caring for them. My large female Grif is completely trusting of me. I can do whatever I want with her enclosure and her. She stays calm the whole time. My male Loki on the other hand although trusting he gets grumpy with me sometimes and will less inclined to let me pick him up which I do only when necissary. Its funny to see him get grumpy because he puffs up and looks at me while making loud popping/clicking sounds. he's a tough guy. I always strive to keep stress as low as possible. Comfort and security are key to all frog lives and well being. Some more than others of course.

I have been really excited the last 2 weeks because Loki has begun to call daily and atleast 5 to 6 times day or night. I love the sound. That is also a sure sign of a healthy happy Pacman. As well as other frogs. If they feel comfortable enough to call then they are happy.

I'm hoping that your girl gets into this comfort zone for you and eats and also exposes herself for you.

[BigBlue83]

so i made it to the pet store. I made a video of the finished product the video is actually pretty horrible because on my phone when you take video any direction you turn the phone the video screen fallows but as yoy will learn downloading the video is not the case so sorry, just turn your computer monitor lol.
click on the picture to watch the video. i will post the other one as well its not about the pac man but about Urlachers new set up m working on