Pyxie help, environment wrong??

[tauntonhandy]

Hi there, I need a bit of advice, I got my now 2yr old pyxie about 6 months ago. Have been keeping in a 3ft by 18 inch terrarium with coco fibre substrate and a 50w heat lamp ever since. She has 2 water bowls, 1 under light one elsewhere.

She has always been very inactive at best but recently she has got worse, she seems to keep starting to aestivate, then stopping. She will never really move unless i move her for feeding, then she hides for a week or 2. I mist the tank daily, keep temperature at a constant 25 degrees. The only thing being the light is on a thermostat so comes on erratically day and night.

I am thinking my problem may be the light, I am going to buy a heat mat and use that instead, is this the likely cause? do they need 12 hrs darkness?

Also she never comes looking for food, should I just feed her at daily or so intervals, or wait til she is moving around, which can be a few weeks interval.


Thanks


Paul

[John]

In my experience females are a lot more passive than males. It's not like they ever beg for food or move around that much. I would be more concerned about how much substrate she has, how moist it is and if there is other cover. If she pays attention to food and eats well I wouldn't worry too much.

[BEETLE]

My female often hides away for weeks (without aestivating), I have stopped being concerned about it after several years. I would not offer food every day, in the wild I am sure they would have food on some days but not on others. One thing that does seem to keep her up and active is large locusts, she goes mad for these and after a few she seems to hang about on the surface for a few days.
I would think about the light issue, mine have both heat mats and lights. The lights are on a timer and during times when she is active she comes out within about 15 min of the light going off, often she will still be out on the surface when I get up (too early) but will go burrow down within minutes of me putting the room light on.

[willtilian]

25 degrees!!!!!!!! thats like a cold day!!!!! i would move it up at least to the 70s!!!!
wait are you talking celsuis?

[findiviglio]

Hi,
I agree with the advice of earlier responders. Re light, it can have an effect on behavior - some species I've worked with would become active at the same time each evening, even if lights were left on experimentally, others only when it became dark, even if this were delayed several hours past usual "lights out" time. A night viewing (red/black) bulb may help you see what's going on after dark.

My favorite Pyxie story - a brute that consumed 17 hatchling cobras: http://blogs.thatpetplace.com/thatre...ullfrog-meals/

Best, Frank

[John]

25 degrees!!!!!!!! thats like a cold day!!!!! i would move it up at least to the 70s!!!!
wait are you talking celsuis?

Yes, Celsius. Pretty much the only country still using Fahrenheit is the US (bless 'em).

[Buck Rogers]

Just my 2c worth on this, 25C is an Autumn day's temp and they will be in hibernation deep under ground by now! Today we are in Autumn in South Africa and it is about 31 C outside, Summer days in a pan will get up to high 30's and 40's. I would disagree with using a heating pad if you are going to put it under the tank as they are a burrowing species and if the heat comes from below it may cook the lil critter. I have no experience keeping them (BIG criminal offence to keep them here cause they are a TOPS species so MEGA fine!!!!!) but from my observations of being in the field is the temps are high but they should also have a cool place to burrow in. Don't forget even Highveld summer nights are in the high 20's C... trust me we had this in Jan and Feb and no airconditioning made it a nightmare

[John]

I would disagree with using a heating pad if you are going to put it under the tank as they are a burrowing species and if the heat comes from below it may cook the lil critter.

This is a distinct possibility and it's why we should only ever use heat pads that cover less than a third of the bottom of the terrarium and which are also regulated by a thermostat. I've seen a "cooked" African Bullfrog, just as Darryn describes.