Strange behavior?

[Pyxiefan001]

My adult Pyxie has been acting weird over the last couple of days. Often I see her in the water bowl and trying to get out over either of the back corners of the tank. The pool's a rounded bowl so I had to put balled up terry cloths in the corners in case she got stuck if that makes any sense. She sometimes also paces back and forth against the front tank wall, in and out of the water like she can't make up her mind what she wants or is doing. It's strange behavior to me, it looks like she's stressed about something but I'm having a hard time deducing about what if that is in fact the case. She'll move a bit then stay still, then move again.

I have no reason to think something is seriously wrong with her because she eats ANY time food is offered, day or night seems to make no difference to her even though I keep her in a room that gets a decent amount of indirect light during the day and subsequently poops with fair regularity (food is Dubias and nightcrawlers btw offered every 3 days, a regime she has never failed to comply with). Temps/humidity at the moment are low to mid 70s and 85% respectively. I know that's a bit cooler than some prefer to keep them but she seems to do fine, plus there's a small aquarium heater in her water that keeps the water temp at a constant 78 or so degrees (getting a new one soon to make it a bit higher tho). Sometimes the humidity spikes up to little over 90% at night probably because the infrared light I use for daytime heat (day temps = mid 80s).

She tends to act this way at night, which I suppose has something to do with the nocturnal tendencies of these frogs despite my female's willingness to eat during the daytime.

So with her consistent (insatiable more like lol) appetite and regular pooping, it seems nothing's wrong except for her strange "pacing" behavior. Could it be the humidity's too high, as I've mentioned it sometimes exceeds 90% at night? Though I'm taking off some of the plastic wrap I've got over part of the top of the tank to relieve this.

Does anyone else's Pyxies do anything like this?

[GrifTheGreat]

Do you have 3 sides covered with some sort of background and places for her to hide in the enclosure? 90% humidity is ok occationally. 80% isnpreferable, but 75% is ok too.

She may wantba mate which can make females restless sometimes, but something else could be amiss here. Hiw often fo you change the water and clean the enclosure?

[Pyxiefan001]

Do you have 3 sides covered with some sort of background and places for her to hide in the enclosure? 90% humidity is ok occationally. 80% isnpreferable, but 75% is ok too.

She may wantba mate which can make females restless sometimes, but something else could be amiss here. Hiw often fo you change the water and clean the enclosure?

1. No, but one side wall is covered with black mat because I saw her eying my gecko hungrily, who resides in a cage not far from her's.
No hides though, she usually makes those herself with her burrowing.
2. Water is changed daily.
3. Substrate is changed monthly - last tank cleaning (no soap or chemicals are used, just hot water) was last week on Saturday.

At the mo humidity is 85% and 74 degrees, and she's resting half-buried in the sub. Guess she was just restless?

Question(s) on humidity - how can I get the levels to stay higher during the day, when the infrared is on? Should I try a ceramic heat emitter of a similar wattage (50w is the bulb I use) instead? I read CHEs don't burn up humidity quite as fast because they only produce heat and no light. Is this true?

Thanks for the reply.

[DeeDub]

Your low temps are no good.
As far as humidity goes: How are you measuring?
Don't sacrifice ventilation. If you have a good water feature you don't need to maintain 85% RH. Just keep the substrate moist (mist a couple times a day). Sub. Should be wet but not soupy. I wring it out until water doesn't "pour" out of it. Then just keep misting to maintain. It doesn't have to be perfect. These guys are pretty tough.

My final advice... warm her up. 85-90 daytime. No lower than 75 at night. Mist a couple times daily. Vary diet (add some clean fowl) If she's not bloated, is eating and $hitting...leave her be.

-----------------
Thanks
DW

[Pyxiefan001]

Your low temps are no good.
As far as humidity goes: How are you measuring?
Don't sacrifice ventilation. If you have a good water feature you don't need to maintain 85% RH. Just keep the substrate moist (mist a couple times a day). Sub. Should be wet but not soupy. I wring it out until water doesn't "pour" out of it. Then just keep misting to maintain. It doesn't have to be perfect. These guys are pretty tough.

My final advice... warm her up. 85-90 daytime. No lower than 75 at night. Mist a couple times daily. Vary diet (add some clean fowl) If she's not bloated, is eating and $hitting...leave her be.

-----------------
Thanks
DW

I have an acu-rite digital hygrometer in the middle of the cage an inch or so just about the substrate. And her water bowl takes up nearly a third of the floorspace. Thanks for the info.

[Eridu Serpent]

Sounds like it is due to the time of year, mating season is coming and I suppose she may have "an itch to scratch" like most animals wanting to breed.
It´s built into them like any other species.
Other than that she might feel too insecure if her tanks not covered in at the sides.
Just move her water into a more central position.
I keep my tanks hot 85 to 90 but I keep the humidity at 50 to 60...no higher.
One area of the tank is very wet moss so they can dig it they wish another moist soil...then there is a water tray.
Night time goes down low to around 70.