Pacman questions.

[Truffs1178]

Before anyone asks he is kept at the correct temp with a heatmat and is sprayed daily. He has just started croaking

1. Why will he only eat when I hold food in his face and tap him with the food im holding with tweezers?
2. Why when I open his enclosure does he start moving up and down slightly really fast? I think he is breathing really fast.
3. Why has he grown so slowly. Had him for 8 months and he has only doubled in size.
4. Why does he blink whenever something goes near him like food. He has a UVB bulb 30cm above him which im about to change for a blue light to mimic night time but still allow me to see him.

Im sure he is perfectly healthy. Correct conditions I feed him whenever he is hungry (which isnt very often) with mealworms, crickets, pachnoda grubs, dubia roaches and morioworms which are his favourite.

[GrifTheGreat]

Please answer these questions and post the answers back here. http://www.frogforum.net/pacman-frog...enclosure.html
Yes, we do need to know what the actual temp and humidity levels are.
But to get started on your questions:

1. Some frogs require a little persuasion to eat. Rubbing or tapping the food on the frog's face will usually cause them to bite at it.
2. He is "talking." If you listen close, you should hear a popping or huffing. He is telling you he is not happy that you are poking around his home.
3. If those are recent pics, then he looks to only be about 2-2.5 inches. If he is calling then he has reached sexual maturity. His growth is most likely stunted.
4. They close their eyes to help swallow, but this sounds more like he is stressed. Closing their eyes is also a defensive tactic. They close them to keep them from being damaged when they feel under attack or stressed.

Please answer the questions in the link so we can help you further.

[Mentat]

It is very difficult to figure out what is going on with a frog if questions on parameters are removed from process. I understand some members feel we are digging into their private affairs; but it's the only way to formulate a helpful response.

Pacman frogs wait for prey to arrive close to their mouth before striking. Yours appears to include the tweezers and tapping into that response. My Pacman does not exhibit that up/down movement so can't help there.

Slow growth could be caused by nutrition (quantity or quality), genetics, parasites, or improper enclosure parameters. My Pacman babies have doubled their size in a month, so something appears not right with this one. What is snout to vent length (SVL) of it now? Have you ever had a fecal test done on frog?

Sometimes Pacman blink when startled. Does this happens during day when eyes are half closed and frog is asleep or during night when eyes are open? Pacmans do not need UVB bulbs, if you want to observe it use a red bulb instead (black moonlights produce too little light).

Again, the information you provided is not enough to come to a conclusion. If frog is healthy and conditions are correct as you state; then enjoy your Pacman as it is .

[Truffs1178]

Thanks for the help but how could he have been stunted? I give him the calcium and nutrient mixed stuff like 5 times a week and I kept him in a exo terra 60x60x60 until a few weeks ago when I moved him into a 30x30x30 exo terra because he is sooooooooooooo small for his age. I dont mind him being this size its just I was wondering. And yes I think he is very healthy. He comes out of his hole every night to sit in his water bowl and he hops around and croaks.

[Truffs1178]

also thosew were taken a while ago. He is about 4 inches now and has a more pointed face but he still looks the same every other way. Actually he is also fatter now.

[Lija]

then it is a different story, a frog in the pic looks like a baby, no more then as Grif said 2-2,5", but 4" is a normal size for a adult male. when we see pics like that and people are saying he is 8month old and calling, we will tell you right away it is not normal and he is stunted. see that is why it is important to answer "trouble" questions and post recent pics, only then we can help, people tend to forget or skip something, but this way we get the whole picture, sometimes something little may cause a lot of trouble.

Grif and Carlos answered your Qs, for your Q about growth, if you get a frog at the size 2" and you have 4" frog now, you have your double size and with that normal sized pacman having said that I would adjust his food, mealworms and superworms ( morioworms) are not good at all for pacman due to high chitin amount, superworms have less chitin, but they are very fatty.
african beetle larvae not sure, never fed or saw nutrient analysis, can't say, but usually these types of larvae are very high in a fat content, thus not good for a pacman too. I would skip mealworms/superworms completely and add nightcrawlers ( earthworms) to the diet.

[Namio]

Before anyone asks he is kept at the correct temp with a heatmat and is sprayed daily. He has just started croaking

1. Why will he only eat when I hold food in his face and tap him with the food im holding with tweezers?
2. Why when I open his enclosure does he start moving up and down slightly really fast? I think he is breathing really fast.
3. Why has he grown so slowly. Had him for 8 months and he has only doubled in size.
4. Why does he blink whenever something goes near him like food. He has a UVB bulb 30cm above him which im about to change for a blue light to mimic night time but still allow me to see him.

Im sure he is perfectly healthy. Correct conditions I feed him whenever he is hungry (which isnt very often) with mealworms, crickets, pachnoda grubs, dubia roaches and morioworms which are his favourite.

I agree with Grif. With the pictures you provided, updated or not, the frog appears to be under 3 inches. If those are old pictures then please post recent ones. Many members on here are knowledgeable about proper horned frog care. Like Carlos said, please give us detailed info on your frog care so that we can help you solve potential problems.

[DVirginiana]

Like everyone else said, post the conditions info. Sometimes something that is correct for most frogs could be stressing out or causing issues for one that is more sensitive.
Also, vitamin supplements should only be given every other feeding (or if you happen to feed more often than once a day, no more than every other day). Just mentioning that because you said you dusted his food about 5 times a week.

[Truffs1178]

Sorry I took so long.

1. Size of enclosure-30x30x30cm exo terra
2. # of inhabitants - specifically other frogs and size differences-1 male pacman
3. Humidity-80%
4. Temperature-around 75
5. Water - type - for both misting and soaking dish-dechlorinated
6. Materials used for substrate-exo terra soil
7. Enclosure set up i.e. plants (live or artificial), wood, bark and other materials.-just soil and water bowl
8. Main food source-Worms
9. Vitamins and calcium? (how often)-every other feeding but he dosent eat every day coz he dosent get hungry very often(which i think is strange)
10. Lighting-exo terra uvb 2.0(im going to change that to a red or blue bulb
11. What is being used to maintain the temperature of the enclosure-heatmat underneath
12. When is the last time he/she ate-yesterday just one small worm
13. Have you found poop lately-in my hand 2 days ago lol pretty gross i just happened to pick him up to change his water and he just did it
14. A pic would be helpful including frog and enclosure (any including cell phone pic is fine)
15. How old is the frog-got in november 2012 when it was just an inch
16. How long have you owned him/her- since november 2012
17. Is the frog wild caught or captive bred-captive bred
18. Frog food- how often and if it is diverse, what other feeders are used as treats-main is worms and sometimes dubias and mealworms
19. How often the frog is handled-not often only once a week mabey but just for a sec. i am minimising that now cos i think it stresses him
20. Is the enclosure kept in a high or low traffic area-my bedroom so medium, morning and night time is when im in there.
21. Describe enclosure maintenance (water changes, cleaning, etc)- water changes daily but i never really clean his soil because i just remove his poop and the soil around it

[Lija]

one thing gotta be changed and is a big no-no when it comes to pacman care. Just to remove poop and soil around it is not enough, you should do it as you see it of course, but the whole cage gotta be cleaned with complete substrate change once a month, they don't just poop, they urinate too, a LOT
other then that there are a few minor adjustments that needs to be done, preferred temp range is 80-82 (day) and 76-78 ( night), yours is a bit too low. night temp drop along with lights off is mimicking their natural environment, letting them know it is time to hunt . and food should be offered about 30 min after lights are off for better feeding response.

they don't get too hungry when they are grown ups and usually are very good at regulating their food intake, babies need a lot of nutrients to grow, that is why it is different.
you may want to give him a plant or something to crate a shade or hide of some sorts, he'll feel more secure.

everything else is ok

[Truffs1178]

Thanks for the tips. I just gave him new soil and he ate. He only eats at night though and that's hard for me because he will only eat while I'm using tweezers when something touches his nose so I can't see anything and I'm worried a torch may hurt his eyes. Do you think a blue or red bulb will make him think its night and stimulate him to feed that way ill actually be able to see. Also his heat mat is warmer now.

[Lija]

lol do you know how many people will get jealous of you able to tong feed your frog
anyhow, you don't need to feed in complete darkness, room light is ok. red light don't disturb him you can use it.

[Jerah Teoh Yong Qiang]

lol do you know how many people will get jealous of you able to tong feed your frog
anyhow, you don't need to feed in complete darkness, room light is ok. red light don't disturb him you can use it.

^This. The fact you're able to tong-feed your frog, I envy. Mine hops away from the tongs every single time!

[Truffs1178]

How do you get that green banner with the Ceratophrys cranwelli on. I would like some for my african bullfrog cane toad and ornate horned frog. I think it's an ornate at least because I never actually checked properly. Here it is

[Truffs1178]

Also how long can a pacman frog go without eating because he hasn't eaten for a few days now when will he be hungry again?

[GrifTheGreat]

Also how long can a pacman frog go without eating because he hasn't eaten for a few days now when will he be hungry again?

This link will help you with the keeper tags in the signature. http://www.frogforum.net/pacman-frog...ht=keeper+tags

How long exactly has it been since he ate and what was the last thing he ate?

Adults can go for a while without eating. As long as they don't begin losing weight all should be fine.

[Truffs1178]

He ate a locust and two crickets last night so I think he has his appetite back. I'm going to try him with some lob worms tonight.

[Truffs1178]

This link will help you with the keeper tags in the signature. http://www.frogforum.net/pacman-frog...ht=keeper+tags

Really sorry about this but I still don't understand how to do it. Where do I put those codes in and do I have to do it for every post?

[GrifTheGreat]

Really sorry about this but I still don't understand how to do it. Where do I put those codes in and do I have to do it for every post?

You have to go into your settings on your profile page. Then you type the code into where your signature goes and select show signature. It will appear on every post automatically.

[Truffs1178]

Sorry but how do you get the codes that you want to type into your signature? And is there a one for all frogs and toads?