New owner need some help - frog arm looks twisted

[tytons]

Hi Guys,

I've just noticed this a couple of days ago, my pacman left arm looks kinda twisted and at most times seem to be in an awkward position compared to the other arm.

Even when he hops it kind shows sign of it being a lil "disable" it is still move-able and he doesnt seem to be in any pain when i move him arm around.

I usually have a sponge like material in the tank where he usually sits and there's water around it. I'm just thinking if he twisted his arm when he was trying to move around in the water area as it could be slippery.

refer to the picture to get a clearer idea of what im saying.

[Hypnotic]

I'm not sure but it doesn't look good to me, look at the pattern above his twisted arm, it looks blue. I think your frog needs a vet. Sponge isn't a good material, use eco-earth.
Please provide us with some more information regarding the setup.

1. Size of enclosure
2. # of inhabitants - specifically other frogs and size differences
3. Humidity
4. Temperature
5. Water - type - for both misting and soaking dish
6. Materials used for substrate
7. Enclosure set up i.e. plants (live or artificial), wood, bark and other materials.
- How were things prepared prior to being put into the viv.
8. Main food source
9. Vitamins and calcium? (how often)
10. Lighting
11. What is being used to maintain the temperature of the enclosure
12. When is the last time he/she ate
13. Have you found poop lately
14. A pic would be helpful including frog and enclosure (any including cell phone pic is fine)
15. How old is the frog
16. How long have you owned him/her
17. Is the frog wild caught or captive bred
18. Frog food- how often and if it is diverse, what other feeders are used as treats
19. How often the frog is handled
20. Is the enclosure kept in a high or low traffic area
21. Describe enclosure maintenance (water changes, cleaning, etc)

by Lynn(Flybyferns) and GrifTheGreat.

[tytons]

1. Size of enclosure : not sure about the measurement in gallon as we dont use it here. It's roughly 12 inches in length and 5 inches in width
2. # of inhabitants -only him
3. Humidity: tropical country temperature
4. Temperature: 25 ish or a tad warmer at times
5. Water - type - dechlorinated
6. Materials used for substrate : sponge and water most times
7. Enclosure set up i.e. plants (live or artificial), wood, bark and other materials.
- How were things prepared prior to being put into the viv. none
8. Main food source : cricket and the powdered pacman food from japan
9. Vitamins and calcium? (how often): the pacman food has calcium already, feeding him on a daily basis
10. Lighting: none
11. What is being used to maintain the temperature of the enclosure: none
12. When is the last time he/she ate: everyday
13. Have you found poop lately: yes
14. A pic would be helpful including frog and enclosure (any including cell phone pic is fine)
15. How old is the frog: 1 month with me, probably 3 weeks of age in the shop
16. How long have you owned him/her: 1 month
17. Is the frog wild caught or captive bred: captive
18. Frog food- how often and if it is diverse, what other feeders are used as treats: none
19. How often the frog is handled: when change of water is done, or when it poops
20. Is the enclosure kept in a high or low traffic area: low
21. Describe enclosure maintenance (water changes, cleaning, etc): water changes, change of sponge

he's a lil blue because he just ate a cricket i think... hmmm

he's a lil transparent most times and you could see some color change when he feeds.

[Hypnotic]

I can guarantee you the blue is either a bruise or under skin bleeding, I'm not sure of the exact English word for it, but I think you know what I mean.
I would highly recommend a vet, I realise it's not cheap, but when the outside of the skin is discoloured, it seems serious to me. Also, please consider getting rid of the sponge, it's dangerous if swallowed and not natural and can cause unecessary stress on your frog.
Horned frog are natural burrowers and sponge in one piece doesn't allow this and in tiny pieces presents serious impaction risks, not even mentioning it needs to be changed at a very frequent rate, or can be a good home to many parasites.

[tytons]

Thanks for the advise,
am seeking for a vet now, I dont mind spending money to treat it. I think its rare for vets here to be treating frogs.

Will change to coco fiber asap.
question. how often do u change the coco fibre? and when a change is done is it a full change or just the area where the poop is?

[Hypnotic]

I change it monthly or sooner if it looks dirty, I spot clean daily. I do however rotate the substrate on a weekly basis, depending on how much the frog moves. I have one frog that never moves, and when I say never, I mean NEVER. She doesn't even poop without my assistance, she's that lazy.
So I weekly drop her in her waterbowl and give the substrate a good turning, afterwards she just finds a new spot to camp out or usually digs out her old burrow again.

[tytons]

thanks for the information.

my pacman has been on this powdered food for about 3 weeks or so...after i ran out of crickets. my thought was to just test it out and see. he seems to like it and i have no issues feeding him with it.

[Mentat]

Sorry about your frogs left arm . Guess if you noted it couple days ago it's something that happened in the cage. Maybe frog toes got caught in the sponge as it jumped and damaged it's arm accidentally. Also, it could be suffering from lack of calcium (MBD) and that contributed to it.

First thing to correct is the enclosure temperature since extended exposure to low temps will cause internal damage to kidneys and other organs. Day temp need to be 28-29C with a slight drop at night. Humidity should also be monitored and kept within 70-90% with 80% being optimal. A digital combo gauge (like ExoTerra's) is what I use. Your frog is an "albino" so you can only use ceramic heat emitters, red bulbs, or heat tape. Daylight bulbs will hurt it's eyes and skin.

Crickets should be gut loaded with carrots, lettuce, oats, and veggie fish flakes and sized same as distance between frogs eyes. They should be dusted with CA/D3 2X and vitamins 1X weekly on different days with skip day in between. I do not use that powder food so can't comment on it; but if using would use as supplement and not staple diet.

When changing substrate to shredded coco, mix it with dechlorinated water until slightly damp (clumps in fist but does not drip water). Here is a care article with more information and good luck Frog Forum - Pacman and Horned Frogs - Ceratophrys - Care and Breeding .