Impaction/Feeding Questions

[Bedore]

I have a roughly 7-8 month old Pacman frog. Past few days I noticed he was not eating like he usually does. I decided today to see if he was impacted, and he was. I picked him up and could feel a nice lump on his right side. I put him in a warm bath for about 15-20 minutes and he pooped so I think I caught it early enough. He last ate 2 days ago so not much time as passed since he ate, but I suspect he's been impacted for a little longer. His last poop was about 1-2 weeks ago.


But anyway, I removed him from the soak and put him back in his enclosure. I could tell he was pretty stressed as he was making noises I have never heard made before when I was moving him back to his home. I felt around his right side and the lump was definitely gone and there was some extra skin on both sides that must have been stretched. I checked on him 30 minutes later and he had completely buired himself so I couldn't even see him hardly, something he has never done before so he must hate me for right now.


Anyhow, I know these frogs are "look don't touch" and the only time I move him is about once a month to clean the enclosure and change the bedding. I use eco-earth cocounut fiber, btw. He almost always gets a mouthful of his substrate because his aim is so terrible. I mostly feed earthworms, with hornworms as a treat. My question is this: is it possible to remove him and put him in a different container to feed him so he doesn't end up with a mouthful or two of the coconut fiber? Will he get used to being handled that often or should I try another method?


Looking for some suggestions. Also, at his age...how often should he be fed and how often should he get calcium/d3 and vitamins? So far, the first 7-8 months of his life have been uneventful until this incident.

[Mentat]

It all varies with frog's age and temperament. Babies should be fed daily; but after reaching 3-4 in., growth slows down a bit and frogs will respond with less enthusiasm to food. At that time it's appropriate to start feeding every other day or two days off/one on. You should feed frog to satiation, Pacmans do not overfeed.

Some owners take out the frog to feed outside the enclosure and that works with some; but stresses out others. Appears to me if started early, there is a better chance of success.

Another option would be to try and see if frog will feed from a plastic bowl top or similar placed in front of it. That way you could reduce chance frog eats substrate without actually moving frog out of enclosure.

For supplement schedules you can look at this: http://www.frogforum.net/food-feeder...schedules.html. Good luck !

[Bedore]

I will try placing a lid w/ some worms on it in front of him. He's a damn picky eater though, almost annoying sometimes but usually jumps at worms. I think removing him to feed will be too much stress, but I may give it a try. Thanks for the response.

[demon amphibians]

I move almost all of my frogs to a feeding bin for feeding. No matter the age or size i have learned they get used to it. Some take longer then others to get comfortable enough. But like Carlos stated it will be easier if they are still very young. It is good to do this for many reasons. prevents ingestion of substrate, It makes it easer for your frog to get its prey before it burrows into the substrate and It helps you better monitor your frogs eating patterns.

Now what I do is move my frog from its tank to a sterilite bin. Doesnt have to be big. Once I have put my frog in the bin I let it calm down for about 5 min. Then I sneak in and drop a few bugs in. If it eats them all I will add more as until the frog looses interest. The rule of thumb is to give your frog as much food as it will eat in 15 min.