Hello from Washington. Looking for Info

[JennieLove]

Hey everyone, my name is Jennie and I just took in a rather large Pacman Frog.

I have his setup similar to what the previous owners housed him in, but after reading I have a few questions.

So right now, he is in a 20 gallon tank. EcoEarth Bedding. He has a hid. Shallow Water Dish. Some plant decor.

My issue is his heat source, it gets very very cold here - He had been kept for most of his life with his heat mat under his tank which I have been reading is a NoNo, that it should be on the side of his tank. I also have a very low watt black heat bulb to try and keep his temperature up where it should be (70-85* range).

Should I go ahead and move his heater to the side of his tank? Is there a heat limit on bulbs that I should be weary about? I really don't want him getting to cold/too hot.

I only just received him today 12/13/13 so I have a lot of homework to do! Other than all that, I was told he is a great eater. Loves mice. But I plan on feeding him Dubias from my colony.

[dmallia]

First of all welcome to FF.

Regarding to the heating, if it's a glass tank a heat mat under neat the tank can crack the glass. If it's a plastic tank you can use it underneath. Since it's a terrestrial frog(means that lives on the ground) I don't know if you can put it on the side. The heat bulb is good too. You must make sure to connect it to a good thermostat and make sure that the tank holds the humidity when the heat bulb is on.

[Mentat]

Hello and welcome to FF Jennie. First thing to do is read this article: Frog Forum - Pacman and Horned Frogs - Ceratophrys - Care and Breeding. The fact that frogs dig down to escape heat is the reason under tanks mats are not a good choice for frogs. You can place them on the side; but on that position are quite inefficient with heat escaping all around them. You can use several options or combine various heat sources to get 82-84F daytime temp that can go down a few degrees at night. How long is your frog from snout to vent (SVL)? Unless a big female you can keep in a 10G and that would reduce heating needs almost in half.

The maximum wattage you can use will depend on the light fixture with plastic ones tolerating less than metal domes. If you check inside it there should be a decal with a warning or if you know brand please post and well go from there. If a dome; best solution is to use a ceramic heat emitter (for a 20G think a 100-150W will do) with either a dimmable dome top or the regular dome connected to a manual rheostat or automatic thermostat controller. Other option to down facing emitters are red colored bulbs that can be used 24 hours on.

To minimize heat loss get some aluminum foil and cover your whole screen top. Black electric tape works well for taping to corners. Then place light fixture on it and using a sharpie, mark around it's edges. When you cut hole open with scissors make it 1 in. larger around whole circumference to provide ventilation. That should help lots to retain heat and using the dimmer or controller you can dial the correct heat level in. Another option is heat tape fixed to back tank wall or sides. Do be aware than using either heat tape or a powerful heat mat on side glass, could crack it, if cold water splashes on it.

Dubias are fine food, watch they do not bury down before frog eats them. The best are night crawlers and you can get the not dyed kind at Walmart or local bait shops. For an adult frog can feed them whole. Either food should be dusted with CA/D3 and vitamin supplements on different days, here are couple schedules to use: http://www.frogforum.net/food-feeder...schedules.html.

Change it's bath water daily with dechlorinated tap (Seachem Prime works great), provide a hide or cork piece to burrow under and a silk plant or similar and all should be well. Good luck !

[Tongue Flicker]

Hey jennie welcome aboard and congrats on the pacman!

[JennieLove]

I moved my heater to the side of the tank. Bought a hydrotherm to control temp/humidity and a fogger to keep that humidity up. I also wrapped part of my screen lid to keep heat and hum up. So far temp has steadied out at 82F. He/she seems conformable. Now I need to figure out a name.

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[Mentat]

Enclosure looks nice !

[JennieLove]

I set up my hydrotherm temp to 80 as well as the humidity but when I plugged my best mat into the temperature outlet it refused to turn on at all. I don't think I set up wrong I'm going to look it over again today after work so for now the heat mat is constantly on. I'm not too worried about it getting too hot but I'd rather have something working correctly. If anyone knows more about how to set that up info on it would be very helpful



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[Mentat]

I would plug in a lamp and see if it turn on? If not; would reset the temperature setting that controls the heat outlet and try again with the heat pad or lamp. If it still does not come on; maybe unit is faulty and needs replacement at point of sale or through Zoo Med.

[JennieLove]

I tried that actually lol still wasnt on. I'll try resetting and starting again. My humidity side works fine though

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