Pacman or pixie? new guy can't decide

[Ceez Villa]

Hello fellow enthusiasts, my name is Caesar. I've been wanting to get a large frog for a while now and recently began picking up supplies to begin setting up a nice home. I ended up getting a great deal on a large low exo-terra tank and my mind is racing with vivarium ideas. It's much larger than I wanted, but I couldn't pass it up. (Wife said to get 2 or 3 frogs now, I had to explain that they may likely eat one another) Anyhow, I want to set up a water table and live plants. I was going to use Ecoearth for sub strait, but I'm wondering if there's something that will last longer and do well with my pothos and aloe plant, as I've read that Eco earth spoils? My point being, I'm getting a lot of conflicting information. Also, would an aquatic turtle water filter do well to clean the water between change outs to keep the ammonia levels down? In regards to what I've read, pixies will actually need about a 3" water area, as opposed to the Pacman needing a shallow area to soak. I'm leaning more toward the Pacman and making 1/3 of the tank like a swamp and grading the other 2/3rds to cool and dry. Am I on the right track? Thanks for any and all advice, hellos, and welcomes. Pleased to be here.

[Ceez Villa]

This is the tank next to my 51" tv.... Gonna need more hydroballs

[Lija]

Welcome to the forums!

Nope you are not exactly on a right track this tank is the best for a snake, being it low and large... Absolute no for pacman, way way too big. Check this care sheet Frog Forum - Pacman and Horned Frogs - Ceratophrys - Care and Breeding and if course feel free to ask as many questions as you possibly can.
this tank might work for adult pixie. Saying might because he will probably get upset with ceiling too low. Mine did and ended up with nose rub and i have 18" height. They can really jump.

Live plants wont work for either, adult pixie or pacman will crush them in no time and if not then plants will die in the amount of waste these guys produce.

[Ceez Villa]

I really appreciate the feedback. That brings more questions to mind. First, what is nose rub? Given the context, I'm assuming it's some sort of sore on the snout. And how much waste do they produce? I'm beginning to think a filter is a fantastic idea, lol. Kinda bummed about the live plant deal. I'll be doing more research. Thanks again 😁

[Lija]

Nose rub, yes it is a sore on a nose, like rug burn for people.
Amount of waste...... Well imagine the biggest amount of poop and pee that say 6" frog can produce. Like how much do you imagine? Ok now multiply that by 4-10 lol and if you have 7" giant bullfrog male..... Nope, none of the filters can handle that.
Well you still can use plants, but you gotta hang pots above the ground, with pacman it will work, they just sit there, but if pixie decides to jump.... My boy once managed to jump out of 24" cage....

and if talk tank sizes 12x12x18 tank or similar would work for adult male cranwelli, for females and ornates you wanna go for 18x18 footprint. But while they are little you need even smaller cages.

[Ceez Villa]

THats a lotta poop!!! Thanks so much for the education. At this point I think I'm going to split the tank Down the center with a divider and set up 2 seperate habitats for 2 Pacmans. It'll give them a 17x17 footprint per frog. I intend on boardering each area to a smaller size for when they're babies so they don't stress with a large amount of space and I'll open it up as they grow. In regards to plants, I suppose I'll just keep one potted Pothos at each cool dry corner for shade. I'm going to keep a false bottom for the sake of keeping humidity up. Back to the water though, I saw a gentleman on YouTube with a filter in his pixie tank. Do Pacman frogs poop as much? Can I get by with one that takes care of ammonia? If not, then a shallow bowl will suffice right? Again, thank you for your patience and help. I can't wait to get it all set up. I may try to get a surname horned frog, those fancy colors and horns are gorgeous!!

[chibikaie]

I'm not sure how much pixies poop, but my pacman is around 3" and laid a monster 2" poop the other day. It's just not the kind of thing that aquarium filters are designed to handle.

[Ceez Villa]

Got it. Shallow dish it is! I'll post progress when I get the ball rolling. Thanks.

[Mentat]

Hello and welcome to FF ! Myself thinks in the long run you would be better served by returning that enclosure and gettting two 18x18x18 ExoTerra's. If keeping, the divider will have to be a solid color so frogs do not see each other and both frogs free of any pathogen that could infect the other one. While they grow to around 3.5 in. (approximate transfer size) you can keep them in smaller critter keepers inside the larger tank since it's easier to control temps and humidity that way.

Not sure where are you getting information to make decision on a C. cornuta (Surinam Horned Frog); but those are one of the hardest to keep alive and challenge even that experienced Pacman breeders. You might want to read this article and maybe go with one of the easier Pacmans like an Ornate, Chacoan, or Fantasy. Good luck !

[Ceez Villa]

Most of the information I'm getting is from you fine gentlemen, the forums, and google, hence why I'm asking a million and one questions, lol. I dont propose to know it all and that's why I present my ideas and questions here prior to purchasing the animal. I want it to be just right so the animal is properly cared for. Thanks for catching me where I stumble. It appears I erred on thinking 2 frogs in one separated enclosure is a poor venture, so back to the drawing board I go. I sincerely thank you all for your input. I can't return the case because it was a clearance sale and I fixed a broken panel. At this juncture, I think I'll just get one frog, make it's habitat the center piece, and boarder the remainder of the enclosure off with high boarders and live plants that it won't have access to due to a barrier put in place. I pray I'm not frustrating anyone with my ideas, as I previously stated, they're just ideas until I get it just right for the animal. In the picture, you can see where I intend to boarder the area off. Feel free to tell me it's a bad idea if it is. Check out the small fridge in the background. Wife said no critters in the fridge, luckily I got the hookup from a friend. Just gotta fix it, lol. Thanks again fellas!!!

[Mentat]

How about Fire Belly Toads? You could have a colony in there and they eat insects which do not require refrigeration .

[Ceez Villa]

This was the enclosure I originally built and second guessed cuz of a friends advice. I'm gonna remove the plants and go with this one. It's 12x12. I'll find another project for the big tank. Thanks guys.