Need experienced opinions

[Percilus]

Looking for someone experienced. I recently bought a 10 gallon standard kit that came with a pacman frog off kijiji. The previous owned told me she had him for 6 months. His diameter is 2.5 inches so I'm going to say he's still a baby but not for long. The first thing she told me was that he wasn't eating and he was molting.I had researched them for about an hour before I messaged her about her kijiji ad to be sure I wanted to take on a Pacman frog and their general care so I knew that this meant his substrate had probably dried out a bit and he went into survival mode until re hydrated. He came very well priced and I love frogs so off to Leduc I went to buy him up

She didn't own a Hygrometer or a proper thermometer so I bought those right away and picked up some super worms (bad choice) as I don't need cricket noise where he's being kept. I'll be using red wrigglers from a composting set up pretty soon for his staple food. With powders the super worms will do for now.

I got his humidity up to 80 %. Was having trouble keeping it there with the daytime heat bulbs on in the kit. The temp of the terrarium was 80 with the bulbs on and room temp is a steady 71-72 at night and 74-75 during the day. Seeing as they don't require the light and I could shine my bright daylight bulb on him from the rooms lighting to simulate daytime I decided to not use his lamps any more and purchased a heat pad for the side of his home hoping to get the 80 - 82 that frog keepers recommend for baby pacmans during the day, well maintaining a 80 % humidity. The useless thing only jumps me to 78 f from 75 f on the far side and hits almost 80 on the heated side. Yet the pad still drastically starts dropping my humidity by 5 % per 30 minutes or so. Even with tinfoil on top. I have no glass lid for a 20 long handy at the moment to try and see if that would help. I plan on adding some pothos plant to his home that will probably help but home depot didn't have any damn frog safe soil or peat to mix with his coconut fibre substrate to plant his home up due to it being off season lol.

My question is this. My pacman seems way happier at 72-75 temperature. He wont eat unless it's like 72 f and late at night. But goes right for a healthy 1-3 worms whenever offered at night. I've read lots of info that says they are fine at 65-85 F. But never to go lower than 65. Most people recommend 72-80 depending on time of day. Wouldn't 74 F all the time (which my boy Darius seems to be happiest with) be all right? I'm not going to stunt his growth or anything because his daytime doesn't jump to 80 F for 12 hours a day am I? If the plants and a new lid if I can figure that out don't fix the problem I'm probably going to leave him at 74-76 during the day as well unheated, where he will drop to 71-73 at night. The humidity makes him happy and seems to stimulate his appetite in my observation over the last 3 days despite what popular opinion among frog owners on-line agree on... Maybe he's used to it from the old place I don't know. I know the woman was trying but I guarantee Darius had to suffer through some horrible humidity swings probably with his old owner.

So from observation humidity seems to be more important than temperature judging by his behaviour. If I'm wrong let me know. I welcome any opinions that come from experience.

[Lija]

Nooooooo! No red wigglers! Or superworms/mealworms.

sry.. I meant to say hi and welcome to the forums!

first of all... Breath in, breath out.... Repeat.... Repeat again... And again.... Lol

ok. So congrats on your new frog! Now please read this Frog Forum - Pacman and Horned Frogs - Ceratophrys - Care and Breeding

you don't need 20 gal for 2,5" pacman. Would you please post pic of a tank and a frog. the fact that you got him and the seller told you it's not eating is worrying, but let's see what you can do. Do you know what frog ate before?

Temp has to be in 80-82 range ( day) with a few degrees drop at night ( 76-78), nothing lower or you risk big heath problems for a frog.

Food - the best staple is nightcrawlers ( canadian tire/wholesale sports/any fishing store) for a best feeding response you should feed about 30 min after your lights are off and temp drop, that's when they hunt in a wild. It's especially true for c. Cranwelli. Ornates usually don't care as much.

[Percilus]

He's in a 10 gallon. the zoo-med rated 10-20 gallon heat pad isn't raising the tank temp even to 80 on the either side of the tank and my humidity drops like crazy over 4 hours to like 60-70 % without constant spraying once it heats up in by about from 73 F to like 78ish with the pad plugged in. Why no red wrigglers? an earthworm is a earthworm isn't it? I'm about to go get some substrate so I can change his stuff out. I could also throw him in a 5 gallon with a mesh cover if that would be better but I don't think he would stay as humid in there. I treat the water with Prime by the way I own fish as well so I'm aware of the tap water problems in Edmonton. Probably use just normal soil or peat mixed in like a 30-70 cocunut fibre with a egg crate bottom with like lava rock to absorb some run off from the plants and get some bio filtration going. I've been told by other letting them live at 75 is fine so please reference why I must have him at 80-82 during the day especially since he's almost not a baby any more. I know you know more than me here but I just don't think I'm gonna be able to get his home that hot maybe if i transfer to a 5 gallon. To be honest he seems so active and happy behaviour wise when the tanks at 72 at 2 am lol. miserable and still at 78 with a 70 % humidity unless I watch it like a hawk with constant spraying if the heats on.

[Lija]

In low temperatures his digestive system will be shutting down followed shortly by kidney failure, followed by frogs death. 80-82 is for adults, for babies it can be up to 84.

red wigglers secret sticky substance that frogs hate, tried once 99% of them will refuse anything that would even remotely look like them.

heat pads had never worked for me. To heat up 10 gal you need to biggest heat pad you can find and that can stick to the side, however the glass can crack if sprayed directly. I use infrared heat lamps or ceramic heat emitters.

Prime Is the what I use too, you are right to use only conditioned water for everything frog related.

You need plain coconut fibre ( Exo earth or plantation soil) without any additives, you need to change it every month.

active Pacman frog, especially adult/subadult pacman frog is not happy, but in distress. Happy pacman is a pet rock

if you can afford hydroterm by zoomed, I got all mine off ebay for about 50$, get that thing. If you plug the heat lamp and fogger ( humidity) in that thing, you will live worry free over temp or humidity. It will control it for you.

Make sure 3 sides of his tank are covered with smth not see through, to control humidity in our awfully dry alberta you gotta cover all top with foil, and then cut a hole a bit bigger then diameter of your heat lamp.

Edit - pic? Wanna make sure no MBD or anything else here

[Percilus]

He seems to be eating fine now that the humidity is proper. If pet rock is a happy frog than I think I'm doing fine he stays burrowed down with the heat on and comes out farther when it drops same spot he's moved spots once since I've owned him. MBD stands for? I don't know where my phone usb cable is so pic isn't really an option at this moment. He's that brown/green kind probably bought from like a petsmart. If I just turn his heat lamps on during the day and humidity drops down to 60-70 % during day time hours and than back up to 80 % for night would that be ok? I don't have more money to throw towards this at the moment. I should be ok using a bit of organic soil or peat mixed in with the cocunut fibre substrate so the plants get a bit of nutrients more suited than the fibre provides I've read. Probably use red wriggler compost eventually as well with some hardy humid loving plants like described above I figure that might be enough to keep his humidity stable and the temp around 78-80 pretty much tank wide. I'll purchase some worms from a bait store like you recommended if they don't like the red ones. trying light and pad at the moment cut tin foil out at top to see if i can get it to 84. planted some pothos stems into just the fibre to see if I can get the humidity to stick with more in the tank. She only had a fake plant and a water dish so no hiding spot at the moment.