Question about behavior

[ArchGrammarian]

Hello, forum!

It's been about two and a half months since I got my Pac-Man frog (name: Birdo) and everything seems to be going smoothly. The frog eats every two or three days and appears to be doing quite well in its ten-gallon enclosure (filled with coconut husk 'n' tropical soil).

However, I've noticed a rather peculiar behavior that arises typically when my frog is startled. If I go to move him (gender assumed to avoid frequently using "him/her" and "his/her") or dig around him, he shoots a jet of liquid out of his backside. Today, it only took to my coming into the room rather quickly and it triggered the behavior. Is he voiding his urinary tract? Is it a defense mechanism? I've tried doing online searches, but they've yielded nothing on this sort of behavior.

I appreciate any feedback; I really ought to post this forum more often [guiltyface]

Kyle

[1beataway]

He wants to pee on you.

A lot of frogs do this as a defense mechanism. My first frog did it for a few weeks until he got use to me, and I know others who have frogs who will do that to strangers. He still just needs some time to warm up to you.

[ArchGrammarian]

Thanks for the reply, 1beataway

I figured it was something of the sort, although I wanted to hear feedback on the subject. Yes, I probably need to invest more time in interacting with him (although he spends a lot of his time submerged in the substrate and I in class). Still, I've made progress: he lets me stroke his back with my index finger, and today, I was able to brush most of the soil off of him to get him looking clean and photo-ready

[1beataway]

Cool! He'll get there.

But yeah, i don't spend as much time with my frogs as I should because of school too.

[TypingMonkey]

Is there a way to tame a pacman frog? How would you about it? Because I heard that it's not recommended to hold them unless you have to. I guess just letting him know you're around, fixing things up good enough or?

[ArchGrammarian]

Hey, TypingMonkey

Obviously, frogs don't have the capacity to be "tamed" in any sense of the word as applied to, say, dogs, cats or any other animal that we typically speak of becoming accustomed to owners or visitors. However, I can definitely say that even after nearly three months of raising my Birdo (I suspect it of being C. cranwelli rather than C. ornata), the frog has become more accustomed to my feeding it or petting it (I use my middle or index finger and lightly stroke down the back). In fact, the frog appears to be able to distinguish between my presence and that of my roommate or suitemates.