r/pacmanfrog • u/alienbanter • Jun 14 '23
It's been a couple of years since the last update, so here is a refurbished care guide!
This guide is meant to serve all species of frogs in the genus Ceratophrys, known colloquially as “Pacman frogs.” Currently, there is not much research in the difference between the needs of all the species common in the pet trade. If you have a question about your specific species of frog, feel free to leave a comment or make a separate post.
We are passionate on this subreddit about providing animals with more than the bare minimum, and ensuring that they can thrive rather than just survive. Here, you will find that the recommended tank size and heating/lighting elements are different from most basic online care guides.
You can access a similar guide to this on Google docs with some more specific brand recommendations here.
Table of Contents
Enclosure Size
Male Pacman frogs tend to be smaller than females and should be provided with an enclosure with at least 360 square inches of floor space, or the approximate dimensions of a 20 gallon long tank. Appropriate enclosure sizes for this minimum are (in inches) 30x12x12, 24x18x12, 24x18x18, or larger.
Female Pacman frogs should be provided with a floor space of at least 648 square inches, or the approximate dimensions of a 40 gallon breeder tank. An appropriate enclosure size is 36x18x12, 36x18x18, or larger.
20 gallons is a good starting tank size to enable the provision of proper heat gradients and safe UVB lighting. Young frogs can go in smaller enclosures as they grow, but keep in mind they grow extremely quickly and will outgrow a smaller enclosure by 6 months of age. Larger enclosures are better for deeper substrate, larger water dishes, makes heating and lighting safer because adequate gradients can be provided, and allows your frog to exhibit more natural behavior. Pacman frogs can travel a considerable distance when they choose to move burrows.
Water
Water needs to be treated with a dechlorinator made for reptiles and amphibians. Reptisafe and Aquasafe's TetraFauna are both good dechlorinators.
Substrate
There are a lot of options for substrate. Provide at least 2-3 inches of substrate for baby frogs (enough that they can fully burrow out of sight), and increase this depth as the frog grows. Some examples:
Decorations and Enrichment
Even though Pacman frogs are nocturnal and don't bask in the same way that animals like bearded dragons do, they still benefit from overhead heating and lighting, including UVB. Overhead heating is more energy efficient and makes it easier to maintain proper tank temperatures.
Heat Sources
Science helps make it clear why providing heat with a true white heat lamp is the best option for all reptiles and amphibians (unless, perhaps, they live in a cave!). Read this article for more, but in summary, heat lamps most closely imitate the sun and provide short wavelength infrared radiation that penetrates deep into body tissues for warming. Things like heat mats, ceramic heat emitters (CHEs), and deep heat projectors (DHPs) provide more long wavelength IR that does not do this as well.
Daytime heating
Keep all light and heat sources on one side of the tank to provide a good gradient between warm/bright/”sunny” and cool/dim/”shady.”
Temperature goals:
The best place to start for heat is a low wattage white incandescent or halogen flood bulb. What wattage works best for your setup will depend on factors like how big the tank is and what your room temperatures are, but starting in the 20-50W range is usually decent. If this isn’t enough, try a stronger bulb. You can look for regular white incandescent bulbs at hardware stores, or for a markup at pet stores.
These bulbs are FAR dimmer than sunlight, and even more light-sensitive albino frogs don’t tend to have problems with them. If your albino frog does show signs of discomfort with a heat lamp, a DHP would be the next thing to try, as these do not produce light. However, they also lack the short wavelength infrared that lamps produce, so lamps should always be the first choice.
Make sure to pick up an infrared temperature gun to measure the temperature of the substrate below the lamp if you use a heat lamp or a DHP, as they project the heat better and warm the substrate more than heat mats or CHEs.
Nighttime heating
Pacman frogs typically do just fine with night temperatures down to ~65F/18C, so most people will not need supplemental night heat. If your room temps get below this, a DHP, CHE, or heat mat should help! Rainforest species like Cornutas may be kept a bit warmer.
Temperature Control
Heat lamps (and DHPs) should ideally be controlled by dimming thermostats. Herpstat makes great ones for US-based readers, and other options include the Exo Terra 600w Thermostat or the Vivarium Electronics VE-200D. Unfortunately these can be quite expensive. More affordable thermostats you may see online are typically on-off or pulse proportional, but these can’t be used with heat lamps or DHPs. Flashing lights will be disruptive to your frog, and the constant switching on and off will also cause bulb failure much sooner.
Manual dimming switches (lamp fixtures that have these are available) combined with an on-off thermostat as an emergency backup to prevent overheating are a more affordable option for many. Choosing a heat bulb that at maximum power is right for your tank and doesn’t overheat it is the best way to go.
CHEs and heat mats used if night heating is required can be safely controlled by cheaper on-off thermostats like Inkbirds.
Do not use blue/moonlight (real moonlight is not blue), red, purple, etc. lights for nighttime viewing – they can see these lights just fine (here’s a vet discussing this). Use total darkness at night to maintain a healthy day/night cycle. If you need to look at your frog or have a light on for a few minutes for feeding, a dim warm white light is the best option.
UVB
UVB lighting allows animals to synthesize vitamin D3 in the skin, which allows them to utilize the calcium we provide in the diet. Pacman frogs aren’t traditionally provided with UVB lighting, but it is enriching and EXTREMELY beneficial to their health and we recommend that all frogs (and all reptiles and amphibians!) be provided with it. For a ton more detail about the science and research behind this, check out our stickied UVB guide.
Picking an appropriate lamp can be a confusing and complicated process, but luckily a community on Facebook called Reptile Lighting has provided a wealth of lamp tests and output recordings so we can make safe choices for our frogs. A number of factors must be taken into account, including the target UV index for the frog (which depends on if they’re albino or not), the size of the tank, and the distance between the bulb and the frog. We've put together a document with UVB lamp recommendations based on tank size compiled from various UVI measurements, so be sure to check that out!
If you want to provide UVB to your frog (as I hope you all do!), please make a post on the subreddit about it (or comment here or on the UVB guide post) and include whether the frog is albino, the tank dimensions, and the distance between the lid and surface of the substrate. I’m very happy to help!
Humidity
Humidity in the range of 65-85% is typically fine for most frogs. Some species like Cranwellis are from more arid regions of South America, and do well with slightly lower humidity than, for example, Cornuta frogs which are from the Amazon rainforest basin. You can check out a map of the different Pacman frog species regional extent here and find climate info in the comments.
If you have trouble with humidity, make sure your substrate is deep and that you pour water into it periodically and mix it around to soak it in – just misting the surface of the substrate will not help keep things very stable. You can also cover the cool side of the tank where the lamps aren’t present with things like HVAC tape, tinfoil, plastic wrap, acrylic, etc.
Use digital thermometers and hygrometers to keep an accurate reading on your temperature and humidity on both the cool and warm sides of the tank. Physics will ensure that the humidity on the warm side is generally lower than on the cool side, so don’t be alarmed if you see that. If the humidity on the cool side is within range, you should be good.
Some Feeder Options
Pacman frogs thrive when they are provided with a large variety of feeders as they would get in the wild. A good rule of thumb for size is that the width of the feeder shouldn’t exceed the distance between the frog’s eyes. Make sure to feed insects a healthy diet (called “gutloading”) before feeding them to your frog. Resources used to evaluate feeder insect nutrition are available online – for example, from Reptifiles here.
“Staples” – some of the common options available that are great to feed regularly in rotation to Pacman frogs include:
Less frequent feeders:
Never feed – these are unhealthy, not enriching, or dangerous:
Schedule
Froglets can be fed daily or every other day. Adult frogs should eat every 7-10 days. As your frog gets older, decrease frequency but offer more food during meals. Offering as much as the frog wants within 10-15 minutes is a good fail-safe to prevent overeating and obesity, which comes with health issues.
Supplements
Most feeders have more phosphorus than calcium in them, otherwise known as having an imbalanced P:Ca ratio. The body wants about 2 times as much calcium as phosphorus – if it doesn’t receive this, it steals calcium from the bones, leading to metabolic bone disease (MBD). This is why most feeders need to be dusted with calcium, and a multivitamin should also be used periodically.
Because UVB lighting allows the body to synthesize vitamin D3 in the skin to use to metabolize calcium, if you provide UVB lighting, only use calcium powders that do not contain D3 when dusting. It’s fine for the multivitamin to still have some D3 since it will be used less frequently. If UVB is not offered, dust with a calcium powder that does contain D3.
For a far more detailed discussion about proper supplementation, please refer to this article.
Here are answers to many common questions. IF YOU HAVE A MEDICAL EMERGENCY, PLEASE CONTACT A VET. You can search for one here.
Is vet care necessary?
Yes. You never want to wait until you have an emergency to scramble and try to find a vet who can see your frog. Establish care with a vet with experience with amphibians within a few months of getting your frog, and go in for annual checkups. This way, if something bad does happen you already know who to call. If you don't have a frog yet but you do not have any way to access a vet, reconsider getting one.
How do I safely handle my frog?
Amphibians are not meant to be handled, but sometimes you need to handle them to spot clean, move them from their burrow, or clean out the tank. To prevent the oils in your skin from making your frog sick, wear nitrile gloves. Moisten the gloves with dechlorinated water. Transfer your frog from its home to a small carrier. Be careful, as Pacman frogs do not like to be held and may try to jump. Keep your fingers away from the frog’s mouth to prevent bites.
Why won't my frog eat?
There are many reasons why your Pacman frog could be refusing food! Often the temperatures being too low or the frog being new to their environment are the culprit. Some frogs are just picky eaters and will only eat certain foods. Keep experimenting with various feeders to see what your frog likes to eat.
If your frog is new in your home, it might be stressed. Leave your frog alone for a few days but keep up with daily maintenance. After it’s settled in, try offering food again. Some frogs are also rather shy and don’t want to be watched while they eat. Some are also afraid of feeding tongs or prefer to hunt their food.
A warm frog is an active and quick frog. Make sure your temperatures on the warm side are 80-85F. If you’re having trouble keeping your enclosure warm and humid enough, you can put plastic wrap or foam around the screen top.
My frog has been buried for a long time! What do I do?
Pacman frogs are terrestrial ambush predators and enjoy burying themselves under the dirt. If your frog completely buries itself, don’t worry! It will come up when it is hungry. Some frogs brumate and will vanish for weeks or months over the winter, even if the tank conditions are kept the same. If this is new behavior for your frog, a vet checkup is never a bad idea, but it is not super uncommon. Sometimes keeping a Pacman frog is like keeping pet dirt! They will also burrow to estivate, which in the wild occurs to protect themselves from hot and dry weather – this is usually not advisable in captivity unless you’re trying to breed. Make sure your soil is moist and your temperatures aren’t too high.
Why are my frog's legs twitching and stretched out behind them?
This can be a clinical sign of a number of serious health problems, including sepsis. Keepers will often refer to this “toxic shock syndrome” and attribute it to exposure to a toxin, but it can have a number of very serious causes! Get your frog soaking in tepid dechlorinated water, changing it every 15-20 minutes, and call your vet.
Why are my frog's underside and legs so red?
An angry red underside and legs, especially if sores are visible, can be a symptom of a severe infection. Contact your veterinarian, and in the meantime move the frog to a clean quarantine enclosure. Keep in mind, many normal, healthy frogs will be slightly pink underneath, especially when active. If your frog is acting completely normally, you likely don’t need to worry about a little pinkness.
r/pacmanfrog • u/alienbanter • Oct 05 '21
Written by u/alienbanter for the r/pacmanfrog subreddit and Advancing Amphibian Husbandry group on Facebook (which I now also admin). Feel free to comment or message me with any questions or concerns! Peer reviewed by retired vet and reptile lighting expert Dr. Frances Baines and two additional AAH admins.
In this post, I’ll attempt to explain why providing UVB to our Pacman frogs is a good idea and introduce how to do this safely! As always, if you’d like help with your setup and want personalized suggestions, or just want to check that what you’re planning on using is appropriate, feel free to make a post about it! Just make sure to include as much information as possible (especially the kinds of details in points 1-5 below), and a photo of the enclosure always helps too.
Here is a link to a better-formatted version of this post on Google Drive with page numbers, if that's easier for anyone.
From Dr. Frances Baines’ article An In-Depth Look at UV Light and Its Proper Use With Reptiles:
UVB is invisible to reptiles, but its high-energy short wavelengths are biologically active. The UV in sunlight is an effective disinfectant that can destroy bacteria, fungi and viruses on the surface of the skin. UV also has direct effects upon skin, which include strengthening of skin barrier functions, increasing pigment formation and modulating the skin’s immune responses. It also stimulates production of beta endorphins, giving sunlight its “feel good” factor, and induces nitric oxide production, which has localized protective effects on skin cells.
In summary, in addition to a variety of other health benefits, UVB lighting allows animals to synthesize vitamin D3 in the skin, which allows them to utilize the calcium we provide in the diet.
Pacman frogs aren’t traditionally provided with UVB lighting or overhead heating, and keepers and breeders alike have kept them healthily for decades without these things. Instead, vitamin D3 is typically provided as a supplement in the diet along with calcium, as this vitamin D is what allows them to use the calcium we provide (as explained above). So why do we push for it here?
There aren’t any studies that suggest the amount of dietary D3 to provide, so it’s actually possible to overdose our frogs on it if way too much is provided. In contrast, the natural pathway by which it is produced in the skin under UVB lighting is self-limiting, as explained if you scroll down on this page also produced by Dr. Baines, so as long as you are using trusted lamp brands whose products have good spectral distribution of light wavelengths, D3 cannot be overproduced by the body’s natural processes. (This is not to say that you can’t still provide UVB lighting that is too strong though - that can cause other problems such as photokeratoconjunctivitis.)
This, in addition to the other benefits discussed in the previous section, make quite a good argument for why allowing our frogs to make D3 naturally is best! By providing a gradient in UV light across the tank with maximum levels chosen appropriately for our frogs (as explained below), we allow our frogs to self-regulate their exposure the same way they would in nature as they evolved to do.
This isn’t a completely novel concept in the keeping of nocturnal (or non-diurnal in general) species. Reptiles like snakes and leopard geckos have also traditionally been kept without UVB or overhead heating (heat pads are used instead), but husbandry standards for those species (among some circles at least) have been advancing faster than amphibian husbandry. Keepers of those reptiles who have started to provide UVB and overhead heating have noted increased basking behaviors (including cryptic basking, where only part of the animal’s body is exposed to the light), and anecdotally I’ve personally experienced this with my Pacman frog as well since switching her to a heat lamp and UVB from heating pads.
The science supports this advance as well. Another of the articles linked above, How much UV-B does my reptile need? The UV-Tool, a guide to the selection of UV lighting for reptiles and amphibians in captivity by Baines et al., contains a section on considerations for nocturnal species. I’ve cut some of the section out here for space, so please click the link and go to page 8-9 of the PDF to read more:
It has been speculated that crepuscular species may synthesise vitamin D3 by emerging into sunlight at dusk and dawn. However, when the sun is close to the horizon, the atmosphere filters out almost all the UV-B wavelengths required for vitamin D3 synthesis; species which can benefit from such low levels of UV need skin with very high UV transmission. Some nocturnal geckos, for example, fit into this category. Short wavelength UV-B has been shown to be transmitted through the full thickness of skin of the nocturnal gecko Coleonyx variegatus to a depth of 1.2 to 1.9 mm, in stark comparison with diurnal species such as the desert lizard Uta stansburiana, in which transmission was restricted to between 0.3 and 0.9 mm (Porter 1967). In the same study, Porter found that the skin transmission of seven species of snake reflected their behaviour, such that the highest transmission was seen in the most completely nocturnal species, and the lowest in diurnal species, with crepuscular snakes in between. This suggests one way in which low levels of UV-B may enable adequate vitamin D3 synthesis in nocturnal species. Carman et al. (2000) demonstrated that the skin of the nocturnal house gecko Hemidactylus turcicuscan synthesise vitamin D3 eight times more efficiently than skin from the diurnal desert lizard Sceloporus olivaceous – suggesting that this is an adaptation either to lower levels of available ultraviolet light in its microhabitat, or to very short exposure to higher levels, during brief day-time emergences from shelter.
The argument always comes up with Pacman frogs and other species that they don't need UVB. But what does it mean to need something? If it just means something that's necessary for survival, and our only goal is to provide things required for this, we'd all just keep our frogs in plastic boxes with no enrichment, substrate, lighting, etc. Just water and some food every now and again. And I think most would agree that this would be unethical. By that argument, dogs don't need a yard or toys because they can survive chained in a tiny room - but it doesn't make it right. Because it’s harder to anthropomorphize exotic animals in the same way as domestic pets such as mammals and birds, sometimes people take for granted their ability to survive wide ranges of appropriate conditions, as they do not show much behavioral reaction to them. This is often how bad care guides are produced (comments courtesy of Ricky Johnson). Evidence and anecdote alike demonstrate that UVB is a good thing to provide for our frogs' health, and allowing them the choice of exposure to UVB helps advance our husbandry and give them more freedom.
If this has successfully convinced you to provide UVB for your frog, the next step will be figuring out how to do so safely!
Unfortunately, providing UVB isn’t as simple as the bulb companies might like you to believe. A number of factors must be taken into account, including:
For a TL;DR (or to skip the background info and just get a bulb), see this document! Pacman frog tank-specific UVB bulb recommendations
The first step is figuring out how much UV you need to provide based on your frog. Different species are organized into four different categories called Ferguson Zones based on their basking habits in the wild – you can find a big table with lots of species listed in this paper, which also discusses the importance of providing UVB in general.
While they are not listed in the paper, according to Dr. Baines' contributions in the Reptile Lighting group, as nocturnal ground-dwellers all species of Pacman frogs are currently considered Ferguson Zone 1 species. This means that for normally pigmented frogs, providing a maximum UV index of around 1.0 is a good goal, and for albinos, we can cut this in half to provide a maximum UVI of 0.5.
One type of tool that's always useful to have is the pricey but one-of-a-kind UV index meter called the Solarmeter 6.5 or 6.5R. These devices allow you to measure the UV index produced by a lamp and removes any guesswork or assumptions like those discussed in this post. There are a few different places to check for stock! These links will mostly be useful for folks in the United States, but I got mine at Josh's Frogs, and I think they also show up on lightyourreptiles.com, Reptile Basics, and even Amazon (the 6.5 and the 6.5R). The Solarmeter 6.5 currently comes with a few different labels depending on which company is selling them, such as those shown in this image courtesy of Frances Baines.
The next steps all work together to allow you to pick a bulb, but I’ll talk through some of the options for each one.
Generally, there are five main categories of UVB bulbs that are commonly used today in the hobby: coil or compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs), T8 linear fluorescent bulbs, T5 linear fluorescent bulbs, mercury vapor bulbs, and metal halide bulbs. In this guide, I’ll focus on CFLs, T8s, and T5s, as mercury vapor and metal halide bulbs are generally much too strong to use for Pacman frogs. Depending on your specific setup, a CFL, T8, or T5 might be your preferred choice of bulb, or you might have several options. In a case where any of the options can work, generally speaking, T5 > T8 > CFL.
Linear UVB bulbs are typically deemed better for a few reasons. 1) You can replace the bulbs every 12 months instead of every 6 (or even longer if you have a Solarmeter 6.5 to test output!). 2) For all UVB applications, the UVB needs to cover the whole basking area, which needs to fit the animal in it, and the compact bulbs are too small and produce too small of an area of UVB for many species. 3) The compact bulbs are weaker at distance than most linear bulbs, but they can have a very sharp UVI gradient with very high levels close to the lamp. This makes them often only appropriate for species with low UVB needs in situations where the bulb can be placed so that the animal cannot get too close. So basically, for a compact lamp to be the best choice the animal it's being provided to typically needs to be in a short tank and require low levels of UVB, the animal needs to be small/compact enough for the bulb to work, and the bulb has to be placed so that the animal can’t get too close to it. Pacman frogs fit these categories, so the compact bulbs can work!
If you have a larger and taller setup, a T5 or T8 is likely preferred. T5s are newer technology and come in two versions – T5-HO (high output) and T5-NO (normal output), each of these categories having different UVB percentage, wattage, and length options. T5s typically are stronger, brighter, and slimmer/lower profile than T8s. While T8s are an older style, they can still be quite useful in situations where a softer light or closer approach to the lamp is needed. Both types need to be in reflector fixtures, which are matched for type, length, and wattage and which boost the light and UVB below the tube 2-3x over that of a bare tube (comments courtesy of Frances Baines). For low UVB-requiring species like Pacman frogs, chosen appropriately both T5 and T8 bulbs can work.
Two of the most reputable and highly respected UVB lamp brands are Arcadia and ZooMed’s Reptisun line of products. Arcadia produces T8s, T5-NOs, and T5-HOs, and ZooMed produces T8s and T5-HOs. As an example, one popular lighting choice for Pacman frogs is Arcadia’s ShadeDweller ProT5 kit, which is a 12” long T5-NO bulb. One handy thing about the ProT5 kits is that if you’re setting up a bioactive tank, they can be daisy chained to Arcadia’s Jungle Dawn plant LED lights so you don’t have to use as many outlets.
When choosing what you want to use, you need to take tank length into account. Since Pacman frogs aren’t open sun baskers, we need to make sure that they have plenty of room to escape light in their tanks. For this reason, keep UVB lights to half the tank in length or less. If you have a small tank, this may mean you can’t find a T8 or T5 short enough (for example, the shortest T5 I know of would be something like the Arcadia ShadeDweller, which is 12” long), and a CFL will then be your only option until you upgrade your tank.
The UV output of a lamp can be amplified by the use of a reflector. Arcadia or Vivarium Electronics reflectors can increase the UV output of a lamp by approximately 3x, and the reflector built into ZooMed’s T5 Reptisun Terrarium Hoods increases the UV output by about 2.4x. Other types of reflectors will be less effective, but these are the two most commonly used. Be sure to clean reflectors periodically with a soft cloth (they scratch easily) if you use one to make sure that they stay at optimal effectiveness, as dirt and water stains (etc.) can affect this! If you’re using a CFL, hoods are available to mount the bulbs horizontally, and they can also be used in their vertical orientation in deep dome fixtures.
Where to mount the UVB bulb is a choice you will make based on how the position will affect the UV index in the basking area where the frog will be. For Pacman frogs, most people will be placing bulbs on top of the tank above a screen lid. Screens cut down on the amount of UVB that reaches the tank. The mesh that ZooMed and Exo Terra use in their terrariums tends to block about 35% of the light, and Thrive brand “mesh” (more like metal with holes punched in it) sold with their front-opening terrariums blocks more like 65-70% of the light. If you have a Thrive screen lid, replacing it is a safe bet. If you have a different brand, you can post a picture of it in the Reptile Lighting group on Facebook to get help calculating the blocking percentage.
To calculate how much the UVI will be reduced from your screen of choice, multiply the fraction of light allowed through by the known UVI without a screen at a specific distance. Here’s an example: let’s say you have an Arcadia ShadeDweller bulb in the Arcadia ProT5 reflector, and you want to put it over a ZooMed mesh screen. According to this chart from Reptile Lighting, at 30 cm this bulb and reflector produces a UV index of about 1.6. Since the ZooMed mesh blocks about 35% of the light, this means 65% of the light is allowed through. 1.6 * 0.65 = 1.04. This means that at 30 cm under the lamp, using a ZooMed mesh screen, a frog would receive a UV index of about 1.0. This is great for normally pigmented Pacman frogs!
As may have been hinted from the last section, one of the key factors in using UVB appropriately is to keep the bulb at the right distance from the frog to provide the UV index desired. This means that even if you had a really strong bulb, if you elevated it high enough above the tank so that the UV index was still low enough at frog-level, it would still be safe. You can adjust this distance by changing the depth of the substrate, propping the bulb up higher above the frog, or strategically using extra layers of mesh to block more UVB (though doing this last one without a Solarmeter to directly test the new UVI levels wouldn’t be advisable).
Now armed with all of this information, you can look into picking a bulb for your setup! Here is a link to a document with as many readings and charts as we can find for bulbs that may be appropriate for Pacman frogs depending on the setup. You can use this to pick a good bulb for your frog and tank, or ask for help!
This is my Ceratophrys ornata Atari’s current bioactive setup. It’s still evolving (next step will be replacing the plants with some which are more similar to those found in her native environment of the Argentine Pampas!), but I’m quite happy with the current lighting setup!
The left side of the tank is the warm/bright side, while the right side is cooler and darker. I’m using an Arcadia ShadeDweller for UVB, positioned over a screen lid ~12 inches above the substrate to provide a UVI index of around 1.0, since my frog is not albino. I have this fixture daisy-chained to an Arcadia Jungle Dawn plant LED which is along the back of the lid (see next photo). The larger dome holds a 45W R20 incandescent light bulb, which is used during the day to provide surface temperatures of around 85°F. The smaller dome holds an Arcadia deep heat projector (DHP), which comes on at night during the winter to make an area of warmth around 75°F. The heat lamp and DHP are controlled by a Herpstat 2 dimming thermostat.
Here is a top-down view of the lid showing the placement of the various fixtures.
This document has been approved for posting by Atari :)
Thanks for reading!
r/pacmanfrog • u/Fluffy_Increase8838 • 7h ago
Remember that little baby pea I adopted almost a month ago? HE GREW!!! His name is Rick “Ok” Junior, famously named after my best friend irl, Rick.
First photo is old and the last two are new photos of him! He’s so cute look at his little mouth 🥹
r/pacmanfrog • u/Relative-Ordinary747 • 10h ago
Fed mr pickles, who I suspect is really mrs pickles, came back a few hours later to check on him and caught him eating his shed. Was supposed to be a Pikachu, but I am liking the lime green.
r/pacmanfrog • u/le0panda • 3h ago
(Pic for attention lol) Main question stated in the title
I'm a new frog mom (he came home 2 weeks ago), adopted Wumbo (1 yo cranwelli albino boy) from a coworker. He came with a tank; I didn't refresh it until last Sunday, when I noticed a bit of mold on the surface.
Do we think he's okay? I know it could be better but I'm trying my best despite my schedule and limited finances...
I just worry and want to make sure I'm giving him a good home. I've never had a frog before. New tank (22.5 gal, 24x18x12) just arrived and I wanna try to make that bioactive, but it'll be a minute before he moves in.
TLDR; 2 weeks ago: adopted Wumbo, pooped, fed him > 1 week later, refreshed tank + found poop, fed him > 1 week later, he hasn't surfaced; conditions seem ok, but just wanna consult - do you think he's ok?
r/pacmanfrog • u/MissWitchyFrog • 19h ago
Hi all! This is my girl, and her name is Fecula!
She’s about 10 months old and currently measures a little over 4 inches in length. How big do your girls get when they’re fully grown?
r/pacmanfrog • u/break500 • 14h ago
This is Teddy, he is my first reptile/amphibian pet and so I am still learning about spotting illness and such. From these photos does Teddy look healthy? His skin feels a bit hard on his head where he's been poking it out of the soil.
r/pacmanfrog • u/augziiix • 16h ago
his first brumation! i already miss him, but i guess it got too chilly for his liking 💔
r/pacmanfrog • u/Creature18473 • 6h ago
I bought everything for a Pacman frog today including the frog itself. I’m very new to owning any type of frog and wasn’t super sure on what to buy. Here’s a list of what I bought: 24x18x18 terrarium, water dish, fogger, hydroballs, substrate mesh, substrate, leaf litter, live plants, reptisafe, 100W Repticare ceramic infrared heat emitter, and a Hygger Zoo UVA UVB LED light strip. I may have forgotten to list a couple things but I also have a hygrometer thermometer coming in the mail tomorrow. I wasn’t sure how often to run the lights and heating bulb or how often to turn on the fogger. Any tips and suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
r/pacmanfrog • u/Mindless_Month_153 • 13h ago
Went back to petco and bought him. Once i got home fed him a superworm and he gobbled it down. Figured he was hungry so i dropped in 3 more just to see how hungry he was and ate all of them(made sure to put vitamins on them). I know that his temporary setup may be the best but its the best i could do for him until i can get an actual tank. Please point out if im doing anything wrong. Also his name is Pinky like the enemy from Doom :)
r/pacmanfrog • u/Condition_Alarming • 11h ago
Thanks for reading!!!! 💛💛
r/pacmanfrog • u/Grouchy_Owl_9901 • 19h ago
Hello! I am the first time owner of a baby ceratophrys cornuta pacman frog.
Is the enclosure okay? I have silver splash pothos and neon queen pothos planted as well as some duckweed in the water dish.
Temp averages about 75° F and humidity 60% or higher. Do I need to improve this? More heat/humidity?
He eats completely fine and explores at night and burrows in the daytime and I love him so much. Ps. His name is Francois.
r/pacmanfrog • u/B1u3x_x • 14h ago
I have a 75 gallon tank I’m upgrading my Pac-Man into. Yes i understand they don’t “need” all that space. He’s getting spoiled.
I was wondering on thought about heating the tank is also placed in the basement where I like (mass) it is much cooler in the winter. I wasn’t sure what would be the best solution.
r/pacmanfrog • u/m0th_s0up • 1d ago
boog has never been THIS skittish with handling. doesn’t like it, obviously, but will at least LET me. Nokia Flip Phone will FLEE if he sees my hand. He was pretty neglected at his last home, and the last owner said he hardly handled him. i literally JUST need to weigh him, maybe a soak, see if he’s put any weight on. it doesn’t even matter that much, but he’s a slippery boy and i can’t catch him for the LIFE of me. at least i know he’s healthy enough to hightail it outta there 😭
(photos thanks to my mother, checking on my boys while i was at work. literally middle of the day, and bro was “chasing” her around, staring, accosting her for more wermz)
(last photo featuring his scoliosis lol)
r/pacmanfrog • u/Dried-persimmons • 20h ago
I currently have a 2.4 in pacman frog that I've been keeping for about two months.
The last time I did maintenance, I noticed its legs were red and wondered if it had red leg disease. Since a week has passed since then, I moved it out of its cage to check if the condition had worsened—but just as I was about to examine it for red leg disease, I saw it eating a strand of human hair (probably my own).
I tried to gently remove it with tweezers, but it swallowed it right then and there. My hair is over 10 in long, so I’m incredibly worried.
Right now he's calm and staying put in his usual hide. I'm keeping a close eye on him, but I'm anxious he could die from impaction.
r/pacmanfrog • u/CCcrystals • 1d ago
He’s still very small. I just got him last week, and he has not been eating for 4 days. He also seems swollen, and I’ve been soaking him once a day. He pooped yesterday and today during his soak, but he still doesn’t won’t eat anything.
r/pacmanfrog • u/SailFunny1401 • 1d ago
Planning on getting a male Pac-Man frog this coming Sunday at Repticon! I’m experience with owning lizards but this is my first time caring for an amphibian. What would you recommend I put in this enclosure to add coverage and enrichment?
r/pacmanfrog • u/snailedbyme • 1d ago
ik their water dish dirty i changed it after i love this little dude
r/pacmanfrog • u/Royal_Box_1434 • 1d ago
Hello, I’m super worried about Big Mac. He hasn’t eaten in a week and hasn’t showed any interest, I feed him in the tank, warm side is 85, cool side is 75. He is always sitting on the warm side, directly under the light. Is he too warm?
Substrate is properly moist but the humidity stay around 60.
He has 5 inches of substrate (cocofiber)
He poops about every few days 1x/week
He’s 2.5 inches long and 7ish months old
I don’t know what to do :(
r/pacmanfrog • u/TemperatureFickle596 • 1d ago
hello! i’ve recently got a baby super lemon yellow. i was curious what bulb i needed to get it. i keep seeing 25 and 40 watt but my local store only has 40 and my enclosure is only 10 gallons at the moment for now.
also do i need the night light as well or can i just turn the one light on and off?
r/pacmanfrog • u/AdministrationKey337 • 1d ago
I got my pacman at Petco. They were exclusively feeding it crickets. How can I get it to eat anything other than crickets. I offer small but wiggly pieces of earthworm everytime I would usually feed prior to letting it have crickets but I don’t want it to starve so after failed attempt at worms I give the crickets and then it just goes ham on the crickets. I’ve tried tongs for the worms setting them in front of it and poking them so they stay moving. I’ve tried waving them around with the tongs. I’ve tried rubbing a bit against its mouth. There was one time it slightly lunged but didn’t actually take the worm. Any other time it comepletely like backs up or turns away. 😩 I know crickets aren’t a good all around food source it though.
r/pacmanfrog • u/Mindless_Month_153 • 1d ago
I found this Pacman at Pet smart for 20 dollars and found him pretty cute and want him. But only problem i have is i dont know the gender and also the recommended size of tank for the frog. All i need to know is the food it needs, how many gallon tank, and the stuff i need to set up the tank. Also if you can have two in the same enclosure. Any help will be greatly appreciated :)
r/pacmanfrog • u/gubbabubbafrog • 1d ago
first photo is him currently, other 3 are some "older" ones (3rd was from his first day home).
ive had him for about a month now. he seems to be doing very well, always eating well but he has been burrowed all the time since i did a substrate/tank change, but has been moving around to make new ones.
i was wondering how his current tank set up looks? i did not realize that sphagnum moss isn't great for them, so i moved most to the corners while trying to not disturb him.
i also was curious about feeding; i feed him Nightcrawlers (cut up into pieces) and give him between 3-4 every other day (3x a week). i cycle between zoo med Calcium with d3, zoo med Calcium without d3, and a reptive without d3. i do not have a UVB and don't know what kind/brand i should get.
i have some plastic wrap over about half the lid, but his humidity constantly drops (it's a mesh lid), so i have to mist multiple times a day but it stays up at night. i use a heater in my room to keep the temp up as the bulb i have in my heatlamp sucks the humidity out, and i also have a baby scorpion who is in a tank too small for any sort of heat source. i got an auto mister, but since i did the change i haven't been using it since it is pretty loud but i don't know how to keep his humidity up in the correct range :(
i got him at an expo, i think he is ~6 months old or so? he poops usually once a week, sometimes a week and a half and always responds to any sort of movement.
just need some advice on how to make sure my baby is healthy, happy, and thriving!
(also i say "he" but gender is undetermined!)
