How can I get a young Pacman frog to Eat?

[maygirl27]

Hi

I know this might seem a crazy request, but I really need some information as to how DD and I can get a young pacman frog to start eating. We've had him for about 6 weeks now and the little devil still doesn't open his mouth for food.

We've tried to get him to eat a manner of tasty(?) morsels; crickets, mealworms - even a specially formulated food for pacman's, but to no avail. My DD contacted the place she purchased him from and their pearl of wisdom was, 'keep trying'. Erm, we have kept on trying but are having no success.

Are there any other MN'ers who own or have a child who owns one of these? What did you do?

Both DD and I would really appreciate any information you can give us.

Thanks.

[delilahbucket]

Has he dried out? This makes them refuse food. Try a misting spray.

[maygirl27]

Thanks @delilahbucket. I've asked my daughter this and she says that she has been misting him about four times a day. She is pretty diligent about doing this, it's just that any attempt to offer food meets with the little devil burrowing away under the substrate and we're getting worried now.

[Buggerbrexit]

Did you get him to eat?

[maygirl27]

Sorry about delay in replying @Buggerbrexit, but unfortunately no, still no joy.

[DeltaZulu89]

How are you feeding him? Placing him in a feeding tub and offering food with tweezers? If so, try leaving him in his viv, and letting a tub of locusts loose (not crickets, they burrow into the soil), he may prefer to hunt for them in a more natural environment. Four time daily misting is a lot, try having just a water dish deep enough for him to sit in, but not deep enough that he can’t get out of it. Pac-Man frogs will take pinkie mice as well, so you could get one of those, defrost and warm it up in some warm water and offer that (if he’s big enough). How big is the viv? If it’s too big, he might feel scared, is he hopping about? Too much handling can lead to stress, which will often affect appetite.
He might also be in a period of brumation, which is kind of like hibernation, and not be keen to eat.
Check the vivs temp, too hot or cold can cause stress.
Reassuringly, amphibians and reptiles can go for a long time without eating so don’t panic!
My advice would be, stop misting, give him a water dish, don’t even open the viv for a week, and then throw about 5 appropriate locusts In and let him hunt them down. Good luck!

[maygirl27]

Thanks @DeltaZulu89 we'll try that. He is hopping about though not very often. He does seem to feel safe enough not to burrow under the substrate so much.

[maygirl27]

Just a quick update and message of thanks to the MN'ers' who've responded. Sadly events have overtaken us and my daughter's little Pacman frog died overnight. We tried all we could, but sadly it wasn't to be...

[DeltaZulu89]

Sorry to hear that :(