Pacman Frog Shedding – The Complete Guide

One thing that many Pacman frog owners are not prepared to deal with is definitely shredding. One day you will notice that your pet is showing some unusual behavior that he never did before. Reading about things to expect when keeping these horned frogs can make things a lot easier and less stressful.

After all, if you know exactly what is happening, then there is nothing to worry about, right? In this case, it is absolutely right because shedding is not something that should concern you. While this happens, you need to keep an eye on your pet to ensure that things go as smoothly as possible.

If you notice that your frog looks somewhat cloudy, then it might be the first sign that he is shedding. It is completely normal if your pet loses its appetite when this happens.

In this article, we are going to answer the most important questions about shedding and how to take proper care of your pet when this happens.

How Often do Pacman Frogs Shed?

In case you have bought an adult Pacman frog at the pet store, then it is completely understandable why you haven’t seen them shed yet. As it turns out, horned frogs do shed more when they are younger. If you want to breed them at home, then you are going to witness eventually how it works.

Baby Pacman frogs shed on a regular basis and it is completely normal. Some of them do it bi-weekly, while others do it every day. The most interesting thing about it is that they eat all of what comes off during shedding.

The frequency of this happening really depends on the particular Pacman frog species you keep at home.

Pacman Frog Shedding Problems

There are not many problems that can occur during shedding if the tank conditions are right. However, there are some things that might seem like problems for the inexperienced frog keeper. For example, Pacman frogs keep opening their mouth during shedding.

This will look like yawning and the reason why they do this is to push the skin forward into their mouth bit-by-bit. Another thing that might seem weird is that they don’t want to eat while shedding. There is no need to worry about it as their skin contain a lot of protein.

In fact, it is high in nutrition so you can consider your frog well-fed in the meanwhile. If the tank conditions are not right, however, then the shed won’t come off that easily. When this happens, you will need to either bathe your pet in some water or increase humidity in the tank.

The latter can be achieved by misting and making the substrate damp. It can be a real problem if what you are looking at is not actually shedding. It is important to know that frogs can suffer from fungal diseases that can manifest on the skin.

While shedding, the skin should come off as a whole. In case it comes off in patches, then there is probably a fungal disease you are looking at. Make sure to call the vet immediately if you notice some cottony patches or sores on your pet’s skin.

Is Shedding Painful for Pacmans?

Although a skin infection can definitely be painful for Pacman frogs, they don’t feel any pain while shedding their skin. Shedding is a natural process that benefits the frog in many ways. They use it when the air is dry to rehydrate themselves and to provide something to consume when feeling hungry.

Besides, their skin comes off very slowly, which is why the whole process takes days. Meanwhile, all they do is open their mouth periodically, bringing the skin closer to their mouth. If you take a look at it, you can see that the skin is cloudy, which means that it somewhat came off already.

The new skin under it is ready and the old one comes off so easily that it doesn’t hurt at all.

How Long it Takes for Pacmans to Shed their Skin?

It usually doesn’t take longer than a few days for a Pacman to complete the shedding process. In the meanwhile, your frog is not going to eat anything and it is totally fine. Make sure to check on your pet every now and then to see whether the shedding goes well.

At the end of the whole process, your pet is going to start eating again. Meanwhile, misting and bathing is recommended every day. Putting some live plants in the tank can help at keeping the humidity level around the recommended 70%.

Do Old Pacman Frogs Shed?

Although most of the shedding happens in the early months of the Pacman frog, it can also happen when your pet is old. Even if you provide the best possible conditions for your horned frog, it can still happen. There are some things, however, that can make shedding more likely.

One of those things is dry or stale substrate that should have been changed days, if not weeks before. Shedding is also a way for frogs to rehydrate themselves and they can do so in their old days as well. At times when there is not enough food for Pacman frogs to eat, they shed their skin and eat it.

Wrapping Up

If you are thinking about keeping a Pacman frog at home, then shedding is definitely one of the most important things to learn about. You need to know that there is actually nothing wrong with your pet when this happens. It is a natural process that benefits your frog.

During the days of shedding, you don’t need to do anything given that the humidity in the tank is ideal. But either way, make sure to monitor the whole process and perform some misting if the shed gets stuck.

Also, shedding can happen without any particular reason, even if your frog is well-fed and properly taken care of. Hopefully, this article has helped you understand how shedding works and what to pay attention to when it happens.