Do Pacman Frogs Have Teeth?

If you have ever happened to observe frogs while keeping their mouths open, you probably did notice they look quite toothless and funny. And Pacman frogs are no exception when it comes to such looks. But do Pacman frogs have teeth, or is it just another example of how looks can be deceiving?

The answer is somewhere in the middle, actually. Pacman frogs do have teeth, but only in their upper jaws. Also, most of their teeth are positioned on the edge of their mouth, making them almost impossible to notice.

Additionally, they do not use their teeth to chew, but are famous for being quite the biters. How funny is that?

Pacman Frog Teeth Types

There are two different types of teeth in the mouths of every Pacman frog.

The first and major type are the maxillary teeth. Such teeth are cone shaped and each frog owns approximately forty of them. They line the entire length of their mouth and there is no difference between them, with all being exactly of the same size and shape.

Also, as already mentioned a few lines above, they are not used for the purpose of chewing. On the contrary, their main intention is to hold the pray while they are swallowing it, but also to help directing such pray in the appropriate position.

The second type of teeth are the vomerine teeth, and there are only four of them. They can be seen deep in the frog’s mouth, on the roof.

Vomerine teeth come in pairs and are quite pointy. Very similar to maxillary teeth, the purpose of vomerine teeth is to hold the pray and to help the frog to swallow it properly.

When needed, both teeth types can quickly be replaced with new ones. And this can be done more than once, as opposed to humans, whose adult teeth can grow only once.

Do Pacman Frogs Chew Their Food?

No frog on Earth chews, and Pacman frogs are no exception here. They feed by swallowing their prays, and their teeth only help them to hold and position prays, as just explained above.

Another important source of help during the feeding process is their tongue. Frogs have ˝sticky˝ tongues, which allow them both to immobilize their prays and to catch them easier.

If a Pacman frog decides to feed with a larger pray, such as another frog, its tongue will help a lot to keep the pray still while swallowing it.

Also, Pacmans usually catch their prays from the comfort of their ambush, standing very still and waiting for the pray to pass. Their tongue has a critical role here, as it is basically the only way that helps attracting prays to their mouths. And keeping them there.

Strangely, eyes also contribute to food swallowing. If you own a pet frog, you have surely noticed that it blinks while eating. But according to this interesting reading, such blinking is actually eye retraction toward the esophagus. This helps frogs a lot to swallow their food much quicker.

Do Pacman Frogs Bite?

Oh yes, Pacman frogs do bite. A lot. To add to that, they are actually famous as one of the types of frogs who bite the most. However, there is nothing to worry about when it comes to biting humans.

Pacman frogs mostly bite when they are scared and feeling threatened, meaning that they will most likely stop biting their owners once they get to know them and start feeling comfortable around them.

Even if, after some time owning a Pacman frog, it happens to bite you every now and then, there is no need to panic. It only means that it has probably mistaken your finger for food. Additionally, Pacman frog bites do not hurt that much. And most importantly, they are not poisonous at all.

The best way to prevent them biting you is by feeding them with the help of tongs or tweezers. However, this cannot be done successfully from the very beginning.

It is necessary for your pet frog to be completely comfortable around you first, or you may otherwise be risking for them to simply ignore the food you offer them.

During the first few days (or weeks), your pet needs to get comfortable eating whenever you are present. Only after that, you can start feeding them with tongs or tweezers successfully.

What to Do If Your Frog Bites You?

The most important thing to do is not to panic.

As just explained above, their bites are not harmful or that strong for humans. It is however important to rinse your wound (if there is a wound at all) and to disinfect it. A simple procedure which needs to be done for any kind of wound.

Sometimes, it can happen that your frog will not let you go, but to rather hold on to your skin. In that case, the worse thing to do is to shake it off. This could seriously harm your pet. So, please try staying calm and to simply wait or to place it under running water.

Once again, Pacman frogs are not poisonous and are completely non-toxic for humans. Their bite may cause some discomfort but is not that painful.

Can Pacman Frog Bite Break Skin?

These colorful little creatures can easily break your skin if they bite hard enough and can consequentially cause some minor bleeding.

However, this happens rather rarely, and is not dangerous at all for people. Nothing that a water rinse and a few drops of antiseptic can not fix.

Wrapping Up

Pacman frogs are funny little pets. They are so interesting to watch doing their own thing, and this is exactly their favorite thing to do: their own.

They like spending most of their time buried under their moist substrate, so every act that disturbs that can bring to them being quite aggressive. And often, to bite. Pacman frogs do have teeth- a lot of them. However, their bites are not that painful for their owners, and are nothing to worry about.

avatar Noah
I’m Noah, chief editor at VIVO Pets and the proud owner of a playful, energetic husky (Max). I’ve been a volunteer at Rex Animal Rescue for over 2 years. I love learning and writing about different animals that can be kept as pets. read more...

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