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My pixie is in hibernation mode.

M

mitch_rz

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Just letting you all know that. He got into it about two weeks ago and I'm watching him every day. I just tilled his soil to expose the bed-a-beast to the air. I'm even thinking about covering his tank with newspaper to cut down on the light. But right now I can see his skin drying up, but of course it's just a layer he has. So, since my pixie is in vacation mode I'll leave him to it for a couple of months, maybe March I'll put him in a hydration chamber.

Anyway this is just an update.
 
March??? I would be concerned about letting it go that long. I don't claim to be an expert on amphibians, even the ones that I do keep (pixies, for one), but 6 months + of aestivation seems excessive. Also, unless I am mistaken, pixies are supposed to go through this phase during the hot, dry months, not as alternative to keeping them warm in cooler weather.
 
That's what I'm trying to do, replicate the hot dry season by letting the bed-a-beast go dry and also having a heat lamp for ambient heat in the tank. My pixie is also resting on a heat pad, which he likes very much. The idea of him coming out of aestevation near March is an idea I'm going to monitor carefully. Last year he went through aestivation for 4 and a half months.
 
OK - usually when people use the term hibernation (as you did in your initial post), they are talking about a dormant stage brought on by cooling. Sounds like you are on the right track, though. I also understand that in the wild, pixies can aestivate for long periods...I was just never comfortable stretching it that long. How are you planning to monitor him?
 
Ok, this thread just blew me away..... I am new to amphibs and have only 1, a great pixie frog!! I thought I had done my homework pretty well!! I wasn't aware that they went through "dormant" stage, or aestivation. Is this necessary for them to remain healthy? At what age should they be started? In nature what is the normal time frame? Are there any faq sheets that could be helpful for me?
 
Cathy,
Aestivation is a period of dormancy during the heat of summer. It can be considered a parallel of brumation, in that there is a decrease in metabolism to help the animals get through what would be a physically taxing period. In amphibians, it is characterized by a drying of the "slime coat" to form a type of shell that helps retain moisture. Once fully encased, they are pretty much trapped until the rain comes and wets, then sloughs, the mucous. In the wild, pixies go through this annually...and it can extend for months on end.
As far as whether it is necessary for them to remain healthy - I cannot say with certainty. (I have heard this same discussion regarding the brumation of colubrids, and the opinions seem to be mixed in both cases). I can say that yearling and older pixies will enter this state readily if they are confronted with dry enough conditions - additional warming is not necessary. (I've never tried it with younger frogs). I generally bring mine out after 2 to 3 months - ok, usually closer to 2, lol...like I said before, I was just never comfortable extending it for a long time.
 
Just to reply on the monitoring situation: I'm just watching him at every chance I get making sure he's still breathing. As to why I let him go for so long in his dormant stage is because I feed him quite a bit of fatty foods such as mice and beef (with almost most of the fat taken out.) With his fat reserves being pretty high, I feel he can last a long time in his dormant stage.
 
Cathy, I've got one I've had for about 4 years and have never aestivated him. He seems a big fat healthy fellow.
 
I guess my question is whether aestivation, or the lack thereof, has any impact on the longevity of the frog. My last big pixie was 6yrs old when I sold him, and I had allowed him a "dry spell" (lasting 6-10 weeks) only 3-4 times. Seamus - if you get wind of this thread, please drop in
 
Thanks for the great input guys!! I've done a little googling and learned a bit more about aestivation in general and find it incredibly fascinating to learn of another way that animals adapt to their environment for survival.

I discovered that there are some frogs that can aestivate for all but a few weeks a year during rainy season!
 
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