What to Feed a Pacman Frog or Bullfrog (Beyond Crickets)

By The Bognook Team · written & researched by amphibian keepers🔍 Keeper-reviewed for accuracy
A comic about feeder quality. A frog assumes 'a cricket is a cricket'; a narrator explains that a cricket is only as good as what it last ate, so 'gut-loading' means feeding the feeder insects well first, so the nutrition passes to your frog. The point: the value of feeder insects depends on gut-loading them before offering them.
A cricket is only as good as what it last ate. 'Gut-loading' means feeding your feeder insects a nutritious diet for a day or two before offering them — so the goodness passes to your frog. It's the cheapest upgrade to a feeder's value.

“The crickets keep dying” is one of the most common Pacman-frog complaints there is — and the answer is happily simple: you don’t have to keep buying crickets. Pacman frogs and their giant cousins, African bullfrogs, are enthusiastic eaters that do brilliantly on a varied menu of feeders that are hardier, cleaner, and better for them. Here’s the whole thing.

🐸 Want the feeding schedule on one screen? The free Simple Setup & Feeding checklist gives you the exact amounts and frequency for a Pacman frog or African bullfrog.

First, the two rules that matter most

Before the menu, the two things that keep a frog healthy, not just fed:

  1. Gut-load and dust every feeder. Feed your insects something nutritious for a day or two, then dust them with calcium/D3 at most feedings (plus a multivitamin regularly). This prevents metabolic bone disease — soft jaw, bendy limbs — and it’s not optional.
  2. Size it right. Prey should be no wider than the space between the frog’s eyes. Oversized prey is a leading cause of fatal impaction.

Get those right and almost anything on the list below works.

The best staple feeders (better than crickets)

  • Dubia roaches — the top staple. Hardy, quiet, odourless, nutritious, and they don’t die off or smell the way crickets do. If one feeder replaces crickets in your life, make it this.
  • Earthworms / nightcrawlers — excellent, nutritious, and cheap. Many frogs love them, and they’re a superb staple for both species.
  • Hornworms — soft, hydrating, and a good change of pace (fast-growing, so buy small).
  • Black soldier fly larvae (calci-worms / Phoenix worms) — naturally high in calcium, a great rotation feeder.
  • Silkworms — soft, nutritious, well-loved; a premium staple if you can get them.

Rotate a few of these rather than relying on one. Variety covers nutritional gaps and keeps a greedy frog interested.

Treats — occasional only

  • Waxworms and superworms are fatty. Fine as an occasional treat, not a staple — too many lead to obesity.
  • Skip the daily buffet of anything rich.

Rodents: the obesity trap

This is where African bullfrog keepers especially get caught. A pinkie or fuzzy mouse is fatty and easy to overuse, and frequent rodents are a leading cause of obesity and fatty-liver disease — a serious, common problem in pixies.

  • Offer rodents occasionally at most — roughly once every 2–3 weeks, for adults only.
  • Build the everyday diet around insects and worms, not mice.
  • A pixie fed rodents twice a week gets fat, fast. Don’t.

How often to feed

  • Juveniles (both species): roughly daily as they grow.
  • Adult Pacman frog: every 2–3 days.
  • Adult African bullfrog: every 3–4 days.

Both frogs will always act starving — that begging face is not data. Feed to a schedule, because for these species, overfeeding is more dangerous than underfeeding.

What NOT to feed

  • Wild-caught insects — they may carry pesticides or parasites. Stick to captive-bred feeders.
  • Fireflies / lightning bugs — genuinely toxic and can kill a frog. Never.
  • Oversized prey — wider than the eye-gap → impaction risk.
  • A rodent-heavy diet — obesity and fatty liver.

💚 Feed a varied menu of gut-loaded, dusted insects and worms, keep rodents rare, and size everything sensibly — do that and your frog gets everything it needs without the cricket graveyard on your shelf.

Go deeper: What do I feed my amphibian? (all species, feeder sizes) · the Pacman frog care guide · the African bullfrog care guide · the Simple Setup & Feeding checklist.

Sources & further reading

This guide was written and fact-checked against these authorities. It’s kind, general guidance — not a substitute for an exotics vet:

Written and fact-checked by The Bognook Team against veterinarian-authored sources — if your frog won’’t eat for weeks or looks unwell, see an exotics vet.

Common questions

What can I feed my Pacman frog besides crickets?

Plenty. Dubia roaches make an excellent staple — they are hardy, quiet, do not smell, and do not die off like crickets. Other good feeders are earthworms and nightcrawlers (very nutritious), hornworms, black soldier fly larvae (calci-worms), and silkworms. Keep fatty feeders like waxworms and superworms as occasional treats. Variety plus gut-loading and calcium dusting is what keeps a frog healthy — no single feeder should be the whole diet.

Can Pacman frogs and African bullfrogs eat mice?

Occasionally, for adults only — never as a staple. A pinkie or fuzzy mouse is fatty and easy to overuse, and frequent rodents are a leading cause of obesity and fatty-liver disease, especially in African bullfrogs. If you offer them at all, keep it to roughly once every 2 to 3 weeks at most, and build the everyday diet around insects and worms instead.

How often should I feed a Pacman frog or African bullfrog?

It depends on age. Juveniles of both species eat roughly daily as they grow. Adult Pacman frogs eat every 2 to 3 days; adult African bullfrogs every 3 to 4 days. Both have bottomless appetites and will always act starving, so feed to a schedule rather than to their begging — overfeeding is more dangerous than underfeeding for these frogs.

Do I need to gut-load and dust feeders?

Yes — this is not optional. Gut-load feeder insects (feed them nutritious food for a day or two before offering them) and dust them with a calcium/D3 supplement at most feedings, plus a multivitamin regularly. Without it, frogs develop metabolic bone disease (soft jaw, bendy limbs) from calcium deficiency. Feeders straight from the tub are nutritionally poor until you gut-load and dust them.

What should I never feed a Pacman frog or bullfrog?

Avoid wild-caught insects (they may carry pesticides or parasites), fireflies/lightning bugs (genuinely toxic and can kill a frog), and any prey wider than the space between the frog's eyes (oversized prey is a common cause of fatal impaction). Go easy on fatty feeders like waxworms, and do not make rodents a regular meal. When in doubt, feed appropriately sized, gut-loaded, dusted insects.