Ornate Horned Frog — Fact Sheet

Ceratophrys ornata · Ornate Horned Frog

📋 At a glance

🏠 Enclosure

• Indoor terrestrial terrarium; house singly.
• Minimum adult size: 60 x 45 x 45 cm.
• Deep moist substrate for burrowing.
• Shallow dechlorinated water dish.
• Avoid cohabitation, gravel, bark chunks, cedar, pine, and heat rocks.

🪨 Enclosure furniture

• Warm side, cooler retreat, and humid buried layer.
• Snug hide and leaf cover.
• Cork bark, sturdy plants, and clear feeding area.
• 8-10+ cm diggable substrate.
• Secure lid; escapes are uncommon but still possible.

💡 Lighting

• Gentle visible day-night cycle.
• Low-level UVB optional, Ferguson Zone 1.
• Provide full shade and buried retreats.
• Photoperiod: 10-12 h.
• No colored night bulbs.

🌡️ Temperature

• Basking spot: 27-29 °C

• Warm zone: 23-27 °C

• Cool zone: 20-23 °C

• Night: 18-22 °C

• Avoid sustained temperatures above 30°C.

• Measure air and substrate temperatures.

• Use a thermostat on every heat source.

💧 Humidity & water

• Humidity: 60-80%, with short rises to 75-90%.
• Keep lower substrate moist, not swampy.
• Change the water dish daily or after soiling.
• Use dechlorinated water.
• Good ventilation prevents sour substrate and skin problems.

🪱 Diet

Feed regularly:

• Earthworms, roaches, crickets, locusts, other safe gut-loaded invertebrates

In moderation:

• Waxworms, mealworms, silkworms, very occasional vertebrate prey

Avoid:

• Wild insects, oversized prey, frequent rodents, sharp prey, feeding on gravel

Supplements:

• Calcium for juveniles often; adults 1-2 times weekly, multivitamin every 2-4 weeks

🩺 Health — warning signs

• Heavy skin rolls → obesity from large or frequent meals
• No stool or bloating → impaction or digestive problem
• Tremors or soft jaw → calcium/D3/UVB imbalance
• Red belly, ulcers, swelling → infection or poor substrate hygiene
• Persistent hiding with weight loss → stress, temperature error, or disease

Consult an amphibian-experienced veterinarian for wounds, prolapse, swelling, breathing signs, sudden weakness, or prolonged refusal to eat.