Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I was just putting aspen bedding in five of vision rack ubs getting them ready for my 0.5 normal balls that are supposed to arrive yet , thats another thread, but I would like to know what kind of bedding do you all use for your balls, I had used newspaper for the longest it worked ok but I was concerned about the ink that was in the newspaper possibly being absorbed by my balls and getting on their skin espically when I had to mist the tubs to increase the humidity during their shed cycles, so I switched aspen bedding and its great , it has a good smell to it and it holds water pretty good whenits misted and is a good way to maintain the humidity levels in my tubs, plus when the balls defecate all have to do is spot clead and it makes cleaning so much easier , it also drys out pretty good , its fairly cheap I bought a 50lbs bag for $20 bucks and that will last me for at least 6 to 8 months or maybe longer, and it also brings out the color of the snakes.

I use aspen, but find it can retain h20 a little too well sometimes & get soggy when I have to mist for shed.

I have a huge bag of sani-chips on the way.

I suppose it would also depend on how much you mist it with h20 , and what can of enclosure or rack system that you have it in, I have a vision rack that allows for proper ventalation throughout the whole rack ssytem so I dont have that problem also I dont mist the aspen to the point of saturation and know one should with any bedding I just mist enough that it is slightly damp and it raises the humidity and just enough that I came come back within 24 hrs and its almost complety dry, I only really mist this way during the shed cycles of my balls works great with a vision rack .

that is a great price, I have been having to use cypress, because around here I can not get aspen, noone is able to get it. I loved using aspen.

Aspen has been my recent preference for established animals, specifically the chips vs. the shreaded type. I've also used newspaper (both printed and non-printed) in the past with great success. I prefer newspaper for newly acquired animals so I can properly quanintine the animals and monitor their health.
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Vic Martino
Martino Reptiles
www.martinoreptiles.com
(Website Under Construction)

I have tried most types and I use and much prefer good cypress mulch to other alternatives. Other substrates can work just fine, but in my experience balls just seem to "do better" on a good bed of cypress with proper moisture. In my opinion it is as close to a perfect substrate as there is - especially if you have a large collection. It is inexpensive, will last a long time with proper spot cleaning, is far and away the best substrate I know of at maintaining moisture, and you can mulch the used substrate to cut down on your "disposal" bill.
Newspaper is OK, but snakes are forever crawling under it even if you give them hides. Also you can't go as long between cleanings and if you have a sizeable collection you generate alot of trash on cleaning day.
Sheredded Aspen is OK, but tends to get moldy quite quickly if misted or if it gets wet. Also I would swear that some snakes just seem to be genetically programed to fill their water bowls with the stuff until they get it packed down. I use it in the summer in several racks when I am feeding heavily (and cleaning more often) and don't have to worry about humidity. I don't like using it for hatchlings. I am not trying to make any converts here, just sharing my personal preferences.
Grant

I use cypress, have used aspen but cypress looks better to me and holds humidity much better in a tank type set up.
-Bryce

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0.1 Normal Ball
adding more soon!

I agree with you on that also I also use cypress to but I prefer aspen , good points both are great.

I have two rack systems, and personally I like using care fresh pet bedding. Its a little more expensive, I spend about twenty dollars and month, but it seems to hold humidity well, and it is very easy to clean up.
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Will Sparks

1.1 Pastels
1.1 Joliff Axanthics
1.0 Mojave
0.1 Spider
0.5 Normals

Thats not bad all .