Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok so i have a few questions i was hoping some of you can answer. i got my first ig yesterday and i'm not pleased w/ his house. i answered an add on craigslist and saw pics of his house and of him and everything looked and sounded good....shockingly everything was not good in person. thought i was getting a nice sweet tame and well socialized ig and when i got there the lady went to take him out and jumped when he moved, lol. anyways back to his house. it was a disaster! they used plywood and it seems way to splintery so i'm wondering is there a way to fix this? i don't have another house for him to stay while i get this one all worked out. so if there is a quick fix please let me know....i'm rather paranoid he will get splinters. would tacked up linoleum on the walls or something like this work? the size of it is fine for now, i was just mainly concerned about the wood hurting him, i had to change his flooring...i think it may have been reptile carpet. was like felt but a lot thicker, anyways there were lots of fuzzies getting in his claws. i also had to change his light set up. they had just a basking light hanging down w/ no covering to protect him from getting burned and the bulb was burned out for who knows how long. i'm going to get him some proper lighting today.

so my ig is 1 1/2 and around 2 - 2 1/2 ft, his name is diablo. i also have a rtb and she is going to be 1 on june 10th! she is a little over 3 ft and her name is eva. i was planning on starting her new home this week and i figure i might as well do them both. i am moving to another state in about a yr so i was wondering if there is a way to make these easy to move? like to take apart and put back together when we relocate. i would like to make eva's 4x8x4 (height, width, depth right?) does that sound like too much? i was thinking that i could put a divider in instead of making something for now and building something bigger down the line or do you think she will be ok in that size w/ no divider? i'd like to make diablo's 6x6x4, does that sound ok for now? i was thinking that when we move i could build him something bigger that could last....we plan to build our own house so i was thinking of fitting that into the design.

i would like to have waterfalls, real plants, even little ponds in both of thier houses. do any of you know how i could do this somewhat easily? i was also wondering if i could put insulation....or would that be a bad idea and make it too hot? then theres the wiring...i get so confused on that part. luckily my husband is a carpenter and is decent at running wires...but i would like better if i could understand it and i would like to do most of the work on my own. he is jsut too busy at work and things and i would like these to be built asap.

sorry if this is poorly written and many typos and what not...i have a snake and a 3 yr old climbing on me . thanks for any responses!

Applying scrap vinyl flooring or even vinyl tile will work. The biggest problem with these is if moisture gets behind the vinyl and onto the wood. So make sure the wood is sealed first.

In fact I would start by applying a thick sealer to the plywood. Not a primer but a sealer. Unlike primer it will sit on top of the wood and should help seal off the splinters. I would use a waterbased product which may make the grain stand up on the plywood just a bit with the first coat. Don't worry about this. Just sand it down once the first coat is fully cured and then put on another coat or just apply your vinyl flooring if that's what you want to use.

Honestly if you're moving in a year I would just seal the cage and skip the vinyl flooring. Building something for your herps once you move and save your money for now.

Regarding large knock-down cages, the neatest design I saw was one built by Jungle Habitats for Argus Monitors. Basically four wood frames with glass inserts (glass was also removable) were held together with long pocket screws. I don't recall what was used for the floor or the ceiling, but it was probably something similar and simple.

Pocket screws hold wood amazingly well without glue and the cage would hold up fine until you moved. At that point you could either glue the cage together permanently or maybe leave so it could be moved again.
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Currently keeping:

6.10 Gonyosoma oxycephala (Javan, mixed colors)

1.1 Philodryas baroni

1.0 Rhodesian Ridgeback

I really like the look and proportions of this cage. And now that I have a pocket hole jig I appreciate just how strong a cage like this can be without being fully glued together. For some reason webshots won't let me know use their site as an image source so I set these up as links.

Picture 1

Picture 2
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Currently keeping:

6.10 Gonyosoma oxycephala (Javan, mixed colors)

1.1 Philodryas baroni

1.0 Rhodesian Ridgeback

Hey, glad you are taking the proper steps to make the little guys life a little better... anyway, For the cage that I just finished for my igs, I used vinyl flooring after the sealer. Makes for an easy clean up. As far as the wood on the sides and back, if it is really bad you might want to cover it with indoor,outdoor carpeting or basically astro turf. The igs can climb up it easy which will give them something to do...

As far as the cage you are designing, everything sounds awesome. THe only thing I would suggest is to build the cage more tall than wide, All the igs Ive ever owned have appreciated the climbing space more than floor space. Just my two cents... any way here are a couple of pics of my cage that I just finished...

thanks so much to both of you. i did go ahead and put the sealer and the vinyl flooring, it's so nice and easy.

i really like both setups. dodge, do you have any problems w/ keeping the water clean and the fish alive? i was thinking about doing coi...but worried about the fish going to the batroom and also the ig going to the bathroom in it.

i was thinking of putting off the enclosures until we moved, but my snake is outgrowing hers and i think my ig's could be a little taller. thanks again.

Hey, The fish were only in there for show i don't keep them in the pond for any length of time... but good luck with everything