Reptile & Amphibian Forums

What are ya'll using for egg laying substrate?

I just use the pine shavings. I dampen them a little and it works fine.

I used egg laying boxes and no matter how close I get to putting them into the cage before laying they take a giant dump in them. Then they proceed to lay under the plastic egg laying box. I guess that tells me what they think of my egg laying boxes.

Also do any of you use peat moss? My snakes seem to hate it and get all frenzied when i put it in their cage. I think i had some go crazy being covered in this stuff and cuased them to retain their eggs longer. My snakes despise the stuff unless I mix it with something else.
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Last year I offered a choice of vermiculite and sphagnum moss for a couple of my snakes. They chose the moss hands down. This year I am offering moist sphagnum moss nest boxes to all my snakes, and so far all the eggs have been laid in them. They really seem to like it.

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Aubrey Ross

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www.SlipstreamSerpents.com

I use spagnum moss and all of my snakes love it. They hate peat too.

I buy the stuff by the 5lb bale from orchid places and its pretty cheap.

I have NEVER had a snake lay outside the box (probably 70ish clutches) They have also never once dumped in it. I also duct tape around the box to make it dark.

sphagnum moss here as well, splendida, holbrooki, thayeri, bairdi, emoryi, cal kings, trying bulls and gophers this year as well. No issues last year, I put the boxes in and they shed in there too.
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Todd Hughes

You guys don't go poor from using the spahgnum moss? I mean that stuff gets expensive with collections.
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you have to find the correct cheap place to have it....it's not always out there....yes it can be costly from pet shops....as they mentioned...find an orchid grower or other garden places....
I collect my own moss.....

......mine do defecate in their boxes all the time..even if there are eggs in there(not much is left in them by that time)...
they dig it,flip container and I don't know how...

the person mentioned duct tape for darkness....I do not use duct tape inside any animal cage....they can find ways to get it peeled off the item and onto themselves better than you think....duct tape is bad stuff with snakes....(cheap paint and let dry all winter??? just a thought...I use gallon plastic jugs cut off for most my stuff...disposable....)...

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Alowishus Devadander Abercrombie

......that's long for Mud...............................

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As far as the tape goes I've always used Scotch's brown colored packing tape. If you put it on a smooth clean surface like plastic boxes it lays down super flat and the edges never peel up. I've used it for a few years and never had a issue.
J the problem with the jugs your using is although you might paint the sides, it's like they are still in the open because theirs no top to help them feel secure once you cut off the top half. I'm sure you probably give them something deep enough to burrow down in but until they do that or anytime they stick their head out of the substrate they likely feel exposed.
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Randy Whittington

Hello Randy......
I mentioned cheap paint for THEM to maybe use....

my cousin had a baby ball get the duct tape off a cage and lost a bunch of skin and some meat....don't know if used oil to get it off....just warning people....

I just take gallon jugs (Turkey Hill Dairy iced tea daily) cut the top ,rinse in hot water well, get some moss ,run under hot water to wet it, wring it out well, rip it up and half fill the jug....I try and cut them to go to the top of the boxes....some females can still flip them, pueblan is doing it this year...crazy snake.....I have when needed just used some damp cloth towel,paper towel,carefresh wetted,and even shredded wetted newspaper once for giggles....they lay in it.....

I don't have them lay outside the jug....I have had them lay under the paper, but I think it was due to me not getting the nest in there in time....my fault...sometimes they don't take the 10 days after shed to lay....(one sina-king-corn laid the day before the shed once, and probably ate the day before that...she was cool)...

and I never had a female king eat it's eggs like the other poor guy ...that is bad.....I haven't done that many kings but I have done some .....a friend would have the male eat them...I asked why the male is still in there he would say I didn't know if she took...so I kept him in there.....don't try this at home...LOL....

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Alowishus Devadander Abercrombie

......that's long for Mud...............................

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I like it because I have had the best results with it. If it saves even one clutch of eggs a season it probably pays for itself.

Like I said. Get a big bail, its not that expensive and you don't have to change it often.

I've used spagnum moss for years with kings, milks, hogs, rats and pits with good results.
I use shoe or sweater boxes, depending on the size of the snakes with the boxes placed in the long way, going from to warm to cooler side to give a slight temp gradient from end to end. I always use boxes with solid color tops with just a small hole cut in one side for access and I wrap the sides with brown packing tape for security. I use bigger boxes for the snakes size than I used too years ago and they seem to get comfortable much quicker. I put the spagnum moss deep enough that they can burrow deep in it.
I've only had 3 or 4 lay outside of the boxes in the last 3 or 4 years since I started using bigger boxes with darker sides (taped). I'll often have one crap in their box but I always go ahead and put a nest box in with them the day they shed or just before so they can go ahead and get used to it.
The spagnum mosss is definatly not cheap but I get it in 2 cubic foot bails from a garden and nursery center for a lot cheaper than buying the small bags like you can get at Lowes.
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Randy Whittington

I don't know what kind of drugs my snakes are on but I have different experiences with my whole collection than the norm. Mine gravid female also eat their clucthes as soon as they lay them even though they refuse food the last few weeks before they lay.
This problem has been going on for several years and to say it is heartbreaking is an understatement. Sometimes I just want to give up when that happens. Last year i had around 10 clutches eaten. Some of these clucthes were extremly rare or very high on peoples want lists. Same thing happened the year before that and before that. It is not always the same females that are doing it. Matter of fact it is different females always everytime. This year it could be completly different females than last year. Last year I had more clucthes eaten than ever before. I wish there was some data on this happening with other peoples collections but so far no one has steped up to the plate and said this is a been a problem for them.

Oh and my gravid females are fat to.
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Sorry for everyones losses;
Why don't someone make up two surveys (two Posts), one for the egg eaters, and one for the non egg eaters, but the same questions. with about 10-15 questions on housing. We could then compare, and see if we come up with simalar housing technics, that might explain.
Knock on wood! I have never had any eggs ate that I know of, but I only breed 3-5 cluches a year.
Listening, it sounds like the heavy eaters might be the hungry ones,
Here are a few Questions you might ask;
(1) How offen, and how much do you feed during the gestation period?
(2) when did they come out of Brumation?
(3) what month did they consume their clutches?
(4) what kind of snakes are the egg eaters
What ever else you can think of that might get to the possible answer.
Just a Thought; Bob
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R.Bichlers Colubrids
http://www.webspawner.com/users/rbichler/index.html

Was this happening before you switched from feeder mice to feeder chicks? There's probably no relation, but.... just a thought.

I use the #6 extra large vermiculite I go to South Carolina to get. Works great. No dust. They make it on site.

While on the subject I have a newbie question.When incubating is the substrate temp suppose to be 80-82 or the air temp?I will be using spagnum peat moss.Thanks

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1.0 aberrant cal. king
0.1 reverse spotted cal. king
1.1 mbk's
1.1 florida kings
1.1 anery brooks
1.0 hypo brooks
0.1 albino brooks
1.0 leucistic texas rat

egg temp therefore probably substrate and air...both are probably the same?........

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Alowishus Devadander Abercrombie

......that's long for Mud...............................

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i use peat moss
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Doug L