Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I was wondering what everyone is using for substrate in their racks.

I have been using Aspen, but I'm not sure if I'm happy with it. How often do you completely change the Aspen? I tried newspaper for box last time but I'm not sure if I like that choice either. It was easier to clean, but if they get under it and poo, it's messy and time consuming to clean.

Basically I'm looking for the magic substrate that saves time, is easy to clean, is healthy for the snake, and contains odor.

Yes,..I've been looking for this "magical" substrate for decades too,..I think ALL of us have been..LOL!

I know exactly what you mean. I've just settled on Aspen for it's basic ease of spot cleaning, affordability, common availability, etc...but everything tends to have it's pro's and con's I guess.

However, I use radius cut paper towels for lining the bottoms of deli cups for young hatchlings, because the aspen substrate would always get into the tiny PVC cap water bowls. That was always very irritating to me..LOL!

Also, the lid of the deli cup is perfectly flush with the top of the cap, so when two notches are cut in the side of the cap, it allows their heads to go inside for a drink without them being able to spill it,...works out very well this way.

~Doug

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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

All of my snakes are in racks, all bedded in Aspen. I've tried other things from time to time but always end up coming back to Aspen. I like the shredded kind, not the flake kind.

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Have you been hugged by your snake today?

Ball Pythons
1.1 het Caramel Albino (Edward & Bella)
0.1 poss het Caramel Albino (Rosalie)
0.1 Caramel Albino (Bellatrix)
0.1 Pastel Orange Ghost (Nagini)
1.0 Butterscotch Ghost (Nick)
0.1 Spider poss het Butterscotch Ghost(Nymphadora)
1.1 Mojave (Lucius & Renesme)
0.1 Pastel Lesser (Narcissa)
0.1 Pinstripe (no name yet)
1.0 Pewter (Salazar)
0.1 Bumble Bee (Alice)
0.1 Lemonblast (Luna)
0.1 Blond Pastel (no name yet)
1.0 Bell Pastel (Jasper)
0.1 African Dinker (Esme)

Corns
1.1 het Amel, Anery, Charcoal, Bloodred (Romeo & Juliet)
1.0 Blizzard het Bloodred poss het Anery Lav (Tumnus)
0.1 Granite (Ravenclaw)
0.1 Fire het Anery (Ginny)
0.1 Anery Lav (Lucy)
0.1 Plasma (Victoria)

Western Hogs
1.0 Albino (Hogwarts)
0.1 het Albino (Hufflepuff)

I too enjoyed aspen but I always fed in seperate containers which was time consuming so I went back to newspaper so I could just feed in the racks. Do you find it OK to feed snakes in their racks while on the aspen? Any issues with compaction etc?
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Ken Roshak
BlackSwampSerpents@toast.net

I keep my snakes on aspen and pine, but mostly aspen. Also mostly the flakey kind, not the shredded. This is as most of us do, out of availability and not choice LOL!! I feed them inside their cages. I just make sure the defrosted rodents are dry prior to placing in the cages and never had an impaction problem. Just make sure to blot them dry. You can also put the prey on a deli cup lid or small paper plate (I have done that as well from time to time).

I also use aspen. I like the look of it, and the fact that it does a good job of absorbing. My corns and gray-bands also like to burrow in it, in addition to using their hides.

I feed smaller snakes in another container, or use paper towels in their cages. For larger snakes, I usually feed in the cage, either with tongs, or by putting the food item on a paper towel.

I have occasionally seen a snake get a piece of aspen stuck in their mouth while feeding. If I am able, I grab it with my tongs. In some cases the snake is able to dislodge it themselves. In cases where the aspen gets swallowed, there has never been a problem.

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Kent

..for your suggestions about feeding over aspen. Good ideas!
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Ken Roshak
BlackSwampSerpents@toast.net

No precautions at all are needed when feeding on aspen. I've been using shredded aspen for my large collection since the late 80s. In that time I've never fed in separate cages, laid the rodents on towels, or done anything else other than just feed the f/t rodents on the aspen itself (I DO thaw my rodents dry, not in water however).

In those 20 years, and literally thousands of juvenile and adult snakes, I have not had a single injury or gastrointestinal problem that could be traced to aspen ingestion. I know many others who have had similar experience. No one picks the odd leaf or twig out of a snake's mouth in the wild, so why would it be necessary in captivity?
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Brad Chambers
WWW.HCU-TX.ORG

The Avalanche has already started-it is too late for the pebbles to vote....

This may be why I dread feeding day!

I still remove every single snake from the rack...young (not hatchling) to adult and feed it in a separate container. I have a few nervous exceptions such as some White Oak grey rats and a one-eyed classic who wouldn't eat once moved.

Somehow I got stuck on the idea that feeding in a separate container reduces feeding aggression.(?) All my pythons and boas are fed in their containers and are hook trained...the balls are just little and not really a threatening issue.

Yes, seperating to feed can be a huge chore. Before I switched to rack systems and paper substrate I used to take each snake out to feed. I think 30 snakes took me 4 hours. Now, I thaw rodents, open the tub and I'm done. And with 200 snakes it makes a world of a difference. Let's me enjoy my "human" family more I can see advantages of aspen for burrowing, cleaning etc. so I'm thinking about switching from paper.
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Ken Roshak
BlackSwampSerpents@toast.net

>>Yes, seperating to feed can be a huge chore. Before I switched to rack systems and paper substrate I used to take each snake out to feed. I think 30 snakes took me 4 hours. Now, I thaw rodents, open the tub and I'm done. And with 200 snakes it makes a world of a difference. Let's me enjoy my "human" family more I can see advantages of aspen for burrowing, cleaning etc. so I'm thinking about switching from paper.
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>>Ken Roshak
>>BlackSwampSerpents@toast.net

I think I'll consider feeding in the tub. Those 3-4 hr stints of feeding separately REALLY make me dread feeding day! And it doesn't seem to matter...I have a really aggressive corn that will still attack and wrap around my arm. I just use my iguana gloves for him.

Thanks to all for a great discussion!

Laura, I have also heard the idea of reducing "feeding aggression" by feeding in a separate container. In other words the idea was that the snake would be less likely to grab your hand, if they didn't get fed in their cage.

I have found in my limited experience (with corns and gray-bands), that this is not a problem. When my snakes have grown up, and it became more convenient to feed in their cages, they have not acted like they were going to bite when I reach to pick them up. I usually present them with the flat of my hand, instead of poking a finger in their faces, HaHa!

I do like to feed hatchlings while holding them, just because I think its fun.

I just remembered an exception that happened this summer. I reached in to offer a small cornsnake a pinky, and didn't use tongs. He was VERY hungry, and struck, missing the pinky and grabbing my thumb instead. He immediately wrapped around my thumb to "kill" it, and every time I wiggled it he tightened up more.

I was laughing so hard, and went to show my wife in the other room, that I forgot to grab the camera until it had let go. As soon as it let go, I offered it the pinky again, and it ate while still wrapped around my thumb.

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Kent

Thanks Brad. Yeah, I guess that makes good sense and I'm glad to hear you've experienced no problems.
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Ken Roshak
BlackSwampSerpents@toast.net