Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I posted quite some time ago on what everyone prefers for a substrate. In the past, I have always been a strictly "newspaper" kind of guy (does that mean I'm boring?
So, I decided to try four different substrates on a long term basis: newspaper (already know the pros and cons), aspen, cypress, and a sand/soil/leaf litter mix. So far, I have had the best results with aspen and the sand/soil/leaf litter mix (which we are going to use for our couperi public display). The aspen despite previous comments on it having a terrible ammonia odor has worked quite well and I haven't noticed the noxious odors of previous posters (I tend to spot clean on a daily basis). The bedding packs down very nicely and the indigos will actually create their own tunnels/burrows if given a deep substrate. I haven't had any problems with accidental ingestion but it is still a concern when I see a mouthful go down (I usually have forceps handy to take any off of the prey). Inside the cages the snakes have a humidity box filled with a dampened towel that they use quite often. The only downside is that it does get a little dry but with the humidity box, the problem is solved. It also fosters laziness on my part as I feel like I can wait an extra day or two to get to messes; something I must guard against as I have a feeling that is where the ammonia odor comes into play.

The sand/soil/leaf litter mix has worked wonderfully well and makes for a very nice looking substrate. Easy to spot clean and can be misted down heavily if need be (can't do that too well with aspen). I spot clean, rake the substrate and that's about it. So far, it has worked well.

Despite many others using cypress, I like this the least. One, it condones the destruction of cypress swamp forest regions of the U.S.; something our wildlife center is trying to guard against....of course, if I use aspen, I am condoning the destruction of some sort of forest ecosystem. I haven't found a good cypress mulch that doesn't have large splinters; something I am quite paranoid about when it comes to feeding. THe urates also dissipate much more quickly throughout the bedding which makes cleaning exceptionally difficult with cypress. It does mist down nicely and maintains good humidity levels so that is a big plus.

But, in the end, newspaper is still the best and I am using both paper and aspen at home and the sandy/soil/leaf litter mix at my wildlife center. Any other thoughts out there?

Hey Rob,

Just a couple of comments... YEARS ago I tried different substrates, and noticed the ammonia smell you mentioned with the aspen. I also had my ONLY case of mites on my Drymarchon when I used the aspen, as it was bought from a pet sore and was stored near reptiles(Go figure?) I *REALLY* hated that.

So I went back to newspaper and have stayed so ever since. After all, most of it is unworthy of anything else other than cage litter(Unfit to read, to many lies)

Tried papertowel. Too expensive,absorbs to much(Sloppy wet mess..ugh!) and frankly you have to use a TON of it. Works great in slideboxes with babies though!!

I also tried sand, soil, mix, but after lugging THAT stuff around a few times, I was DONE.

I have ALWAYS admired people that can keep easterns in natural looking settings with plants and logs and soil. I met a couple from Denmark that did this. All I DID was ask them questions!!lol I still dont get how they did it. If anyone here keeps their Drymarchon in naturalistic setups, please post pics and educate me,Im frankly amazed by it.

Hope all is well Rob, good post by the way. There are alot of diffrent ways to do things, thats for sure. Experimentation is the key.

*cheers*

Fred Albury

I use newspaper, but I have large plastic tubs in the cages that have about 3 inches of cypress mulch in them for the snakes to hang out in. They seem to enjoy that and so far, I haven't had a problem with them defecating in the mulch...they seem to come out of there and use the newspaper on the floor of the cage (or their water dish). Both sides of my cages have newspaper on the floor.

rob, i've tried them all too at one time or another. cypress is hard to clean right and if you use aspen long enough you'll get 'ammonia-ized' eventually. i spot clean feces constantly but the urine isn't as easy to detect and lies deeper in the aspen, out of sight. couple that w/ the fact that they usually hit the same corners habitually and whamo!.....one day you open up a cage and your nose will seize and your eyes will melt. lol....none of these things happen w/ newspaper however. although unsightly at times, it is in my opinion, the overall best product for the job, drying up urates fairly well, easy to replace and doesn't look bad for a day or two. and if you keep your dry's in really big cages, it doesn't get disturbed hardly at all because it just slides around w/out bunching.

Rob,
I really do like the cypress mulch as it is lightweight and works rather well for me. Periodically, I just clean the whole cage out with occasional spot cleaning. It is also LESS THAN 1/3 of the price of aspen bedding...at least around me.

I like the idea of the sand/soil/leaf litter mixture. Please tell me more about this. I would love to try it on one of my large "show tanks". What ratio do you use? Do you use playsand? Topsoil? Any leaves I should stay away from here in the NE.

Thanks

A.C.

Rob, sounds like you're getting away from Aspen/wood bedding...To me that is a great move..I really think the wood beddings are dangerous...Of course 1000's use it without problem..I have 2 deaths I attribute directly to Aspen..What does wood do when it gets wet? It expands...What happens when it gets in to the snake..Same thing...Now a little may not be a problem, but a big snake may ingest a good bit..I believe I have had 2 deaths, in large snakes from this...One big bullsnake 8' /-...Didn't like the taste of the stuff on his dinner and tried to regurgitate..Aspen was now wet..Long story short, died in the night from essentially strangulation..The rat couldn't be expelled, all covered with wet aspen and he essentially blocked his glottis and choked to death...

Another BIG Uni, I think died from intestinal obstruction after ingesting too much aspen with his meal...I was out of town while this was happening, fed everybody the night before, etc..

My 2 cents..CG
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Carl W Gossett
Garage Door Herps
Monument,Colorado...northern territory of the Great Republic of Texas

yeah, i forgot that part somehow.....the lack of wood ingestion you get using newspaper. let's face it, wood looks great, it really does but is potentially dangerous and difficult to feed on safely. i too saw my biggest male uni eat a heavily 'breaded' rat once that i couldn't prevent and that was that!!!! he survived but i almost didn't.......carl, i like those bulls and pines you got! wanna do a deal? i got 03 uni's.........talk to me big guy!