Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hi anyone using sphagnum moss for humid hides? will you sterilize this stuff first before using?

Yes, sphagnum moss is best. It retains humidity longer and better than wet paper towels, although paper towels can be used also.

Blood pythons like to burrow and bury themselves uner substrate so a hide full of moist moss on the cool and warm end is what I reccomend. Also with a dry hide with moss on both ends of the enclosure also.

You can buy the moss at your locasl pet store already sterilized.

Lu

i think moss here are sold unsterilize, i cant find strilized moss here, can i just put them into a boiling water to sterilized them? any suggestion on sterilizing? thanks

Yes, boil it or purchase from a petshop.

Lu

I don't use sphagnum because it tends to rot quickly, instead I use cypress mulch that I buy in bulk. I stick a handful in a plastic bag, nuke it for a few minute to sterilize it then toss it in a delicup/hidebox.

yea cypress mulch works great too. Its a little messy but it does the job great.

Moss won't rot as long as u have enough ventilation holes and the moss isn't soaking wet. When you are ready to use the moss soak it in water and squeeze the hell out of it until it is just damp. Place it in the hide. Every few days you can mist the hide with only a few pumps, just enough to moisten the moss.

The moss may tend to rot, but so far it has been good with me. Everyone has different setups and things might not work the way others will say, just like nygaboon said, it rots fairly quickly for him, so it differs. Either you choose, you will be cleaning it up from time to time, so whichever you can get your hands on the easiest would pretty much be the best choice.

Lu

Am I the only person who doesn't sterilize substrate?
I use dirt, cypress mulch, moss, and sand straight from the bags I get from Walmart... Which diseases are we protecting against?
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Peter: It's OK, I'll handle it. I read a book about something like this.
Brian: Are you sure it was a book? Are you sure it wasn't NOTHING?

You would be protecting your snakes from mites and other external parasites.

Dirt is a prime example of a not too good choice of substrate for a snake unless it is a snake that needs that type of substrate. Dirt is not cleaned and can contain pestisides, harmful fumes, and parasites like tapeworms, mites, ect.

These parasites (which are the largest problem), will enter into your snakes body through the anus or the mouth and nostrils of your pet.

What you can expect:

Anal bleeding, Animal won't eat, Vomiting and weight loss, and ultimatly death if the animal is subject to enough parasites over a long period of time.

It is not worth loosing a pet such as a blood python (which a good specimen will cost you the least @ 125.00).

The best bet is to buy PETSHOP brands which are already safe to use, not WALMART brands which are intended for lawn and gardens which have pesticides (not particularly in the stuff your buying but the stuff around it). You may end up paying a little more from petstore brands, but hey its worth it.

Hope this helps,

Lu

And how do you know which "pet store brands" aren't just other products with a fancy label & marked up price? Most of the time you're paying at least 3x markup for the EXACT same product. I can almost guarantee you that with sphagnum moss especially. Take it from someone who has experience in operating both a breeding facility and a specialty pet store. I'm not saying DON'T buy pet store brands if that's what you prefer, but if you're a herper on a budget, there's nothing wrong with getting a bag of mulch or moss from your local garden & sterilizing it for use in your enclosures. Just be careful & use common sense.

Also, can anyone show me a documented case of snake mites just happening to be schlepping around in a bag of cypress mulch? I haven't seen snake mites hanging out in any type of substrate that didn't already have an infested reptile on/in it at some point.

KLG
Link

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"Remember the days of the old schoolyard?" - Cat Stevens

Well, I'll let you know when I get problems. I've got 4 geckos and a toad on dirt, one snake on a dirt/cypress mix, and 7 snakes and one lizard on cypress.
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Peter: It's OK, I'll handle it. I read a book about something like this.
Brian: Are you sure it was a book? Are you sure it wasn't NOTHING?

LOL
I use Sphagnum moss too and I dont sterilize mine either I just use straight form the bag. I buy mine from a pet shop and have had no probs with it.
Denise

Hi meretseger, I've never sterilized either and have yet to have a problem. The one problem I did have was a bag of mulch from Home Depot that keeps their gardening bulk supplies outside but they weren't snake mites. Some type of small flying bug. I ditched that bag and haven't had any other problems. Take care, Scott.
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Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.
Martin Luther King, Jr.

"In any civilized society, it is every citizen's responsibility to obey just laws.
But at the same time, it is every citizen's responsibility to disobey unjust laws."
—Martin Luther King Jr

I buy a high quality New Zealand sphagnum moss from an orchid grower supply company and have no problems with it. Sphagnum is a naturally anti bacterial, sterile product. I try not to buy any substrate materials from pet shops because if there are mites in the store, the product you buy could be exposed. I have had this happen in the past.
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