Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Is there anywhere to find extra large climbing branches for an iguana enclosure? Something at least 5-6 feet that's been treated and everything? Or is that something I'd have to find and treat myself, and if so, how do you make wood safe for reptiles?

Hi,
I don't know of anywhere you can get pretreated branches that big, but I got some advice from a friend on this topic. He said call your local tree pruning company about getting some branches. You might sound like a nut-job when you ask them, but in my experience, they seem more than happy to help. You may have to go out to the place they are pruneing and select your branches before they throw them in a chipper. You might want to call several companies to find the right kind of tree branch. You probably want something like oak, elm, ash, maple, etc. You should avoid things like cedar, redwood, pine, fir, and other conifers as they have a strong smell that can cause resperatory problems. You also want to avoid toxic trees. When you get your branches, there are many ways to make it safe for your iguana. You could scrub the branches down with a 10:1 water/bleach solution. You could freeze them, or put them in an oven to kill all the nasty little bugs. If you really wanted to make it easy, you could sandblast the branches and scrub them down a bit after that. After you sterilize them, you may want to seal them with something like envirotex,other expoxys, varnishes, or other sealants safe for animals. I hope this helps, and others who post after me may mention other sealants you could use. Josh

Oh, I forgot to mention something. There are products that are specifically formulated to clean terraruims and "reptile furniture". Josh

...is the Replica Cage Furniture from Cages by Design. Here's the page link:

http://www.cagesbydesign.com/accessories/replica.asp

Check out their logs and y-logs. A couple different sizes are available and they're thick enough for a large ig.

Regards,

Bill

Hello,
You'd be lucky to find branches the size you want without paying an arm and a leg. I've found what works best is to simply collect your large branches from the woods being sure not to collect from an area that has restrictions on removing materials (i.e. forest preserves, state parks, etc.). Hose off excess dirt and debris than treat with a uniformly heavy spraying of Provent-a-Mite. Leave treated branches out of cages for several hours to a day or more.

Provent-a-Mite is an acaricide (kills mites and ticks), but will kill other invertebrates. So, obviously you don't want to use in cages that will house invertebrates and you don't want to put it into cages with insectivorous lizards or other animals for at least two weeks. The two week time frame gives enough time for the chemical to kill any hitch-hikers and enough time for it to degrade to a harmless level which the product is designed to do.

You can get Provent-a-Mite from www.pro-products.com or possibly searching other herp supplies dealers. It's around $20 a can which sounds expensive but then again you're talking about the only USDA approved chemical for treating mites and ticks on reptiles. You can also feel free to contact the company president Bob Pound. He's always been very helpful to those with questions.
-----
Matt Campbell
Animal Keeper, Small Mammal/Reptile House
Lincoln Park Zoo Chicago, Illinois

Assistant Curator
Wildlife Discovery Center at Elawa Farm
Lake Forest, Illinois