Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi All,

I am putting the finishing touches to my fake rock wall-it is about 4ft high with ledges and basking spots formed out of chicken wire covered in newspaper soaked in pva glue. I have filled the back of the gaps with expanding "cavity filler" foam that i intend to coat in pva glue as well to avoid them coming into contact with it although all the research i have done on the stuff online seems to agree that it is safe. It will be coated with tile grout on the front and a coat of textured "granite" paint to give it a good natural looking finish.

My intention was to allow the chucks access to a carved cave system that i will cut into the back of the foam. As it has come together I have decided that it would be futile to try and restrict them to certain areas because they will inevitably find their way into the whole back area of the wall! I am now struggling to decide whether this is a safe idea as I do not want them to get stuck anywhere. I would add holes at the base of the rock for "emergency exits of they can't get out where they went in. The wall will be detachable from the back of the vivarium in case of any problems.

I am troubled because I really want this wall to be enjoyed by the animals as much as it will look great in the viv. They are constantly climbing so I think they will really enjoy the ledges but its the access to the back that is troubling me.

-Does anyone have any thoughts/ideas about this idea?

If you think that this is a bad idea then my backup option is to block up the “cave” openings and use some sort of substrate that will allow them to dig.

-Does anyone know of any cheap substrates/mixes that would allow them to do this and has anyone tried this with chuckies/do they actually dig tunnels?

Thanks for reading!

Ben

to make caves in the foam you could just spray the foam around baloons. when the foam fries you just make a hole and pop the baloons, then you have tounded caves which are more comfy to sensitive belly scales of chuckies.
I´m not too fond of using foam for backgrounds since crickets and superworms can dig tunnels through the stuff and I dun know how healthy it is for lizards to feed n crickets which are gutloaded on synthethic foam. also if the clickets kide in the back wall and start singing it may be really annoying night time. That said, crix can hide in crooks and crannies to hold night time concerts even if the background is free from foam..
I find desert lizards dig in to find moisture, otherwise they often hide in cracks or up in the trees, and in that respect foamy hides don´t do them much good unless you water the foam which doesn´t hold moisture well in any case and a moist foam may motivate the lizards to dig, which will eventually destroy your background from the inside out and increase the risk of your chuckies ingesting the foam. That said, I dun think foam in small quantities is dangerous but crickets and roaches or normal dirt still is better and healthier for them.

If you are not concerned with the weight of your terra, glue flat rocks at an angle to the back wall and fill the crevices behind with sand or dirt so that your lizards can spend some muscle to dig in and so that you can add moisture content to the hides. It may not be as aesthetical as a beautifully painted wall, but may prove to be more functional, except when you need to collect the animals and they insist on hiding in the tightest crack where you can´t reach them.
hope you find value in these thoughts

regards
obeligz

Hey,
I did a fake rock wall a while ago and posted some stuff on the forum about it. I used some different materials, but maybe it will help you get some ideas. It has held up this entire time and the lizards have been pretty happy with it. This rock wall has kept their claws at a good length and they use all sides of it.
Here are some pics: forums.kingsnake.com/view.php?id=1461419,1461419
Here is the material list: forums.kingsnake.com/view.php?id=1461419,1461639

Hopefully this helps some. Good luck! It is a rewarding project when the time is taken to do something like this for your lizard pals.

- Matt
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0.0.3 Desert Iguanas(Dipsosaurus dorsalis)
1.1.0 Tucson Banded Geckos(Coleonyx variegatus bogerti)
1.0.0 California Alligator Lizards(Elgaria multicarinata multicarinata)
0.0.2 Pacific Tree Frog(Hyla regilla)