Substrate

[Lankyrob]

Hope this is in the right place - am not totally sure.

As we are looking to build our collection of snakes with various breeds is there a substrate that is good/ideal for all snakes or is it best to get specific ones for each breed?

The substrate we have for the young corns (came with the set up) is quite dark and large pieces which i dont particularly like whereas the substrate that arrived with our recently adopted adult corn is pretty small pieces and a nice light colour which seems to show off the snake better.

Any views and opinions greatfully accepted!!

[infernalis]

As long as the substrate is safe for the animals, the rest is personal choice.

I buy bulk so most of my cages have the same thing in them.


But I have found that dark substrates look keen with lighter coloured snakes like albinos, and lighter substrates look better with darker snakes, sets a visual contrast.

[shaunyboy]

the light stuff sounds like beech chippings.its cool for your corn as far as i know mate.i didnt like it for adult carpets as i felt that with their wieght trailing over them they might get small cuts as it was quite sharp.

the dark stuff may be orchard bark if i'm remembering correctly.its been that long since i switched to news paper as it was more convenient at feeding time.i used to use aspen which looked oh so natural and nice.but i had to take all my snakes out to feed as it was always getting stuck to the food items.

i hate the look of news paper but its so much more practical for me.it would take me way too long to take all mine out for a feed.then theres the danger of getting tagged putting them back in after i had handled food.
cheers shaun

[Lankyrob]

Hmm Aspen seems to come up a lot - is it good for all snakes? Will it hold humidity etc if required??

[infernalis]

Aspen seems to work well for most snakes, however it will mold up if allowed to become too damp. Clumpy blue/green aspen is not attractive nor healthy for the snake.

[Lankyrob]

RIght then so looking at a "dry" substrate (Prob Aspen) and when the time comes getting something more suitable for humidity requirements.

[never25]

i have found that cypress mulch works best for humid cages and aspen for the dry stuff

[shaunyboy]

my tanks are all dry mate i do not need to mist,etc for my carpets.i can vouch for aspen in tanks like mine.it does look very nice and natural.
cheers shaun