Aspen? - Page 2

trailblazer295 · 02-10-16, 10:01 PM

I started using shredded aspen for my BP but even misting twice a day in a PVC cage couldn't keep humidity up so after a few weeks switched to compressed cocohusks which worked fine until spring hit and warmer and more humid weather meant I couldn't drop the humidity no matter what I did and ended up with mold. So now use cypress mulch for higher humidity snakes like my boa and BP, adds redoing a 48x24x16 and a 24x24x12 every 4-6 weeks but I prefer keeping everything clean and sanitized and helps with moisture to. My kingsnake is on sanichips, nice contrast dark snake on light substrate, more desert look but like others have mentioned spot cleaning is easy and not needing to maintain higher then ambient humidity it's a non issue.

Herpo · 02-10-16, 10:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by serpentgirl123

I didn't mean to make you paranoid. I am so sorry about that

. I hear my snakes breathe all the time (big and small)--I have carpets, boas, hognoses, and kingsnakes.

I have had most of them for a while, so I know their "normal" behavior and breathing sounds (some are louder, some you have to put right near your ear--though they might nip you lol).

What was going on when they inhaled the dust from the substrate, was not normal for them. I could tell they were struggling to breathe--like I would be if I there was a lot of dust in the air. That struggling was virtually eliminated within a few days of putting them back on paper towels/newspaper.

Lol, its OK. I'd been meaning to ask anyway, but never got around to it. Good to know it isn't RI.

Lefitte · 02-11-16, 02:51 AM

I use a Sanichips type product and I love it. There's little to no smell [I'm really sensitive to smells because of allergies] and it clumps like a litter so it's easy to clean up. I actually just sift through it with my hands and find the poos to clean out. It's good for burrowing if you put enough in there and doesn't add to humidity which is good for my king. But I haven't tried anything else then newspaper and papertowels for her and moss for my boa so I can't compare it to much. It's lasts a really long time.

sirtalis · 02-11-16, 09:21 AM

One of my friends has used aspen for years... The snakes he keeps are generally low humidity though...

**Minkness** · 02-11-16, 11:49 AM

I really wish they had a 'dark' sanichips option. I love it for my rough scale boas and the hognoses and the kingsnake, but I'm not super fond of the light color, so I will be playing with some new substrates another time. I may offer my rough scales dry ecoearth as a burrowing substrate because that stuff also seems to clump with poo and urate, just harder to spot because it's dark.

I have also considered the play sand for the boas because I know it comes in different colors, and the crazy in me would love to do red or orange lol. Honestly I'll probably never do that though due to the issues if hygene connected to most sand substrates.

So much to learn and so much available!

pet_snake_78 · 02-11-16, 07:48 PM

High humidity species I use cypress, low humidity I use aspen, most in quarantine I use newspaper. I also use paper for an assortment of snakes in my collection. I try to use whatever I feel is best for the individual snakes but one of the three has generally worked for me.

Nightflight99 · 02-11-16, 10:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pet_snake_78

High humidity species I use cypress, low humidity I use aspen, most in quarantine I use newspaper. I also use paper for an assortment of snakes in my collection. I try to use whatever I feel is best for the individual snakes but one of the three has generally worked for me.

This. In addition to these, I also use crushed walnut shells for a few select species, and some of my enclosures receive orchid moss mixed with cypress mulch.

Jim Smith · 02-12-16, 07:48 AM

Minkness, I wouldn't use traditional wood dyes because of the chemicals, but you might try soaking the SaniChips in very strong black tea to see if it will dye them. I've used tea to dye wood in the past and it seemed to work okay. Just a thought.

**Minkness** · 02-12-16, 08:55 AM

Jim, not a bad idea, but I would think that the sanichips would loose their clumping ability if I soaked them. Also, the process of dyeing them then drying them out wouldn't be worth it to me as I already have limited home time. XD