wood-branches

This may have been talked about before, but I'd like to know what are the safest branches of wood I can use. I want to decorate tanks for boas and balls. In northeast Indiana I have lots of pine, maple, pussiwillow to choose from. Also what kind of disinfectant do you recommend? &nbsp; <img src="http://www.faunaclassifieds.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=''>

Thanks, &nbsp;Jerry Dorgan

gig

I cannot recommend what species of tree to use branches from, but if you use any branches, first place them in an oven at about 150 degrees Fahrenheit (no higher, set at low) for about 1 - 1.5 hours. This will kill off any nasty bugs that may be in the wood.

As for a disinfectant - do you mean for the branches? If so, do what I said to kill any bugs, other wise wash them off every now and then (especially if soiled) with a weak detergent (one you have used in your snake tanks before safely) and warm water. Never use harsh chemicals on wood as they can soak into the wood and cause problems for the snakes later. If you mean a disinfectant for the tanks, I use a weak detergent (regular Dawn dish washing detergent), I rarely use a water/bleach mixture to disinfect a tank - usually only if changing which snakes are in a tank, so the new does not catch anything from the old.

By the way, make sure whatever branches you use are not from any poisonous trees, and don't put any toxic or poisonous branches into the oven. As far as disinfecting in the oven pine and maple should be ok by method I described, but remember they may leak a lot of sap be wary of a fire hazard and a mess. No higher temps than 150 is important.