• Posted 12/19/2024.
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    I am still waiting on my developer to finish up on the Classifieds Control Panel so I can use it to encourage members into becoming paying members. Google Adsense has become a real burden on the viewing of this site, but honestly it is the ONLY source of income now that keeps it afloat. I tried offering disabling the ads being viewed by paying members, but apparently that is not enough incentive. Quite frankly, Google Adsense has dropped down to where it barely brings in enough daily to match even a single paid member per day. But it still gets the bills paid. But at what cost?

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    =====================
    Some people have indicated that finding the method to contribute is rather difficult. And I have to admit, that it is not all that obvious. So to help, here is a thread to help as a quide. How to become a contributing member of FaunaClassifieds.

    And for the record, I will be shutting down the Google Adsense ads on January 1, 2025.
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Bedding Query

Skunky

Skunky

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Hey Folks, new to the forum!!

I'm in the process of getting myself a BP after ages of procrastination. Figuring out my cage setup and just have a question regarding the bedding. I'm looking to use either Aspen or Cypress (think I read you can pick that up from Walmart for cheap!) and want to know do I need to treat that in any way..ie, bake it/bleach it?

Thanks alot, and BTW great forum!
 
I'm not postive but I think Cedar is a very bad choice due to toxic oils.

As far as treating it, not needed.

Good luck with your new pet.
 
Cedar might kill your snake (it's used for moths). Aspen or cypress both are fine. I wouldn't treat it though.

Regards.
 
I use newspaper and occasionally paper towels (white) but if I where to choose between cypress or aspen, I'd go with aspen because it looks cleaner.
But I'd stay away from pine and cedar.
Mike Derks
 
Newspaper and paper towels are super easy, especially for small snakes. The only drawback is that the option of spot cleaning is eliminated. Cypress mulch is cheap, gives a natural feel to the setup, holds humidity well, and allows for spot cleaning. Unfortunately, it is not easy to tell that the snake has urinated until you notice the odor; and when it is time for a full change, cleanup is a pain. Aspen is also relatively cheap, comes compressed (a package goes further than you might expect), and allows for spot cleaning. Full changes are relatively easy. IMO, however, it is not the best for species requiring higher humidity (but BPs do well in it, esp when given a humid hide or soaked near ecdysis). There are several other options, including SaniChips and CareFresh, that you might want to look into as well. Hope this was of help
 
Exactly what Harald said about cypress. I use that in my racks and it is great.

I would stay away from carefresh. I thought it was good until I tried it. Impossible to hold humidity with it and it drys out the snake. My BP's experienced bad sheds while using it.
 
I've used cypress for years with most of my boas and pythons. It's an excellent substrate, and particularly good for providing extra humidity.
I haven't used aspen in the past because I haven't been able to get it in bulk around here. I recently found it at Tractor Supply though and picked up a couple of bales.
Aspen has it's benefits, most of which have already been mentioned. I've switched a couple of my ball python racks over to it lately just to see how I like it since I haven't been able to use it on a larger scale in the past.
I'm worried about increased shedding problems though, it does seem to dry out the snakes a bit and I normally have increased probs with the balls in that area during the winter anyway.

If I could only use one or the other though I'd go with the cypress. It works well with any of the boids and is fairly inexpensive at Lowe's. I prefer the look of cypress myself in my display type cages. The darker medium looks more naturalistic and blends better with cage furnishings.
 
Alright, so it seems either Aspen or Cypress will do fine..I'll see what's readily available in my pet stores. Another Q..how deep does one usually need to pile the bedding up? A few (2-4) inches?

Lastly, when a snake poops or passes urates, am I correct in saying I'd only need to clean out the dirty bedding part...whereas an overall bedding cleanout would be required every two-three months?
 
You won't find cypress at a pet store and the only aspen you're likely to find are the small (i.e. expensive) bags.
Some of the larger chains might carry bulk aspen in bales, but you might have to go to a feed store. I get mine at Tractor Supply.
As for the cypress you'll need to hit Lowe's or Home Depot in the garden section.

You can spot clean both substrates when the snake defecates. I don't know about going 3 months between changes though. I usually change it all out monthly.
Even though you're spot cleaning, you're still not getting it all, just the larger part of it. Bacteria and such will still grow, especially if you're misting the cage to raise humidity, and you don't want to let that go too long.
 
I agree with Clay. Rather than going by a fixed schedule I do it as the need arises. It sometimes might be a month, sometimes even less. A couple of inches in depth should be plenty.

Regards.
 
I know cypress is good for keeping the humidity up..which is a good thing since I have an open-top cage. Does that not cause problems with regards to mold/fungus/bacteria though if you're misting regularly?
 
Excessive moisture is not good either. If you mist ligthly once a day and have an open top you shouln't have any problems.

Regards,
 
So dumb Q: what do you define as misting lightly? A few sprays, or do you want everything glistening?
 
Spray the surface (don't soak), as long as your top is open it will evaporate relatively fast.
 
cypress holds moisture fairly well, but in an aquarium (with a screen top and heat lamp) it will still dry out relatively quickly. Exactly how quickly will depend on a number of factors (moisture content of the mulch, ambient temp/humidity, surface area, amt of exposure to room air, surface temp under heat lamp, etc). Not being there with you, we can't tell you how much to mist - you'll have to experiment. Keep in mind that your ball python has only moderate humidity requirements - too wet will cause more problems than too dry - so when in doubt, err on the dry side

Also, with respect to cage cleaning, (as I said before) the problem with mulch is that you may not realize the extent of the soiling. sure, feces and urates can be seen...but urine will just soak into the mulch. There is no telling when a snake will urinate; or, in this case, when it has urinated. I use mulch on very few snakes, and have just accepted that the sniff test is one of my obligations (they are in sterilite boxes or PVC cages, so the odor can become quite pronounced). Even so, I agree that you will probably not make it more than a month or so between full cleanings
 
No, I don't. Mine are housed in Rubbermaid tubs in melamine racks, no need for a lot of additional moisture.
 
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