Try microwave (if the rocks are small enough). Especially rocks containing iron - BIG BANG and the sparks are spectacular too.
Using tree branches in your python enclosures
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Try microwave (if the rocks are small enough). Especially rocks containing iron - BIG BANG and the sparks are spectacular too.
P
Pythoninfinite
Guest
Better they explode in the oven than in your enclosure... the dangerous exploding rock syndrome.. there's nothing worse...
J.
J.
junglecarpet
Well-Known Member
I agree with you 100% on this... well said
slim6y
Almost Legendary
I never thought about that - and it could be worse if they followed my instructions and left a residue of methylated spirits on it. Exploding fireball of molten granite... Could be dangerous. Best you don't use rocks at all.
I personally don't use rocks in my enclosure but not because of the exploding issue but because one of my snakes is particularly aggressive. I already have to feed her using plastic, blunted cutlery - imagine if she had rocks in her enclosure.
AUSHERP
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HA HA. all i said was its a good idea to pour 1 kettle over a branch not drop it in a volcano!!!! i love how everyone just picks one guy to support no matter what he says even if they don't believe it. or one guy to condemn. all i said was its better safe than sorry. and you cant set the rules now about which are suitable ie. a nice hardwood branch because a few posts ago and all the sarcasm on the thread implies that i can stick a branch in my enclosure NO MATTER WHAT!
slim6y
Almost Legendary
Can I ask - do you think it would be 'effective' to pour just one jug of boiling water over a log to effectively kill or remove potential parasites?
The reason I ask is because the heat provided by the water would for sure be enough to kill the animals, but... The insulating effect of the wood might be contrary if the said parasites etc were burrowed in the wood or were below the bark layer.
In reality (without reading your previous posts in this thread) you make a good comment on 'is it worth the risk?' - I'd agree... Is it? But by that very meaning, one jug might just not be enough.
Then you may as well have gone the whole hog anyway...
I'm really not terribly certain that we can ever be 100% sure (hence my test on the least favoured snake comment) - but the reality is (and pointed out by many) the risk is far lower than the bother if using decent wood.
Personally, I've often adopted the better to be safe than sorry attitude... But of recent times, I'm doubting the validity of some.
As for the comment on 'Snakes are crawling all over this stuff all the time....'
That doesn't wash!
In a small enclosure, in an environment considered sterile (compared to the outside world), even the smallest introduction can cause troubles for a snake (or animal) not previously exposed to said pest.
I recall reading a great comment (I forget exactly how it goes):
Snakes get run over in the wild, but I'm not about to drive my car through their enclosure.
The reason I ask is because the heat provided by the water would for sure be enough to kill the animals, but... The insulating effect of the wood might be contrary if the said parasites etc were burrowed in the wood or were below the bark layer.
In reality (without reading your previous posts in this thread) you make a good comment on 'is it worth the risk?' - I'd agree... Is it? But by that very meaning, one jug might just not be enough.
Then you may as well have gone the whole hog anyway...
I'm really not terribly certain that we can ever be 100% sure (hence my test on the least favoured snake comment) - but the reality is (and pointed out by many) the risk is far lower than the bother if using decent wood.
Personally, I've often adopted the better to be safe than sorry attitude... But of recent times, I'm doubting the validity of some.
As for the comment on 'Snakes are crawling all over this stuff all the time....'
That doesn't wash!
In a small enclosure, in an environment considered sterile (compared to the outside world), even the smallest introduction can cause troubles for a snake (or animal) not previously exposed to said pest.
I recall reading a great comment (I forget exactly how it goes):
Snakes get run over in the wild, but I'm not about to drive my car through their enclosure.
P
Pythoninfinite
Guest
One thing that people overlook is that when a snake occupies an enclosure for any length of time, the furnishings become far more contaminated than anything fresh taken from the bush or off a tree. Most manufacturers of cold-sterilising comounds (F10, VirkonS etc) will state that sterilising wood is rarely possible. Once a snake has spent a few weeks crawling through its own waste and over the same logs/branches again & again, the enclosure is far more pathogenic than the bush... In the wild a snake would almost never come upon it's own crap, but snakes that live for long periods in roof spaces can be surrounded by crap & shed skins.
I still can't find out what organisms we're trying to keep out of our enclosures if we use fresh branches/logs...
I still can't find out what organisms we're trying to keep out of our enclosures if we use fresh branches/logs...
PhilK
Very Well-Known Member
Grapes a bit sour? I am not "picking one guy to support no matter what" nor am I condemning anyone. Everyone in this thread gave their personal views - most of which are that they don't bother doing anything with branches from the bush. If you don't agree with that and would prefer to pour boiling water over your branches that is fine, but don't get upset at us not agreeing with you.
The original poster of this thread has certainly got a good cross section of answers out of it, so I think we all did well before the jokes started.
slim6y
Almost Legendary
What jokes?:shock:
May I throw in my last 2 bob worth of opinion?
There was a question about branches from native or other trees in relation to toxicity. I am not a botanist but would say, since snakes don't eat or lick the branches, there is little chance of intoxication. I don't think there are any natural branches that would be toxic to touch such as treated timber fence palings, etc..
Bark or no bark? I quite like the look of bark and my snakes don't mind the texture of it. To make it long lasting, I paint the surface with aquadhere glue. This not only seals the bark but also prevents it from cracking and pealing.
Probably the best branches come from clear-water, sandy-bottom creeks in form of driftwood. They may well be occupied by a swag of aquatic invertebrates but once the wood dries out, they dry out and die with it. You can be certain (if it's of any concern) there won't be any mites, ticks or fungi on it.
Another safe product are branches cut from living trees. I prefer quava trees because they are hard, nicely formed and they are regarded as weed up here. It's important to let fresh branches dry out over several weeks because some timber (e.g. lianas) contain sap and resin that ooze out of the cut ends over time. The branches also shrink in length.
Lastly, I would be very careful about branches bought from pet shops. There, they may have been exposed to biological contaminants from the animals and that is one instance where I would do all of the above suggested treatments.
Cheers
M
There was a question about branches from native or other trees in relation to toxicity. I am not a botanist but would say, since snakes don't eat or lick the branches, there is little chance of intoxication. I don't think there are any natural branches that would be toxic to touch such as treated timber fence palings, etc..
Bark or no bark? I quite like the look of bark and my snakes don't mind the texture of it. To make it long lasting, I paint the surface with aquadhere glue. This not only seals the bark but also prevents it from cracking and pealing.
Probably the best branches come from clear-water, sandy-bottom creeks in form of driftwood. They may well be occupied by a swag of aquatic invertebrates but once the wood dries out, they dry out and die with it. You can be certain (if it's of any concern) there won't be any mites, ticks or fungi on it.
Another safe product are branches cut from living trees. I prefer quava trees because they are hard, nicely formed and they are regarded as weed up here. It's important to let fresh branches dry out over several weeks because some timber (e.g. lianas) contain sap and resin that ooze out of the cut ends over time. The branches also shrink in length.
Lastly, I would be very careful about branches bought from pet shops. There, they may have been exposed to biological contaminants from the animals and that is one instance where I would do all of the above suggested treatments.
Cheers
M
I dont know much about mites, have never even seen a reptile mite in anything but pictures but i thought they were quite capable of surviving for a resonable amount of time without a host, hence why many have trouble getting them out of their collections.
I agree that many are way over the top with sterilizing stuff, but many branches can have all sort of things in them from ants to reptiles. I dont really think its over the top to wash a branch under hot water or soak it in water, especially if it has hollows gaps under bark etc. If something is clean and solid then it goes straight in the enclosure.
Cris, each to their own, I would never say don't do this or that.
I worked in a Zoo for 6 years where "effective display" was no. 1 priority. Every time I went camping on my days off, I would bring back bags and boxes full of leaf litter, cassuarina needles, sheets of bark, moss, lichen, rocks, logs and whatever I thought would look nice and appropriate. It went straight into the cages and I remember seeing native cockroaches, amphipods, spiders, even small centipedes crawling amongst the material. They perished within a day or two and I can say, we have never, ever had any problems.
I worked in a Zoo for 6 years where "effective display" was no. 1 priority. Every time I went camping on my days off, I would bring back bags and boxes full of leaf litter, cassuarina needles, sheets of bark, moss, lichen, rocks, logs and whatever I thought would look nice and appropriate. It went straight into the cages and I remember seeing native cockroaches, amphipods, spiders, even small centipedes crawling amongst the material. They perished within a day or two and I can say, we have never, ever had any problems.
Im with you Waterrat, i also use drift wood collected from a local beach.
I usually leave the collected pieces to dry out for a couple of weeks before use.During which time anything that was living in the logs that ive brought home is generally eaten by ants leaving the wood perfect for putting straight into the enclosure.
I usually leave the collected pieces to dry out for a couple of weeks before use.During which time anything that was living in the logs that ive brought home is generally eaten by ants leaving the wood perfect for putting straight into the enclosure.
PhilK
Very Well-Known Member
Hmm.. perhaps that is the case with reptilian mites. I was more basing my argument off what we learned in parasitology last year, and come to think of it maybe it was LICE that can't survive off their hosts... That'll teach me to type without thinking.
Ahhh, this is different. Driftwood collected on the beaches is saturated with salt and needs to be thoroughly washed / soaked in freshwater. Salt can do horrible things to snake scales and skin. For the same reason one should never use beach sand for substrate in a reptile enclosure.
Southside Morelia
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Please everyone look at my home made trees...they deserve more than 1 compliment...lol
JAS101
Very Well-Known Member
i have had a look , looks pretty good .
Southside Morelia
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Thanks M & Zoo, LOL you guys are the greatest!!! Makes me feel so much better after a hard day in the office and a wife that whips me to near death each night and kids that don't appreciate my 14Hr work days to pay for their Wii's and PS 3's and Foxtel etc and snakes that bite me when I try to kiss them after feeding the rats...
:lol:I love APS friends...
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