Substrate question

[Madscrills]

So I'm in the process of painstakingly and meticulously planning to get my very first snake. If I really really like them like I'm pretty sure I will then I plan to try my hand and hobby breeding on the small scale at first to see how I do. That being said I've obviously looked into how I would feed them. Thus how I find myself in the rat breeding thread here. But I digress, my main question for you all would be this. I've read conflicting opinions on whether it is safe or not to use kiln dried pine chips as rat substrate. Obviously using pine or cedar as a substrate for your snakes is a big no no as the oils can be toxic. Also there are those who would say that kiln drying doesn't remove enough of the oils from the pine chips so just go ahead and steer clear.... Well that got me thinking. The company I work for shreds a lot of paper and just throws it out. Would it be viable to just take it off their hands and use that as substrate for the rats? On that note could the same shredded paper be just as good for snakes as well? If so, I think I've found a way to cut my cost on bedding significantly. Though I'm not sure of the caveats of using paper with ink printed on it. I don't imagine it'd be too detrimental to either animals. It would be a mixture of regular inkjet printer ink and toner from laserjets, possibly even MICR toner from check printers.

Thoughts?

[satomi325]

You can definitely use paper substrate for both snakes and rats. However, paper is rubbish at odor control. So if that doesn't bother you, it's fine to use.
Many people use newspaper or paper towel substrate for their snakes with no issue. The ink shouldn't be a problem other than possibly staining your lighter colored snakes.

[Madscrills]

Great to know, at the very least it's an option. I would more than likely keep the rats in my garage and the snakes in the house. So perhaps I'd rethink using it as substrate for the snakes if I want some sort of odor control. Also I'd rather not stain my snakes. Though the stain should come off in a shed correct?

What would be your recommendation for the most cost effective substrate that does well at odor control. I get the feeling there won't be a miracle substrate I can find on the cheap. It seems that it's either one special one for odor, another super cheap crappy one, or another special type that does well with humidity. But any information would be handy. Thanks a lot Nikki.

[Neal]

Many people use Aspen as it works better at controlling odor than paper towels. You can generally get a gigantic bag for $15-20. Every substrate is going to have a downfall though. I personally use Aspen for my snakes as do two large breeders and a smaller breeder as well.

The big bag of aspen:

[Awaiting Abyss]

Be careful of paper because some inks are toxic to small animals.

Kiln dried pine is fine to use. Regular pine is not. The kiln drying process removes the oils. Kiln dried pine is the only bedding I use for my critters.

[Rhasputin]

i use kiln dried pine from tractor supple, $5 for a 40lb bag. My mice are kept in a warm room, and i don't remember the last time I had one with a URI.

[Skiploder]

Has someone here found a commercial pine bedding that is not dried?

Just asking................

[Expensive hobby]

+1 on kiln dried pine. Cheap, works great, and safe.


I like my Dubstep to go Wop Wop Wop Wop

[Awaiting Abyss]

Has someone here found a commercial pine bedding that is not dried?

Just asking................

Yep.

[Skiploder]

Yep.

Awesome - please link to product, or at least name it.