what do you think of coconut-fiber substrate?

I plan on using coco fiber for a substrate, and never have. My concern was the fiber getting caught in the snakes' nostrils and heat pits, but this seems a bit over-dramatized. Sand, I could see; that could definitely be abrasively shoved into the heat pits. But I just like the ides of having a substrate that provides the snake a bit of cushioning to sit on. I used to use newspapers for larger amounts of snakes in tubs/racks, and still would if I get more snakes and it's cost-effective, but for now I plan on going with the coco fiber. I got the loose fibers that are not in a brick and don't need to be watered to separate/loosen. It'll also help to hold humidity better when needed.

Your thoughts?

I used to use this type of substrate when I kept bp's. It does indeed help with the humidity. My only complaint was that it was hard to tell where the snakes urinated. You can usually smell the urine and routinely change the substrate due to the odor. I think coco fiber is an excellent substrate otherwise. Hope this helps.

I love the stuff for my Bearded Dragons and Leopard geckos in their humidity shelters and I also use it in my egg laying boxes for my colubrids but using it as a regular substrate for the ball pythons I think would be messy.

Thanks for the info :) I will use it for now.. if it gets too messy or cumbersome, I will switch later. :)

I have used it with my Kingsnakes and even mixed it in ReptiBark for a few BPs

It's messy. Sticks to the snakes when they are in and out of their water. Gets in the bowls.

I got away from it pretty quick.

I don't usually recommend it for snakes with heat sensing pits, as it can and often does get lodged in the pits and as 3skulls said, it tends to stick to the snakes' bodies as well.

It works extremely well for high humidity situations, such as for dart frogs, or for planting in vivariums, or as a substrate for digging and nesting (I love it for geckos). However, for most snakes, I don't recommend it. I personally much prefer cypress mulch or, at most, mixing it 50/50 with orchid bark or a similar type of wood chip bedding.

-Jen

I use it, although I'm pretty new and experimenting to see what works best for myself and my snake. My only real annoyance is that it always manages to find its way into the water dish. But it is great for humidity and spot cleaning.

Meh, too messy

Thanks for your replies, too. I just got the new girl home, and she is cruising around exploring her new digs. If it seems like she's getting it in her face too much, I will go from there; seems okay for now. She is in blue now, so I will use it to keep up the humidity, as well.

Does anyone still use humid hides? I remember reading about those awhile back, but I would think that you'd need one humid and one nonhumid hide in each temperature zone to offer choices, and that seems like a lot of hides..

I use coco coir it is messy but is crazy cheap and hold humidity well. It is also environmentally responsible unlike Cyprus mulch. I have never had a problem with it in heat pits but occasionally under scales but then wood chips are worse that way.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I do care about the environmental factor, too. This would put the coco fiber, and newspaper, as my top choices.. I do remember that when I used cypress in the past, it seemed to have stuck to the snakes, as well.. I did place a plate or plastic cutting mat into their cages at that time to put their prey items onto, to prevent them swallowing jagged pieces of wood. I will be feeding this one live, so I am not sure how viable that is.. I could always slide it underneath her whole she is in a coil around her prey by gently lifting up on the prey item with tongs.. I remember doing that in the past too..

Coco coir is often in fine particles the issue of most concern isn't eating it but having splinters in the mouth coco is unlikely to cause this.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Aspen's actually a pretty nice compromise on environmental responsibility, since aspens grow like weeds. Especially compared to cypress. And I think aspen is (a lot?) cheaper than coco fiber? But it's not great for humidity, and I'm in the desert. So I'm also interested to hear how the coco fiber works for people.

Aspen is a good enviromental option it is not great with humidity. I have never found aspen at less than coco coir. The last price I got 2.2 cubic feet of aspen was 14.75, I get 4.4 cubic feet of coco coir for 16$ from a green house. The biggest issue with this is where to keep it, this much does me almost a year.

I can get a huge bag of aspen for $20

I have washed, baked and reused ReptiBark (Fir Bark) a number of times.

I am probably going to ditch the coco fiber. I noticed a piece in my BP's mouth last night when I took her out of her tank. I figure that it is probably not harmful, but I don't see why to let it happen.. she did a yawning motion while I had her out, and I was able to get it out with my finger. It was small, about the size of a pencil shaving, but still not 100% happy that it happened :/

I had my Sand Boas in some for a while. I would find it caked around their mouth sometimes. :/

I've been using it for awihle now gonna switch to something else but not sure what yet. Its pretty messy and the other day my albino had a pretty nasty chunk of it stuck in his eye. Was taking him to the vet for something else but luckily he was able to remove it safely.

Yikes. Yeah, I will switch back.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by 3skulls

I can get a huge bag of aspen for $20

I have washed, baked and reused ReptiBark (Fir Bark) a number of times.

---

The biggest bag I can get of aspen is only 2.2 feet (Harlan) it is up to my hip standing beside it about 30 pounds I guess. 4.4 cubic feet fills my bath tub.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Brent857

I've been using it for awihle now gonna switch to something else but not sure what yet. Its pretty messy and the other day my albino had a pretty nasty chunk of it stuck in his eye. Was taking him to the vet for something else but luckily he was able to remove it safely.

---

I saw your post of the 'burn' I still don't see how a burn can be a 2-3 rd degree burn and skip a bit and burn underside and dorsal side. Did you ever find anything that was hot to the touch? (Dorsal burns are almost always contact burns)

Snakes have Brille or spectacle scales there is no lid or opening. There is no break in the scales around the eye or over it. (Eye caps come off with shed) to get something in the eye it would have to puncture the scale. I have never seen anything sharp and stiff enough to pierce a scale. Wood chips yes splinters but I have never got a splinter from coco husk.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I like to use coco fiber and then mix a bit of cypress mulch into the first inch. This helps keep the humidity and he doesn't try and dig when I mix in the cypress mulch. It also doesn't seem to stick to him as much as the coco fiber alone. I hardly ever find substrate in my BP's water bowl and he is constantly climbing in and out of it. Downsides are you can't find where the snake urinates but as long as you regularly spot clean and Change out your substrate i don't feel like it poses a problem. When my collection starts to grow I would like to keep BP's in racks on paper towels because then you can completely control sanitization issues. I only own one BP in a sort of display setup so I don't have all the sweet racks bells and whistles that a lot of the keeper on her have.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by kitedemon

I saw your post of the 'burn' I still don't see how a burn can be a 2-3 rd degree burn and skip a bit and burn underside and dorsal side. Did you ever find anything that was hot to the touch? (Dorsal burns are almost always contact burns)

Snakes have Brille or spectacle scales there is no lid or opening. There is no break in the scales around the eye or over it. (Eye caps come off with shed) to get something in the eye it would have to puncture the scale. I have never seen anything sharp and stiff enough to pierce a scale. Wood chips yes splinters but I have never got a splinter from coco husk.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

---

I really don't know but the vet confirmed it was a burn. I did have a female in with him while waiting on my rack will be here in a 2-3 days. But she is heavier so maybe them being coiled up together pushed his tail down just far enough, his belly is slightly pink and 1 or 2 burn scales but its mainly on his tail. Since the vet the burn looks much better some of the burnt scales fell off but it looks better.

I guess I am saying i don't feel very confident in your vet. They gave you antibiotic cream for a burn if it is a burn. Did you correct the place the burn came from? Flamazine is made for burns it is a silver sulfizdine cream why the vet would not give you a product made for burns is beyond me. Regular antibiotic creams make scales soften and fall off. (polysporn)

I was wondering how it'd get stuck into the snake's eye, too..

Anything other than paper towels is a no no for me.