So this happened

[Dxw425]

Thats funny because i actually like the smell of the aspen better. To me it doesnt hold the poo/pee smell once you spot clean it. It's easy to see where to spot clean and it seems to soak it up better than Reptichips. Problem i ran into with Reptichips is it smelled like a swamp after a couple weeks and for a retic, it was made even worse by the amount of pee. I couldnt really see exactly where to spot clean unless it had urate in it and being the Reptichips were bigger chunks, the liquid would easily seep down to the cage floor and spread. The aspen seems to soak it up quicker with very little spread so i just use my hand like a crane and scoop up the wet/discolored spot and its good. No more smell.

Cypress works well to but from i have been told, once cypress dries out, it is next to impossible to get it to reabsorb water so you cant let it ever dry completely out. And as for aspen molding like so many people say, i have yet to see it happen and i mist the aspen once a week. I think it depends on the cage. I dont have issues with humidity with aspen as long as i mist it once a week. In fact it's easier to control for me than Reptichips as that stuff would peg the humidity and create so much, i had water on the sides and roof of the cage for days. Then it would dry out and be too dry. And then trying to find poops in it was a chore as my snakes always buried their poops in the stuff or it just sank down between the pieces.

Reptichips still is good stuff but for me, it was a lot more work to deal with than aspen and with either i didnt have a low humidity issue which is why i went back to aspen. Easier for me to deal with plus i dont have to prep it to use it, just throw it in the cages, mist it down initially and im good to go.

Youve got some great points there. I have had some aspen mold, but its always been in my bloods enclosure because he's notorious for dumping his water, but even then i check it so often id never noticed more than a small speckling of mold just starting up.And your point about the reptichips not soaking up pee as well really makes me want to stick to aspen haha. I dont have a great sense of smell so to me aspen itself doesnt smell like anything, and smells strange when its wet/peed on. I was thinking that with reptichips maybe pee smell wouldnt be there but then again if im trying to clean maybe thats not a good thing. I do like how easy it is to spot clean the aspen. So many choices to make haha

[Godzilla78]

I agree Sauzo, they seem to be the most interesting species in behavior as well as appearance. I admit I would be a bit fearful at first of their ferocity, but I'm sure I would learn to handle them quickly.

[Sauzo]

Youve got some great points there. I have had some aspen mold, but its always been in my bloods enclosure because he's notorious for dumping his water, but even then i check it so often id never noticed more than a small speckling of mold just starting up.And your point about the reptichips not soaking up pee as well really makes me want to stick to aspen haha. I dont have a great sense of smell so to me aspen itself doesnt smell like anything, and smells strange when its wet/peed on. I was thinking that with reptichips maybe pee smell wouldnt be there but then again if im trying to clean maybe thats not a good thing. I do like how easy it is to spot clean the aspen. So many choices to make haha

Yeah you can definitely smell a difference when they pee or poop on aspen which I like as well as it lets me know without even looking. Like I said, the Reptichips just smelled like a swamp to me after a couple week. Order a bag and try it yourself and see if you like it. I know Jacob and Steve like the stuff for their retics. Just wasn't for me really.

And as for aspen molding, it will mold if you have any waste on it. So if you do miss a spot while spot cleaning and then it gets soaked like a water bowl dumped, it can/will mold.

I've personally tried Eco Earth, Reptichips, Plantit/Growit coco husk, and aspen and I still love aspen and have used to for years with no issues.

[Sauzo]

I agree Sauzo, they seem to be the most interesting species in behavior as well as appearance. I admit I would be a bit fearful at first of their ferocity, but I'm sure I would learn to handle them quickly.

I don't think I would call them ferocious lol. It seems if you are nervous, the snake is nervous. I know with Caesar when I got him, I was worried about getting bit and it showed with him too as he was kind of cautious when I got near him. He never tried to bite though. Now its been over a year and I just reach in and pet him and then move him if needed and in the evenings, he comes right out and right up to me with no hesitation and climbs on my arm or sits his head on my arm or under my arm while I pet him. He doesn't really like to be carried around though. He loves to sit next to me or climb out of his cage and play all over the floor and stuff but like I said, he not like my big boas who seem to like to sit on me.

[Zincubus]

Yeah , the orchid bark has a little dust at the start but I sieve all that out before using. It's known as orchid bark over here in the UK but I think it's called Reptibark in the states !?!?

All mine are brightly coloured display snakes so need the dark background to set their colours off . I have one Mexican Black Kingskake who's the opposite and he's on light coloured Beech chippings

I abhor Aspen with a vengeance as it looks so fake , it drains all the colour away ( not literally lol) and it somehow gets all over the house and carpets which drive my wife bonkers


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[Sauzo]

Yeah , the orchid bark has a little dust at the start but I sieve all that out before using. It's known as orchid bark over here in the UK but I think it's called Reptibark in the states !?!?

All mine are brightly coloured display snakes so need the dark background to set their colours off . I have one Mexican Black Kingskake who's the opposite and he's on light coloured Beech chippings

I abhor Aspen with a vengeance as it looks so fake , it drains all the colour away ( not literally lol) and it somehow gets all over the house and carpets which drive my wife bonkers


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I agree, aspen is not the best stuff to show off light colored snakes but for me, bottom line is the welfare of the animal first and foremost. And for me, aspen is much easier to keep clean and sanitary. It does get everywhere but so does ReptiChips. And aspen is much easier to vacuum up than giant chunks of Reptichips lol.

Plus i also watch my snakes on different stuff and with the ReptChips, they would all push it aside and lay on the cage floor. They also didnt seem to want to move around much. When i put them back on aspen, you could clearly see they enjoyed it more. They would burrow, climb all over and finally when bed time came, they would curl up on top of it and sleep in their hides. The babies showed the most enjoyment as they spent hours digging around and poking their heads out to look around and then dig around some more lol.

Orchid bark here is called orchid bark too. Maybe the pet shop has a different name for it. I havent checked the pet shops but i know hardware stores have/had orchid bark for sale.

But i think the OP should order a brick of the RpetiChips and try it for a month and see how they like it. Everyone has a preference for substrate as well as the snakes. Try different stuff and see how you and your snakes like it. Then when you find the perfect median for you and the snakes, there you go

[Zincubus]

I agree, aspen is not the best stuff to show off light colored snakes but for me, bottom line is the welfare of the animal first and foremost. And for me, aspen is much easier to keep clean and sanitary. It does get everywhere but so does ReptiChips. And aspen is much easier to vacuum up than giant chunks of Reptichips lol.

Plus i also watch my snakes on different stuff and with the ReptChips, they would all push it aside and lay on the cage floor. They also didnt seem to want to move around much. When i put them back on aspen, you could clearly see they enjoyed it more. They would burrow, climb all over and finally when bed time came, they would curl up on top of it and sleep in their hides. The babies showed the most enjoyment as they spent hours digging around and poking their heads out to look around and then dig around some more lol.

Orchid bark here is called orchid bark too. Maybe the pet shop has a different name for it. I havent checked the pet shops but i know hardware stores have/had orchid bark for sale.

But i think the OP should order a brick of the RpetiChips and try it for a month and see how they like it. Everyone has a preference for substrate as well as the snakes. Try different stuff and see how you and your snakes like it. Then when you find the perfect median for you and the snakes, there you go

Sounds like a plan

Although .... Aspen used to get mouldy and smelly rather quick for my liking and Retics can get messy on occasion


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[meshuga]

call him tempest. he has the colors of nature. looks like a thunderstorm

[hilabeans]

Beautiful snake! If you are looking for a 'tough' name and in keeping with your movie tough-guy theme, how about Maximus? A nice Gladiator reference.

[Dxw425]

Beautiful snake! If you are looking for a 'tough' name and in keeping with your movie tough-guy theme, how about Maximus? A nice Gladiator reference.

It had come across my mind, i do love that movie, but it's too similar to my brothers name haha