Bio-Active Soil Guide/Tips

[jclaiborne]

A few people have been asking for a thread dedicated to Bio-Active Soil, different tip/tricks, etc. Bio-Active soil/substrate is common in Monitor and most other Lizard Communities, but not so hot for the majority of the snake world.

**Before I say anything else, I just want to have a disclaimer, nothing I put on here is set in stone, I am still learning myself through trial and error, there are multiple ways to set up a bio-active enclosure, and I don't want this to turn into any back and forth arguments, Bio-Active substrate is probably not for everyone, so use your best judgment when deciding to go this route or not. It is perfectly safe for your animal if done CORRECTLY**


Now that that is out of the way, here is a great link on one of the most accepted methods for starting a bio-active mix, this is the one I followed with a few minor tweaks. http://www.varanustalk.com/forum/index.php?pageid=Dirt

When going this route you are essentially creating a small eco system in your enclosure. You have a nice healthy deep substrate that is full of little cleaner crews (isopods, springtails, etc), they feed on the waste that your reptile produces as well as on mold/fungus. The one thing that always throws up a flag for anyone (including me) when researching it is that you basically throw everything you have been told about keeping an enclosure clean out the window. Things like collecting wood from outside, digging up dirt in your backyard, not sterilizing/bleaching/baking anything and instead putting it directly in your cage, not treating your cage with Provent-A-Mite, not cleaning your cage in general once it gets up and going. My biggest concern when starting mine was bringing mites into my collection, however the life cycle of mites is one in which it really needs a host to thrive, I nor anyone else I know of has brought mites into their collection doing this. All of my wood came from my back yard, however I will note I still am not a fan of buying wood at a reptile show, or reptile shop and putting it right in the cage as there is a potential of introducing mites that way because there were plenty of hosts around where you go it from. (that is just my opinion)

I will say however for my dirt I was not able to dig in my backyard due to pesticides being used, I instead went to a rock/gravel complex and bought a mix of screened topsoil, DG, and some play sand by the truck load and used this for my base.

I figured this is as good a start as any, please post up any advice, questions, input you all may have.