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Joined: Nov 06, 2004 Posts: 972269 Location: Central Maine
Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2005 5:28 pm Post subject:
Eco Earth(tm) is that compressed coconut fiber. It can be used fairly safely. I have used it in a pinch before. I generally use Repti Bark(tm) when Cypress mulch is out of season and I didn't stock up enough before winter. I have had really good luck mixing Repti Bark(tm) with peat moss from the local garden market. Keep in mind, it needs to be Peat Moss and not regular Moss. The peat moss works well to hold the humidity in under and the repti bark(tm) gives some substance to the substrate.
Drawbacks to any fine bedding is that as it dries it can get really dusty and cause issues so keep the humidity up. Damp soil or such can dry while on the tegus feet and cause loose of circulation, so watch for this.
I personally like cypress mulch, smaller chunks if possible, but when it's not available you need to do what you can to get by.
Here is a Poll of substrates we had awhile back, we will probably redo some of these polls as we get larger.
Joined: Dec 11, 2004 Posts: 216 Location: BC, Canada
Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2005 10:04 pm Post subject:
I don't recommend it. I kept my tegu on that stuff originally and he had horrible shedding problems (this was also partially due to a skin disorder he had when I got him) and like Rick mentioned the small fibres can get wrapped around the toes and cut of circulation. As soon as I moved my tegu to a bark-like substrate he started shedding with no problems. Personally I would never use it for tegus again.
Joined: Jan 14, 2005 Posts: 613 Location: The Netherlands
Posted: Fri Mar 18, 2005 6:46 am Post subject:
We use eco earth with cypres mulch on top
So far we didnt have any problems with sheding (well the tegu's didnt ) or any going bad (forgot the word in english) _________________ 1.0.0 T.rufescens
0.1.0 T.merianae
1.0.0 Testudo horsfieldii
1.0.0 Stenodactylus sthenodactylus
0.0.1 Ceratophrys ornata
0.0.1 Geocholone elegans
0.0.1 Python regius
2.0.0 Mustela Putorius Furo
0.1.0 Bouvier des flandres
his shen is comin off like magic i sware by this stuff _________________ 0.2.0 German Shepherds *Khoda* & *Keara*
0.0.1 Ball python *Akua*
0.0.1 normal corn *seismo*
0.0.1 snow corn *sleet*
Joined: Nov 06, 2004 Posts: 972269 Location: Central Maine
Posted: Sat Mar 19, 2005 12:09 am Post subject:
I do use Repti Bark(tm) in my enclosures (currently mixed with peat moss) and I have had zero mold issues. My quess is that if you do have mold issues, you may be seriously over humidifying.
I use Repti Bark(tm) when Cypress mulch is not readily available. I like it's small chunk size. Makes passing through the digestive system easy if ingested during feeding. It does not hold humidity well, which is why I mix it with peat moss. The peat moss works like a sponge. It holds humidity pretty well. The down side to the peat moss/Repti Bark(tm) substrate is that the peat moss can get very messy, like using soil as a substrate.
My opinion, based on my experience, is that Repti Bark(tm) works well in a pinch.
Joined: Dec 11, 2004 Posts: 216 Location: BC, Canada
Posted: Sun Mar 20, 2005 5:45 pm Post subject:
We were using straight eco-earth, no mulch. We can't get the cypress mulch here so I just use the repti-bark now. I havn't had any problems with mold or shedding since I switched over.
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) or any going bad (forgot the word in english)
