Has anyone used the repti bark? It seems like it would work as well as th others I have seen mentioned?
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2752663
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2752663
GeoTerraTestudo said:Yep, I use it. It's just cypress mulch, so it's good to use with tortoises and box turtles. You can also buy cypress mulch in bulk at the hardware store, which is just as good but cheaper. However, I think maybe Repti-Bark has been heat killed or something, while cypress chips from the hardware store are still "raw," because it seems I sometimes get tiny little harmless insects (gnats) when I buy the stuff from the hardware store. But I think they're basically comparable. (See "Cypress mulch from the hardware store?")
Basically, I think you can get a lot of pet supplies from the hardware store for cheap, although it might not necessarily be of the same quality. For example, if you buy a heat lamp from the pet store, it will have a ceramic base, which is good for withstanding long-term, chronic heat stress. In contrast, a similar looking lamp from the hardware store will have a plastic base, which means it is not as safe to keep on all the time. Similarly, substrates are okay from the hardware store, but I think they're a bit cleaner from the pet store. This makes sense, since pet products are intended for keeping animals alive and well, and not merely for landscaping. I guess that's why pet store brands can charge a bit more. However, sometimes you can substitute one for the other and save a little money.
wrmitchell22 said:Unfourtunately Cypress Mulch is not easy to find in AZ, not sure why, but I am glad to here it will work as well, thank you!
Kristina said:Actually, I have to completely disagree.
Zoomed Reptibark is NOT like cypress. It is in fact fir bark. It does not hold moisture well, and molds. It also will stain a tortoise with the red color from the bark. I am speaking from personal experience.
Calcisand is also a big no-no. It is scented, and actually will induce the tortoise to attempt to take bites. If it is mixed with another substrate, it can cause deadly impactions. If sand is to be used, it should absolutely be natural sand, such as playsand or construction sand. Personally I use no sand because I have tried it and hated it.
Calci sand is also very fine grade, and has a habit of working its way into eyes and the creases around limbs and the neck. If the substrate is kept damp, as it should be, this makes it worse because it sticks. I have seen tortoises blinded by this stuff.
Your best bet is coco coir, orchid bark or just plain top soil if you can't find cypress. I strongly suggest steering clear from the reptibsrk snd calci sand.
Kristina said:Actually, I have to completely disagree.
Zoomed Reptibark is NOT like cypress. It is in fact fir bark. It does not hold moisture well, and molds. It also will stain a tortoise with the red color from the bark. I am speaking from personal experience.
Calcisand is also a big no-no. It is scented, and actually will induce the tortoise to attempt to take bites. If it is mixed with another substrate, it can cause deadly impactions. If sand is to be used, it should absolutely be natural sand, such as playsand or construction sand. Personally I use no sand because I have tried it and hated it.
Calci sand is also very fine grade, and has a habit of working its way into eyes and the creases around limbs and the neck. If the substrate is kept damp, as it should be, this makes it worse because it sticks. I have seen tortoises blinded by this stuff.
Your best bet is coco coir, orchid bark or just plain top soil if you can't find cypress. I strongly suggest steering clear from the reptibsrk snd calci sand.
wrmitchell22 said:Thank you for your information, does this seem more along the lines of a good substrate?
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3092177
wrmitchell22 said:Kristina said:Actually, I have to completely disagree.
Zoomed Reptibark is NOT like cypress. It is in fact fir bark. It does not hold moisture well, and molds. It also will stain a tortoise with the red color from the bark. I am speaking from personal experience.
Calcisand is also a big no-no. It is scented, and actually will induce the tortoise to attempt to take bites. If it is mixed with another substrate, it can cause deadly impactions. If sand is to be used, it should absolutely be natural sand, such as playsand or construction sand. Personally I use no sand because I have tried it and hated it.
Calci sand is also very fine grade, and has a habit of working its way into eyes and the creases around limbs and the neck. If the substrate is kept damp, as it should be, this makes it worse because it sticks. I have seen tortoises blinded by this stuff.
Your best bet is coco coir, orchid bark or just plain top soil if you can't find cypress. I strongly suggest steering clear from the reptibsrk snd calci sand.
Thank you for your information, does this seem more along the lines of a good substrate?
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3092177
GeoTerraTestudo said:Kristina, thanks for letting me know that Repti Bark consists of fir bark, not cypress mulch. After reading your post, I checked my tortoise pens and realized that I had made the rookie mistake of buying Repti Bark instead of cypress mulch; no wonder the substrate wasn't holding moisture well. Duh. :shy:
I went down to the hardware store to get a big bag of cypress mulch, but they didn't have any. They only had either brown- or red-dyed mulches and bark mixes containing who-knows-what, so I passed on them. I thought about getting soil, but I was too worried it might contain perlite or vermiculite, so I left. Then I went to the pet store, which did have cypress mulch (Forest Floor), although it was quite expensive. So, I bought a three-brick pack of coconut coir (Eco-Earth), and mixed some of it in with the fir bark to give my Russians a more humid, deeper layer of substrate.
To my surprise, they are not digging more then they did before - perhaps even a bit less. Not sure why, but anyway they are doing fine. Thanks again.
BTW - I guess cypress mulch is not as widely available as I had thought. Also, according to http://saveourcypress.org/ it seems that the landscaping industry (which includes substrate for pets, in this case) is basically threatening wild cypress trees. Maybe it's better to use other humidifying alternatives to cypress, like soil or coco coir anyway?