Best Eastern BTS bedding/substrate?

[Angel_BTS]

Hi With all of the different types of reptile bedding and substrate sold at pet stores - what is the best bedding for an Eastern Bluey? At the moment, I’m using kritters crumble as the substrate in my lizards enclosure, but was wondering if anyone has any other recommendations for a different type of substrate?

[Y33T]

I use brunnings coir peat bricks, you can buy them at woolies for 3 bucks and 1 brick can make up 9 litres, I bought 4 (2 each tank) so they have extra bedding to burrow under. My easterns really love it and they had very good sheds with it.

Keep in mind that its the bacteria free variant which is the safest and does state that its ideal for reptiles on the packaging. Avoid the bricks that have a warning label on it.

[Angel_BTS]

I use brunnings coir peat bricks, you can buy them at woolies for 3 bucks and 1 brick can make up 9 litres, I bought 4 (2 each tank) so they have extra bedding to burrow under. My easterns really love it and they had very good sheds with it.

Keep in mind that its the bacteria free variant which is the safest and does state that its ideal for reptiles on the packaging. Avoid the bricks that have a warning label on it.

Thank you for your reply! I’ll keep an eye out for it at woolies next time I’m there

[kingofnobbys]

I use a mix of course grade Kritters Krumble & twigs and bark and leaf litter that my big mature bluegum gives me (all over my front yard for free) .... my two love it , especially when in shed.

Pretty much get the same kind of "litter" the wild ones who visit my garden and yard like , this is why I started doing it (observation based). The wild water skinks and delicate skinks love it too ( I often see and hear then foraging through the litter in my very unruly overdue for a mow front lawn) .

[Angel_BTS]

I use a mix of course grade Kritters Krumble & twigs and bark and leaf litter that my big mature bluegum gives me (all over my front yard for free) .... my two love it , especially when in shed.

Pretty much get the same kind of "litter" the wild ones who visit my garden and yard like , this is why I started doing it (observation based). The wild water skinks and delicate skinks love it too ( I often see and hear then foraging through the litter in my very unruly overdue for a mow front lawn) .

That sounds like a great substrate mix! Bindi seems to enjoy burrowing in her kritters crumble substrate overnight to keep herself warm When I went to the vet for Bindi yesterday, he told me that I should stop using kritters crumble as it can be fatal if she swallows any of it, and that I should switch to using kitty litter made out of recycled newspaper as her bedding instead. I’m not sure if this is a recommended idea or not?

[kingofnobbys]

I use a mix of course grade Kritters Krumble & twigs and bark and leaf litter that my big mature bluegum gives me (all over my front yard for free) .... my two love it , especially when in shed.

Pretty much get the same kind of "litter" the wild ones who visit my garden and yard like , this is why I started doing it (observation based). The wild water skinks and delicate skinks love it too ( I often see and hear then foraging through the litter in my very unruly overdue for a mow front lawn) .

That sounds like a great substrate mix! Bindi seems to enjoy burrowing in her kritters crumble substrate overnight to keep herself warm When I went to the vet for Bindi yesterday, he told me that I should stop using kritters crumble as it can be fatal if she swallows any of it, and that I should switch to using kitty litter made out of recycled newspaper as her bedding instead. I’m not sure if this is a recommended idea or not?

Well , I would never use kritters krumble for my beardies.

Not so sure about what the your vet says about the BTs ingesting chunks of kritter's krumble (I suppose it's a risk if that's all they have for bedding) .... trouble with recycled paper pellets (kitty litter) is it is designed to absorb moisture and *my stars! --- perfect breeding ground for bacteria & viruses & moulds .... and I'd be very worried about the chemicals used to bind the pellets perhaps not allowing it to breakdown in the gut ==> an impaction risk , perhaps a bit worse than Kritter's Krumble.

I found when I tried fine Krumble it was extremely dusty --- made my BTs very sneezy , and the medium grade wasn't much improvement.

[kayla990]

(Figured would use this post to merge with the other one ) Ahh, can imagine the vet suspecting the substrate is a bit too dry.

He suggested that I use kitty litter made out of recycled newspaper instead

Hmm, I've not seen this used so far. I would have thought it would be more prone to mold (and possible transfer of ink, depending on how it's recycled) compared to other substrate types. I can see it working for smaller mammals/reptiles, but I would presume it would need to be replaced frequently as Blueys seem to drink a lot/pee large amounts (I'm presuming it's the same for Australian types at least!).

Similar to Y33T - I like the coco coir bricks. As they are sterile, absorb water well without going moldy, fine enough to not be an ingestion problem while still allowing digging opportunities Of course, kingofnobbys is having success with the other Kritters Krumble too!

I use a mix of course grade Kritters Krumble & twigs and bark and leaf litter that my big mature bluegum gives me

quick question on that - when taking the leaf litter/twigs/bark do you tend to sterilize them before putting them in? I know when making a separate moss vivarium (no animals, just local resources) that we ended up with all sorts of insects like millipedes/isopods/snails from mosses xD Just wondering if you've found anything unexpectedly living with your blueys

[kingofnobbys]

(Figured would use this post to merge with the other one ) Ahh, can imagine the vet suspecting the substrate is a bit too dry.

He suggested that I use kitty litter made out of recycled newspaper instead

Hmm, I've not seen this used so far. I would have thought it would be more prone to mold (and possible transfer of ink, depending on how it's recycled) compared to other substrate types. I can see it working for smaller mammals/reptiles, but I would presume it would need to be replaced frequently as Blueys seem to drink a lot/pee large amounts (I'm presuming it's the same for Australian types at least!).

Similar to Y33T - I like the coco coir bricks. As they are sterile, absorb water well without going moldy, fine enough to not be an ingestion problem while still allowing digging opportunities Of course, kingofnobbys is having success with the other Kritters Krumble too!

I use a mix of course grade Kritters Krumble & twigs and bark and leaf litter that my big mature bluegum gives me

quick question on that - when taking the leaf litter/twigs/bark do you tend to sterilize them before putting them in? I know when making a separate moss vivarium (no animals, just local resources) that we ended up with all sorts of insects like millipedes/isopods/snails from mosses xD Just wondering if you've found anything unexpectedly living with your blueys

no .... it's all natural .... simply step outside and down my front steps with a small garbage bag and I scoop it up by hand (so long as it's dry , as not wet from the dew or rain , I don't mind if there's fresh dropped leaves or twigs or bark , nor do I mind if there are little insects on it (millipedes , hopper, etc , then it's good to use ).... exactly the same as the resident wild skinks experience.
Only bugs I draw a line at are slugs and snails (don't know what the neighbours are doing to control these in their gardens , but suspect they use poisons and lots of them) , same with little roaches, I don't want ants or spiders either .
Only concession I make is to ware heavy leather welders gloves and I'll rake through it first with a stick (disturbs any spiders which I make sure don't go into the bag). I don't mind little spiders ,but the big nasty ones with fangs I don't want to mess with.
My pet bluetongues are the native species indigenous to my area, so are well adapted to the litter I'm using, only need to walk 100m and climb a fence and I'm in the bush were wild easterns are easy found (but usually only heard crawling away from you through the leaf litter and very long grass).

[Angel_BTS]

I use a mix of course grade Kritters Krumble & twigs and bark and leaf litter that my big mature bluegum gives me (all over my front yard for free) .... my two love it , especially when in shed.

Pretty much get the same kind of "litter" the wild ones who visit my garden and yard like , this is why I started doing it (observation based). The wild water skinks and delicate skinks love it too ( I often see and hear then foraging through the litter in my very unruly overdue for a mow front lawn) .

That sounds like a great substrate mix! Bindi seems to enjoy burrowing in her kritters crumble substrate overnight to keep herself warm When I went to the vet for Bindi yesterday, he told me that I should stop using kritters crumble as it can be fatal if she swallows any of it, and that I should switch to using kitty litter made out of recycled newspaper as her bedding instead. I’m not sure if this is a recommended idea or not?

Well , I would never use kritters krumble for my beardies.

Not so sure about what the your vet says about the BTs ingesting chunks of kritter's krumble (I suppose it's a risk if that's all they have for bedding) .... trouble with recycled paper pellets (kitty litter) is it is designed to absorb moisture and *my stars! --- perfect breeding ground for bacteria & viruses & moulds .... and I'd be very worried about the chemicals used to bind the pellets perhaps not allowing it to breakdown in the gut ==> an impaction risk , perhaps a bit worse than Kritter's Krumble.

I found when I tried fine Krumble it was extremely dusty --- made my BTs very sneezy , and the medium grade wasn't much improvement.

Thanks for your reply! I was worried about the chemicals that could be used to create the pellets too, and that’s why I’m not going to try using the kitty litter - and it also doesn’t seem very natural to be adding into her enclosure. I think I might give the brick coconut coir a go? It will be a lot softer and easier to digest in case she ate any for some reason. I have also found that kritters crumble is quite dusty.

[Angel_BTS]

(Figured would use this post to merge with the other one ) Ahh, can imagine the vet suspecting the substrate is a bit too dry.

He suggested that I use kitty litter made out of recycled newspaper instead

Hmm, I've not seen this used so far. I would have thought it would be more prone to mold (and possible transfer of ink, depending on how it's recycled) compared to other substrate types. I can see it working for smaller mammals/reptiles, but I would presume it would need to be replaced frequently as Blueys seem to drink a lot/pee large amounts (I'm presuming it's the same for Australian types at least!).

Similar to Y33T - I like the coco coir bricks. As they are sterile, absorb water well without going moldy, fine enough to not be an ingestion problem while still allowing digging opportunities Of course, kingofnobbys is having success with the other Kritters Krumble too!

I use a mix of course grade Kritters Krumble & twigs and bark and leaf litter that my big mature bluegum gives me

quick question on that - when taking the leaf litter/twigs/bark do you tend to sterilize them before putting them in? I know when making a separate moss vivarium (no animals, just local resources) that we ended up with all sorts of insects like millipedes/isopods/snails from mosses xD Just wondering if you've found anything unexpectedly living with your blueys

no .... it's all natural .... simply step outside and down my front steps with a small garbage bag and I scoop it up by hand (so long as it's dry , as not wet from the dew or rain , I don't find if there's fresh dropped leaves or twigs or bark , nor do I mind if there are little insects on it (millipedes , hopper, etc , then it's good to use ).... exactly the same as the resident wild skinks experience.
Only bugs I draw a line at are snugs and snails (don't know what the neighbours are doing to control these in their gardens , but suspect they use poisons and lots of them) , same with little roaches, I don't want ants or spiders either .
Only concession I make is to ware heavy leather welders glove and I'll rake through it first with a stick (disturbs any spiders which I make sure don't go into the bag). I don't mind little spiders ,but the big nasty ones with fangs I don't want to mess with.
My pet bluetongues are the native species indigenous to my area, so are well adapted to the litter I'm using, only need to walk 100m and climb a fence and I'm in the bush were wild easterns are easy found (but usually only heard crawling away from you through the leaf litter and very long grass).

Thank you for your reply! I’m going to give brick coconut coir a go, as it seems like the safest and best option. I don’t want to risk getting my Bluey sick from germs that could start growing in her enclosure if I choose to use the kitty litter.

[Nae]

Coir peat here too ~

Those bricks make A LOT tho so you're going to want to pick up some sort of plastic container to store the remainder in.

[Angel_BTS]

Coir peat here too ~

Those bricks make A LOT tho so you're going to want to pick up some sort of plastic container to store the remainder in.

Thank you for the tip! I’ll soak less that half a brick in a bucket with the right amount of water on the weekend
I do have another quick question: I have a vision enclosure made out of melamine, and I just want to make sure that the humidity for the coir peat isn’t going to create mold?

[kingofnobbys]

Coir peat here too ~

Those bricks make A LOT tho so you're going to want to pick up some sort of plastic container to store the remainder in.

Thank you for the tip! I’ll soak less that half a brick in a bucket with the right amount of water on the weekend
I do have another quick question: I have a vision enclosure made out of melamine, and I just want to make sure that the humidity for the coir peat isn’t going to create mold?

don't let the melamine get damp and stay that way .... you'll end up with timber crumble or at best a very badly swollen melamine base and walls. That stuff is only good if it stays dry. Even the "kitchen grade" version is not much chop.

The water soaks into the edges, melamine doesn't belong near moist materials or water. Should never be used to construct reptile enclosures.

[Angel_BTS]

Coir peat here too ~

Those bricks make A LOT tho so you're going to want to pick up some sort of plastic container to store the remainder in.

Thank you for the tip! I’ll soak less that half a brick in a bucket with the right amount of water on the weekend
I do have another quick question: I have a vision enclosure made out of melamine, and I just want to make sure that the humidity for the coir peat isn’t going to create mold?

don't let the melamine get damp and stay that way .... you'll end up with timber crumble or at best a very badly swollen melamine base and walls. That stuff is only good if it stays dry. Even the "kitchen grade" version is not much chop.

The water soaks into the edges, melamine doesn't belong near moist materials or water. Should never be used to construct reptile enclosures.

Ah ok, so maybe a solution could be to dry out the coir peat in the sun after it has soaked in water?

[Y33T]

It can take days for the coir to dry. The quickest and safest way to dry it is to take handfuls of it and squeeze as much water out of them and put them in another container. It’ll still be a little wet but give it a day or two to completely dry.

[kingofnobbys]

Thank you for the tip! I’ll soak less that half a brick in a bucket with the right amount of water on the weekend
I do have another quick question: I have a vision enclosure made out of melamine, and I just want to make sure that the humidity for the coir peat isn’t going to create mold?

don't let the melamine get damp and stay that way .... you'll end up with timber crumble or at best a very badly swollen melamine base and walls. That stuff is only good if it stays dry. Even the "kitchen grade" version is not much chop.

The water soaks into the edges, melamine doesn't belong near moist materials or water. Should never be used to construct reptile enclosures.

Ah ok, so maybe a solution could be to dry out the coir peat in the sun after it has soaked in water?

Maybe lay it out on tarp in the full sun so long as it's sunny and breezy , you might get it dry in few days.

[Nae]

I dried mine in the oven on a low heat- I just spread a thin layer across some baking trays and kept putting fresh trays in until I had enough to cover the bottom of his cage. Wood has to be completely dry and pretty darn hot to actually catch alight, but obvs keep a super close eye on it and only use a low temp ~

As for the melamine Id probably look at sealing the gaps where the pieces join with an aquarium safe or anti-fungal free silicone sealant to stop water from slipping through the gaps. Correct me if I'm wrong but I'm pretty sure water can touch the sealed sides of melamine (otherwise my dresser wouldn't be a mess considering how often I spill aquarium water all over it ) - Its when it gets into the gaps where the super absorbent raw edges are is when problems start.

[Angel_BTS]

I dried mine in the oven on a low heat- I just spread a thin layer across some baking trays and kept putting fresh trays in until I had enough to cover the bottom of his cage. Wood has to be completely dry and pretty darn hot to actually catch alight, but obvs keep a super close eye on it and only use a low temp ~

As for the melamine Id probably look at sealing the gaps where the pieces join with an aquarium safe or anti-fungal free silicone sealant to stop water from slipping through the gaps. Correct me if I'm wrong but I'm pretty sure water can touch the sealed sides of melamine (otherwise my dresser wouldn't be a mess considering how often I spill aquarium water all over it ) - Its when it gets into the gaps where the super absorbent raw edges are is when problems start.

That’s a good idea about filling in the gaps - I have been worried that I’m going to accidentally spill water in the enclosure. Also, thanks for the tip about drying out the substrate in the oven! I started off with a 2 foot melamine enclosure as it has a built in thermostat and holders for the UVB globe and the heat globes ect. In the future, I’ll be upgrading Bindi to a 3 foot aquarium Also, is sugar cane mulch a good substrate?