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 #1007263


Chychy
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 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

My boyfriend just bought me a Western Hognose for my birthday. I have asked several people what the best substrate for him is and I keep getting different answer’s! No one can seem to agree on anything! I know that he’s a burrower, and does not need much humidity...Is sand made for reptiles ok? Or should I use something different? Thanks!




10/03/06  12:02am

 #1007267


N2t
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   Message To: Chychy   In reference to Message Id: 1007263


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

Mine did just fine on newspaper and repticarpet. They are not really the burrowers that nose implies. I would stay far away from sand I have never found one in sandy areas usualy in leaf litter and denser tracks of forest. IMHO stick with a nice safe substrate and provide hides.
10/03/06  12:06am

 #1007278


Chychy
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   Message To: N2t   In reference to Message Id: 1007267


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

Would plain old astro turph work?
10/03/06  12:12am

 #1007397


Lucky23
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   Message To: Chychy   In reference to Message Id: 1007278


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

From what I’ve read astro turf is fine just provide multiple hides for him and have 2 so when you take one out for cleaning you can put a new one in and wash the other. Aspen shavings would make a good substrate for burrowing though. Hope this helps.

Tim
10/03/06  03:33am

 #1007399


Lucky23
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   Message To: Chychy   In reference to Message Id: 1007263


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

When I said 2 I meant 2 pieces of astro turf.

Tim
10/03/06  03:34am

 #1008408


Joeking
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   Message To: Lucky23   In reference to Message Id: 1007399


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

That’s what I have for Joe but let me make a note that it does NOT absorb smell very well!
10/03/06  08:09pm

 #1008673


TheLobot
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   Message To: Joeking   In reference to Message Id: 1008408


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

Western Hognoses do like to burrow. I have mine in a calcium sand substrate, and he burrows all the time.
10/03/06  11:00pm

 #1008874


Lucky23
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   Message To: TheLobot   In reference to Message Id: 1008673


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

Now I don’t know a whole lot on hognose, but I do know that calci sand is worse than small granulated play sand cause calci sand is not as easily passed (only partial break down occurs and whats left binds to the intestinal wall causing build up leading to impaction). Now I hope I’m wrong but I know that is how it works for other reptiles. But good luck, but I ain’t risking it.

Tim
10/04/06  03:13am

 #1008879


N2t
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   Message To: Lucky23   In reference to Message Id: 1008874


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

Good choice calcium sand serves no purpose for hognose at all. Newspring, aspen shavings or mulch, butcher paper, paper towel, astro turf, repti carpet all are perfectly fine and will house a hognose successfully. I used an under tank heater with mine. Stay away from sand with most snakes.
10/04/06  04:01am

 #1009129


TheLobot
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   Message To: N2t   In reference to Message Id: 1008879


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

If you feed the hognose outside of the cage, how would he ever get any sand into his system anyway? I could be terribly wrong here; I thought that the calcium sands were ok.



10/04/06  11:47am

 #1009258


Repfan06
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   Message To: TheLobot   In reference to Message Id: 1009129


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

Mine done great on sand/dirt mixture. And all mine were keen burrowers. If you provide enough large pieces of bark they will burrow under them.
I fed mine mostly in their vivs, basically because they always followed the fuzzies onto bark/rocks. I never fed them in the sand. I would feed them in tubs now-a-days though.
10/04/06  02:14pm

 #1010073


N2t
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   Message To: Repfan06   In reference to Message Id: 1009258


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

even if they don’t eat it, it is still an irritant. Also snad is much harder to clean. Solid substrates for snakes is just easier imho or if not aspen mulch or shavings. Sand is simply not a substrate that I like with hognose for the reasons I’ve stated.
10/04/06  10:19pm

 #1011146


TheLobot
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   Message To: N2t   In reference to Message Id: 1010073


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

When you say irritant, do you mean by lngestion or skin contact?



10/05/06  08:41pm

 #1011466


N2t
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   Message To: TheLobot   In reference to Message Id: 1011146


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

gerneraly skinn and eye contact, as well as dust issues causing resperatory irritation (though I’ve only seen this once). Even in the wild where we find them they are generaly found in grown over areas and avoid sandy areas unless making their way to water.



10/06/06  12:59am

 #1011476


TheLobot
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   Message To: N2t   In reference to Message Id: 1011466


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

i’m gonna change the substrate in my guy’s tank tomorrow. Thanks.
10/06/06  01:32am

 #1012896


Joeking
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   Message To: TheLobot   In reference to Message Id: 1011476


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

Great idea Lobot.

http://homepage.mac.com/exoticdvm/reptile/PhotoAlbum181.html Link

I know that’s a gecko but it just goes to show that it isn’t as passable as people think...if you take some and put it in water it doesn’t desolve very well and by the snake licking and opening his mouth (you might not see him open his mouth often or at all) but he can get small traces of it...yes...you need other things to help digest calcium.

Link http://www.pythons.com/calcium.html
And as you can see from that site it’s not digestable and it does cause a lot of dust and can cause respitory infections. If you want him to burry I would suggest aspen or something (DO NOT get cedar or pine). And if you do have a loose substraight please feed him outside the tank. Another suggestion is slate tile or ceramic tile which is easy to clean and if you have a under tank heater it absorbs the heat really well.
10/07/06  12:45pm

 #1015132


Chychy
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   Message To: Joeking   In reference to Message Id: 1012896


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

Hey everyone thanks for all the info! I have put him on Aspen shavings and he seems very happy!
10/09/06  01:00am

 #1015827


TheLobot
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   Message To: Chychy   In reference to Message Id: 1015132


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

I also changed over to repticarpet and aspen shavings. Thanks.
10/09/06  04:41pm

 #1171895


Dougie123
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   Message To: TheLobot   In reference to Message Id: 1015827


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

virmiculite is good it is very light and good for your snake for burrowing
02/13/07  03:34pm

 #1272826


JackAsp
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   Message To: Dougie123   In reference to Message Id: 1171895


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

I’m using Carefresh. If I have any problems with it I’ll post, but milks and pines love it and it’s a lot less splintery than aspen. Plus, I already had an enormous unopened bag of it in the closet. She certainly likes to dig, although maybe that’ll change with time. As long as she does, though, I plan to encourage her to. It’s probably their most athletic activity. Plus, I think being able to get down into the substrate allows for a surer temperature gradient with UTHs than just being on top of newspaper or something would.
05/07/07  02:44am

 #1635943


Animommy
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   Message To: JackAsp   In reference to Message Id: 1272826


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

Jack, i was reading something on Hogs (b/c im getting one soon!) :-D And it said that if you use carefresh to have a H2o bowl (which i dunno why someone wouldnt have a water dish!) b/c it said that carefresh dehydrates them-WHAT?!?! im baffled HOW & WHY would carefresh dehydrate them???? ive used it for MANY animals & NEVER had a problem! Whats your thoughts on that???
02/24/08  12:16pm

 #1636921


JackAsp
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   Message To: Animommy   In reference to Message Id: 1635943


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

I could see that. It’s very absorbant, so I guess if it was nestled against their butt it might draw fluid out. That said, it’s almost March already, and mine has been digging around under it all winter, in northern Ohio, and seems perfectly happy. She got dry scratchy skin one time during a shed period (I offered a moist hide but she wasn’t interested) and was okay again after one soak in the bath tub, before she’d even shed. That’s the extent of the trouble she’s had with it. There’s a watr dish in there if she wants to soak, but I haven’t actually seen her do so since she was much younger. Maybe babies dehydrate more easily? Or maybe babies just like to soak more? Or maybe she just needed to soak more during the summer.
02/25/08  12:04am

 #1637557


Animommy
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   Message To: JackAsp   In reference to Message Id: 1636921


 What is the best substrate for a Western Hognose?

Hmmm...i dunno-it just DOES NOT make sense to me that this person was saying it dehyrates them-but im getting mine tonite (i hope!!!) & i THINK im gonna use aspen, just b/c of cost right now-i hear thats okay to use & its cheaper-i have repti bark for my rtb, but heard thats bad for hoggers??? hmmm...well thanks & ill post pics as soon as i can!



02/25/08  05:26pm


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