# Aspen bedding



## Guest (Jan 20, 2011)

Does anyone use this? Is it a good bedding replacement for cypress? I am looking for something that if she eats it will be less easy for her to become impacted again.


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## Guest (Jan 20, 2011)

Aspen is not very good in my opinion .. It molds and dosn`t hold moisture well.. If you want the next best I would suggest Coir [coconut fiber] it comes in big bricks that you soak in water ... Garden places have it especially Hydroponic suppliers..


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## Toby_H (Jan 20, 2011)

^^ I hate it when Montana beats me to it 

Yup, Aspen can/will mold in high humidity. 

EcoEarth makes a nice pulverized Coco Fiber that makes a great substrate. The only problem I have seen with it is it is costly when filling a large enclosure with a deep bed. Though I feel it makes a great choice for younger Tegus in smaller enclosures. 

Note there are versions of cocofiber/husk that are ground but not pulverized that are the consistency of wood chips with stringy fibers. I would not recommend this as the "wood chips" could still cause impaction.

My personal solution to avoiding impaction has been to feed my Tegu on a "shelf" that has no substrate. In my enclosure this is a 2' x 3' piece of sealed (with Drylok) plywood that is supported an inch or two above the substrate. My Tegu has hollowed out a space beneath the board he uses as a hide 'box'. It is very easy to brush off any substrate on the board and use this area to feed without risk of mulch getting mixed into his foods.


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## Guest (Jan 20, 2011)

I've heard from a couple reptile vets and a tegu breeder that coconut fiber can cause long term respiratory damage and causes uri's. Seems odd.. but Anyone else heard anythiing like that? Or had an issue?


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## Guest (Jan 20, 2011)

Well damn. That eco earth stuff is expensive Im still tight on funds since Im not working. I really dont know what else to do one of the guys at the pet store said he kept his tegus on the aspen. Im sure it will do temporarily at least until I get taxes back and can afford the more pricey stuff.


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## Toby_H (Jan 20, 2011)

Respritory Infection is a risk anytime the humidity is kept higher than the animal requires. 

Coco Fiber holds humidity very well which could lead to "too high" of humidity, but the Coco Fiber itself doesn't in any way contribute to respritory infections (based on my research). 

On the contrary, Coc Fiber is resistent to the growth of mold and mildew which is the basis of repritory infections. 

It is very possible for a reptile keeper to overly moisten an enclosure and cause a repritory infection, then blame it on the substrate as opposed to their own actions. I believe many misleading rumors are started in this way.


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## Guest (Jan 20, 2011)

yah i understand. i definitely like the coco fiber but i switched back to cypress when the rep specialist vets told me that. i never had an issue but i didnt want to chance it. plus their water stays so much cleaner with mulch. instead of cleaning the bowl three times a day i only have to clean it once!


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## Guest (Jan 20, 2011)

i hate aspen bedding...


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## Guest (Jan 20, 2011)

i hate aspen bedding...


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## Guest (Jan 20, 2011)

It seems like there is some sort of issue with any bedding you choose


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## Guest (Jan 21, 2011)

The Cyprus you have is what most settle on if available.. What ever you decide I would keep the Cyprus dried out for when you decide to go back to it .. I used to use aspen on the mink kits I raised . Ordered over half a semi of it each year. Its weird stuff . Slick, does not like water,, molds .. If you insist on using it you may well want to try the moist hide system where the Enclosure is basically dry and the hide is moist .. If you are broke stay with what you have and address the problem in other ways ..


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## brutus13 (Jan 21, 2011)

I keep it simple and affordable. Jungle earth works great and holds humidity. To make sure my gu doesn't eat any substrate I cover 1/3 of my cage with repti carpet. That is where I do all my feeding. Aspen is great for my snakes. I'll take a pic of my setup. It's pretty basic but it works nicely. Yes like everything in the reptile world there is not one straight answer and everyone has there own opinion. Good luck!


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## Guest (Jan 21, 2011)

For my baby blues, I keep them on eco earth, its a lot less likely to cause any impaction. For the adults their 9 ft x 7 ft pin has cypress mulch but their hides are are filled with eco earth. Depending how much bedding I have i might mix some aspen w/ cypress and eco to get by for a month. With eco I mist once a day, cypress more like twice a day, and aspen your gonna have to mist almost constantly. With high temps in an enclosure it can dry out in 1-2 hours. I only suggest aspen for snakes.


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