Cleaning

[Moonspyder]

Hello all,

I was wondering about how people clean their terrariums
when they are lined with sand or earth? I have read toads like to burrow so a soft substrate is better than paper. Seems like a lot
of trouble to reline a sand and pebble or earht floor to clean the bottom of the tank when wastes build up.
When we kept snakes in grade school we would just change liner papers...

[Kurt]

Well, sand, pebbles, and gravel are not recomended substrates for frogs/toads. The risk of gastrointestinal impaction is too great and can lead to death. Better substrates are ground coconut shell (often sold under names like eco-earth, bed-a-beast, and so on) and sphagnum moss. They hold moisture fairly well and the frog/toad can bury itself in it with no problem. They can be spot cleaned and when it gets really soiled, they can be easily replaced.

[JeffX]

I use eco-earth in all of my amphibian tanks, and I spot clean from time to time. Then I do a thorough cleaning once a month or if I need to earlier. Eco-earth is fairly cheap and I keep a big bucket of it for when I need it.

[Moonspyder]

Thanks for the advice. The 2 books from the library on amphibian care
reccomended gravel substrates for toads. I recall reading on a forum
impaction has been caused by ingetsed moss too. How much a risk is this when they snap up a bit of debri along with their cricket?

[InfInIty13X]

The 2 books from the library on amphibian care
reccomended gravel substrates for toads.

I have read that on many pages. I simply can't imagine taking that risk of using gravel or pebbles.

[Kurt]

They cannot digest gravel/sand/pebbles so it often gets stuck in their guts. That causes the impaction and when feces can't move along which then lead to septicemia and death.

I have had many of my frogs accidently digest sphagnum moss, with no problem.

[John]

I'm going to contradict Kurt's advice in one respect - sand, if non toxic (pool filter sand and children's play sand are fine) is not harmful and passes straight through the body. In fact for some species it is very good (desert amphibians for example).