Archives of The Cold Blooded News

The Newsletter of the Colorado Herpetological Society

Volume 32, Number 10;   October, 2005

Your Snake's Substrate

by Ed Ferrer

Beginning herp hobbyists often ask me what type of substrate or ground medium should be used for their snake terrarium. Today there are many options from which a "herper" can choose. It is a matter of what type of set up is preferred. Some people would like to design a naturalistic show cage while others are looking for a simple cage. It also depends somewhat on the type of snake that is being housed. For example, sand boas need to have a sand type of substrate so they can burrow.

When I first started my hobby over twenty years ago I wanted to have naturalistic caging because I kept them in my science class and I wanted them to look as natural as possible. One of my prize specimens, a scarlet king snake, Lampropeltis triangulum elapsoides, was set up in a naturalistic cage. However, it would always burrow down deep under the brown, cocoa shell medium and I would never be able to see it or check on it. I'm sure it was very secure but it was hard to feed it and it was a shame to have such a beautiful, multi-colored snake practically invisible to my students. I eventually traded it for a less secretive snake.

Snakes are often housed on pine shavings. This is a serviceable, naturalistic substrate. Snakes like to burrow into it, but they are usually still visible, and it is easy to clean up by just scooping the snake's feces and the surrounding shavings. However, I would not feed my snake in that container because the snake might ingest some shaving along with the rodent. I learned this a long time ago when my Sinaloan milk snake, Lampropeltis triangulum sinaloae, stopped feeding. When I took it to the vet after about three weeks of not feeding and we found that it had a small piece of shaving wedged in the side of its mouth that prevented it from opening and swallowing. It was quickly dislodged and I just had to remember to take it out of the cage and put it in another container for feeding.

There are many sand substrate products that are advertised as a good source of calcium if ingested. However, my veterinarian cautioned me that even these sand products could become impacted in the digestive tract if swallowed by the snake. So I stopped using this product. I also used an indoor-outdoor carpet, but I stopped using it after I found it was difficult to clean. Shredded bark can be used. It looks natural, smells good, and is easily replaced. It should be thoroughly rinsed to remove any dust. Alfalfa pellets (rabbit food) is also an option. It also smells good, is inexpensive and is easy to clean.

After experimenting with several different substrata, I have decided to use newspaper in all my cages except one. Although it doesn't look very eye appealing, it is easy to clean and is readily available around my house, and many of my snakes like to hide under it. Since I have a large collection this seems to work best for me. The one exception is my green tree python. I use cypress mulch in the floor of its enclosure because it helps to hold humidity. Choosing a substrate is largely a matter of taste for the hobbyist, depending on intent of the "herper". With a little research the hobbyist should be able to make a good choice for his pet.