I’ve read multiple times people saying that Boaphiles and other cages made from PVC type plastics smell over time. They claim that no matter what they did, they could not get the urine smell out. Well, I’ve got a solution for you!
Take one gallon of water. I use an old milk jug. Add one ounce of bleach and one ounce of white vinegar. Shake to mix solution. Put this mix in some type of sprayer. I like to use a small hand held garden sprayer from Lowe’s. Spray down the inside of the cage and let it sit for a few minutes. After a few minutes, wipe down the entire inside and let air out. The small amount of bleach used should not leave much of a smell. If you like, wipe down the cage again with plain water.
Not only should this get rid of any smell, but it is one of the best disinfectants you can use!
Here are two good links for more information on using a bleach / vinegar mixture:
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/38067.php
http://www.apple-cider-vinegar-benef…infectant.html
I’ve had many people ask me about the feeding cards I use. Whenever I ship out a boa or ball python, I also send out a feeding card. These are the same type of feeding cards some of the big boys use. I liked them, so I made some up myself. I created the card in MS Word and then had a few hundred printed on card stock paper at Kinko’s.
I also created a PDF version of the card. My default font in MS Word was Calibri, which Kinko’s did not have at the time. By giving them a PDF, this shouldn’t be a problem.
These cards make things easy to track. I put all pertinent information about the animal on the card. Things like the animals common name, sire, dam, DOB, sex, prey size, feeding schedule, etc.
If you’re interested, you can download them by following the link below. You’ll notice that there are a couple versions of the file. I’m currently using v1, but I am playing around with the format of the card and may switch once I run out of what I have. With v1, I have to write in things like sire, dam, prey size, and feeding schedule. The newer versions have spots for this included.
Download Feeding Card Files Here
I am asked all the time if feeding live superworms is safe. Yes, they are very safe. You do not have to cut the heads off superworms before feeding them to your leopard gecko, bearded dragon, or other reptiles. The thought is that if you feed a superworm to an animal without cutting the head off it will eat through the stomach. This is simply not true.
We feed thousands of superworms each year to our bearded dragons, leopard geckos, and other reptiles. We have never had any problems whatsoever.
I start my baby boas and ball pythons in 6qt shoebox tubs. I’ve always had a problem with the snake spilling their water bowls. Recently, Clay English told me about a style of deli cup that he uses. I ordered two cases and absolutely love them. I have over a hundred baby boas and some baby ball pythons all using these cups now. Not one spilt water bowl. Not one. The cups are just tall enough that they cannot be flipped over.
You can find them here: Link to deli cups. The picture on the website is wrong. Trust me, you will love these as water bowls in 6qt bins.
Once my babies outgrow the 6qt shoebox tub, I move them to a 15qt. I have two styles of the 15qt tub. One is the Iris STC-410 and the other is the Sterilite 1754. The deli cups work in the Iris 15qt tub too. However, the Sterilite 1754 is a taller tub. Therefore, for these I use heavyweight crock dishes.
Have you ever visited a website and wondered why people put numbers in front of an animal name or species? Well, those numbers tell the sex of the animal.
For example:
1.0 Albino Boa = one male boa
0.2 Bearded Dragons = two female dragons
0.0.1 Ball Python = one ball python sex unknown
3.2.1 Leopard Geckos = three male, two female, one sex unknown