Climbing Branches from your yard, DIY Hammock, Etc?

[cowgirlsblues]

I tried searching for this in hoping of finding the answer but didn't see it so I will ask...

I need some climbing branches for my dragons, I live in the country and think it's absurd to spend $20+++ on a stick from the pet store when I have a backyard full of trees, that being said. What do I need to do to make sure the collected branches are safe and don't have anything that will harm the dragons on them? (i.e. bacteria or hiding bugs or something?) And is there any kind of trees/wood to stay away from?

Second, my one rescue dragon had a hammock that came with her, and she loves it, and I want to make one for Rex, again I think pet stores are way over priced for something I can easily do my self ... But is there anything I should stay away from when making him a hammock? and is using window screening ok? because that's what Draco's seems to be made out of, green screening.

And finally, I was reading some people seem to think using tiles and things are best for beardies, but at present i'm using paper towels, and with everything else going on in my life right now they are the easiest for me right now. Is it ok to keep using them? or do I need to change to something else?

 

[Blind]

If it comes from outside you should bake it in the oven for 30 minutes at about 300*. Sometimes I will soak it in a 10% bleach solution just to be safe.

Sorry, I can't help you with the hammock much, but if the screen is strong enough to hold your beardie it should be fine.

Papers towels are fine for your beardie. Most people use tiles for the aesthetics.

 

[cowgirlsblues]

Thank you.
I'm not worried about aesthetics right now, so much as practicality.
is there any other way to clean them besides baking them? Someone told me you can freeze them for 24hrs, but i'm not so sure. Our oven is on the fritz so i'm trying to avoid using it (It's started smoking up the house, we haven't determined why yet... And yes it's driving me nuts, but with everything else that's going on all the sudden, it's not been at the top of my to do list :silent: )

And is there anything special I need to do to rocks for them? will just washing be ok or do I need to bake/freeze/etc those?

 

[Blind]

Rocks are the same, you should bake them.

If you have a large bucket, you could soak them in a 10-15% bleach solution for 24-48 hours.

I have no idea if freezing works

 

[w0554096]

Freezing probably wouldn't work, as the bacteria will still be there and live when the item thaws out. I usually soak and scrub everything new that I bring in from outside for my beadies in a 10% bleach solution (as mentionned already). Agreed that petstore prices are rediculous. The last time I was even thinking about getting a nice piece of driftwood (winter here, can't exactly find any through the snow), the piece that I liked in the store was 120$ ! It's insane. All of the items I've got in my two vivs right now are from the mountains behind our house.

Personally, I think they can look great when you get real nature elements that haven't been sanded and treated to hell. I've got some beautiful red flat rocks that I found while walking my dog, They're different sizes and stacked to make a great basking spot.

SO, happy hunting! You should definately post some pictures when you've got everything all finished up.

I would also say that if you're nervous about the bleach solution not being enough, then to bake whatever items you have.

 

[jjh1]

What I do is boil my rocks branches drift wood and things like that for over and hour or two then let them dry out and put in my BD's cages
I have never had a problem with doing that at all and my babies are safe and happy.

For a hammock I made my own from baby recieving blankets and use those commander 3m sticky hooks they work well on glass and hold the baby blankets up and never fall off the glass. Also great when you have to wash the hammocks I also made little bankies that I cover my babies up at night with.

Hope that helps you out
Joanne

 

[Jess]

Most of my logs are much bigger than my oven, so I soak them in 10% bleach for 15-20 min or so, and then I soak them in plain water for 30 min to get all the bleach out. It has worked ggreat for me so far! My massive log that I'm currently sanatizing is soaking in my bathtub, becuase it couldn't fit into an oven or a sink LOL.