Hi!! I currently have a 1 1/2 yo bearded dragon in a plain 5’x2’x26” enclosure. I’ve always wanted to make a naturalistic (not bioactive. did that once before and he got parasites) enclosure with branches for him to climb on, fake plants, and fake rock formations. However, I don’t know where to start. I’d like to make a rock formation on the back wall/right corner, but don’t know where to get foam. I’ve seen posts on how to make fake backgrounds out of foam, but don’t know where to get it for cheap. I don’t know where I can get branches that are big enough for him and safe. I’m not putting any substrate in it for fear of parasites. Any advice is greatly appreciated!!
Edit: Just found the member tank builds post cx sorry I didn’t look deep enough. The one problem I still have are branches. All the ones you can buy are pretty small, where I’d like to have large ones since my tank is large. Any advice?
I like using driftwood for my enclosure because the pieces tend to be smooth and relatively flat (good for basking). Others have good luck using grapewood branches. You can use hardwood pieces (avoid cedar and pine) that you find in your yard if you have trees around. Same goes for flat stones. For the branches just scrub them well and then either bake them on low (~250f) for 30-45 min or so or if they're too big for the oven, leave them out in the sun for a few days or sanitize the surfaces with F10 or similar disinfectant. To clean stones, just scrub them and then disinfect them. Best not to bake stones since they risk cracking or exploding if water inside them is heated.
I like using driftwood for my enclosure because the pieces tend to be smooth and relatively flat (good for basking). Others have good luck using grapewood branches. You can use hardwood pieces (avoid cedar and pine) that you find in your yard if you have trees around. Same goes for flat stones. For the branches just scrub them well and then either bake them on low (~250f) for 30-45 min or so or if they're too big for the oven, leave them out in the sun for a few days or sanitize the surfaces with F10 or similar disinfectant. To clean stones, just scrub them and then disinfect them. Best not to bake stones since they risk cracking or exploding if water inside them is heated.
You can buy foam insulation boards at home improvement stores. Or you can probably go to any big store and ask them if they have any foam from packing or what not lying around.
I like using driftwood for my enclosure because the pieces tend to be smooth and relatively flat (good for basking). Others have good luck using grapewood branches. You can use hardwood pieces (avoid cedar and pine) that you find in your yard if you have trees around. Same goes for flat stones. For the branches just scrub them well and then either bake them on low (~250f) for 30-45 min or so or if they're too big for the oven, leave them out in the sun for a few days or sanitize the surfaces with F10 or similar disinfectant. To clean stones, just scrub them and then disinfect them. Best not to bake stones since they risk cracking or exploding if water inside them is heated.