moss can be a choking hazard and should not be the only substrate used. the majority of the substrate should be large polished river and/or coconut fiber bedding. you can also mix in some plain topsoil with the coconut fiber bedding. a little bit of moss is usually a good idea, though, to help keep the tank humid. moss may be easier to clean than soil and coconut fiber bedding, but soil doesn't ever need to be cleaned! if there's a small area with poop on it, just scoop the poop and a little of the surrounding soil out. every once in a while if the soil/coconut fiber level gets a little low because you've been scooping a lot, add a little more to the cage. very easy, very safe, very inexpensive, very realistic. moss is only realistic,
its cheap too. And its not as big of hazard as something like small wood chips. I use have and half. half soil and half moss. Works fine for me.
You should change the soil like every month i would say. Then that gets rid of the urine and poop that u missed.
urine evaporates and leaves behind uric acid and nitrogenous waste. i don't think the coconut fiber bedding/soil needs to be changed every month. i get new soil every 6 months or so and even after that long time, the soil is still pretty clean. another good thing about coconut fiber bedding is that it is natural, soaks up excess liquids (including urine), and doesn't smell. just use coconut fiber and/or plain topsoil, scoop out any small amounts of poop every couple of days, and change all the fiber bedding/soil every 6 months or so. don't forget to keep the fiber bedding damp - NOT wet - at all times. planting live plants in the fiber bedding/soil will help get rid of some of the uric acid and nitrogenous waste of the urine and the fecal matter, as well. if you have a few small live plants in there, you'd only have to change the fiber bedding/soil every 8 or 9 months.
"urine evaporates and leaves behind uric acid and nitrogenous waste." How do you know this stuff. like seriously. lol
lol - well for one thing, i'm a 5th year college student finishing up dual bachelor's degrees in biology and psychology. for another thing, i read everything i can get my hands on! and there are so many things i don't know! always keep learning, joe - i know i will never stop!
Thank you humming bird you are very helpful but one more questione. Could I get this fiber bedding at a local pet store?
o i c, sorry smurf!! and yes you can buy the coconut fiber bedding at almost any local petstore. it's very cheap, too. it typically comes in a small 'brick' that costs a few dollars (the most common brand is 'bed-a-beast'). you put the brick in a bucket of warm water and break it apart into a huge amount of fiber soil. you'll be surprised how much of the coconut fiber bedding can be smashed into one of those bricks!
