I hate this time of the month!!

[BalloonzForU]

Ok, so maybe not "That" time of the month, but my poor hands look and feel terrible. I've been scrubbing tubs all day. Am I the only loon out there that keeps two - three tubs for each animal? LOL

Here's my routine and maybe it's a little overboard but I'm a little anal about it. Each tub is marked with a label for each animal, each animal has 2-3 tubs that are used for just them. (Mostly the quarantined animals have 3 tubs, messy animals like the colubrids also get 3 tubs.)

I spot clean every 1-3 days depending on the species and their feeding or poop schedule. Every 4-6 weeks they get a fresh tub or sooner again depending on if they are quarantined or messy animals. Instead of taking each animal out and putting them in a temp tub and scrubbing one at a time, I give them their second tub or third, again depending on the animal. I then spend a few days cleaning all the tubs, but my schedule has been tight and I've had to try and cram it all into one day as of late. Then the day before I start this whole cycle over again of switching tubs I spray down all the snake tubs with P.A.M.

 

[Crasher_Insane]

That sucks for you, but I bet your animals are very healthy because of it. Maybe you could hire a friend or two to take the workload off. If they're truly a friend (or lover of reptiles) I bet they wouldn't ask for much.

 

[Barbel]

White vinegar is a very magical and natural cleaner! I don't know how much space you have, but if you could lay out the tubs somewhere like a garage or porch area and fill the bottom with warm/hot water and a bit of vinegar then just let them sit for a few hours, the poo and other stuck on goodies should just rinse off, so you may not have to scrub.
When I had my pet rats, one of them would poop in the wheel and I had to scrub and scrub that thing to get all the mess off. One day I soaked their house and the wheel in that mixture and a couple hours later I went in to scrub and it all just kind of fell off.
It's worth a try at least!
Also to save you some money on P.A.M. (sounds like you go through a lot of it) you can use wal mart brand bedding spray (lice spray) instead. They have the exact same ingredients, but the lice spray is like half the price! We have been using it for about six months now.

 

[BalloonzForU]

White vinegar is a very magical and natural cleaner! I don't know how much space you have, but if you could lay out the tubs somewhere like a garage or porch area and fill the bottom with warm/hot water and a bit of vinegar then just let them sit for a few hours, the poo and other stuck on goodies should just rinse off, so you may not have to scrub.
When I had my pet rats, one of them would poop in the wheel and I had to scrub and scrub that thing to get all the mess off. One day I soaked their house and the wheel in that mixture and a couple hours later I went in to scrub and it all just kind of fell off.
It's worth a try at least!
Also to save you some money on P.A.M. (sounds like you go through a lot of it) you can use wal mart brand bedding spray (lice spray) instead. They have the exact same ingredients, but the lice spray is like half the price! We have been using it for about six months now.

I really don't have much room to have all the tubs sit out and soak in anything, it would take even longer time in my day just to do that. I use the sink in my basement and one tub soaks in hot water and nolvasan while I clean out one then I put another in to soak while I clean the one that was soaking. It works pretty fast, but when your cleaning out 100s of tubs at a time fast is an all day thing in itself.

I've heard of using the lice spray before, I guess I can just tell them my son has a really really bad case of head lice... LMAO.

 

[BalloonzForU]

That sucks for you, but I bet your animals are very healthy because of it. Maybe you could hire a friend or two to take the workload off. If they're truly a friend (or lover of reptiles) I bet they wouldn't ask for much.

Do you have anyone in your family or local friends that like reptiles? Other than my husband and myself, all our friends and family think we are completely insane with the animals we keep. I have a hard enough time finding someone to come water the animals if I go out of town for a few days. They don't seem to mind the furry and feathered friends we have. :main_rolleyes:

 

[Chewbecca]

cages get cleaned here every other day!
My rhacs are put into a tall deli cup while I clean out their cages. I thoroughly clean each cage with soap and water, then I dry it thoroughly, and then I spray chlorhexidine, let it soak, then I rinse it out thoroughly and then I dry it thoroughly.
Then I skip a day. Then I clean them each by simply taking everything out, wiping down with rag, and changing the paper towel.

My leos are done every other day to every two days.

Chlorhexidine is an AWESOME cleaner. And it's safe. But I'm still a paranoid nut, so I make sure to rinse thoroughly and dry each cage thoroughly.

 

[LizMarie]

When i hear about things like this I'm happy to have ONE leo, lol.

Spot clean everyday, Change Substrate Weekly and Wipe I to pick up any calcium or coconut fiber then disinfect every month with water/bleach.; now changing to chloroheidine

 

[Saphira]

Is it necessary to really clean that often?

 

[MooingTricycle]

Fe, you KNOW if i were closer id be there helping your butt for no more than maybe some dinner!!! LOL

Sorry youre so busy lately, but hey... you DO have small children right? Slave labor........ LOL

 

[Chewbecca]

Is it necessary to really clean that often?

Maybe not, but I do it anyway.
I'm not as worried about the leos because they pretty much eat as soon as I put the food in their enclosures.
But my rhacs have pre-made food that I change out every other day.
And I have to mist their cages, so there is a higher risk for mold.
To prevent that, I simply clean their cages every other day.

 

[Saphira]

That makes sense..

 

[BalloonzForU]

Fe, you KNOW if i were closer id be there helping your butt for no more than maybe some dinner!!! LOL

Sorry youre so busy lately, but hey... you DO have small children right? Slave labor........ LOL

LOL Hey Alicia, didn't realize you were a member here!!! Zach really doesn't have much interest in the reptiles other than his turtles, one gecko and his kingsnake, other than that, nada. Now if Tori had her way she'd hold every snake we have. I've showed her some of them and the first thing she does is go to grab them, try telling a 8 month old not to squeeze a snake is like telling them to not grab a handfull of fur off the cat. :main_laugh:

I've even tried to hire some of the older kids on the street to help out, come claning time, and all they want to do is play with the snakes, I'd never get anything done. I think the parents hate me too because once the kids come over and ask to see the animals they all go home asking their parents for reptiles. :main_thumbsup:

 

[BalloonzForU]

When i hear about things like this I'm happy to have ONE leo, lol.

Spot clean everyday, Change Substrate Weekly and Wipe I to pick up any calcium or coconut fiber then disinfect every month with water/bleach.; now changing to chloroheidine

I use paper towels in my tubs and I keep one tub of each size full of prefolded paper towels, that I fold while watching tv. Part of my spot cleaning consists of walking the racks with the tub full of paper towels and changing out ones that need it. The select a size works perfect for 6qrts, don't even have to fold!!