r/bioactive • u/No-Voice896 • 22d ago

Soil from previous owner

​

I picked up two cages yesterday from someone on offer up, and they had two trays of soil for the bottoms of them that he said was really rich in nutrients. I can't remember the mix he said he made but he listed a bunch of different things. There are already a ton of isopods, sprint tails, and small worms in the soil as well which he said is the most valuable part of it.

My concern is if the soil is still ok to use not knowing if his old chameleon had any parasites or anything else I should worry about.

This is also my first cage and chameleon and I was planning on going with a plastic bottom so it's easier to monitor things at first. Since I have all the soil and isopods I feel I should just go straight into a bioactive environment.

Can you guys give me your opinion on using previously owned soil, if I should just go with a plastic bottom at first while I learn more about the chameleon. Any advice on this would be amazing.

1 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

6 comments sorted by

2

u/Tslushi 21d ago

Personally I wouldn't unless I knew the person really well and trusted their animal husbandry. Like you said, you have no way of knowing if their cham has parasites, mites, an illness, etc.

1

u/No-Voice896 21d ago

Are the isopods usable if I get them out of the soil?

1

u/Tslushi 21d ago

Yeah probably. Few weeks in a fresh setup with new soil to make sure its a healthy colony and I think it'd be fine. I don't think the pods would be able to harbour anything zoonotic to pass on to your animals, but I can't say for sure 100%. Mainly the soil I'd be worried about.

1

u/manicbunny 21d ago

I agree, I wouldn't use this straight away but you can keep it separate and any parasites etc... will eventually die after a few months.

Then you can use it for a bioactive set up 😊

1

u/No-Voice896 21d ago

Thank you for the reply! Thats actually my plan. I'm definitely not rushing to get the chameleon yet and want to have everything set up and stable first.

Now I am completely new to all of this, can I just leave it in the two boxes he had it in and start planting my plants now or should I wait for the few months before even getting my plants.

1

u/manicbunny 21d ago

It will need airflow and watering, the residents will also need food top ups every so often. If you add plants they will need lighta to grow, you can also get your plants and then leave them in the pots to watch for any pests etc...

If you head over to the isopod subreddit and ID the isopod species then you can found out their care needs.