Branches

[Rhea’s mum]

I’m going to go find some branches today to start removing some of the rope from rheas enclosure.
Anyone have any ideas how I could dry them after cleaning them? I’m in the uk so it is now constantly cold and wet and my oven isn’t big enough to bake branches in so I need suggestions.
Thanks

 

[jamest0o0]

You don't need to bake branches. Sterilizing them makes fungus and pests even more likely to show up. Rinse off/clean dirt to your liking with the hose(or whatever) and throw them in. You don't need to dry branches, they generally dry out just fine on their own. I assume you'll be misting the cage so they will just get wet again anyway.

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

I’m going to go find some branches today to start removing some of the rope from rheas enclosure.
Anyone have any ideas how I could dry them after cleaning them? I’m in the uk so it is now constantly cold and wet and my oven isn’t big enough to bake branches in so I need suggestions.
Thanks

Got an electric fan? Hanging them outside under shelter would be about the same—just slower. Either way, you won't get them any drier than ambient RH, and if you did, they'd still absorb moisture from the air until they reached that level. Misting and/or fogging in the enclosure will also raise their moisture content again.

 

[Rhea’s mum]

Thanks. You just read so much conflicting info.

 

[salty dog]

I personally have them hydroblasted, then baked at 600 degrees then sandblasted soaked in bleach then washed off cooked again at 800 degrees, and sandblasted again.....

just kidding, I wash off dry for an hour or so then install

 

[JacksJill]

At minimum I soap and water wash my branches. Baking or heating speeds up the process but I do like to let the branches to dry out so they are no longer green when I start spraying them day in and day out.
I also bleach mine but I'm a bit more fussy than the bio-active folks. I'm raising babies of a more delicate species and want to eliminate the chance of their getting any thing like salmonella from bird droppings.

 

[MissSkittles]

I’ve done it all the procrastinator’s way. I let them sit outside and bake in the Florida sun for a couple of weeks, wash and rinse and let bake in the sun again for a couple of days. Then I bring them in and they sit in my garage for a short eternity until I’m ready to use them. I’ve become a branch hoarder. ?

 

[JacksJill]

I hoard branches. I can admit it.

 

[Gingero]

 

[MissSkittles]

I hoard branches. I can admit it.

Yay! I’m not alone!

 

[jamest0o0]

I’ve done it all the procrastinator’s way. I let them sit outside and bake in the Florida sun for a couple of weeks, wash and rinse and let bake in the sun again for a couple of days. Then I bring them in and they sit in my garage for a short eternity until I’m ready to use them. I’ve become a branch hoarder. ?

I do this for a lot of things, like leaf litter I just spread out on my driveway and let sun bake.

@JacksJill do you mean salmonella in regards to your own health, or the chams?

 

[Kaizen]

I’m going to go find some branches today to start removing some of the rope from rheas enclosure.
Anyone have any ideas how I could dry them after cleaning them? I’m in the uk so it is now constantly cold and wet and my oven isn’t big enough to bake branches in so I need suggestions.
Thanks

I don’t do much cleaning for my branches either.

 

[PabloTheCham]

I just spray then down to remove the dirt and leave them in the sun... Apart from that I don't do much, Pablo spends a lot of time in that tree outside anyway... So cleaning the branches would be pointless.

 

[Beman]

I just wash them down with dawn soap and hot water then spray the hell out of them with the hose... Lay them out on a pop up table outside in the sun. Has worked really well for me. Honestly my only motivation is getting rid of bird poop and any small mites they may have.

And per branch issues... Um I was hoarding like crazy for about 6 months. Since I got into the hobby I branch stalk... I see a branch on the ground or attached to a tree and I want it. No I do not steal them from the tree but it is fair game if it is on the ground LOL.

 

[JacksJill]

@JacksJill do you mean salmonella in regards to your own health, or the chams?

Ultimately mine and any family they end up with. I believe they tolerate the disease rather well at least as adults. Jackson's babies tend to have that mysterious 2-3 month die off and as no one really knows why, I am very very protective of my juveniles.

 

[jamest0o0]

Ultimately mine and any family they end up with. I believe they tolerate the disease rather well at least as adults. Jackson's babies tend to have that mysterious 2-3 month die off and as no one really knows why, I am very very protective of my juveniles.

Fair enough! Was just curious.