Live plant question..

[mattj]

So I just got a new veiled to put in the cage I had for my old jackson. I had a vertically growing pothos in there but I threw it out bc it was sitting there for a while unattended. I went looking today for some plants but most nurseries here in NY are not really stocked right now.

Tried home depot but figured there stuff has to have been treated with insecticides and other chemicals. So my question is, is there a surefire way to clean a plant from a store and make it cham safe??

 

[maxttu]

Double, triple and even quadruple wash the plants with dish soap and water. Be sure to rinse thoroughly. Avoid getting soap on the roots. If you believe the plant is heavily saturated in pesticides, repeat the process a couple of days later. Again, be sure to rinse thoroughly.

 

[mattj]

Necessary to repot with new soil?

 

[Lovereps]

You can just put fresh, plain potting soil on top or large rocks that can't accidentally be swallowed. You don't want to have those little moisture beads, fertilizers ball, or anything else on the surface where a cham can accidentally eat some.
If you're in Nassau County or western Suffolk, I know of a couple of vets.
Better to know of a vet before you need one than to need one in an emergency and not know where to go.
Dr Robert Monaco on Old Country Rd Plainview is very good with chams and other pets.
In Suffolk, there is Dr Heidi Hofer in Huntington who treats chams, etc.

 

[mattj]

Thanks for the vet info Lovereps, good to know.

 

[lisagr07]

like maxttu said above, wash, wash, wash... then rinse, rinse, rinse....
do you guys have Dawn dishwashing liquid over there.. i beleive it is totally safe to use, they used it to wash all of the poor sea birds after the oil spills.....

 

[MCSEB]

I've read a lot of threads and I've had a few of my friends here on the forum tell me when you get a plant just make sure to wash it then rinse it then wash it then rinse it just a few times.

 

[Lovereps]

Thanks for the vet info Lovereps, good to know.

You're quite welcome.

 

[mattj]

Good call on the Dawn. That should be safe.

 

[Mmcbain1]

I always use dawn love it !!