Question: If my tiger ingests a clay/ dirt substance, will he get sick?

[smoochez590]

I recently went to petsmart to buy some things for my newly changed tiger and they told me to buy this clay type dirt for him..but its really nasty and like cement mixture. I'm afraid he's goin to get sick from this. Especially from eating the earthworms that he drags through the substance. HELP!?

 

[Kaysie]

I think most of the ambystomatid keepers here use a mix of organic topsoil and coco fiber. The consistency of the substrate you have doesn't sound good, nor does it sound like it would be good for your tiger to burrow in.

 

[Duhend]

I've had really good luck with the soil you can but for terrariums and the moss you can buy from any pet store here in the States. Something tells me the clay would get nasty pretty quick when wet and dry quickly. I have 2 tigers in a 20gal long tank and I do 2 bricks of soil to one brick of moss. They seem to enjoy it, there is plenty of soil to burrow in and enough moss to hold moisture. I used to use all moss, that is an option as well, but it would get 'dirty' and begin to smell after a few months so I would have to change it. Since I've changed over to the soil I've had no issues. I would try the soil instead of the clay, my tigers eat moss and such all the time as they wildly snap the their food and have had no issues passing any of it. Long winded but I hope it helps.

 

[Jackulwulf]

I've had really good luck with the soil you can but for terrariums and the moss you can buy from any pet store here in the States. Something tells me the clay would get nasty pretty quick when wet and dry quickly. I have 2 tigers in a 20gal long tank and I do 2 bricks of soil to one brick of moss. They seem to enjoy it, there is plenty of soil to burrow in and enough moss to hold moisture. I used to use all moss, that is an option as well, but it would get 'dirty' and begin to smell after a few months so I would have to change it. Since I've changed over to the soil I've had no issues. I would try the soil instead of the clay, my tigers eat moss and such all the time as they wildly snap the their food and have had no issues passing any of it. Long winded but I hope it helps.

I've heard of someone who had a tiger die from ingesting moss, it was a young one so perhaps it was just too small to pass the piece it ate but I figured I'd just mention that. I tried straight moss for a while but I didn't care much for it and it was hard for my tiger to really burrow through it. He's much happier on straight coco fiber.

Also its worth noting that many people in pet stores don't know what they are talking about when they provide advice about an animal. Sometimes you may get a person who knows what they are doing but if you feel they are steering you wrong then you should go with your instincts. Its also good to research the animal your getting a lot before picking one up so you can be ready for them. A lot of pet store salamanders and newts are very stressed to begin with so its good for them to have a place that's ready for them to relax in

In any case that clay isn't really suitable for a tiger and I can't imagine that it would be good if he ingests some of it. The substrates that the others suggested are much better for your tiger then the clay is, and probably cheaper also.in the long run. The clay will probably soil really quickly and you'd be replacing it often where as with the coco fiber you can keep it in his tank for months before having to replace it as long as its not kept too wet.

 

[Kaysie]

You have to be careful with moss because some species (like sphagnum and peat) can be quite acidic.

I also use the compressed bricks of coco fiber. I usually mix them ~1:1 with EarthGro brand topsoil. Been using this system for years. It holds moisture quite well, and also holds burrows well.