# How to treat wild branches for viv?



## jackrmee (Jul 27, 2015)

Hi, I need a couple of branches for my vivs.
I really don't fancy paying 20 odd quid for one, but I guess they are that price for a reason right?

Is it possible to use branches I find around the place? If so, how do I treat them to make them suitable?

Thanks


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## GavinMc (Jan 9, 2013)

Most deciduous woods will be safe. There is no real threat to your lizards so you can just bung them in the vivarium.



Gavin.


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## Astro (Dec 20, 2012)

Hi! You can indeed use collected wood, but you MUST treat it for mites and other parasites first before using it in your viv. The usual method is to bake the wood in the oven, there is a nice article about it here- Wood Sanitation | Herp Center

As mentioned deciduous woods are good. the things you want to avoid are-
Poisonous trees- yew, laburnum, fruits trees that produce fruits with stones in (plum, cherry) etc.
Pine- contains oils that are toxic to snakes. I also have cedar coming up in my mind for toxic oils but not 100% sure on that one. 

Hope that helps!


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## vgorst (Sep 27, 2011)

I've never treated any of the branches or wood I've collected. There aren't any native mites that I'm aware of that can harm our reptiles (you're more likely to get mites from wood gotten at a reptile shop!). The only thing I do is check for bird poo and try to get any spiders off (I don't trust the web's with small hatchlings)


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## miss_ferret (Feb 4, 2010)

slightly amended version of my one in the snake section...

(my apologies to those using mobiles...)

*The Treatment and Use of Branches* 

Before we get started, the main reason people do not use branches from the great outdoors in their set ups is the belief that they will bring mites or disease with them. THIS IS NOT TRUE. THERE ARE NO NATIVE REPTILE MITES AND THE RISK OF A SICK NATIVE ANIMAL CROSS INFECTING YOURS IS SLIM TO NON EXISTENT. 

This sheet is intended as a quick guide and will take you through what I personally do with branches. As I do not subscribe to the ‘remove all the bark, bleach them 3 times, cook them in the oven for 4 hours then put them in the viv under a full moon’ approach, this will not be covered.

*‘Safe’ Woods*
When choosing a ‘safe’ wood, where it comes from is the first thing to watch out for. You need to ensure the wood has not been sprayed with chemicals such as fertilisers, insecticides or to treat any tree disease. This is easy to do within your own garden, but will require asking around about any wood found outside of it (near farms especially). This is vital as reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates are highly sensitive to chemicals.
If your only option is to gather branches from an area where either you suspect or don’t know if chemicals have been used, then extra care must be taken. All chemicals break down over time and gradually become harmless. Owing to the sensitivity of animals, especially in a confined space, it is better to take a ‘better safe than sorry’ approach to the time scale. If in doubt, leave the branch between 6 and 8 weeks to fully allow the chemicals to break down.

Further reading on breakdown times of some insecticides can be found here http://longbeach.wsu.edu/cranberries/documents/howlongdoinsecticideresiduespersist.pdf 

Apart from the possible exceptions I will come to later, you want hardwoods rather than softwoods. These include (Latin names listed for those who like that kind of thing):
Acer (Maple/Sycamore) 
Aesculus (Horse Chestnut) 
Alnus (Alder) 
BerberisBetula (Birch) 
Buxus (Box) 
Carpinus (Hornbeam) 
Castanea (Sweet Chestnut) 
Cornus (Dogwood) 
Corylus (Hazel) 
CotoneasterCrataegus (Hawthorn) 
Euonymus (Spindleberry) 
Fagus (Beech) 
Fraxinus (Ash) 
Hippophae (Sea Buckthorn) 
Ilex (Holly) 
Juglans (Walnut) 
Ligustrum (Privet) 
Lonicera (Honeysuckle) 
Malus (Crab) 
Populus (Poplar/Aspen) 
Prunus (Cherry/Blackthorn) 
Quercus (Oak) 
Rhamnus (Buckthorn) 
Rosa (Rose) 
Salix (Willow/Osier) 
Sorbus (Rowan) 
Symphoricarpos (Snowberry) 
Tilia (Lime) 
Ulmus (Elm) 
Viburnum (Wayfaring/Guelder)

List taken from Yahoo Answers, so if in any doubt, double check. 
Identifying hardwood trees (taken from How to identify hardwood trees for firewood | eHow UK

1.	Look at the shape of the tree. Coniferous trees or softwood trees can grow in a triangular shape. The leaves of a coniferous tree have waxy needles or scale leaves. These trees are evergreen and do not go dormant or shed their leaves with the seasons.
2.	Examine the leaves of the tree. Hardwood trees have broad leaves. Examples of such tree varieties are oak and beech. These leaves can be single blade leaves or have multiple leaves attached to one stem. Hardwood leaves also will have a delicate network of veins visible on the top or undersides of the leaves.
3.	Look for nuts and fruits. Hardwoods will produce acorns or flowers rather than cones. In the winter, hardwood trees go dormant and lose their leaves. Most softwoods are evergreen and do not go dormant.
Now, about those exceptions to the rule mentioned earlier: the sap contained in fruit trees contains cyanide. Personally, I have used Cherry branches without issue, but they MUST be fully dried out before use. Equally people have chosen not to use fruit branches for this reason. As you can see, there is plenty of choice for those who do not wish to use fruit tree branches.

*Branches, ethics and the law*
It should go without saying that you must use common sense when scrounging - dont take fallen stuff that is clearly being used by other animals as a den etc.
The collection of branches from your own property is perfectly legal, however you do need the landowner’s permission to remove fallen branches or cut your own from trees on his or her land. So make sure you ask before you fill your car boot. While it’s very unlikely that any landowner would object to you taking some fallen branches, it’s better to be safe than sorry.
Taking from non-private woodland (so council or Forestry Commission owned) is either covered by theft laws, or habitat destruction laws, or both. This will also cover driftwood. Again, it’s unlikely to become an issue as long as you don’t take an absolute ton or some that is obviously being used for something else (piled up etc), but it’s better to be safe than sorry. 

*What branches to choose?*
After making sure your branch is from a safe tree, your most important job is making sure the sap it contains has dried out. This is very important as tree sap is nasty stuff (just ask anyone who’s ever got it on their hands). Fallen branches are better than cut ones for this reason, as by the time you find them it’s likely all the sap will have dried up.
IF YOU ARE IN ANY DOUBT AT ALL, TREAT THE BRANCH AS FRESH CUT
Freshly cut branches must be left for a minimum of 2 weeks to allow the sap to dry up; personally I go for 4 weeks. This is especially vital if you have chosen to use fruit tree branches. 

*So now you have your branch...*
What are you going to do with it?
Removing bark is a personal preference, personally I prefer the look of bark left on, and so I leave it on.
I remove any visible mud and moss before putting them into the set up. Though the moss can be left on if the set up is for a humidity loving species, as its used to the great British countryside, it tends to die very quickly if not kept moist, so you end up removing a dried up mess later on. 
Once that is done, stick it in, and secure it if need be.

Job done. You’ve saved yourself a fortune on pet shop prices for branches, all for a bit of patience and a wonder.


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## Inti (Jul 6, 2015)

As others have said, you don't really need to do any special stuff to the branches you find, as long as they are dry and come from a safe type of tree. 

There isn't just one 'correct' way to prepare the branches so it's up to you! :2thumb:

I've used maple and oak branches with no problem, all I do is sand the sharp bits down and quickly spray with disinfectant.


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## htf666 (Jun 23, 2007)

Thank you Miss Ferret for a bit of common sense. The correct procedure is as follows. Find branch,cut to length,bung in viv. End of. Harry


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## Azastral (Jun 6, 2015)

vgorst said:


> I've never treated any of the branches or wood I've collected. There aren't any native mites that I'm aware of that can harm our reptiles (you're more likely to get mites from wood gotten at a reptile shop!). The only thing I do is check for bird poo and try to get any spiders off (I don't trust the web's with small hatchlings)


So true... After getting some vine branches from a petshop i then found a week later that the Beardie i put it in with had made some new friends!

(little black dots that were hiding in the folds around hits eyelids)
Harmless enough and they came off with a wet cotton wool bud, i had to repeat it a few times over a couple of weeks (an internet search showed that these things normally have a week lifespan cycle)

A few pics of mite infestations showed me what happens if you leave them to build up though... not nice, looked like scabs around the eyes where they'd all buried themselves into the skin.

Most guides on preparing your own branches either have it soaking in a bleach solution and then in pure boiling water to wash the bleach out or by baking the hell out of it in the oven.
Depending on the size then i suppose one method will be more suitable than the other but i would say treating the branches is never a bad thing, cant hurt to be more careful.


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## Azastral (Jun 6, 2015)

miss_ferret said:


> As I do not subscribe to the ‘remove all the bark, bleach them 3 times, cook them in the oven for 4 hours then put them in the viv under a full moon’ approach, this will not be covered.


Dammit....


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