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GypsyAurora   Uro_fan  
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 #299180


GypsyAurora
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 UroFan I wanted to know your opinion on this and everyone elses too !

Merry meet everyone,
I bought fresh timothy hay today...what do you think about using it as a substrate ? It is something I could change daily and it is not very expensive to do so. Also it is edible and my Uro snacked on it but was not really that interested in it..so i am not worried about her eating too much of it....so what do you think ?
Blessings, Gypsy

Pro’s and Cons ?? There are grasses and dried grasses in the desert....right ? Just a thought...this substrate is edible and will not harm them if eaten either. So I thought hey why not...so why not ???



04/05/05  08:07pm

 #299192


Uro_fan
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  Message To: GypsyAurora   In reference to Message Id: 299180


 UroFan I wanted to know your opinion on this and everyone elses too !

I would probably recommend against it for several reasons.

The first is that you want to somewhat control the amount of dried grass/fiber they eat. Too much fiber can have a negative impact on the digestion process. The Ca:P (calcium phosphorus ratio) is off so you need to offset with calcium supplements which may be difficult to gauge without knowing how much they are eating. These animals obtain their moisture from their food and if your uromastyx is eating a lot of dried material and not enough moist greens, this could lead to dehydration. Timothy is not a perfect food (considered moderate protein) and as such you probably would not want this as a free range item.
Lastly, the dried grass would absorb waste material and be a perfect habitat for bacteria, fungus....ect
Your uro will probably not avoid those bacteria soaked blades when munching on his substrate.

There are different varieties of timothy (and different cuttings) and some are better than others as far as digestibility and calcium. Even using the best variety I can find, I still limit the amount I am feeding.



04/05/05  08:19pm


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