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I was thinking for those of us who want to add a nice natural touch to our cage it would be nice to know how to properly sanitize these items
Rocks:
- Thoroughly Scrub with Soap and water
- rinse well
- soak in 10% bleach solution for 15-20 minutes to be sure
- rinse well
- let air dry
*most believe in baking or boiling rocks however they may explode so I would not suggest this*
Branches:
you really have 3 options soaking boiling or baking
baking-
-remove any lose bark and leaves
- bake at 200-250 degrees Fahrenheit for 2-3 hours. increasing temp does not decrease time just increases the chances of your wood catching fire
Soaking ( used for larger pieces ) -
- prepare bleach solution 1/2 cup bleach to 1 gallon water ( water must cover branch) soak for 24 hours ( water will turn brown from tannins)
- rinse well
- Soak branch in clean water for 1-2 days ( dumping out the old water and replacing it with new every few hours- this lets the bleach leech back out into the water so it dilutes so at the end almost none is still in the wood)
- Allow the branch to dry for several days
Boiling-
- Cover branch in water and boil one hour for each inch of thickness ( the water will turn brown from tannins this is natural)
- allow to air dry
Second hand cages:
- (For anything stuck on scrub well first)
- spray down with 10% bleach solution
- rinse well
- Allow to air dry
( This method works if you want to use something from another pet as well as long as it is non-porous)
Rocks:
- Thoroughly Scrub with Soap and water
- rinse well
- soak in 10% bleach solution for 15-20 minutes to be sure
- rinse well
- let air dry
*most believe in baking or boiling rocks however they may explode so I would not suggest this*
Branches:
you really have 3 options soaking boiling or baking
baking-
-remove any lose bark and leaves
- bake at 200-250 degrees Fahrenheit for 2-3 hours. increasing temp does not decrease time just increases the chances of your wood catching fire
Soaking ( used for larger pieces ) -
- prepare bleach solution 1/2 cup bleach to 1 gallon water ( water must cover branch) soak for 24 hours ( water will turn brown from tannins)
- rinse well
- Soak branch in clean water for 1-2 days ( dumping out the old water and replacing it with new every few hours- this lets the bleach leech back out into the water so it dilutes so at the end almost none is still in the wood)
- Allow the branch to dry for several days
Boiling-
- Cover branch in water and boil one hour for each inch of thickness ( the water will turn brown from tannins this is natural)
- allow to air dry
Second hand cages:
- (For anything stuck on scrub well first)
- spray down with 10% bleach solution
- rinse well
- Allow to air dry
( This method works if you want to use something from another pet as well as long as it is non-porous)