Question about setups for arboreal lizards

[rudukai13]

I was looking at some videos/pictures on other websites at setups for arboreal animals, and I noticed that there are several individuals who have constructed setups for ETBs and GTPs that have a water substrate, meaning the entire bottom of the enclosure is just a pool of water several inches deep. My question is, is this an appropriate setup for these animals? Would a similar setup work for an arboreal lizard?

 

[snakeguy101]

yes so long as there is plenty of area for the animal to completely dry off. You would need a lot of branches and ledges for them but if it is done this way it can actually be good for the animal since it is easier to clean than regular soil or mulch substrates and it allows for the high humidity that most arboreal animals require...

 

[coura]

That would work for green tree pythons because they need alot of moist. But even then each time the snake went to the bath room that would make it alot harder to clean then a normal substrate.

 

[snakeguy101]

That would work for green tree pythons because they need alot of moist. But even then each time the snake went to the bath room that would make it alot harder to clean then a normal substrate.

Not if it is done right. You could set it up so that there is a drain or a small filter that cleans it for you. Even if you have to take a tray out of the enclosure and dump it, you will be removing 100% of the waste whereas spot cleaning leaves as much as half of the feces in the soil since it can drain down into the substrate and be absorbed by the surrounding substrate.

 

[shells-n-scales]

I dont think alot of the breeders use that setup anymore (all water bottom)... back in the day it was thought that it would be best to use all water bottoms for humidity purposes. But just a nice big water bowl or daily misiting would be fine...I dont know of anyone keeping ETBs, ATBs or even GTPs like that anymore.

 

[rudukai13]

I was thinking in terms of aesthetic purposes as well - a nice gravel bottom with a few guppies swimming around in a few inches of water at the bottom of a tank full of branches and plants and vines would be pretty cool. Plus, by doing daily water changes it would be fairly easy to keep up with the cleaning requirements, with maybe changing the water completely every week. But the overall answer is yes it'd be appropriate, if done correctly?

Here's an example of one of the setups I found:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1O9ye1hNODU

So basically just a few inches of water over a gravel bottom, with a lot of branches and plants. And please note, I'm not asking about GTPs and ETBs specifically, but in terms of highly arboreal reptiles in general. I'd be more interested in doing this kind of setup with an arboreal lizard than with a GTP or ETB.