Making my own cage furniture...

I want to make some cool hides and climbing toys for my three snakes, 2 corns and one ball python. I've ordered some non toxic air drying clay from dick blick, but I will need to test whether it stands up to water and heat before the snakes get to play with it. I was wondering what else I could use to make creative and functional cage furniture that will not endanger the snakes' health. I don't want to use the normal $15 cork bark and $20 grapevine from the pet stores. I'd like a different motif for each snake and have thought of things like pyramids, urban setting (here comes a godzilla-sized corn!) and "ancient" ruins. Some materials I've considered are plaster, concrete, carved rock, etc. Anyone else have a suggestion? Are there materials non toxic to people that hurt snakes? Anyone else have experience in this? Thanks in advance.

Cats

I've used aquarium sealant/fixative and glued some polished river rocks togheter to make a nifty cave/mountain thing. I've also carved blocks of wood into caves and tunnels also. I just had to be careful what type of fixative I used, aquarium sealant seems to be the cheapest and most safe fixative that I've found.

The clays from Dick Blick are not water proof, at least not the air-drying ones. My absolute favorite material is polymer clay, especially by the brand of Sculpey. Another brand, Fimo, is hard to work with in my experience. Sculpey, available at Dick Blick, comes in many colors which you can partially mix together to create marbled effects. This material works like clay, is not water soluble and cures (hardens) in the oven at 275 degrees F. I use it to make snake hides and water bowls. The finished product is matte but you can apply 2 part epoxy resin to create a shiny surface.

I'll post some pics soon.

sweet

I have like 2 pounds of white sculpey so I'll try some of that. As for the air drying clay, I was thinking about sealing it with something-- maybe water soluble polyurethane? I don't know! Trial and error. Meanwhile I would LOVE to see pics of other custom water dishes/hides.

Here is a pic of my hides. On the top left there is one (large orange/red) that is finished with 2 part epoxy, which gives it a thick, shiny and durable coating. They are all made from color sculpey, mixed together for a marbled effect. Some hides have separate bottoms, that I fit with cage carpet or moss to create moist boxes.
I screwed up with the lenses and settings on my digicam, so the image is quite distorted along the edges. By the time I realized my mistake I had put everything away and didn't want to pull it all out and ask the snake to pose once again

Here are the hides with bottoms.

And here is my very patient model for size comparison.

If you have white sculpey you can make your hides and water bowls, then paint them with acrylic artist's paints and then finish with 2 part epoxy or several coats of polyurethane. Let the finish cure for a week or so till the off-gassing is gone, especially for the water dishes. If you don't paint and coat the sculpey then you can use it as soon as it comes out of the oven (well, let it cool first).

Inspired!

Tonight I went out and bought some brown sculpey because I thought the marbled effect idea was cool. I made this "broken column" and I'd say it turned out pretty well for a first try. I would like to accompany this with another hide that would go with the ruins motif along with some kind of climbing area-- probably made of a large marble looking rock.

My only question would be how to do it on a larger scale for when the snakes are adults. I guess I'll have to play with wire and aluminum foil armatures. This is exciting!

Cats

Liz, Those hides & bowls are really great. You are very talented I'm not crafty so I really appreciate what goes into something like that. Really nice.

Alicia

Yeah, those hides are amazing!
I worked with Sculpey a little bit last year in my honors art class but none of my creations looked half as great.
Epoxy..what exactly is it and where can you get it? Art stores? I think I'm going to go buy some Sculpey tomorrow...
And another question. How long does it take to bake the clay at 275º? My art teacher did all the baking in one of those little toaster oven things so I haven't an inkling about how long to bake them.

Answers to questions

Sculpey is baked at 275F for 15 minutes per 1/4 inch of thickness. Fimo is baked at 265 for 20 minutes. The packages usually indicate the baking time and temp anyway.

When using sculpey in a larger scale you can use a wire mesh armature. My large orange hide and the blue long one with the snake on it were first shaped out of 1/2 inch wire mesh and the Sculpey applied on top and around the bottom edges. Cover the underside wherever there are sharp wire edges. Aluminum foil won't give rigidity to your structure, but you can use wads of it to help support tall sides or a domed hide while baking.

When marbling Sculpey I make a big ball of the various colors, roll it out into a sausage, twist it, roll back into a ball, etc., until I like the level of mixture. Then I take the ball and cut it in half. The interior of the ball has the best effect, because it hasn't been smugded by my fingers when working it. I flatten the ball with the cut side up trying not to smudge it again, and use it in my project. Also, the baked sculpey can be sanded like wood, and that way you can expose fresh colors and remove fingerprints. Polyurethane and epoxy will cover up fine sanding scratches and fingerprints as well. These coatings bring out the colors beautifully, especially with the metallic colors. There are quite a few books available on polymer clays that have fabulous ideas.

The two-part epoxy I use and have found at Ace Harware stores is called EnviroTex 1 to 1 Polymer Coating. You mix equal parts by volume and spread it or brush it onto your piece. It's gooey, sticky and messy, don't do it near carpet or upholstery because it might dribble on them. It behaves like thick honey, you apply it and come check on it in 20 minutes to find that it has dribbled all over the place. You don't feel it if it touches your skin as you work (it doesn't feel wet) and soon enough it's in your hair, face, toes, etc. I wipe it off myself and objects with paper towels. It has a workable time of 15 - 20 minutes and cures completely in 2 to 4 days, depending on ambient temperature. Practice with small items first to ge the feel for it. The results are worth the inconvenience.

Liz you've once again created an enticement for me. When my daughter sees those hides, it is going to be project for daddy time yet again! Hehe. They are great. I can't wait to make some of my own.

Peter

Thanks!
As soon as school ends (about 1 more month) I'm gonna be working on this. Can't wait!

Here's a pic of my "broken column" hide with my 22-inch cornsnake in it for scale.



This is really fun. If and when anyone else completes some projects, post 'em! I'm working on completing another hide that will be a column that hopefully will look like it's coming out of the substrate.

I found this old post...

This stuff looks like it would be fun to play with...

Thats really cool! So using this clay is completly safe for the snakes?? How about for some Leopard geckos. I have been thinking of making some cool cage decor for them. Thx!

I really like the idea of making your own viv furniture cos it means it is orginal and no two could be EXACTLY the same.

Those hides are COOL!!! If I tried to make them, they probably wouldn't turn out half as nice as those...LOL Thanks for the info

This is SO cool!

I have been making hides out of sculpey almost since I started having snakes! I didn't realize anyone else was doing the same thing! That's great!

I'll try to post some pictures soon! My battery to my digital camera is dead. It won't hold a charge so I can't get any pics until I get a new battery! I'll get one soon!