is it normal for the terrarium to smell?

[jek]

my vitalius sorocabae's terrarium has a strong acid peelike smell...
is it ok for it to smell like that?
I got her and prepared the terrarium 6 months ago and it started smelling last month.
Should I clean the terrarium or replace the substrate?

 

[ChrisNCT]

Mine just smell like dirt "like when it starts raining". I have not had any issues of the smell that you are describing. I would do a substrate change.

 

[tin man]

I don't think my cages smell at all, except for my cricket cage

 

[AubZ]

Whenever I get a wierd or strange smell, I play it safe and do a sub change. Unless premolt, then I just check for mold, and wait for molt, then change.

 

[jek]

it molted the day before yesterday...how long should I wait to change the substrate??

and how long should I wait to feed her again??

 

[AubZ]

5 Days from molt on both. Seeing as subs change is needed, do that first, then wait a couple days to feed.

 

[ArachnoYak]

6 months

I think you should clean the encolsure more often.

 

[P. Novak]

What kind of substrate are you using? That does not sound like a good thing at all, and I would change it in a few days. Let her recover from her molting first.

6 months should be nothing; I have Ts cages that have remained unchanged for about 2 years. As long as you do spot maintance it should be fine.

 

[fartkowski]

How big is she?
If she is an adult I would wait a bit more than 5 days to feed.
I would also change the substrate soon.
A "peelike" smell is not good.

 

[fartkowski]

Oh yeh as well, when changing the substrate you might want to try to find the source of the smell so you know in the future.
Do you take out food remains?

 

[Cocoa-Jin]

Pee smell is an ammonia like smell, that means nitrogenous decay, that means protein or metabolic waste. Considering Ts have such slow metabolisms, your looking at lots and lots of accumalted T waste, or more likly...dead feeders.

Either big ones or lots of them. Gotta clean or change substrate...or see who could be the phantom pee-er in your home.

 

[butch4skin]

my vitalius sorocabae's terrarium has a strong acid peelike smell...
is it ok for it to smell like that?

Basically, hell no

 

[Ungweliante]

I remember my A. geniculata's Exo-Terra started to smell when a cricket managed to hide behind the background and died there. Once I got it out, the smell improved a lot.

 

[RottweilExpress]

Sounds like you need better ventilation(in combination with other mentioned things), both in and out of the cage, and also to the cage. No good having lots of holes if the cage is in a cupboard etc.

 

[butch4skin]

IME, nothing good ever comes of the smell of piss.

 

[phil jones]

IME, nothing good ever comes of the smell of piss.

man thats funny :clap: :worship: ---- phil