Dig Box Instructions
Here’s how we made Margarita’s Dig Box
Materials Required:
- Bag of
Spargham Peat Moss
- Bag of
Washed Playsand
- Large
Rubbermaid (approx 2 wide x 4 long x 2 high)
- Metal Top
of some sort (Hardware cloth works great)
- Clamp
style heat light, 100w bulb
- Water
Here’s how we made it:
- Clean Rubbermaid
well
- Make a
mixture of 60% Peat Moss and 40% sand
- Wet mixture
until it holds form when molded, adding more peat/sand if needed.
- Pile
mixture to a depth of 12 inches or so in one end of the Rubbermaid
- Start
a tunnel for the dragon in the lower portion of the dirt pile
- Put
clamp lamp on side of Rubbermaid, pointing all the heat towards the mound
- Mould
hardware cloth into a secure lid over the Rubbermaid (The stuff is stiff
enough you should just be able to fold it over the edges of the Rubbermaid
2-3 inches and it stay that way)
- Put
new Dig Box in a quiet room such as a bathroom or out of the way bedroom,
free from drafts, noise, and human/pet traffic.
- Insert
dragon when she’s digging frantically in her enclosure.
- Leave
dragon alone for several hours.
- If
dragon does not lay on day one, put her back in her house and try again the
next day if you feel she is ready to lay.
- After
laying, dragon will very likely appreciate a nice bath to get all that
dirt off and just generally clean up and rehydrate. Remember to feed
dragon WELL with calcium rich veggies prior to laying and post-lay as
well. Additional insects over the usual amount are also appreciated post-lay.
Any questions let me know. I will gladly snap pictures if
need be as well. This lay box has
worked for several dragons, beyond our own, and is easy to use. Its modified off a style Gina Gauvin taught
me a long time ago – only real modification is using a Rubbermaid instead of a
Aquarium – the aquarium was a royal PAIN to haul around and clean and was too “open”
for the dragon to feel secure.