Galápagos (05024) Jurassic Fir Bark Bedding, 8-Quart, Natural

I bought a few bags for use as substrate for my Russian Tortoise. First, the bag is smaller than what youd expect for 8 quarts. Second, we put the bark in the torts enclosure and we started to notice tiny white bugs crawling and hopping through the bark. A quick Google search says that its mite. Tons of them. Due to the pandemic and the pain in the @$$ of having to do a return, etc, and the fact that wed disposed of his older substrate- another Google search told us that our option was to put it in the oven for 30-40 mins at 230 degrees or lower. So.. were baking tree bark as I write this. Fun.

I Ordered two bags of 8 quarts (2 gallons) . The picture says it all. One bag is full while other is kind of just half a bag. Am I being cheated ? You be the judge. Packaging is resealable but not sealed.

The picture shows the larger chunks of bark and what arrived is a finer shred of fir tree. Not what we like for the tortoises.

Killed three of my plants! Please don’t use on house plants!!!!

I used this substrate for my ball pythons enclosures. I didnt much care for how large the chips are or how little you get in a bag for the money honestly. I did like the bags that the substrate is packaged in.

Not as described had to return

Perfect for the gecko’s cage I think it adds moisture and placed to rub making shedding easier.

came in extremely moldy. The bag has a reclosable strip and notches above for easy opening of the bag, however the bag was already opened and has cut marks at the top. Very disappointing, as I was going to use it in my tortoise enclosure and Im sure all that mold is not good for either my tortoise or my own lungs.

I was looking for smaller chunks, very disappointed to receive and realize how big they were. Was using in a soil mix for plants. Maybe a picture with ruler or other object for comparison would have helped to figure out scale. Chunks are generally in the one inch or more ballpark for those interested. I was able to pick out some smaller pieces but it was a pain and the rest is useless to me unless I take a mallet to it.

amazing product