Everytime I go into a petstore I see crushed walnut shells available as a substrate for reptiles. With all the negative reviews its getting, you would think they would pull it off the shelves, right? I mean, think people. This stuff is causing deaths, much more than the other substrates. That should tell you something.

My mom, against my warnings, got my bearded dragon Tyke the crushed walnut substrate. I was furious, but I didn't have any money to get him something else. I begged my mother to get something else and by the time she said she would, it was too late. Two weeks on that substrate and Tyke got impacted. For over a week, I stayed at home with him, giving him warm baths, giving him oil and giving him water from my fingers. He died in December on the day I got Zim.

It is a horrible way for a reptile to die. I was devestated when Tyke passed away. And it really irritates me when petstores still sell this stuff. I'm thinking of making little cards with info about the substrate and how dangerous it is, and pinning them to the bags.