Best substrate for a savannah monitor

Hi.I was wondering what a good substrate would be for a savannah monitor, The breeder said sand but I have also been reading that dirt mixed with sand is good. Any help is apreciated

I used a mix of cypress mulch and soil ... he loved it and loved to dig around it in, also held the humidity well for him.

What breeder said sand? Do you mean the "dealer" said sand?

They don't live in sand dunes, that is a common pet store misconception. They live in soil. A good diggable, burrowable soil is far and away the best choice for a substrate. Savs and other Albigs are prodigious diggers, and it is great for their physical and mental well being.

I usually suggest folks start with the "Home Depot mix" of topsoil/playsand/vermiculite in a 50/25/25 mix. It is easy to get, easy to mix, economical, and works well for most lizards.

Well I am glad I checked out my state lawn mass I cannot have any monitors.Kind of hard to be discrete with a lizard that size .I went to NERD in NH and got one of there captive bred argentine tegus. I will postpcs in the morning.

I've seen people use the mix of sand/soil mixture, supposedly holds humidity well and also keeps burrows strong!

http://savannahmonitor.org/ best caresheet in the world for these guys!

Edit: Woops! Oh well, have fun with your tegu!

Thanks for all the help

That stinks about monitors, they are very rewarding to keep. I would still use soil for Tegus as well.

Best of luck!

Well I have used jungle mix and cyprus. My Red Tegu much preferred cyprus mulch. That said, I am now using white beach towels. Very easy to clean, she comes out on top and burrows under. You can always see if there is a mess to clean up. We switched to this method after having a mite infestation. We don't know where we picked up the mites, maybe from a mouse? The cage stays spotlessly clean now and she really doesn't seem to mind. When they get dirty, shake em outside and throw them in the laundry with a little bleach. We do the same thing for our Ball Python. I know it doesn't look as cool as a tank full of mulch but you know that your tegu isn't laying in a pile of her own filth.