Possible Substrate

Hi I am thinking of getting a leopard gecko in the near future. I would like to have a natural looking environment when I get one and I was looking online at petsmart. I know everyone doesnt like the thoughts of using sand as a substrate for the fear of impaction. I came across this sand type of substrate and I would like to know your opinions of it or if anyone uses this type. It is called Vita-Sand made by ZooMed. Here is the link for it please take a look and tell me what you think. Thanks.

http://www.petsmart.com/product/inde...amily&keepsr=1

Sand of any kind, tho it is their natural substrate, just isn't any good for captive geckos. I kept my boy on it for years, and luckily he never got impacted...but he never really ate or gained weight like he should have, either. Now that I have switched him over to repti-carpet, he's plumped up very nicely.
Sand is also a B**** to clean and replace. Just too risky if you ask any gecko keeper.

I'm not sure about how other substrates are for leos, the one I hear most people use is newsprint or paper towels, but the one to answer this best would be Emily. She is the gecko guru. :)

it is best stay away from sand altogether, regardless of the type of sand it is. here is my own personal experience with sand: http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/s...ad.php?t=45900.

try something like ceramic tile in a naturalistic enclosure. it looks great, is easy to clean and transfers belly heat nicely.

Ooo, never thought of tile. Are we talking about the glazed stuff or non-glazed? I have been wanting to find something new since Dapple's claws keep catching on the carpet fibers...

non-glazed. they tend to have hard time on the glazed because it is slippery.

Thanks I figured it wasnt good stuff but since it was made of calcium carbonate wasnt sure if it was really "sand" or a digestible substance. Im taking general chemistry in college now so I should know what calcium carbonate is but I think im gonna need to study a little more for my first test obviously lol. Tile sounds like a really good idea does it come in big sheets that can be cut to fit or do you have to piece them together? I assume you can get it at any Home Depot or Lowes store.

yeah you can get it at home depot or lowes. it comes by the tile and you can have it cut to fit your tank.

I figured you meant non glazed, but had to ask. :) I think that would be really cool...I'll go out and get some this weekend, see what he thinks of it. Thanks, Em, once again you give out the great gecko ideas. :rockon:

the tile suggestion was actually kristy's idea. that's what she uses and what i'm going to use eventually when i get around to getting some cut. right now i just use paper towels. :)

Sweet. We'll both have to thank her for that, then. :) I've been wanting to find something that would look nice but still give traction and let him wear down those claws of his. I'll be taking him to my local herp expert soon for a general checkover, maybe they can TRY to clip them.

I can't exactly take all the credit, I got the idea from someone else a while back, a long while back on another forum.

Tile is GREAT. It is so easy to clean. Also comes in a bunch of colors.

If you find that you have problems with heat distributing evenly you can place papertowels underneath to fill in the little gaps underneath the tile. You can also use about a quarter inch of playsand underneath the tile. That works very well too and the geckos can't get to the sand. Oh and don't grout the tiles in. I have seen where people have done that and its impossible to clean to the point where its disinfected. Better just to lay them down.

Definately use non glazed, have you ever seen a wheel chair on wet concrete? Well you can imagine lol.

Here are some pics of enclosures with tile.

Just after cage cleaning
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a3.../Geckos044.jpg

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a3.../Geckos062.jpg

Different colors
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a3...s/IMG_3701.jpg

OH and if you feed mealies, use darker tile. My leos had the worst time seeing the mealies on the terra cotta colored tile. It was like hunting deer with a blind fold on.

Ya I think when I do finally get one of the sexy little guys ill get me some tile. I have another quick question since im still kinda learning and doing lots of research on leopard geckos. I will probably feed mealworms for the staple diet and other worms everynow and then for variety cause i really dont want to fool with crickets. My question is what is the deal with all the different supplements? I know to have calcium in the tank at all times but what are the other supplements I will need and how ofter do I give them cause ive seen lots of conflicting information of feed schedules.

dust your mealworms with t-rex leopard gecko insect/cricket balancer powder (available at petsmart and petco) and leave a dish of calcium in the enclosure at all times. you don't even have to dust every time--every other time or so is fine.

As far as feeders go, mealies aren't the greatest but they are good. I raised my first two girls on mealies and crickets.

Other feeders are silkworms, superworms (for adults), crickets, waxworms(high in fat not a good staple) and Roaches. Blaptica Dubia roaches are by far the best feeder I have ever used for any of my geckos. they are easy to breed, the don't smell, the dont make noise, they can't fly or climb smooth surfaces. Right now I have about 300 roaches and I orderd 50 back in July I think. Or maybe it was June. They have a great meat to shell ratio and my geckos go bonkers over them.


Supplements you need Calcium Carbonate, multivitamins and vitamin D3 for calcium absorption. I have found the easiest thing to do is get

T rex bone aid pure calcium carbonate (found at petstores and online at reptilesupply.com)

Then I use Reptivite
It is a multivitamin with D3. Also found online and at petstores.

The schedule I used for my leos was this

Hatchling/Juvie
Monday through Saturday dust with pure calcium everyfeeding.
Sunday use Reptivite
Dish of Pure calcium in the tank at all times.

For adults cut back on the d3.
I would feed calcium for 2 weeks then use multivitamin for 1 feeding.

Since then I have cut back multivitamin to one a month. I have found that they eat better, have better colors and are more active. With no signs of mbd. This is just for adults though, they don't metabolize D3 as fast as growing babies do so they don't need as much.

Hopefully this clears it up a little bit. I was horribly confused when I first started keeping leos. The info was all over the place and it was all conflicting. This is just my personal experience and what has worked great for me and my animals.

Kristy

Awesome, Kristy! Now I definitely have to get some tile for my fella. What size/type are those BTW?

Just a suggestion for staple leo diet: try phoenix worms. My guy, who can be very picky about his food, loves those little squirmers. My only problems with them are that I have to find a reliable supplier who ships on Fridays, and that Dapple will only eat them if I drop them in front of him one at a time....sigh. Other great food options would include the occasional wax worms, silkworms, and a monthly pinky mouse and superworms for adults.

Ok...I type way too slow

Those are 20 gallon long tanks.

I used two 12 x 12 inch tiles and two 6 x 6 inch tiles. There was no need to cut them. If you do find you need them cut, get your measurements and most lowes and home depot stores will cut upto 4 or 5 free of charge.

I think I have it figured out now. Provide small dish of calcium carbonate at all times. Dust every feeding with calcium carbonate and give the Reptivite multivitamin once a week correct?. Does Reptivite contain D3 with the rest of the vitamins or is it seperate? As far as the mealworms for the staple diet. I dont want to keep crickets and thats all that my local petsmart carries. There is another petstore that i have been going to that has crickets and mealworms so its easier for me to just run by and buy up some mealworms than to order stuff online and have to wait. I can see if they can order me some though and they may have silkworms ill have to ask next time. Ive got plenty of time to figure it all out cause I probably wont get a leopard till after Christmas.