zoomed Zoo Med XR-10 Excavator Clay Substrate, 4.5 Kg

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Tile is also the easiest to clean of all of your substrate options. This is a big part of the reason it is such a popular choice for owners. Remember to disinfect, not just wipe, as eliminating bacteria is vital to the health of your bearded dragon.

There are about 12 types of blue tongue skinks and each type requires a different humidity level. This is important to know as the substrate that you will use helps in maintaining humidity or even raising the humidity. Since leos come from “dry, desert environment,” many automatically assume this includes a Sahara-like sandy desert landscape. In line with that, many pet shops readily recommend sand or calcium sand as the best substrate for leos.While using coconut fiber as a general substrate has its downsides, there is no issue when you use coco as a moist hide substrate. Coco holds moisture well and will not get moldy easily. Leos will gladly dig and even lay eggs in this substrate.

Having a place to burrow can also be very important for female dragons as without being able to dig, they will refuse to lay their eggs. If they have a group of eggs to lay and don’t do it, it can cause serious health issues. We know that some of the above options may have been recommended to you. We can easily Google our way to multiple people who strongly recommend one or more of the above options. Those people will tell you how they’ve never had a problem with them, and they work great. In the end, even if the above choices weren’t all dangerous and a really bad idea, there are better options out there. There’s simply no reason to use any of them since superior alternatives exist. If you’re a paludarium owner with reptiles, it’s worth giving Zoo Med excavator clay substrate a try.One nice feature of your beardie digging in this harder clay surface is that it will help to keep their nails dulled. This makes them easier to handle and also means you may not have to cut their nails ( see our full article on how to do this here)! While this might seem obvious, it’s important to touch on this question. It’s very clear to us by some people’s choice of a substrate that they really don’t fully understand what substrate is and what its purpose is.

First, we didn’t want to have to pull out and wash the carpet when it was soiled. Our beardie can poop a couple of times a week, and we didn’t want to have to mess with changing out the carpet that often.

Safe Substrates For Leopard Geckos

That means that they can naturally survive and thrive on a variety of ground cover. When observed, bearded dragons will move to different types of environments based on what their needs are at the time. Since digging is already in their nature, you can study and watch how your reptile behaves in certain environment.

Many leo owners go for just one layer of paper towel. Personally, I would settle for two. Do not put too much because too many layers will turn into a paper pulp mush if it gets substantially wet. 2. Newspapers Although because of its downsides and possible dangers I cannot recommend coconut coir to leo hobbyists, I have to say that I have been using it with no issues for many years. It was the safest and the simplest natural substrate available locally at the time I got my leos, and we had gotten used to it. Reptile carpet is usually the choice if you want fast clean-ups and easy setups. For the most part, it is fine to use, except blue tongue skinks love to dig and burrow.

Unsafe Leopard Gecko Substrates

Sure, they can get impacted if they have been ingesting cups of substrate every feeding which is very unlikely. A DIY blended substrate consists of safe materials, such as coconut coir, organic topsoil, and sand. This allows for a natural-looking habitat and encourages digging behavior. Reptile carpet is a very popular option. It’s inexpensive, attractive, easy to clean, and readily available at most pet stores.