#loose substrate

[starlight-reptiles]

Finally got around to taking some good photos!

As you can see, Indigo has.... loose substrate! 😱

Have no fear though! He is perfectly safe. Before anyone panics, think of it this way- wild bearded dragons live on loose substrate from the moment they hatch. You can see examples of their habitat on the Beardie Vet facebook page. Why would an animal evolve to live in an environment where every square inch would be something so deadly? The truth... it isn't.

In fact, dragons have been observed digging and creating burrows, specifically humid burrows for brumation (reptile hibernation), hydration, and for when they shed. Burrowing is one of their natural behaviors, and is essential to their survival in the wild.

Now, this does not mean there is a zero percent chance of impaction. What have I done to make this habitat safe? Certainly there are differences between the Australian outback and captivity. Firstly, Indigo passed a quarantine. The minimum is 90 days, but right around that 90 day mark, his stool became irregular, so I extended it until his feces became more regular.

Secondly, I made sure his humidity and hydration stayed at a healthy level. The digestive system needs to be hydrated to function properly. It is a myth that a bearded dragon's habitat stays at 0% humidity all the time, and in fact, keeping them at 0% humidity is a hazard to their health. Their habitat has a wide range of humidity throughout the year, and even throughout the day. I provide a large, shallow water dish for him to drink or soak in if he chooses, and mist him while he is shedding.

Thirdly, the substrate itself. A bearded dragons natural habitat contains substrate that is comprised of mostly sand that contains large amounts of calcium and is stained with iron oxide. However, after years of natural weather cycles, the substrate is compacted. I have attempted to mimic this by doing a mix of top soil, children's playsand, calcium sand, and iron oxide.

Fourthly, dragons will address nutrient deficiencies by intentionally ingesting substrate. They require calcium in their diet, and in the wild, they may meet this requirement by ingesting the calcium rich sand. In captivity, we can dramatically reduce this behavior by supplementing their diet with calcium and a multivitamin.

He also has access to licensed veterinary care should anything go awry.

If you have any questions or concerns, let me know! I would never intentionally expose Indigo (or any of my animals) to a significant risk, but I also want to allow him to express as many natural behaviors as possible in a safe way. This allows for an enriching life in captivity, and has been shown to increase life expectancy when done in a safe way.

[sunfish-exotics]

Heya! sorry if this has been asked before, but is there any loose substrate at all that you would consider safe for Leopard Geckos? What if the gecko was hand fed on a clean surface? I realise there is a huge debate around this, but if there is anything out there that is safe then i would love to switch my gecker over on it, it all just makes me very nervous! Thanks a lot <3

Sure! So I do recommend people think about the pros and cons of using a loose substrate with leopard geckos before committing to one. First I’ll start with the substrates I DO NOT recommend used as a standalone substrate for leopard geckos:

Coco Fiber / Eco Earth

Play Sand

Calcium Sand (don’t use it EVER!)

Cypress Mulch

Here are the substrates I DO recommend people think about for leopard geckos:

A mixed substrate (I would use something like a mix of clay, a bit of top soil, and either some decomposed granite or play sand) This could also easily be made bioactive

Clay (Excavator clay can be used as a standalone)

A pre-made substrate (I hear TerraSahara by the Biodude is very good, though I’ve never used it before, I’ll have to try it out!)

No loose substrate for leopard geckos is completely safe or foolproof. It’s important to monitor your gecko very carefully for a week or so when you first move them onto a loose substrate to make sure if they’re ingesting substrate that they’re passing it. Some geckos will flat out EAT loose substrate by the mouthful and they should not be kept on loose substrate period. If you provide proper temperature gradients and hot spots impaction is not likely with inorganic substrates but it can happen if your gecko has compromised health or has ingested too much to pass. As a side note, if you use just excavator clay as a substrate it’s important to provide a humid hide for your leopard gecko since excavator clay (when dried) can make it difficult to keep a natural humidity gradient that a mixed substrate can provide.

If you choose to use loose substrate, I would still provide a ceramic food bowl or a flat piece of slate to use as a feeding platform for them.

Let me know if you have any other questions or want me to elaborate!

[tser]

I've tried to find out what substrate is best for my leopard gecko. I saw a video with The BioDude and he makes some substrate which he says is the best at matching the leopard geckos natural habitat. I've also heard that the Eco Earth isn't bad for the leopard gecko if he ingests it, because in the wild they accidentally ingest random dirt and substrate while they hunt. I'm really confused, can you please help me?

Eco Earth is a very bad choice for leopard geckos. 

Contrary to what you’ve heard, it can cause serious impaction. Eco Earth is not “dirt” like a leopard gecko would encounter in the wild. It’s actually shredded coconut husk, which is fibrous. Sand and Eco Earth (coco fiber) both pose a serious risk of impaction.

In addition, Eco Earth retains far too much moisture to be a good choice for leopard geckos. It’s great for species who need a humid habitat, like crested geckos. However, leopard geckos are from arid habitats! They need humidity under 40%. 

If you have a new gecko, I recommend that you have the newcomer on paper towels for the first four weeks. This allows you to monitor the gecko and make sure it is healthy. You can easily find and examine feces. I also suggest a wellness checkup and fecal from the vet before moving onto another substrate. Quarantined, new, and sick leopard geckos should be on a solid substrate.   

The BioDude’s bioactive substrate is a fine choice for a leopard gecko, if you are comfortable doing a bioactive enclosure for your leopard gecko. Buying the substrate from him does take a lot of guess work out of it. 

However, there are still a lot of considerations for designing an arid bioactive enclosure that make it harder to do than a humid bioactive enclosure. The substrate needs to be kept at the proper moisture content to keep the humidity down, yet provide a humidity gradient for your leopard gecko and retain burrows, and because of the substrate depth you will need to use a heat source other than a UTH (unless you set up a split substrate or otherwise design the habitat to accommodate it). Although you can maintain the enclosure with the BioDude’s substrate and not go bioactive (purchase clean up crew invertebrates, etc.), it would be an expensive prospect, as you would need to spot clean regularly and occasionally replace all the substrate. 

My recommendation is not to go with an arid bioactive enclosure to start. However, if you’re willing to put in the work to thoroughly research and maintain it, it’s possible. I personally would suggest setting up and maintaining humid and tropical bioactive enclosures to get a feel for bioactive first.

If you do choose to go bioactive you can mix your own bioactive substrate as well, and not purchase The BioDude’s.

Substrates that are a good choice for leopard geckos include:

Paper towel (and butcher paper, newspaper, kraft paper, etc.)

Slate tile

Ceramic tile

Excavator clay

A properly designed loose substrate mix of topsoil, sand, decomposed granite, and organic components, preferably bioactive

The tile chosen should not be slippery and should have a flat back so as not to cause uneven heating.

Other options that are safe but that I don’t recommend personally include:

Astroturf or “grass mats” -- they are easier to clean than reptile carpet, by soaking in a disinfectant solution often, and do not catch claws like the reptile carpet can. Run a bead of silicone sealant along the edges and let it cure, to prevent unraveling. A bead of hot glue is another choice. Check often.

Sand mats -- more difficult to disinfect and so will need to be replaced fairly frequently, making them expensive, but they are attractive; it is generally best to provide other surfaces such as flat rocks and wood, or use sand mat plus another solid substrate, since the sand mats can be rather rough to constantly walk on.

In addition to using a solid substrate like tile, paper towel, or a mat, you can provide a digging box for the leopard gecko as enrichment, which contains a safe loose substrate mix. This is a safer way to provide loose substrate enrichment for newer reptile keepers!

In general it is a great idea to provide several different surfaces for your leopard gecko to walk on, for enrichment. There’s no reason to limit yourself to just one choice.

[tser]

I was just wondering if it was okay to add dirt/leaf litter/live plants to my bearded dragons enclosure without making it fully bioactive? I have no problem spot cleaning.

If you don’t make it bioactive, you’ll have to replace all the dirt, leaf litter, and so on very often. This ends up being pretty expensive and labor intensive. It also wouldn’t be great for live plants. Middle ground doesn’t really work with this keeping method; I’d suggest either stay conventional (perhaps adding a safe digging box you can clean and replace?), or go bioactive.

[sunfish-exotics]

Is a play sand/organic potting soil mix safe for leopard geckos? Mine is currently on tile, if the soil mix was safe should I keep the tile underneath so that if he dug he couldn’t touch the uth?

That should work for leopard geckos. You may want to add some clay or larger stones depending on the consistency of the potting mix.

[sunfish-exotics]

What would you recommend for a loose substrate for leopard geckos ? I'm using eco earth in my geckos digbox, but after reading your post, I want to use something less irritating

As long as the eco earth is kept damp (not wet) it’s okay in a dig box. In my dig / lay boxes for leopard geckos I use a 1:1 ratio of coco fiber to play sand and it works great for me! Sphagnum moss is also a great addition to humid hides / dig boxes / etc

[sunfish-exotics]

So we know eco earth is bad for dry animals, but what about wet arboreal animals like certain geckos or GTPs?

Personally, I’m not a big fan of using eco earth on it’s own as the main substrate in an enclosure regardless of the environment you’re using it for. Kept wet or in high humidity it can be prone to rotting and molding. Ideally it would be kept damp, not wet, but this can be difficult to achieve when you’re misting a cage a few times a day. I think coco fiber can be a great component of substrates, but using it as a standalone is rarely the best option for mimicking a particular habitat.

[guccko]

Excuse my French but... I fucking hate how some keepers will justify loose substrate with, "I have x amount of species and have been keeping them for x amount of years!" Like, okay? But that doesn't mean that your animals will be fine on loose substrate? It's just irresponsible for you to force them in an environment where they could harm themselves. Even if they have perfect heat and humidity requirements, that doesn't mean everything will go swell. My beardie and every single one of my leos is on paper towels. Why? Because I've put a lot of money into them and they are my babies. I wouldn't give my actual child a spoonful of something harmful every day "just because." It just disgusts me, the way some people look at their husbandry and justify it. There is endless amounts of research to disprove you. Shut the fuck up.