Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I know this question has probably been asked a thousand times. But what's one more. Can I use regular play sand rather than calcium sand? Or What is the best substrate to use? I am trying to find something to use that I can get a lot of without spending too much money. Kind of on a budget at the moment.
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1.0 Iguana (Nim)
0.0.1 Orange Bearded Dragon (Chedder)
0.0.1 Black Throat Monitor (Titian)
0.0.1 Savannah Monitor (Indy)
0.0.1 Red Nigerian Uromastyx (Red)

Don't medel in the afairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.

It depends on the age of your uro. I use paper towels until they are at least a year old or of substantial size. I even have my baby cyclura who is at least 7-8" svl on paper towels. I always feel better to be safe, even though the paper towels are kind of a pain. I have posted a pic of the cyclura cage so you can see that you just lay the paper towels down and then set up your cage as you would like.
Everyone uses something different, but washed playsand, millet and dirt seem to be the most popular. If you have a little one, just use the paper towels until it is older. Salad falls off the plate and if eaten with a lot of sand sticking to it, it can cause impaction in a young animal. Good luck!

Pam

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1.1 varanus acanthurus brachyurus (Dorado & Dora)
1.1 u. macfadyeni (Amani & Abeba)
1.2 u. ornata (Husani, Zari, & Bintu)
0.0.1 geochelone carbonaria (Rojo)
0.0.1 cyclura hybrid lewisi x caymanensis x nubila (No Name)
1.1 hyla chrysoscelis (Pudge & Squirt)
Herps Are Awesome!

My uro is 6 inches total length and I still use paper towels. One thing that's really funny about that is my uro acts really funny when I clean up after it. It walks all over the new/clean paper towels, tasting it. As if to say, where's my poop??? LOL

What's that ledge made of?? Nice & healthy Uro there!

LOL If you are referring to my corner cardboard thingy.. I saved it from a huge jewelry box I got from xmas. I had 4 of those things and used two with my aussie water dragons. The water dragons liked it so much for hiding, I thought the uro would love it. Guess what?? My uro doesn't care much for hiding under it, nor does he seem to really care that its even there. But he loves hiding under the card board flat that I cut out an entrance and exit. Go figure.. Yes, he is getting rather porky, I'm happy to say.. its amazing what a little over a week can do.

I'll say!! What an improvement. Compliments!

>>Can I use regular play sand rather than calcium sand?

In answer to this part, if you choose to go with sand, it's way better to go with playsand or other natural sand. Calcium sand is not good for your animals ever.

Another option is white or red millet seed. It can be fairly inexpensive depending on where you can find it.
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Torey
Eugene, Oregon, USA
1.1 Saharan Uros (Joe and Arthur)
3.0 Mali Uros (Spike, Turtle, and Tank)
1.1 Ornate Uros (Scuttlebutt and Shazzbot)
0.1 Collared Lizard (Rorschach)
2.1 Green Anoles (Bowser, Sprocket, Leeloo)
1.1 Chubby Housecats (Roscolux and Jenny)

Do you have to clean the play sand?
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1.0 Iguana (Nim)
0.0.1 Orange Bearded Dragon (Chedder)
0.0.1 Black Throat Monitor (Titian)
0.0.1 Savannah Monitor (Indy)
0.0.1 Red Nigerian Uromastyx (Red)

Don't medel in the afairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.

Needs washing to rid it of dust. Even if the bag says "pre-washed", it needs another rinse or two.

Thanks for the info you all helped me out alot! And saved me about $100. Now I can buy more cage furniture for my new cages and other things to pamper my pets even more! ^_^

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1.0 Iguana (Nim)
0.0.1 Orange Bearded Dragon (Chedder)
0.0.1 Black Throat Monitor (Titian)
0.0.1 Savannah Monitor (Indy)
0.0.1 Red Nigerian Uromastyx (Red)

Don't medel in the afairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup.