Reptile & Amphibian Forums

thanks guys for the info on sand...ive removed it....nut before i did i notice some plastic strips in it..unfortunatly my beardy ate this while eating cricket..it was thin strip so im hoping hell be ok..i just got paper now..also if anyone else could clarify the basking spot fromn thread below...should it be 105 on the basking rock...or 105 about where there top of body is..thanks againyou guys have been very helpfull

Sorry to hear about the plastic, I hope it passes. 105ish sounds good, it really shouldn't matter rock or top of beardie there should only be about a degree or 2 difference. It's probably already been said, but make sure you're measuring surface temps and not ambient.

Sean
Heart Mountain Herps

it hasnt been said mate...could you explain this too me??i just lay down thermo and take reading????the plastic was about 2 inch long and 1/4 cm thin...you may have seen these thin strips of plastic that is in the coral sand....im very annoyed at this.i wish i had noticed it..but when i removed the coral there was loads of these plastic strips. this is what my reptile store reccomended i use for young beardys as its calcium based.so im pretty annoyed to say the least...and on the bag it says coral for fish tanks..i should have known better..but alot of websites say use calcium sand..is there anything i can use????or should i just stick with paper..its not very attractive looking but if its best for them ill stick to it for tyhere sake..thanx again guys...

A lot of people still use those plastic fish tanks thermo strip things (bad idea). They measure the air temp on that side of the tank. Air temp and the temp where the light is focussed can be 10-20 degrees off or more. Just make sure your measuring the actual spot where the light if focussed. IR thermometers are best but as long as it's something you can put right on the basking spot to see how hot it's getting you should be alright. That calcisand is bad stuff all the way around. Beardies can't absorb the calcium in it and it impacts even large adults. I'd stick with paper towels or newspaper for your babies, I know it's not the most attractive but it's the safest. Some people like to use filtered playsand with adults. It still has some risk of impaction with it, but is usually alright on adult animals. A lot of breeders are now switching over to shelf liner, it looks pretty nice and is easy to clean. I still use good old paper on all my animals (paper towels on babies and newspaper on adults).

Sean
Heart Mountain Herps

cheers mate..yeah im gonna stick with newspaper..i would hate the wee guys to get injured just for the sake of a nice looking substrate..the thermometer i use is from garden centre..just a wee white basic one..should i buy the circular one from pet store???i just lay it on rock its the long thin type????

Yours should work just as well as the circular one. If you know anyone with an IR one (the kind you just point at an object) might give it a compare and see if there is a difference.

Sean
Heart Mountain Herps

I thought I'd let you in on a few things about them. They are not regulated in any way. They can claim anything about their products they wish apparently without any reprocussions. For example, a lot of manufacturers produce substrates made with calcium this and calcium that and indicate there is low risk of impaction. It truth most substrates these manufacturers market are actually very dangerous and have impacted and killed many animals. Other products such as certain types of cricket gutload have caused problems with animals who have ingested the crickets. Things such as incandescent and halogen bulbs with that indicate they are special for reptiles are the same as the ones you can buy at your local home improvement store but about 2-3 times the cost. This is not the issue with Mercury Vapor Bulbs and certain types of colored bulbs, though. But if you are going to buy a regular basking bulb spend a fraction of the cost and buy them from the home improvement store.

The best advice I can give you with regards to reptile manufacturers is to seek out as much information about the products from forums such as this one as you can. Advice from people who have experience with these products might save you a lot of money and grief.

Also, it is unfortunate but a lot of pet store personnel will also suggest these products and do not realize they are giving out bad information. Even some who do know it is bad are trying to make a living and will tell you to buy them anyway. Not true with all pet stores but seems like a lot of them are this way.

Good luck with your little beardie. I hope the plastic gets through okay.
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Rob Talkington