Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have heard that sand is sometimes bad for leopard geckos? Is this true, because i have one that is pretty much full grown and i was wandering if i could put him on sand? I have had him on paper towels since he was only like 3 inches long. Do i have to be carefull when i feed him to make sure he dosn't eat any sand or what? Thanks, Kyle

if it is calci sand, you have a calcium dish, the sand is only about and inch, and u watch that the leo isnt accually eating the sand, then youll b fine.
nevin
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1.1 brazilian rainbow baos-sunshine&chaos
1.1.1 leopard geckos-killer, narvana, sallean,
1.1 blizzerd lizzard-grim&amber
.1 bell leopard gecko-ecstacy
.1 tremper leopard gecko-euphoria
.2. amazon tree boas-sweetness&carnage
0.1.0 kenyan sand boa-stimpy R.I.P.
0.1.0 bearded dragon-blaze
1.0.0 uromastyx-chubby
2.0 brothers
0.2 sisters
3 cats-fat max, spiderman, &toby
1 miniture mutt-brutis

"dont be afraid to die, only be afraid to not live"

"dont become classified. if you are nothing, then you can be anything."

if it is calci sand, you have a calcium dish, the sand is only about and inch, and u watch that the leo isnt accually eating the sand, then youll b fine.

This is not the case. You can not guarantee that they are not eating sand when they catch prey. A leopard gecko can become impacted over the course of years and by the time you discover it - it is too late.

Get some repti carpet, or paper towels, or slate tiles from home depot. All are cheap and easy to clean and there is no worry of impaction.

Also, I'd stay away from calci-sand. It is thought that when it is consumed it alters the acidity in a leopard geckos stomach.

I use slate tile in all but two enclosures - the teo that are not slate tile have babies that are on repti-carpet and paper towels.

Regards,

Terry
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Terry Brashear
1.0.0 High Yellow
0.1.0 Lavender
0.1.0 Hypo Carrot-tail
2.5.0 "Tigers" Designer
1.1.0 Tangerine
0.0.2 Tremper Albino
0.0.1 High Yellow/Lavender
18 eggs incubating
http://www.naturepixels.com

there toes can get torn off very easly. i do agree with u on the tile. my enclosures are half clay tile, and half sand
nevin
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1.1 brazilian rainbow baos-sunshine&chaos
1.1.1 leopard geckos-killer, narvana, sallean,
1.1 blizzerd lizzard-grim&amber
.1 bell leopard gecko-ecstacy
.1 tremper leopard gecko-euphoria
.2. amazon tree boas-sweetness&carnage
0.1.0 kenyan sand boa-stimpy R.I.P.
0.1.0 bearded dragon-blaze
1.0.0 uromastyx-chubby
2.0 brothers
0.2 sisters
3 cats-fat max, spiderman, &toby
1 miniture mutt-brutis

"dont be afraid to die, only be afraid to not live"

"dont become classified. if you are nothing, then you can be anything."

.
-----
1.1 brazilian rainbow baos-sunshine&chaos
1.1.1 leopard geckos-killer, narvana, sallean,
1.1 blizzerd lizzard-grim&amber
.1 bell leopard gecko-ecstacy
.1 tremper leopard gecko-euphoria
.2. amazon tree boas-sweetness&carnage
0.1.0 kenyan sand boa-stimpy R.I.P.
0.1.0 bearded dragon-blaze
1.0.0 uromastyx-chubby
2.0 brothers
0.2 sisters
3 cats-fat max, spiderman, &toby
1 miniture mutt-brutis

"dont be afraid to die, only be afraid to not live"

"dont become classified. if you are nothing, then you can be anything."

It pretty much depends what ya got and if it likes mealys. If it does put some in a dish and if you feed it crickets also put him/her in a diffrent cage that doesnt have sand in it and feed him/her to prevent it from getting sand into its mouth.
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Leopard Geckos ROCK!!!
Leopard Geckos ROCK!!!
Leopard Geckos ROCK!!!
Leopard Geckos ROCK!!! Leopard Geckos ROCK!!!
Leopard Geckos ROCK!!!
Leopard Geckos ROCK!!!
Leopard Geckos ROCK!!!

If you want to use sand you have to be careful with it. I agree with nevin's comments...but also I recommend trying to make the sand not take up more than a third of the tank. To do that, you can use tiles and then fill in the end space with sand, or you can just use slate or other stone pieces and fill in the spaces with sand. You also have to make sure that you feed something that will stay in a dish so you can be sure that your leo isn't accidentally getting mouthfulls of sand everytime it tries to catch something. Usually only mealies will stay in a dish..but it might be possible to find one that you can get superworms to stay in...or you could pull the back legs off of crickets and put them in a dish. Other than that, one other thing would be to use FINE grain PLAYsand...don't use calcisand. It's not digestable and is a natural antacid which will alter the stomach's acidity.
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Christina

Leopard Gecko Morph Descriptions

2.3 leos
-0.1 tangerine het rainwater albino w/jungle background (Blinkers)
-0.2 jungles (Vahz & Skissor)
-1.0 tremper albino (Spitfire)
-1.0 tangerine rainwater albino (Bronx)

-ignorance is not to be punished when one is trying to gain knowledge...what scares me is the vast number of people who, when given the information to gain knowledge, choose to ignore it.

Sand any sand is going to be consumed no matter how little is used. Watch your leopard gecko as it moves around the enclosure. They taste everything with there tongue. You might not get impaction immediately, but you WILL get it over time. Leopard Geckos in the wild stay away from sandy areas - do a google search if you don't believe me. I read some information posted by a reptile vet on a gecko listserv that I belong to and she stated that is not worth taking the chance.

Take a look at Ron Tremper's site and how he houses his animals. Do you see any sand????? Nope. Ask Marcia McGuinness, Kelly Hammack, Robin Struck, Jodi Ahern and all the other people who have multiple animals and have raised them for years.

I'll tell you what I'll raise my new baby that is 3 days old on slate and you get a new baby and keep it on sand all its life. I guarantee mine will outlive yours.

I'm sorry if this is terse, but I get peeved about disinformation on here.

Terry
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Terry Brashear
1.0.0 High Yellow
0.1.0 Lavender
0.1.0 Hypo Carrot-tail
2.5.0 "Tigers" Designer
1.1.0 Tangerine
0.0.2 Tremper Albino
0.0.1 High Yellow/Lavender
18 eggs incubating
http://www.naturepixels.com

Actually I know for a fact that at least one of the breeders you listed there does not dissapprove of sand and has used it before and only stopped b/c paper towels are easier to keep clean. There are also others on here that have kept thier leos on sand thier entire lives and never had one problem. Also...being a prevet student and having dealt with multiple vets...I can tell you as another fact that a lot of vets out there will tell you faulty info and just don't know what they're talking about. Just because a vet says something...dont' take thier word as absolute fact. Leos do live in sandy areas in the wild...and don't tell me I'm wrong because I have researched it...they live in areas with a lot of rocks, but there is also a thin layer of very fine, dusty sand covering a base of rock-hard clay. Finally...a lot of people, including some on this site will tell you that its other aspects of husbandry, and not the sand, that causes leos to get impacted. They WILL pass sand through their GI tracts...just b/c it goes in doesn't mean its automatically going to get stuck there. Normally it will pass through unless they are eating it faster than they pass it...which will probably only happen if they are purposely eating it or accidentally eating large quantities of it. Oh...and actually my leos don't walk around licking everything...and if they do lick something its something that is front of their face (like the side of the tank or a hide or rock), and not the ground.
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Christina

Leopard Gecko Morph Descriptions

2.3 leos
-0.1 tangerine het rainwater albino w/jungle background (Blinkers)
-0.2 jungles (Vahz & Skissor)
-1.0 tremper albino (Spitfire)
-1.0 tangerine rainwater albino (Bronx)

-ignorance is not to be punished when one is trying to gain knowledge...what scares me is the vast number of people who, when given the information to gain knowledge, choose to ignore it.

.
-----
1.1 brazilian rainbow baos-sunshine&chaos
1.1.1 leopard geckos-killer, narvana, sallean,
1.1 blizzerd lizzard-grim&amber
.1 bell leopard gecko-ecstacy
.1 tremper leopard gecko-euphoria
.2. amazon tree boas-sweetness&carnage
0.1.0 kenyan sand boa-stimpy R.I.P.
0.1.0 bearded dragon-blaze
1.0.0 uromastyx-chubby
2.0 brothers
0.2 sisters
3 cats-fat max, spiderman, &toby
1 miniture mutt-brutis

"dont be afraid to die, only be afraid to not live"

"dont become classified. if you are nothing, then you can be anything."