Over the last year or so we've been trying to get to the bottom of which substrate is best for uromastyx. We've heard many opinions, theories and suggestions but still nobody has really listed the pros and cons of each so we figured it's about time someone did this. Here's a list of what we've come down to so far...feel free to post suggestions and add comments or corrections as needed.
Playsand-cheap, and easy to clean yet becomes dusty when it's dry.
Dirt Mixtures-works wonderfully, the uros have a heck of a time digging and burrowing in the soil but the mixes seem to dry out on top and the thin layer of dry soil mix spreads dust everywhere in the house or facility! Feces are also tough to spot and suprisingly dirt mixes can get expensive and be tough to maintain...others may disagree.
Coconut or crushed walnut shells-well let's see...impaction, death and injury have been caused by these so we'll say no to this substrate.
Aspen shavings-We've used them with any of our reptiles in the past with great success and although it does not give the uros a chance to show off their burrowing skills it has no odur and is relitively dust free. Also absorbs fecal matter well. (very expensive)
Pine shavings-we've also used this with our reptiles but this must be used in open-top type enclosures as the pine smell will not disapate without proper ventalation. We've never had a problem with it, other people would disagree strongly against it.
Paper towel/Newspaper-works great for babies and juvies, you won't run into problems of impaction but it isn't suitable for adults.
Cedar shavings-use this and you are asking for your uro to die. The cedar smell is so toxic it will cause respritory infection and eventual death.
Bird Seed- apparently a great choice, fecal is easy to clean it's cheap from feed stores and it can also be eaten as a bonus...make sure the bird seed has NO SUNFLOWER SEEDS. Get a finch mix.
Reptile carpets-go ahead and use it but you are going to spend more time cleaning it that the uro can spend running around on it.
So far we've been using aspen but eventually we will switch to birdseed...the dirt mixes are ideal but with the amount of dust they create it is not suitable for us.
Alright...now let's hear what substrates you've tried....somebody throw out some agreements/disagreements...
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Chris Vanderwees
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1.2.0 Bearded Dragons
1.1.0 Crested Geckos
1.3.0 Veiled Chameleons
3.5.0 Corn Snakes
1.3.0 Tokay Geckos
2.2.0 California Kingsnakes
1.3.0 South Florida Kingsnakes
1.1.0 Albino Sonoran Gopher Snakes
1.5.0 Leopard Geckos
0.1.0 Green Iguanas
3.3.0 Mali Uromastyx
