Reptile & Amphibian Forums

It has recently been brought to my attention that My leopard geckos run the risk of being impacted by the papertowels I use to line the bottom of their enclosers with..... This came from someone that has two degrees in biology, so it has got to be true, right??? I would love to hear about anyones horror story involving your leopard gecko being impacted by papertowels..... Also the bed-a-beast I use in the humid hides can cause impaction as well.... So I was told by the same person..... I always thought that the bedding was easily broken down and digested if taken in by a reptile.... If it holds true that my leos will get impacted from papertowels and bed-a-beast I will change all my sweater boxes to a sand substate right this instant......LOL LOL LOL.....

Hey Gregg any item your gecko swallows and doesn't pass can cause impaction. Grow a brain...if you can't take an opposing viewpoint then don't come on the forum acting like a turd. Maybe then you won't be treated like one! I am still waiting to see your set up.....
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www.hullabalooherps.com

Wow, that was alittle uncalled for, dont you think???? Can someone give me a first hand account of this happening??? Anyone???

Come on guys I respect BOTH of you as excellent herp keepers and friendly people. The last thing we need to do is nit-pick at eachother. We're suppose to be here helping eachother out. We all have different opinions in how things should be done so why not just leave it at that. as I say "differnt strokes for differnt folks." you're never going to convience someone who is already opinionated about a subject that they are wrong, so going back and forth is a bit pointless. Greg, MS. Hill, I know you two have more to say to eachother, but why not agree to disagree?

I use tile by the way so you're both wrong.

this is an older set-up of mine. I'm sure people are going to say "gee that's alot of moss" but it's put in areas where the leo could get stuck it.

You are 100% right...... Hill, I am sorry..... I just have pretty strong feelings on this subject because of what I have seen..... I do not think it is a good idea for new keepers to read "sand is ok to use"...... Especialy being that so many people have had so much trouble with it..... It is always better to be safe than sorry..... The best way to prevent sand impaction is to not use it at all.... It is in my nature to be a bit of a wiseguy but I guess I did let this drag on too much..... So, again, I am sorry.....
I will still post pics of my rack for you today.....

By the way gurnham, that cage looks awesome!!!

i'd love to see your set-up greg, i'm sure you have some great ideas.

What i do agree on is people who are new to leos shouldn't use sand b/c of their inexperiance. i don't think i will ever keep my leos on sand, just my 2 cents and I will probably advise newbies to not use sand. But experianced owners like Hill and Greg can keep their leos on sand (or whatever) because they know how to.

I can take a more updated picture of my tank. added a few hides (the two girls now have 6 hides). They are so cute together, sleeping together, hunting together.

LOL...I use tile too and oh yeah, papertowels. (Shocking I know)
The 2nd pic is a quarentine rack I put together and put in a closet because I needed more space. Papertowel has its place...makes it easier for inspecting / collecting fecal samples for floats.

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www.hullabalooherps.com

LOL, they can get impacted on anything that can fit in their mouth. Paper towel, sand, food. That is why it is glass tank bottom and mushed up food for my leo.
j/k
>>It has recently been brought to my attention that My leopard geckos run the risk of being impacted by the papertowels I use to line the bottom of their enclosers with..... This came from someone that has two degrees in biology, so it has got to be true, right??? I would love to hear about anyones horror story involving your leopard gecko being impacted by papertowels..... Also the bed-a-beast I use in the humid hides can cause impaction as well.... So I was told by the same person..... I always thought that the bedding was easily broken down and digested if taken in by a reptile.... If it holds true that my leos will get impacted from papertowels and bed-a-beast I will change all my sweater boxes to a sand substate right this instant......LOL LOL LOL.....
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Tim W. My Pictures
0.0.1 Leopard Geckos
0.1.0 Dumeril Boa

Silkworms are great!
Why doesn't kingsnake have auto login?

Honestly though, what are the chances of your leo bitting off a piece of papertowel and then eating it???? Weigh those odds agains the odds that your leo would lick around a sand covered cage and get alittle bit of sand in its mouth each time..... I would say that your chance of sand impaction is much much greater..... I have never in all my years of keeping reptile heard anything about papertowel impaction.... You do however, see post on sand impaction all too often....

>>LOL, they can get impacted on anything that can fit in their mouth. Paper towel, sand, food.
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Marcia McGuiness
Golden Gate Geckos
www.goldengategeckos.com

I don't know why the rest of my message didn't get posted. Anyway, what it said was, that there is some truth to the above statement. You can't imagine all of the issues I have seen or dealt with in the 10 years I have been raising Leoprd Geckos! I know of someone who lost their leo to mealworm impaction, and another one who had theirs die as a result of choking to death on it's own shed.

I guess the point is, that the more ways you can eliminate the potential for impaction, the less chance you will have to experience it. Just because it hasn't happened yet doesn't mean it wont!
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Marcia McGuiness
Golden Gate Geckos
www.goldengategeckos.com

Exactly Marcia, that has been my point from the very begining.... Why add more risk??? It is just not woth it to me.... As far as getting impacted on papertowels, I think it is pretty safe to say that I will never have to worry about that.... It is totaly possible for a leo to get impacted on mealworms..... Their hard shells can get lodged in the digestive tract of leos..... I feel in a case like that it might have something to do with the heat not being high enough to aid in digestion..... I would think that in the case of the leo dieing as a result of eating its shead, well that was most likely a freak thing and I am sure there is little chance that would happen often..... I guess anything can happen but the more you do correctly the lesser your chances are of something bad happening....

The point I had been making earlier in previous posts is that sand can be used as a substrate if proper care is used! Anyone who has ever read any post from me on the substrate issue knows that I have ALWAYS added that certain needs MUST be met in order to reduce the risk of impaction. I have not and do not make the claim that leos won't get impacted from sand. It has been my experience (over 10 years of it) that sand CAN be used with minimal risk if you take care of the other husbandry issues.
I extend an apology to Gregg for the harshness of my latest reply to him. However, when an issue is made of my qualifications to give advice on this subject and when statements are made that question my knowledge of herps in a rude / condescending matter, I will respond in kind.
If anyone disagrees with information I provide please feel free to post your opposing viewpoint. I have nothing against a good debate or lively conversation, but when it becomes an "I know what I am talking about because I heard this or that and you don't know anything" conversation, I will be quick to point out (and support my informaton with evidence) that my viewpoint is valid. And I will also call you out to support your statements. I agree there is lots of misinformation floating on these forums. But I also believe that people (especially the newbies) are doing the right thing in coming here and asking questions. The more information they can get (without having people tell them they need to do the research) the better off they and their animnals will be. No single person knows EVERYTHING there is to know about leos...but I do know what my experience has been and I have no problem sharing that information with anyone; including info about breeding, building enclosures, fake rocks, heating, feeding etc...
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www.hullabalooherps.com

I could care less if people use sand or towels or bare tanks. There is a risk no matter what you use. Take having a dog. They all could run into a street and get hit by a car, but I don't know anyone who keeps a dog in the house 24/7. You just have to take precautions.

>>The point I had been making earlier in previous posts is that sand can be used as a substrate if proper care is used! Anyone who has ever read any post from me on the substrate issue knows that I have ALWAYS added that certain needs MUST be met in order to reduce the risk of impaction. I have not and do not make the claim that leos won't get impacted from sand. It has been my experience (over 10 years of it) that sand CAN be used with minimal risk if you take care of the other husbandry issues.
>>I extend an apology to Gregg for the harshness of my latest reply to him. However, when an issue is made of my qualifications to give advice on this subject and when statements are made that question my knowledge of herps in a rude / condescending matter, I will respond in kind.
>>If anyone disagrees with information I provide please feel free to post your opposing viewpoint. I have nothing against a good debate or lively conversation, but when it becomes an "I know what I am talking about because I heard this or that and you don't know anything" conversation, I will be quick to point out (and support my informaton with evidence) that my viewpoint is valid. And I will also call you out to support your statements. I agree there is lots of misinformation floating on these forums. But I also believe that people (especially the newbies) are doing the right thing in coming here and asking questions. The more information they can get (without having people tell them they need to do the research) the better off they and their animnals will be. No single person knows EVERYTHING there is to know about leos...but I do know what my experience has been and I have no problem sharing that information with anyone; including info about breeding, building enclosures, fake rocks, heating, feeding etc...
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>>www.hullabalooherps.com
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Tim W. My Pictures
0.0.1 Leopard Geckos
0.1.0 Dumeril Boa

Silkworms are great!
Why doesn't kingsnake have auto login?