Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I need a good substrate for my yellow-throated. Any suggestions? We have the alfalfa pellet stuff right now. That's what the pet store gave us when we got him, but I want something different.

Dirt mixtures work great.

I would get it off the pellets ASAP as they tend to clump and get moldy when they get moist. They work fine for my bearded dragon and uro who like things dry, but not for my plated who likes to go into the water too much. I keep my plated on regular old cypress mulch that you can get for a couple bucks a bag at HomeDepot or similar place. Cypress, not pine. They can burrow into it, you can spray it to keep moist, and it dries out pretty quickly too. Fairly easy to spot clean as well.

Plateds aren't water lizards. If your plated is going into its water (this isn't normal) a lot then I would look into your humidity settings. If you are having trouble keeping humidity in the cage then I would cover the screen top if it has one.

It has a much larger water bowl than my bearded dragon as has been suggested. My uro has no water bowl. I never see him soaking in it, but it does appear he uses it more than my bearded uses his. Obviously the higher humidity in general that the plated cage has is bad for the pellets IMO, as they tend to break down VERY easily in higher humidity, clump, and mold.

I use aspen bedding. They can burrow in it and its easy to clean/change. Its also in most pet stores.
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My menagerie
2.1 Ball Pythons
1.0 Amazon Tree Boa
1.0 Corn Snake
1.0 Dumeril's Boa
1.2 Bearded Dragons
2.1 Crested Geckos
2.1 Sudan Plated Lizards
0.0.5 Eastern Painted Turtles
1.1.5 Eastern Box Turtles
1.1 Eastern Red-spotted Newts
1.0 Northern Mockingbird
0.3 Chickens
2.0 Cats
1.1 Ferrets
2.4 mice
0.0.35 some kind of goldfish

One of the reason I don't like using pellets is the fact that they clump as you mentioned. I tested them out as a substrate about 12 years ago and found out I should leave them to the rabbits. It's also one of the main reasons why I recommend dirt mixtures for reptiles. It's natural and its something they know.

Do you have a screen lid on your enclosure? If so, then that is where your humidity is disappearing to.

My female also likes to soak in the water, but my male doesn't, so I barely think it could be a humidity thing otherwise my male would soak too....right?

all lizards have their own personality, so I woudn't worry about it unless it seems like she's soaking excessively. Sometimes, they may soak if they're constipated, but if all that's working normally then its all good.
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"Let us step out into the night and pursue that mighty temptress, adventure." (Albus Dumbledore)

My menagerie
2.1 Ball Pythons 1.0 Amazon Tree Boa 1.0 Corn Snake 1.0 Dumeril's Boa 1.2 Bearded Dragons(and 11 eggs!) 2.1 Crested Geckos 1.2 Sudan Plated Lizards 0.0.5 Eastern Painted Turtles 1.1.5 Eastern Box Turtles 1.1 Eastern Red-spotted Newts 1.0 Northern Mockingbird 0.3 Chickens 2.0 Cats 1.1 Ferrets 1.4 mice 0.0.34 London Shubunkin goldfish

Do you have a screen lid? Lets try something here. Cover up (seal) the majority of the screen lid with plastic or glass. This is to help elevate the humidity level. Screen lids don't do squat for humidity.

Also, are the male and female in the same cage together? when she soaks what is she exactly doing? As in, is she trying to submerge herself like she is hiding or is she just sitting there? She may feel stressed from the male being in the cage.

Animals that are hydrated and function normally don't get constipated contrary to what many believe. When animals are kept in captivity they are constantly fighting some form of dehydration, because they have to use what we give them. They can't just go and find what they need like they do in nature. A moist burrow for example. A tight rock crevice to hide in.

No, my plated is in a four x two foot custom PVC cage. Once again, it doesnt soak, but does require a larger water bowl than my bearded or uro and the humidity in its cage is definitely higher. Too high for the pellets.