When I first put my Russian on my 50/50 top soil and sand he ate it too, but he was really just tasting it, and after a few days he decided he didn't like it and doesn't eat it at all now. He also ate the hemp when it first went in (I think this is like aspen that you use in the States) - his enclosure is half hemp and half sand and soil with an area of rocks dividing them. But he gave up on hemp after a few days too. I have heard that eating a bit of sand won't hurt them and should pass straight through. My big worry is when he's outdoors he tries to eat as many small pebbles as he can find (and he has plenty of limestone flour and a cuttlefish bone in his enclosure). Theoretically they should pass through too, but I'm worried about impaction and so I try to remove them before he gets to them. Re feeding him more to stop him eating substrate, well, I'd be worried about the consequences of the extra food (pyramiding), as Russians are notorious over-eaters.

Nina

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