Substrate Suggestions?

J

Jay Decay123

Guest
Yeah I'm new and owning a gecko has been a dream of mine since i was a kid. well it came true and I bought one. He/she is kinda tiny I want it to grow up strong and beautiful. recently I started reading everyones post's absorbing as much info as I could, through some of this information I have learned that sand substrates are frowned upon pretty much effecting the leo's digestive system with impaction. well call me "that guy" but i bought expensive sand and It's being used as a substrate right now. I guess I like the sand it makes the tank look cool. what alternate substrates can i use without taking away the cool look to the leo's environment but at the same time keep the leo safe from impaction? also I am confused about how much calcium and what kind to keep in his tank. He has only eaten crickets should i start feeding him mele's or one wax worm a week? I will post pictures of him he's tiny!:main_thumbsup:
 
K

keepzrollin

Guest
As of right now I have been using sand, but I have intentions to switch to tile. Even though I like how it looks I just dont want my geckos getting impacted. Ive also only had my geckos about 2 months and when I first got them I bought sand.. so I wasn't going to let it go to waste. I havent seen them eat any of it and when I feed them I use these tweezer type things so they don't even eat off the floor.

You can stick to crickets if you like, I used to only feed them crickets till I couldnt handle their noise and smell in my room ... lol
So now I get them mealworms and superworms and thats mainly all they eat, till they get picky and want a change in diet lol.
 
latshki

latshki

Breeder in the making
Messages
485
Location
PEI Canada
well ceramic tile comes in almost all colors so you can get some tile which I think is the best substrate but you could do slate and do a mozaic (sp?)
 
J

Jay Decay123

Guest
Here's the leo setup and my python setup. Custom lighting enjoy!
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F

fr0ntline

Guest
are those LED's on the geckos tank? and can leos see blue or red light?
 
J

Jay Decay123

Guest
they are LED's they are blue. and the gecko doesn't seem to be bothered by them at all.
 
acpart

acpart

Geck-cessories
Staff member
Messages
15,406
Location
Somerville, MA
I'd recommend going with ceramic tile and then getting some nice rocks to put around the cage to make it look good. There are some people who have built gorgeous leopard gecko cages with all sorts of styrofoam hides and ledges built right into the cage and finished to look natural. Maybe someone on here can post a picture of theirs.

Aliza
 
J

Jay Decay123

Guest
I just took out all the sand and put tile down, i also filled the cracks between the tile with a little sand so his feet don't get caught in between tiles. thanks for the suggestions guys.
 
L

LizMarie

New Member
Messages
2,002
Location
NYC
I say getting some nice tiles. I've been getting them for months now but making the trip to the hardware store seems like a journey. I think Tiles, nice background, nice fake plants and you got a nice cage.
 
G

Geckonut

Guest
This goes against the grain here but I like sand, but for adults only. Ron Tremper says sand is fine for adults as long as it is good quality fine sand like Repti-Sand.
If you feed in a feed bowl it should be OK to use sand. I like how easy it is to keep clean and scoop poop with sand. The Repti carpet can't be cleaned as easily.
No young geckos should EVER be put on sand however.
 
K

keepzrollin

Guest
On a 20G Long what tile can i get that will fit perfect inside without having to cut them??
 
T

t04jas

New Member
Messages
71
Location
Newfoundland
keepzrollin said:
On a 20G Long what tile can i get that will fit perfect inside without having to cut them??
Click to expand...

I was using repti-carpet for a while because I didn't know how to put tile down without cutting it, but after seeing Dex struggle with getting his mouth caught in the repti-carpet I had to do something about it. I went to Home Depot, picked up some 12x12 tiles for $1 each, and a tile cutter for $20. I was amazed at how well the cheap tile cutter worked, a half an hour and I had tile cut to fit Dex's tank. There were a couple of spaces around the edge that I had to fill with sand, but I'm satisfied with it and Dex seems to be happy with his new floor.
 
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