[Jools]

You can see now why I was so against wood chips. This is not the first Leo I know of had problems with it. Unfortunately not all survive.
If anyone really does want to use a "loose" substrate (I won't take the risk - nor do I like them from a practical point of view) then a very fine grained sand is probably the best option, childrens play sand for instance - not calci-sand either.
But as I said I will not use loose substrates. Tiles, slate, lino, repti carpet and paper all make excellent floor coverings.

[Olivine]

There are many areas of herpetoculture that are contentious; probably none moreso than the (seemingly) never ending debate upon the choice of substrate. Obviously, every keeper must make up their decision on which substrate they choose to use for their animals; the best we can do is attempt to make sure that enough information is available on the subject to make sure that that decision is an informed one, where keepers are aware of all the potential risks and can assess whether they feel taking those risks is worth it. It is for this reason that I think it's essential that owners (or prospective owners) have the opportunity to see for themselves the potential damage that loose substrates can cause.

WARNING: THE FOLLOWING LINKS CONTAIN GRAPHIC IMAGES OF NECROPSIES (POST MORTEMS) IN ANIMALS; please do not follow the link if you are likely to be distressed. Firstly, to illustrate the problem with calci-sand, a leopard gecko that was kept on this substrate. Secondly, an absolutely stunning leaf-tailed gecko that was kept on orchid bark by a previous owner.

I'm sure that members such as Jools and SleepyD could relate much anecdotal evidence for the potential hazards posed by loose substrates.

My personal feeling on the subject is that use of loose substrate should be avoided; using slate, tiles etc for leos effectively removes what is, in my opinion, a completely unnecessary risk.

Thanks for all the replies and the information, I knew not to use sand due to the blocking effects but this woodchip substrate i have bought i got from the reptile section of where i bought the leo from, and the packeging has lizards all over it lol. So what would you guys recommend to use?

In the sense of eating this doesnt seem to be a problem for him, he ate a locust last night, and at 6pm GMT i have put 3 in that have been dusted with Nutrobol, he stayed in his hide for a while so i thought to myself while i have a fag in the kitchen ill turn the light off, being a nocturnal creature ect. When i came back he was sat in the middle of the viv where one of his meals sat then he wondered off back into the hide lol.

I did the same again to see if he was still hungry and when i came back he had been to the toilet, so it seems happy but shy at the moment.

Ill get a picture up once he settles as i dnt want to move his hide or scare him with a nice up close and personal photo lol, i refer to him as him btw, as i said in previous post i dont know what sex he is lol.

Its not a viv its a plastic pen with a hatches in the lid. I have cellotaped the heat matt to the bottom to reduce heat loss. his cave is on the hotter side and i have a small log feature on the cooler side that he can get under. He has a waterbowl with another small hole that i will be putting some other food he can eat in, ive been told that mealworms can sometimes be an issue as they have an exo skeleton, so i was recommended waxworms. This is the pen here http://www.eurorep.net/retail/produc...oducts_id=1206

Just trying to think of all things i should mention lol, at the end of the month im looking at buying a proper vivarium or a euro rep terranium for him to live in permantly, just not sure which one. This is a temporary place for him as for one i couldnt afford a big one and for 2 wanted to get him settled in to my home.

http://www.eurorep.net/retail/index.php?cPath=153_160 I was looking at maybe one of these as its permanant home, any info on housing for these leo's would be great aswell, unfortunatly ive gone into this very blind lol, so im doing as much research as possible.

[SleepyDee]

ok ~ food wise please don't use waxxies ... they're too fatty and leo's can become addicted to them .... mealworms are perfectly ok as a staple and leo'a are well capable of digesting them
The faunerium you have will do for a while but adults will need a larger viv, the heatmat should really be used with a thermostat to control the temps and also a digital thermometer to measure the temps.
He will also need a moist-hide, calcium dish etc ~ substrate wise would use kitchen paper, lino, tiles etc especially while he is young.......... there's more details of what's needed etc on my website caresheets
sorry for the short post only it's feeding time for my lot and I wanted to egt this posted lol

[Jools]

Hi, the faunarium he is in is absolutely fine for him until you get a "proper" vivarium. I prefer wooden vivs as they hold the heat better and they give the Leo a sense of security - as you have found out they can be a bit shy until they feel secure.
As far as the substrate is concerned if it were me I would just use kitchen roll for now. When you upgrade to the permanent viv then I think slate, textured surface tiles, textured vinyl flooring (lino), paper or repticarpet are all good. Personally I use tiles, slate and vinyl flooring in my vivs and am in the (slow) process of changing them all to vinyl. I got a whole roll of really nice looking sandy coloured vinyl - enough to do at least 12 vivs - for a fiver from a discount warehouse. It is easy to clean, easy to install, no impaction risk and looks good too. I have a few flat pieces of rock in each viv to help when they shed and to keep their claws short - and most important they seem to like it.
It can be very misleading when equipping your first enclosure. Companies and pet shops will try to sell many things that may not be the best for your pet - after all they don't get repeat sales from slate or vinyl!
Good luck with the little one - I'm sure you'll have loads of fun.

Just reading the above posts, the substrate is this http://www.bird123.co.kr/shop_images...ium)%20500.jpg.

he has been in it for 1 day, so if its vital i remove it then ill buy some new stuff for him tommorow.

[Olivine]

Originally Posted by Griffa87

Just reading the above posts, the substrate is this http://www.bird123.co.kr/shop_images...ium)%20500.jpg.

he has been in it for 1 day, so if its vital i remove it then ill buy some new stuff for him tommorow.

I can only tell you what I would do, which is remove it as soon as possible. As Jools and SleepyD have both mentioned, kitchen towel is perfectly acceptable as a substrate; I'd be inclined to try to switch the littlun over onto it this evening if possible.

Ok cool, ill get on that strait away then, btw, are locusts allright with only one hind leg lol... they seem a little inactive in his enclosure :s...

[Jools]

Yes they'll be great. I will often take a back leg off locust to stop them jumping too much, both back legs if they are getting a little large :-)

Right its done, he has 2 layers of normal kitchen roll, so you all say it will do him better and prolong his lifespan that way? until i get a proper viv and can use a repti mat, or lino or summut.

thanks for all the great advice btw.