thebestincali2000;535849; said:
dude i have had my leopard geckos in sand for a long time and they never had any problems.one is like 11 years old so what does that tell you about keeping them in sand. plus its also their natural habitat in the wild,nature knows best.
Miracles do happen. And some people smoke three packs a day and still manage to live past 60. Would you say that their longevity was because of the smoking or in spite of it?
I suppose I can elaborate on the sand issue. Leopard geckos are sometimes found on sand in the wild; however, they usually dwell on rocky terrain, compiled of larger fragments of rock, etc, not necessarily sand. So if you want to get technical, a more natural substrate for leos would be flat pieces of slate or sandstone that fit on the bottom of the cage. Many leo keepers use this; it much easier to clean than carpet, certainly no danger of ingestion, and still looks nicer than carpet and paper.
Sand impaction is a very real and common issue with terrestrial desert geckos. Juts because you don't believe in it, doesn't mean it doesn't occur. There's plenty of evidence that supports this. I will say that it is more common with younger geckos than with adults. Thus, I generally have no issue with adult leos being on sand as long as it's either very fine grade particles (almost like dust or powder) or any of the digestable/passable "calci-sands" available in most petstores. Children's play sand, which is commonly used for sandbozes and such, does
not meet either of these requirements, so that's why I suggested not using it.
For younger geckos, I would not use sand at all, at least until they're around 6". Slate rock, paper towels, or carpet would be preferable.
Bestincali2000, I've had good success keeping leos on sand for years, too.....until guess what....one got impacted and died. I learned my lesson the hard way, but my lizard was the one who paid for it. Like I said before, miracles can happen and in your case, I would consider you and your geckos lucky. But why take the chance? Is having sand in there worth the risk?
