7 Comments so far

1. Been there: done that - I think! on October 29, 2009 5:44 PM

   No sweetie, no sand is safe for a Leopard gecko. I would recommend that you keep him on non-adhesive shelf liner, aged newspaper, very short nap reptile carpet or slightly textured ceramic tile.
   Leos originate from arid rocky regions of hard packed earth and nature didn’t design them to ingest sand with their prey insects. Please take a minute to read this site, or at least look at the pictures.http://hubpages.com/hub/Impaction
   I see you also posted another question saying your Leo isn’t eating. It’s very possible that he is impacted. Is he able to have a bowel movement?
   You can try to help him move the impaction by giving him a 15-20 min. soak in luke warm water. Don’t let it get cold or too hot. A cricket keeper works great. You can sit a corner of the container on a UTH mat or heat pad. The water should be to his shoulders but not over his back. Monitor him at all times so that he doesn’t drown.
   Just before you take him out, gently massage his tummy from behind his front legs back towards his vent. Be very easy. Do this as many times as the Leo will let you. This should help break up the impaction and get his bowels to move and purge the sand blockage.
   Repeat the soak and massage 2 times a day. If he still hasn’t eaten or moved his bowels in the next few days, I would recommend a trip to the vet.
   Good luck and I hope he’s better soon.
   Additional – I just went and read your other question. I didn’t realize the poor animal has not eaten for a month. How thin is the Leo? I hope this is not a baby. I would recommend that you try the soak as soon as you can. If the Leo isn’t able to move its bowel within a couple hours of the soak and massage, I would suggest you get it to a vet immediately before it dies.

2. jada on October 29, 2009 6:09 PM

   Many companies and sadly even occasionally reptile breeders will suggest, calcium sand because it is beneficial, or sand because they come from desert climates. This is not true. I try to warn as many people as i can about this.
   The thing is when a leopard gecko goes to eat his food, if its escaped from the dish, or is if its fine grained or if he detects calcium in it he obviously swallows it. While the occasional grain may be fine over time it builds up in his gut and causes food and waste not to pass through. This is called impaction and is one of biggest killers for leo geckos.
   The same thing can happen with bark, moss and any other fine grained substance. The best thing to use is either repti carpet (Altho this can go a bit manky quite quickly) newspaper (this is cheap but dosent look great and the ink could be dangerous, although ive never seen side affects) or slate chips, maintaining they arent too small or sharp (this will increase the temp tho so lower it a little to compensate)
   Just for your information, signs of impaction are swollen and/or discoloured underside, listlessness, loss of appetite, not drinking and hiding up more than usual. If you suspect that a leo has started to be impacted put him in a bath of warmish (lukewarm) water, this will restore fluid, soften gut contents and make him get rid of waste, hopefully clearing the threat.
   hope this helps you

3. Matthew N on October 29, 2009 6:17 PM

   No sand is really “safe”. All leos can get impacted with any type of sand. Adults can handle the sand better than hatchlings and sub adults obviously. Paper towels and slate tile are my favorite types of substrate for leos.

4. anya kneeze on October 29, 2009 6:23 PM

   I recommend never using sand for leo’s although it looks good it causes impaction. I personally use either repti-bark or crushed walnut shells.

5. Angelina on October 29, 2009 7:09 PM

   Line the cage bottom with newspapers.

6. Rachel on October 29, 2009 8:06 PM

   Yup that’s fine! Just no calci sand

7. Drake on October 29, 2009 8:54 PM

   If the grains are fine and the same size then it should be good. And how big is you Leo, anyway?