[cornysnake]

i have some bedding in my AFT tank but my geckos are laying eggs again and the bedding it a hard mulch and i cant find the soft mulch i used to get so what are the best mulches to get for AFT's that are laying eggs.

[acpart]

My AFT cages and lay box use eco earth (coco fiber) which has worked well. It's better if they lay in the lay box (which is set into the coco fiber and filled with coco fiber) since it's moister.

Aliza

[cornysnake]

thx, i actually grabbed it the other day but wanted to be sure if it was okay. also would u know what types of plants u can put in their cages because i want their cage to look awesome.

[acpart]

I have had the best luck with haworthia (looks like a stripey aloe). I was expecting to do well with African violets but they haven't worked. Dracaena worked for awhile but then shriveled away.

Aliza

[cornysnake]

sorry, but i got one more question... when i first got my aft's the girl that gave them to me said they were leopard geckos and i was 6 and didnt know anything so i put sand in their cage like you would for leo's then a lady at my pet store said that they were aft's and that i am supposed to have mulch so why is it bad to have sand in an aft cage???

[cricketlady]

Originally Posted by cornysnake

sorry, but i got one more question... when i first got my aft's the girl that gave them to me said they were leopard geckos and i was 6 and didnt know anything so i put sand in their cage like you would for leo's then a lady at my pet store said that they were aft's and that i am supposed to have mulch so why is it bad to have sand in an aft cage???

AFTs require higher humidity than leopard geckos. It is hard to keep the humidity in the enclosure up with sand as a substrate. Sand can also cause impaction in these geckos when ingested accidentally as the geckos hunt.

[acpart]

Sand isn't so good in leopard gecko cages either.

Aliza

[jnk144]

Sand is fine in a leopard gecko cage, as long as he doesn't ingest much, if at all. In the wild, that is usually how they get some of their minerals. It also depends on the individual gecko - not every one is the same - they interact with their environments in different ways.

I have an adult male leopard in a 20 gallon vivarium with sand. I examine all of his stools - no sand is ever present. And, he looks amazing.

As long as you provide a dish of calcium/D3 (I prefer to also provide mealworms in this dish, free choice), the animal should not ingest the sand (also make sure you buy the right sand - I use Calci Sand).

If you are concerned about substrate ingestion, the easiest thing to do is use reptile carpet, paper towels and the like.

Another point of concern can be if the gecko gets the substrate stuck to his nether region. This is more of a reason to not use sand than fear of ingestion.

There is a lot of nonsense on the internet, and elsewhere, about substrate, among other things. Don't just listen to someone saying one thing or another on a free forum, anonymously.

However, I also have an eight year old female AFT. I would not recommend sand for AFTs as they wouldn't usually live on sand in the wild. I keep Marv on reptile bark. I had her on coconut fiber in the past, and that was fine until she got a little tiny piece in her eye from digging - after a $90 vet bill, I decided to change, and she's been fine on the reptile bark since (it has now been two years).

Buy a book written by an expert. I recommend The Herpetoculture of Geckos (THG) by Vosjoli and Tremper, with input from Dr. Klinenberg, a vet. These guys have tested different substrate with geckos and offer sound, scientific answers.

However, I have to point out that I have yet to find a book only on fat tails (I'm a little cheesed off about that) - the books I have are mostly about leopards and mention AFTs only in passing. THG does discuss them a fair amount.

Jenn