What kind of substrate is best for my Frog Eye?

Garfieldgeko · #1 05-02-2009, 02:31 PM

Hello,
I'm asking all of those with experience with the frog-eye gecko to give me your opinions. My gecko named Garfield is 8 years old now. When I bought him from a store going out of business he was labeled a wonder gecko, since I've done a little bit of research on him and I keep getting conflicting information. Hes been in a ten gallon with sand for substrate. I wanted to do excavating sand so he could dig caves but the back of the package of had so many warnings that I returned it. I had plants in clay pots that I needed to repot but after doing so worried about what may be in the soil(Shultz Cactus and Palm Mix) that could hurt Garfield so I removed the plants. Then I was told that sand is not the correct substrate, and to use the bark like stuff that expands in water. I thought this was a dersert species and hes had no problem with the sand in the past. What kind of substrate is the best, what kind of soil can I use in the pots that will be safe, and could I see some pictures of everyones homes for these guys to get some new ideas

? Thanks so much

mdmlss23 · #2 05-03-2009, 03:46 PM

ive been useing play sand for years with out a problem just dont expect the sand to hold up to thier borrowing it will end up caveing in use something for hides

Garfieldgeko · #3 05-03-2009, 04:09 PM

Thanks for the info, I dont expect the sand to hold the caves either, I do have other hides in the tank. The question I have is about the soil in my potted plants. Whats the safest kind to use? Thanks again.

mdmlss23 · #4 05-03-2009, 08:52 PM

i would just get a couple of plastic plants they dont need much they are from the desert

daddydugan09 · #5 10-10-2009, 09:39 PM

if u can giv me ur email adress i can send u pics of the setup i got 4 my 2 frog eye geckos i dont use any type of sand i use some type of eco friendly coconut dirt that controls the humudity level also and they can dig in it better than any sand i ever used

**Hilde** · #6 10-10-2009, 10:45 PM

Mine have been on play sand for years, never had a problem. They do like to dig, but will readily accept caves and just spend hours throwing the sand around.

There's enough sand in the enclosure to measure about 4 inches deep if they'd leave it alone. Some mornings I find an almost bare spot on one side and a mountain of it on the other side. They're great excavators.

Sgvreptiles · #7 10-11-2009, 01:16 AM

If you want them to burrow. Just put the sand in the cage. And drench it with water. Then heat it. I used a fine repti sand i believe it was. Soaked it, the put a heat pad under it and in 3 days it was fully dry and very hard. They went to town on it.

Garfieldgeko · #8 11-17-2009, 06:04 PM

Thanks for the sand ideas, I went with repti sand and a peek a boo burrow insert. I first thought the burrow was a piece of junk when I took it out of the box, but after I tried it out in the tank I was happy with it and I think the gecko likes it too. It's made out of foam and takes about half of the length of the tank, the rest I filled in with sand. Theres also a hide in the back I made over the heat pad, because the foam really don't conduct heat well. Heres some pictures of the redo in a few different lightings.

kaikara · #9 11-19-2009, 01:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sgvreptiles

If you want them to burrow. Just put the sand in the cage. And drench it with water. Then heat it. I used a fine repti sand i believe it was. Soaked it, the put a heat pad under it and in 3 days it was fully dry and very hard. They went to town on it.

I used to do the same thing when I had a pair of frog eyes. It worked great and they loved it. No matter how much the dug it always held it's shape and never colapsed.