Ground walnut?

[TheresaB.C]

Hello.
We use ground walnut shells for substrate for our bearded dragon. He dose grate with them and they are digestible. Has anyone used this for leos? Is it ok to use it for leos?

 

[Zux]

If you wish to use a loose substrate there are far better options for both Bearded Dragons and Leopard Geckos than Walnut Shell.

Beardies for example absolutely love to dig and ground walnut does not afford them this which is one of the main reasons for providing a loose substrate in the first place.

Same story with Leopard Geckos, the walnut shell itself will not cause impaction if that is what concerns you, but if your husbandry is not perfect you will run into issues more quickly with the Leopard Gecko than the Beardie.

PS: Despite what the packaging may say, if ground walnut shell is ingested in any large quantity it will not be digested properly and will need to be passed or risk building up in the digestive tract.

 

[acpart]

A few years ago, I took care of a pair of leopard geckos for someone who had to be away for a month. One of the geckos, before I took them, had dropped her tail for no obvious reason. The day after I got them, I found that one of them had passed some walnut shell. My theory is that she ingested them and the process of them going through her digestive tract was so painful that she dropped her tail. Fortunately both geckos did well and were returned to their owner in good shape.

Aliza