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#2271611 Deadlyconfetti View Profile	Substrate Question. Hey guys. So some of you know that im going to be making a custom setup here soon ( just waiting for the glass to come in) ANYWAYS I was wondering which was better ( im throwing ideas around) the children’s playsand or tile? since having my uros i have watched and they don’t seem to be eating the sand (the male is about 9 inches long the female is 7 and a half inches long). I read some place that they can get stress if not in something they can dig at.... no idea if that is correct though. so yeah give me your ideas. P.s going with a chunk of tile for the basking area as i learned my lesson to making one myself IMPOSSIBLE to clean!! lol
06/29/12  02:31pm
#2271652 Kelso reptiles View Profile	Message To: Deadlyconfetti   In reference to Message Id: 2271611  Substrate Question. well it up to you because as long as the uro isint a babie it should be fine on sifted washed play sand but if your lazy and dont wann ahve to clean as much goe with the tile because you can just wash it and place it back in the tank
06/29/12  08:36pm
#2271680 Vers View Profile	Message To: Kelso reptiles   In reference to Message Id: 2271652  Substrate Question. Using tile has little to do with laziness. While it is easy to keep clean it also retains heat, presents no chance of impaction, keeps nail lengths in check and it looks great. That said, for uros larger than 7" I would offer at the very least an area to burrow or dig. As for washed playsand, I would avoid any that contains silica/crushed quartz, which is considered a hazardous material by OSHA. I would also be inclined to use a mix of silica-free washed play sand, organic soil and clay. This would make for an ideal substrate to hold a burrow in such a dry enclosure.
06/30/12  12:36am
#2271682 Deadlyconfetti View Profile	Message To: Vers   In reference to Message Id: 2271680  Substrate Question. yes the sand that is in their tank right now is silica-free washed play sand, hmm where do you go about buying clay? I might make most of the enclosure tile but some areas sand depends on how things turn out. I have two projects on the go and because they are pretty happy in their tank i am working on my chameleons new setup, I can always count on you vers to give a answer that gets me thinking lol. Side note ( you mention nails) my uros nails are super long, so tile will help with that? I think just due to all of the horrid care they were getting their nails are the least of the concerns but if i can check another thing off on the "Uro health" list then i will.
06/30/12  01:02am
#2271705 Prodriguez88 View Profile	Message To: Deadlyconfetti   In reference to Message Id: 2271682  Substrate Question. Because tile is safer than sand I would go with tile.
06/30/12  07:47am
#2271725 Vers View Profile	Message To: Prodriguez88   In reference to Message Id: 2271705  Substrate Question. While this is true to an extent particulate substrates can be just as safe. The biggest thing is keeping food items off of and away from sand/soil to prevent accidental ingestion. Equally important is keeping the animal(s) adequately hydrated. If these two things are done there is virtually no chance of impaction.
06/30/12  10:54am
#2271732 Deadlyconfetti View Profile	Message To: Vers   In reference to Message Id: 2271725  Substrate Question. Ya i watched for a LONG time when i first got them onto the sand and still watch when they are eating, they tend to just eat the stuff on their large bowl instead of going to the stuff they have dropped, and at the end of the day i take it all out anyways and clean up anything that was dropped, the only thing they have in there are some seeds and split peas and stuff i read that budgie seed is high in fat and as you probably saw in the pictures both of them are lacking in the fat so right now they can eat that but once they are to a good weight i will take it out and switch it up. ANYWAYS... ya im watching with the sand, but like i said they tend to leave the stuff they dropped alone and go for the stuff on the bowl, when i first got them, i was feeding some iceberg lettuce for some water content as they were so dehydrated it was unbelievable, but now i have mostly taken that out and have the more of the endive and escrole in there along with some other stuff, and to make sure they are getting the right vitamins i put most of it on dandelions as they will eat them right out of my hand and i know for a fact that they are getting them that way.... sorry im rambling. So im going to go the sand and tile rout with the outside more tile so if they drop food it will be on the tile and not on the sand just in case but most of the bottom will be sand just not where they are eating. thanks again guys!!!
06/30/12  02:00pm
#2271832 Vers View Profile	Message To: Deadlyconfetti   In reference to Message Id: 2271732  Substrate Question. Just for future reference avoid all iceberg lettuce--the stuff is just plain no good. If you suspect an animal is dehydrated just feed greens that have been recently rinsed or misted.
07/01/12  10:06am
#2271894 Deadlyconfetti View Profile	Message To: Vers   In reference to Message Id: 2271832  Substrate Question. Really? I was told by the vet i called that is a herp vet ( and 17 ours away from me haha) and he said that because they were so bad that it would give a good boost with water, but now they are on other stuff.... on another side note i forget where i read it but it said that you can feed clover leaves and flowers to uros? i haven’t as i had no idea and wouldn’t risk it, but was wondering if you have heard anything about this? on yet another side note, the lady who was suppose to come in and look after my reptiles ( all six of them) came and then decided to tell me that she only looks after cats and dogs ugh so now im back to square one with looking for someone willing to come in, im offering 20 dollars a day so hope that gets some attention. anyways thanks =)
07/01/12  08:12pm
#2271924 BIG EAZY View Profile	Message To: Deadlyconfetti   In reference to Message Id: 2271894  Substrate Question. YOU PROBABLY WANT TO GO WITH THE TILE CAUSE IT WONT HARM IT
07/01/12  11:40pm
#2271948 Vers View Profile	Message To: Deadlyconfetti   In reference to Message Id: 2271894  Substrate Question. Hydration is always a good thing, but why fill the animal up with a food item that offers no nutrients when you can use a nutrient packed food item that offers virtually the same amount of water? It just makes no sense to use the stuff at all.
07/02/12  08:01am
#2271983 Deadlyconfetti View Profile	Message To: Vers   In reference to Message Id: 2271948  Substrate Question. Ya i get that, it makes sense actually, well like i said they are off of that just other greens right now and a supplement. Did you hear anything about clover? The reason im asking is my sister grows it for her bunnys at my parents house, so was curious. =)
07/02/12  02:40pm
#2271991 Vers View Profile	Message To: Deadlyconfetti   In reference to Message Id: 2271983  Substrate Question. I have heard of people feeding other reptiles clover greens and flowers but I’m not totally certain if clover is beneficial for Uromastyx. I would assume that it would be a safe bet, but you may want to wait for validation.
07/02/12  04:19pm
#2271992 Vers View Profile	Message To: Vers   In reference to Message Id: 2271991  Substrate Question. This may be the validation you were hoping for. Quote: "The greens/blooms we primarily use are dandelion greens/ blooms, clover greens /blooms, Rose of Sharon hibiscus blooms, nasturtium blooms, cats claw blooms (a late-season dandelion-mimic), viola (Johnny jump ups blooms), rose blooms, and fresh (not dried) alfalfa leaves / blooms." -Doug Dix So apparently clover is safe...just ensure, like any other food item, that no herbicides and or pesticides were used within the vicinity.
07/02/12  04:26pm
#2272038 Deadlyconfetti View Profile	Message To: Vers   In reference to Message Id: 2271992  Substrate Question. Thank you! Yes i know the rules, i have actually started growing dandelions i went to my parents house and got the flowers and waited till they turned to seeds ( they never use anything on their lawn except water and they live on an acreage) so they are now growing! But like i said my sister grows clover for her bunnys so i might get some from her so the uros have something new to munch on =) thanks yet again Sam
07/03/12  12:32am

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