Leopard Gecko Care: Substrate! The Best, The Worst + My Experience!

Leopard gecko substrate is a highly debated topic amongst reptile owners. With all the conflicting information out there, it can be quite confusing and overwhelming to new owners who are looking for information on what the best substrate is. Because of the debate, I decided that I wanted to experiment with different methods of care myself, to see first hand how my geckos reacted to different care methods. In this video, I will discuss my personal experiences with different substrates, as well as give my opinion on what some of the good, and bad choices are! Please keep in mind that everything said in this video is my opinion, and you are free to agree or disagree with me. I would love to hear your guy's thoughts on this controversial topic, but please just keep it respectful!

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[ellesreptiles]

This was super insightful, and I completely agree. One of the best things about keeping reptiles is being able to experiment with setups to figure out what's best (for the keeper and the animal). 😊

[adriannadragon]

I'm glad I tried something new rather than the "small enclosure, 3 hides, no lights, no substrate, UTH only" rule. With my personal experience with substrate, uvb, overhead heating along with UTH, I've seen such a positive difference. My LG was so picky, now he'll "bask" and eats regularly.

For him, I would never go back to basic keeping. He was a struggle and now he has really been thriving. Sometimes experimenting can be wonderful, plus switching back to what you used before if it worked better is always possible too.

[kailil]

That gollum Jade in the bioactive enclosure needs a bit of water when they start wrinkling up like that they would like a drink

[kaysheridan]

I'm so glad you talked about the joint issue with loose and solid substrate! I've noticed not a lot of people know this even exists. I've done little research myself but this video makes me want to learn more! Great vid and your new leo is so pretty btw :)

[jessharkabus]

I noticed when I switched mine to paper towels (experimenting) he stayed in his humid cave with the loose substrate for the majority of the day, rarely coming out at all. But when I switched him back to his usual eco earth he was back to exploring at night and little rounds during the day. Not sure if at that point he was just used to the loose substrate or just didn't care for the paper towels

[arthurkr_]

I appreciate it so much that your telling us in every video to be respectful and nice, you’re such a kind person😊😊

[burleyboi]

Getting my first leopard gecko, (first reptile) I been doing research and after about a month I realized maybe the substrate will never be answered haha. To me starting off with solid substrate seems best, eventually I’ll move on to bio active . This video definitely helped. I feel like I got an actual answer

[irinacarrillo]

You teach me SO much!(also, love your pets!)😆

[Gael]

I use a mixture of reptile carpet and tile. The tile is placed on the first front half of her enclosure and in the back where she chooses to use the bathroom while the carpet is under her favorite hides to allow better heat transfer.

I take the whole thing out and wash it down about once every two weeks to combat bacterial growth.

[karenmcisaac]

I love the Arcadia substrates I use the other one for my bioactive crested gecko tanks

[plant]

I really want to get Arcadia Earth Mix for my Fat Tailed Gecko, but it's not available anywhere in the US! Very frustrating!

[alliesreptiles]

i loved your enclosure with the tile and dig box, where do you get your tiles? also super helpful video 😁♥️

[kmicaya]

I plan to get a Leo next year, perfect timing😊

[christiansaravia]

I honestly prefer loose substrate but I’m in the process of building a new enclosure for my leopard gecko and I want to do half slate, half loose substrate (topsoil and play sand mixture)

My leo Noodle is about 4 now or almost 4, I forget honestly, but I’ve done paper towels, kitchen shelf liner, and coconut fiber mixed with topsoil. The best imo was the loose substrate mixture, but I’m trying to get away from coconut fiber because I feel like it’s not as good as I thought it was, though I haven’t had any issues really.

[NateBae]

Hello! I was thinking about switching to a the terra sahara substrate but I wanted to know if when using a loose substrate, even if I’m not using real plants do I need to have a clean up crew? I have googled this question and cannot find an answer. But your video helped me make a decision on what substrate I want to use now so thank you. !

[nadyalis]

I had mine on carpet and realized she wouldn't ever come out even at night and when I switched ti eco earth she can out so much more

[taeviansworldofreptiles]

This was a great video! I absolutely love the variety of enclosure setups you experimented with. I agree that when keeping reptiles its about figuring out what works for you and your individual animals. This was a good one!

[tiaumu]

I just rescued a leapord gecko a few days ago from Craigslist and her old enclosure was awful. She was in the middle of shedding & her toe fell off due to the lack of humidity in her old tank. I also noticed that she was very underweight. I’m hoping that her new and improved enclosure will fix these problems quickly

[c.a]

Thank you so much for this!! I had just got a leopard gecko and I'm new to them. (I'm used to cresties lol) But this helps so much!! ♡ Thank you!!

[Puggle]

I agree with your view on eco earth, i used it for the first 2 years for my leos bc i didnt know any better and i thought it was good for them due to the channel leopard gecko. It was rlly dusty and they had a hard time walking and eventually i threw it all away and replaced it with paper towels