Sand or no sand?

My son bought a bearded dragon from a kid who only had it for two weeks and decided they didn’t want it. We were not sure if it’s age but it was very small. Probably 2 months old. The tank contained the Zilla sand and it was in a 20 gallon tank. We kept the sand in the tank and when we moved the beardie to a bigger 40 gallon tank back in August we moved the sand in it as well. Never had impaction problems just really dusty. About a month ago and I went with a mat instead because we moved her cage to the living room area instead of my sons room. Well our beardie is around 8 months old now if my guess was accurate. They bought the dragon from Petco so who knows. We realized he is a she and the other day she was digging a bit but had nothing to dig in anymore. Due to the recent move and not wanting to stress her more I went to our local trusted pet shop and bought a bag of white calcisand. I only put a huge pile of it in the warm side of the viv where she’s been digging. She seems to enjoy the sand. Was this a good move? I didn’t know if changing substrates from sand to mat were upsetting to a dragon. Thanks!

That was a very very dangerous move!!
If you can please remove the sand before it causes any issuess!
Calcisand is probably one of the most popular reasons why beardies die within the first year of life.

I should know I kept two beardies on it when I was younger and they both died a slow death of impaction, the younger 1-2 month old only lasting for about a week or two on the deadly substrate, and the 5-10 year old living for about 3-4 years more on it before dying of most likely impaction along with a few other things contributing to it, incorrect lighting, incorrect temps most likely and diet.

If you want to provide a dig spot you need it to be in a separate container and it has to be either eco earth or clean washed children's play sand. The "reptile" sands are pretty dangerous and overpriced.
If you have it in there 24/7 it may end up taking up too much space in such a small viv, so I'd only supply a dig box if she's laying eggs or if you have a 75+ gallon enclosure.

To suit her digging needs you can use fleece in the hides or in the corners, most beardies will dig in that and be happy. It also limits the risk of impaction as its not a particle substrate.

i would say no sand. i don't think its worth the risk of impaction and since you said she was young she probably doesn't have eggs so i don't think you need sand personally.

Thanks. I will remove the sand ASAP then.

Definitely never, every any calcium sand, crushed walnut shells, or any other loose substrate. The calcium sand turns into rock-hard, cement like blobs inside their GI Tracts.

And as you said, lots of "dust", well, ALL loose substrates create dust, and they are basically breeding grounds that harbor all types of bacteria, fungi, and parasites, and Dragons are extremely prone to Upper Respiratory Infections, eye infections, and skin/scale infections, so there is no reason at all to risk their health by using a loose substrate. Plus it's not natural to them at all, the Australian Desert is a hard, rocky terrain, very little sand at all. So stick to only solid substrates. The stick-on, textured, slate tiles you can buy at Lowes or Home Depot are awesome. They are easy to spot clean, and they keep their toenails trim.

Not trying to sound dumb but why would pet shops sell and use it then? Our local pet shop recommended this sand over all others. The labeling says it does not cause impaction? I see that many owners have used sand and had zero issues.

My first beardie was on sand all his life (he died when he was 3 from a blood parasite that he got from a bug bite outside ), and didn't have any issues due to the sand. My current beardie was on sand probably the first year or so, until I got sick of dealing with it, lol. He never had any issues, either. That being said, I still don't think it's worth the risk. I didn't know any better in the past, and even though I switched to non-particle substrate for my own convenience, I don't recommend using it. Even though Keef never got fully impacted, an x-ray did show an amount of sand inside him that was large enough to be seen. If he had lived past 3 and was kept on sand for many more years, that rate of ingestion would've eventually led to impaction, I'm sure. My current beardie wasn't on any substrate when I removed the sand, because he has a polyethylene tank, and the interior has enough friction for walking and wearing down nails. I eventually put a towel down because he was still slipping a little bit, sometimes. (He refuses to poop or get into his water in his tank, so there's almost never a mess to clean up in there. Pooping and drinking are apparently only done while in the bath. :roll: ) Regardless, with any substrate, make sure you clean regularly, but if you're going to put a towel, fleece, or any other fabric in there, be very diligent about removing/washing/replacing it as soon as it's soiled.

TL;DR: as a previous sand-user, DON'T USE SAND

Postby AJHamilton16 » Tue Feb 13, 2018 4:42 pm

Not trying to sound dumb but why would pet shops sell and use it then? Our local pet shop recommended this sand over all others. The labeling says it does not cause impaction? I see that many owners have used sand and had zero issues.

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Sadly reptile stuff isn't exactly regulated you could say, it doesn't need to be exactly tested to make sure its safe before selling.
The reason it's sold is to get money, the reason they use it is so you buy it. All they care about is money and thats how it will most likely always be.

As for the "It does not cause impaction" label that it just marketing honestly, like i've said it does not need to be tested before hand for now, hopefully laws will change and it will need to before being sold. Because if calcisand didn't cause impaction I'd still have my two first beardies with me rather than them being buried out in the garden most likely.

AJHamilton16":2ieeemah said:

Not trying to sound dumb but why would pet shops sell and use it then? Our local pet shop recommended this sand over all others. The labeling says it does not cause impaction? I see that many owners have used sand and had zero issues.

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For aesthetics and money. It looks 'prettier' but costs a lot more in the long run for owners, earning the pet store more money. Pet stores don't know what they are doing, they are absolutely clueless when it comes to the actual care of an animal. It all comes down to the money for them.

As far as 'it doesn't cause impaction' - yeah right, that's BS. This stuff is basically cement. Once ingested, it will harden and cause impaction, which might end in either a very high vet bill or a dead dragon. Please, please do not listen to the pet store people, they do not know what they are doing.