# Cardboard Substrate for Leos



## charlie4591 (Apr 22, 2015)

I've had my lea for a few months now and he currently has sand in his viv. I have pet rats and I use chopped cardboard substrate for them such as green mile, finacard or ecopetbed etc. 

I was wondering if this would be okay to use instead of sand for the gecko and I have a huge bale of it to use up and i only have two rats now so it'll take me months to use.

I've searched on here and it seems like people have used it for snakes but i'm not sure if it's okay to use for leos.

I'm also worried about it catching fire (I know that sounds ridiculous but I'm over cautious) as I have a heat mat on the bottom (outside) of the viv.

Thanks!

TLDR: Can I use chopped cardboard substrate for a leo and is it safe with a heat mat?


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## awh (Aug 20, 2008)

i wouldn't use it , what if it eats some by mistake will it manage to digest?
i keep mine on lino/vinyl as i have had one die eating substrate and am not taking a chance on having loose substrate


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## kbonnington (Mar 15, 2015)

i use a mix of topsoil and sand have had no problems for years, they will burrow given the utensils. wouldn't use that though it is garenteed that it will eat that might cause a problem with digestion, but i cannot support that. i would stick to reptile stuff if you were going to use the cardboard substrate. to go as far to say not to use substrate at all i think is a bit far-fetched. there burrows are really cool i will add and top soil is really cheap £3 a bag. its bio active as well so it does not smell because the bacteria in the soil breaks down the ammonia, meaning it doesnt need to be changed very often if not at all there are enclosures in the zoo i work with that havent changed the soil substrate for ten years, and personally i havent changed my monitor soil for nearly a year no smell. other stuff i can think of that will be a bit more permanent would be that excavator clay you can just pick the larger pieces and rinse it, also no risk of them eating it because it goes rock hard. you can make burrows with that stuff too by adding balloons in it when you put it in, wait for it to dry and then pop the balloons.


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## kbonnington (Mar 15, 2015)

if your vivs hot enough to catch things on fire its probably a bit hot


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