Ready for sand???

[slices mommy]

Slice is 15 inches now and I was wanting to change him to the play sand. My only worry is when I take him outside he try's to eat the little pebbles in the yard. So should I wait longer or do ya'll think it's safe to put sand in?

 

[slices mommy]

I know sand and pebbles are different it's just if he'll try to eat pebbles will he try anything?

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

Your dragon should be fine at 15 inches (snout tip to tail tip) to use playsand for substrate.
Just make sure that it is Washed, Sifted,Childrens Playsand. I am pretty particular about the playsand that I use in Mungi's enclosure having tried most if not all the varieties available locally and will only buy and use the Quikrete brand Premium Washed,Sifted Children's Playsand sold at Lowes Home Improvement Centers. I have found that those are consistently the cleanest and best texture around. 50lbs will run you approximately 4 dollars.
I do recommend sifting it again before use. I use a simple frame made from scrap boards with a piece of ordinary window screen stretched across it. That set up will run you less than 5 bucks total and can be reused over and over.
I also recommend placing the playsand in a pan in a 200 degree oven for about 30 minutes and then allowing it to completely cool down before putting it in your enclosure.
Sand depth should be from 2-6 inches in depth which will give your dragon some good digging depth...and dig he will..lol
Also if you decide to change to playsand you should monitor your enclosure temps for awhile after putting it in...you may find as I did that you will not need as strong a lighting to maintain your enclosure temps..playsand retains heat.
Just for example sake I was able to reduce my basking light from a Repti Basking 100 watt to a household 60 watt halogen and still keep a great gradient of 102-107 basking spot and 80-82 on the cool side day temps in Mungi's current enclosure which is a 40 gallon breeder tank. Just make sure to watch your temps for several days...who knows you may get to save a few bucks on lighting as I have
i also doubt you have anything to worry about as far as him eating the sand...he may taste it but wont gobble it..lol..they taste most everything...and should he happen to ingest any the advantage of playsand is that it does not clump so it will just pass thru safely...nothing to worry about...playsand has been used safely by beardie owners and breeders for decades
Hope this helps and have a great day in the morrow

Sent from my ADR6425LVW using Tapatalk 2

 

[thorn]

I agree 100% that's the sand I used and I also sifted it again and got about 5 pounds of small rocks/pebbles out of it.

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

Using the Quikrete Premium from Lowes I have very rarely found any pebbles or other debris in it...thats why I recommend it...that brand can be bought from other places like Home Depot for instance but the stuff sold at Lowes eventhough same brand is always clean...I still sift just to be sure though....guess you got a bad bag

Time for a snooze....Have a great rest of your evenin!

 

[thorn]

To be fair all the other brands of sand just looked like it was a bag of rocks lol

 

[slices mommy]

Thank you. I will be picking some up this weekend. I thought he would have some fun with the sand but I wanted to make sure he wasn't going to just start eating it. He really get's his mind set on those little pebbles outside I try to pull him away from one and he runs back to it with a very serious expression on his face lol. So I literally have to pick him up and move him somewhere else. I just wanted to make sure..I love that little thing so much I don't know what i'd do if something happened to him. Thanks for the help.

 

[Pat B]

I switched Spike to sand about a month ago. It took him a few days to get used to the sand but I think he likes it. To me....it is more like his natural environment. I scoop up the poop with a ladle that has holes in it....works well. Good luck!!

 

[slices mommy]

Like one of those cat litter scoopers? If I ever get to take a break from being my kid's taxi cab driver I might make it to Lowes to pick some up. How often do you have to change it all out?

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

@slices mommy..If you keep up.your husbandry routine..ie scoop the poop and spot clean any food spills daily then you shouldnt have to change out the sand but every 5-6 months..and no there is no odor as long as you are vigilant....I.also rake thru the sand all the way to the bottom and stir it once per day....can.be done.same.time as your poop scoop We use the daily stir up to rebury Mungi's excavation projects which keeps him active by giving him.more excavation to do..lol...sometimes he sees me do that and looks at me with a look that I am.glad he cant speak cause Im sure I.would hear some colourful lanquage indeed if he could..lol...the stir of the sand also allows you to sift thru it and remove any buried debri...I have found pieces of collard green under 4 inches of sand many time Best scooper I.have found I.got at a DollarTree store and is just a small mesh strainer with a handle...1 dollar...much better than.the 7 dollars they wanted for pretty much the same thing at pet store...I.was so excited with the find at DollarTree that I bought 2!! Lol
Enjoy your day tomorrow!

"That's just my opinion..I could be wrong...I was ONCE." Comedian/Social Commentarian Dennis Miller

 

[slices mommy]

Ok I have to keep it clean lol looking at poop drives me crazy. He likes to poop on his rock then he'll lay on it. So the rock and beardie both have to be washed. It'll take some getting used to by both of us. Every couple days I take the hose to my vacuum to the tank and pick up all scattered greens and bug pieces. I will be getting the scooper from the dollar store for sure then. I've seen the ones at the pet stores and would never pay that much for it when a litter scooper is probably only .99. I can't wait it might be Saturday before I get it but i'll take pics and post on here when I do. Thank you so much for all your help i'm so excited.

 

[slices mommy]

Today is the day...I messed up and washed the sand though so it's going to take a little while to dry. I bought the clear bag. There were like 3-4 to chose from. So for right now sand is on all my cookie sheets out in the front yard. It's Texas though so the 105 degree temps should dry it right up. Pics to come!! He looks bored since I won't take him out until it's time to put the sand in there. I don't want him to get bored in his window and take off in the middle of me trying to get everything set up.

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

Just make sure that your sand is thoroughly dry before you put it in the enclosure...you can actually put it in your oven at low heat for a bit..I usually bake my sand at 200 degrees for about 30 minutes, stirring thru it every 10 minutes or so and then allow it to cool down completely before using it. This can take several hours but you could cool it quicker by placing the pans in a freezer after baking
The baking helps kill off any bacteria and such...which if you are just placing it outside in your yard to dry may actually attract some instead.
Just make sure if you try this that when stirring the sand in the oven you watch out for.steam....and again make sure it is totally cooled down and totally dry before placing it in the enclosure but not cold..just room temp....sand holds heat and cold both
Looking forward to seeing the pics of your new setup!



"That's just my opinion..I could be wrong...I was ONCE." Comedian/Social Commentarian Dennis Miller

 

[slices mommy]

I already read your mind lol. I have it sitting outside and bringing two cookie sheets in with it on there and sticking it in the oven. I really wish I hadn't washed it. I read back through your post and it didn't say wash it so I felt stupid. This might take all night now.

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

No need for feeling stupid at all...you have never used the stuff before and truthfully I should have mentioned that the playsand comes pre-washed and pre-sifted to start with I just take the extra steps of sifting and baking it on my own to make totally sure it is as clean and pure as I can get it.
Next time you will know and this time you can be extra sure it was washed cause you did it yourself! It's all good!


"That's just my opinion..I could be wrong...I was ONCE." Comedian/Social Commentarian Dennis Miller

 

[slices mommy]

I gave up on waiting for sand to dry so I went and bought some more and I see the difference between Lowes and Home Depot as you had mentioned in another post. I bought this bag from Home Depot because it was closer and it had a lot of big stuff in it. I baked about half of it and the new stuff just got strained and put in there. I had to get it done before he goes to sleep. Anyhoo thanks for all the help.

 

[Pat B]

I like your brick. Very creative.

 

[slices mommy]

Thank you! Took about 3 days to do but it was well worth it. He's spoiled

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

Looks great! And yes there's a big difference in the Lowes stuff...you did great setting it up and I am sure your lil dragon will love it! One suggestion I would make would be to move his food dish onto the rock platform and out of the sand...I used to keep Mungi's down on the sand and would be continuously having to rinse sand out of his dish...lol...never had any probs with him eating it but was just a mess cause he would always track sand into it...other than that I would say you get an A+ on the conversion!
Now you will have the fun of watching all kinds of excavation...lol
Enjoy and thanks for sharing the pics!

"That's just my opinion..I could be wrong...I was ONCE." Comedian/Social Commentarian Dennis Miller

 

[slices mommy]

He already started digging lol he had all 4 feet going at once it was too cute. Going to move dish now. Thanks again!