digging behavior

Hi, first time poster with a question.

Sadie my female is 2 years and a couple of months old (got her as a hatchling from HISS at the 2005 Austin Reptile Show) now. She's become more active lately since I moved her enclosure into a different room in the house, and also seems to spend far more time outside of her cave (one of those exoterra reptile dens) during the day, raising her head almost like she's sniffing the air. She's been shedding recently and also has not had much appetite, which I've been attributing to the shed. Yesterday afternoon when we came home I noticed a behavior I had not seen before. She was in the front corner of her enclosure busily digging up sand. I have calci-sand as substrate maybe a half an inch deep or so. She dug down to the glass bottom.

Anyone got insight into what's going on with her? My immediate thought is that she's "nesting" but as she's never been bred and I see no signs that she has eggs I don't know. Can she produce eggs without mating? I'd assume they would be infertile, so does she reabsorb them or actually lay them? If that is what's going on, what do I do if she does lay eggs?

I've never gotten her tankmate for fear of it being a male and creating leo babies that I wouldn't know what to do with. But I never considered that she might still lay eggs without a mate.

i used to keep all of my geckos on sand. and when i did i had a few geckos that would dig under the sand and rest under there water dish. And Yes females can lay eggs without being with a male. They will be infertile obviously. Your gecko is just exploring its surroundings and they will usually dig. The same geckos dig up there paper towel and lay under them. I think its a personality thing. Hope this helped.

Leoprd Geckos are natural diggers, and she is probably looking for a way to get out of her new enclosure. BTW, Calci-Sand is not recommended for leopard geckos, as it is the #1 cause of intestinal impaction fatalities.

So what is the recommended substrate? I was under the impression that the calci-sand was only a real problem for smaller, younger leos.

I did read up on the pros and cons of the calci-sand and most of what I found seemed to indicate that there was little actual proof to back up the claim of possible impactions. Since leo origins also seem to be desert and sandy I felt that it was a reasonable substrate to use. To date she has had not health problems and seems to be growing as expected. Sometimes I look back at the little deli cup she came in and am amazed she ever fit into it.

Originally Posted by Traci

Hi, first time poster with a question.

Sadie my female is 2 years and a couple of months old (got her as a hatchling from HISS at the 2005 Austin Reptile Show) now. She's become more active lately since I moved her enclosure into a different room in the house, and also seems to spend far more time outside of her cave (one of those exoterra reptile dens) during the day, raising her head almost like she's sniffing the air. She's been shedding recently and also has not had much appetite, which I've been attributing to the shed. Yesterday afternoon when we came home I noticed a behavior I had not seen before. She was in the front corner of her enclosure busily digging up sand. I have calci-sand as substrate maybe a half an inch deep or so. She dug down to the glass bottom.

Anyone got insight into what's going on with her? My immediate thought is that she's "nesting" but as she's never been bred and I see no signs that she has eggs I don't know. Can she produce eggs without mating? I'd assume they would be infertile, so does she reabsorb them or actually lay them? If that is what's going on, what do I do if she does lay eggs?

I've never gotten her tankmate for fear of it being a male and creating leo babies that I wouldn't know what to do with. But I never considered that she might still lay eggs without a mate.

Welcome to the site! The lack of appetite could be because she is ovulating. She can produce eggs without a male, as you said, they would be infertile. If she starts producing eggs, she'll lay them. The only thing I'd suggest if she lays eggs is to take them out of the tank and make sure she is getting adequate amounts of food with a little added calcium.

Originally Posted by Traci

Since leo origins also seem to be desert and sandy I felt that it was a reasonable substrate to use.

Leopard Geckos are not from sandy areas. They are from the low mountain areas which have hard packed clay rather than sand.

Calci-Sand is made of calcium carbonate, the very same ingredient that Rolaids are made of. Although reptiles need calcium in their diet, the crystals in sand made from it do not dissolve completely in a leo's short GI system. Instead, they become sticky and clump together in the intestines and cannot be passed. Also, when leopard geckos ingest this substance, it neutralizes the gastric acid they need to break-down their food which leads to incomplete digestion... which further adds to the impaction.

There are many studies on this, and if you would like proof that calcium substrates are NOT appropriate for Leopard Geckos, her is some information. ***NOTE*** the second link is very graphic.

http://www.pythons.com/calcium.html

http://homepage.mac.com/exoticdvm/re...oAlbum181.html

I do understand that impaction can and has occurred, however I also consider myself to be a responsible pet owner. Accordingly, I researched the care needs before I purchased Sadie, asked several questions of her breeders to confirm my research when I made the purchase, and followed up with them via email when I had additional questions.

The sand debate has adherents on both sides, and while I appreciate the concern shown for my pet, and the answers to the question I posed, my intent was not to engage in a debate about, or defend, my husbandry practices. Sadie's substrate is a minimal layer of calci-sand, which is regularly cleaned and replaced as needed. She spends the majority of her time in a sand-free resin cave, or in or on top of her hide created from natural limestone rocks. She is fed in a separate bowl and not on the sand, and I haven't seen her actively ingesting, or attempting to ingest, any large quantities of sand, no such quantities are missing, nor is there any evidence of an impaction.

My understanding of origin environment is that leopard geckos are from arid regions in Pakistan/Afghanistan, which are considered at least partially desert and are considered rocky. I by no means think of them as animals from say, the Sahara, nor do I considered them primary burrowers, but I would expect some sand/dirt/dust to be present in their native environment. The fact that they have eyelids can be viewed as an adaptation to this.

In short, I appreciate the answers to my questions and will monitor her in case she is ovulating and will remove any eggs that she might produce. I am not questioning anyone else's expertise or experience, and am not interested in enjoining a debate on the topic of sand as substrate.

I am not against sand as a substrate... just Calci-Sand. In my nearly 13 years as a leopard gecko breeder, I honestly cannot think of a single breeder or veterinarian that would recommend calcium sand. [/debate]