bed a beast for substrate

[LISA127]

Hi. I know we've been over the substrate issue a few times already. But I was wondering if anyone could give me opinions on whether they think bed a beast is a safe substrate to use for leos? I think it is coconut fiber, but I'm not sure.
Thanks.
Lisa

[Alicewave]

I don't like to use anything Leos could potentially swallow, and bed-a-beast is in that category.

[Gregg M]

For baby leos I would only use paper towels...... Baby leos can become impacted very easily....... Bed a beast is also very acidic...... Could cause sores on certain species of lizards, snakes and frogs....... I would not recomend it....... Besides leos do not need a bedding that retains moisture.....

[drewlowe]

i use bed a beast for my adults and i have never had one single problem from the bed a beast. if they do injest it it usually goes right through them. as for the sores gregg mentioned i haven't seen anything like that on my leos. I have used this with my leos for almost 3 years. Now i wouldn't use it for babies (i only use paper towles for them.) to high of a risk for impaction with any subtrate except for newspaper and paper towels.

[Pixie]

I was wondering the same thing about coconut husk substrate, if it could be used with leos safely. I'm pretty sure I read in another thread (beardies) that it is the only substrate that will break down with stomach acid therefore having much less possibilities of impaction. I can be completely wrong about this and would love to have this info verified!

I currently have all my leos on paper towels but would love to use a more natural looking substrate for them and one that would allow them to dig. I would be using it dry so I wouldn't think there would be any issues with acidity of the actual substrate.

Pixie

[eyespy]

I've had my hands in the guts of tens of thousands of reptiles and have never seen coconut husk fiber make it intact to the small intestines of leos, beardies, or snakes. In fact, I've never seen it make it to the small intestine of any carnivore, insectivore or omnivore.

Hindgut fermenters like some species of tortoises and iguanas who are primarily herbivores have very different digestive systems and I have seen coconut husk impactions with these guys. Their systems are far less acidic so they don't kill off the bacteria in their hindguts and so they don't break down cellulose in the stomach much at all. On rare occasions enough of the stuff gets caught in the small intestine before it reaches the hindgut where it would be broken down by beneficial bacteria.

There are plenty of anecdotal stories of leos getting impacted on coconut husk, but no documented cases are on record.

If a leo isn't producing enough stomach acid to break down bed-a-beast, there isn't enough to break down prey either and the substrate is the least of the animal's problems. There's either some underlying disease or a husbandry problem that is suppressing digestion.

[LISA127]

Greg
I would be planning to dry it out before i used it, of course.



so i assume, the general consensus is it's relatively safe to use.

I use paper towels for all my leo's. I was considering using bed a beast. At the very least, I would like to use it in the humidity chamber. I've been using vermiculite in the humidity chamber, and unfortunately they like to eat that stuff.

I'm hoping they don't like to eat bed a beast. But if they did, would it be safer to ingest than vermiculite?

[Pixie]

Thanks for clearing that up Eyespy :) I believe I had read one of your previous posts about this substrate and am glad to hear you post your experiences here. Since my leos are all 6"+, I'm considering switching the bland paper towel look to some more natural looking substrate. I will give coconut husk a go and let you all know how my critters are doing on it.

Pixie

[Youkai]

I use coconut husk. I buy it from a greenhouse as it's about 1/3 the price of bed-a-beast but exactly the same stuff.

I've used it on it's own, and also mixed with sand and soil.
I've had some geckos on it for so long I don't remember when I started using it. I use it dry for leos of course.
I also use it damp for cave geckos (G. splendens and G. luii) with no problems at all.

I also use it damp in every single nesting box I have for all of my geckos. It works very well for that.

I've never, ever had an animal impacted in my collection. Ever. With bed-a-beast or otherwise. Their feces always look fine, without a trace of the stuff, and not all of my leos are the most graceful hunters! ;)