I am going to get a 4 month old bearded dragon and would like to know what the best substrate would be for him/her. I will be housing him in a 55 gal.

Paper towels, newspaper, shelf liner, linoleum or tile is the best substrates. 55 gallons is a bit big for a 4 mth old so you might want to section some of it off.

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MARSHA

:D I'm smiling because I have no idea whats going on!

Anything that the lizard can't get in it's mouth. People will tell you that some particulate substrates are 'digestible' and most of that will be a big huge lie. If anyone eats enough of something it's going to cause problems, no matter what it is!

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Those who say it can't be done should get out of the way of those who are doing it.

~*~Lacey~*~

My Photos

I look at it like this, they are desert lizards and live on sand. very fine play sand works well for my two 6month old females and I did some research like yourself before placing them in an enviornment that might be hazardous to their health. Besides the only concern the vet had about it was they might not shed there fingers all the way, but no problems so far. proper diet goes a long way!

They aren't really sand dwelling desert lizards. They come from a dry brushy area. so technically what they are used to living with is rocks and brush....

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I would suggest the tile, really easy to clean and has a nice and finished look. I noticed with mine when they were on sand that when I went to clean out the cage the dust would kick up horribly and fill our entire apartment. I can only imagine what their lungs looked like....

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I second what Shell says...I use carpet with big chunks of flat slate rock.

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Those who say it can't be done should get out of the way of those who are doing it.

~*~Lacey~*~

My Photos

yes, like the leopard gecko, they come from hard packed land, not sand.

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My name is Liz
Do what's best for the animal, not what's best for you.

When it comes right down to it very few animals actually live on loose shifting sand. Those that do you can tell because they either have very broad flat feet and toes to enable them to move on the sand or are slick and streamlined to burrow in it.
Bearded Dragons are neither.

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Merlin,
What's Life Without A Little Magic!

Snowshoe feet as you would call it. The most of the sand dwelling lizards are small geckos.

If your wanting a natural look try zoomeds excuvator stuff. Its costly and messy but some say they use it for their bd and it works great

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