Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok this is very confusing....since i noticed them little buig things in my leo's cage i had removed the sand and bleached the tank, and rinsed it for 10-15mins. somehow there back. im gonna bleache, boil and cook everythign wooden or anythign that could house these little bug things. they look like very very little flies. they definately have wings, but dont seem to fly. there is a possibility there just from the wilderness (my window is open almost all of the time). im gonna get any kind of mite repellant i can. my leo doesnt seem to be flicking about like he was before, but this mite problem is really baffling...anyone got any leads on what they could be? there not around the house or anything, just in my leo's cage...

If there described as so small as small as a pen dot, They are mites pronounced Mights. They are common to herp animals, but a sign of not so good hygiene.

Make sure you clean your cage once a month atleast. They usually come from your leos good, either its mealworms or crickets, they come along.

I havent seen them in awhile, but the last time I had them, I hose washed the leos dens, food bowl, etc... after I was done, put everything back.

Sometimes they come with subtrate and food.

In my opinion, the reason why I havent seen the mites is because,
1.) I got my mealworms at a diffrent place, where I believe only mealworms and other foods are present(I believe that they make sure there foods arent infested with other insects unlike the average petstore)

2.) I stoped using subtrate, and used paper towels, as said, some sand may have mites with, but im guessing they are checked before packaged, but who knows.

Hopes this helps.

Any questions just ask. =]

-DarkBlades
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Normal - Male - Ninja
High Yellow - Female - Ninjete
Normal - Female - Lizzy
Norm/Het for High Yellow - Male - Ninja II

i'd suggest making the cage as sterile as you can. paper towel substrate, smooth water dish, and hides made from plastic containers with wet paper towels in the humid hide. it won't be as pretty as a natural setup, but the smooth surfaces will make it harder for the insects to hide and reproduce. considering they could be coming in along with the gecko's food, id suggest feeding the insects out of a dish to minimize transmission to the entire environment.

good luck!!!

If you treat for mites you'll most likely kill these things, but you said they have wings, yes? Mites don't have wings. I get little tiny flies now and then. Seem to come with the substrate. I'd go the bare bones route for a while, and see if it clears up.

Quig
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Don't interupt me when I'm talkin' to myself

thanks for the feed back

as of yesterday, i bleached the tank for a second time in 2 days, i also bleached, boiled and cooked anything wooden in the tank. i havent put any paper towels down as of yet, i've just put a small piece of cardboard underneath the things that are touching the glass to stop it scratching it, and havent seen them so far. but, having said that, i havent tried to feed my leo the crickets i have. i thought they might have come along with the crickets, but i've stared at the little box of them for about 30mins and couldnt see anything other than crickets and the sawdust stuff they come in. i hope it's not from the crickets, but its the only place around here that supplies crickets in the size i need, other petshops just have box's of unsorted crickets, and a box of big crickets is a waste.

i'll ask the petshop about there crickets etc

hope it wont be persistent

oh, hygene in the tank is relatively good i like to think.
woods been cooked and boiled twice so far, and the coconut hide hasnt brought any problems before, and the water bowl and humid hide are both plastic. as for looks, im not bothered about it at the moment, just want my leo back on track. the wood's only in there for something to do, lol