Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ok, i have been raising ball pythons for about 7 years and i have never had many problems with mites so i am a bit green on the subject. i know i have to clean out the cages and all that but what would be the safest thing to spray my carpet with? i kno they travel. Is there a common household product that kills mites? whats the best substrate to use? I have been using the jungle bark and the products like that but i keep worrying that they will ingest it. I have heard that paper towels or newspaper is the best. what is every one's opinions?
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Owner of:
7 Ball Pythons
4 crested Geckos
2 Bearded Dragons,
1 Red tail boa hybrid
3 hamsters
8 dogs
10 cats
1 rat
2 red eared sliders
RIP:
Rocky-chow mix-11 years
Willow-lab mix-8 years
Kain-Savannah Monitor-2 years
Scooter-sulcata tortise-1 year
Mr Krabs-hermit crab-5 years
Niko-gerbil-3 years
sweet pea&niblet-dwarf hamsters-1 year
Hannibal-dwarf hamster 2 years

Loose substrates can carry mites and their eggs-especially bark. The bark is not heat treated as that would destroy its humidity holding ability as bark is used for high humidity reptiles. Snakes in nature do not live on piles of bark or wood chips and injestion problems can occur. After keeping large collections of large constrictors most of my life I have found that what is best for you and the snakes is newspaper. I feed all my snakes inside the cage which is another plus for paper. It is easy to keep clean and that is important. I clean my cages with novasan also called virosan which is diluted chlorahexidine.

Concerning mites they will appear at times. You can bring them home with a new snake, a trip to a show or petshop, or in new substrate. Years back when I used bark in some cages I would get mite infestations all the time. I started treating each new bag of bark with Provent A Mite and had no more problems. There are many mite treatments out there but Provent A Mite works and will eliminate mites and their eggs. For the past several years I have used Equate Bedding Spray from Walmart-it has the exact same ingrediants as Provent A Mite but does not have instructions for reptiles. Equate costs only $4 a can. The main thing with either product is DO NOT spray the snake directly. Remove snake and water bowl. Spray the substrate/cage furniture lightly. Wait 30 minutes for it to dry-very important. Place snake/water bowl back in cage. Repeat treatment in two weeks. Give it time to work. It is not an instant insect killer but will break down all stages of mite's life cycle including eggs. I suggest treating all of your cages. If you continue to use bark, spray each new bag, reseal, and let sit for a few days before using. Good luck-Bill.
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...three years ago it was just another snake cult...
The Retic is King.
Anacondas-the other Dark Side.
Afrocks-the dark side of the Dark Side.

thanks for the advice, I have checked my other snakes and so far its just the one tank. I changed the bedding to newspaper and wiped the cage down with a solution of a small amount of bleach and a lot of water...its what ive always used and have had no problems but its what my local snake breeder suggested. as for the snakes, I used a solution of diluted listerine, another suggestion by my breeder and its working. I usually feed my snakes in thier cages too. thanks for your advice
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Owner of:
7 Ball Pythons
4 crested Geckos
2 Bearded Dragons
1 Iguana
1 Red tail boa hybrid
3 hamsters
8 dogs
10 cats
1 rat
2 red eared sliders
RIP:
Rocky-chow mix-11 years
Willow-lab mix-8 years
Kain-Savannah Monitor-2 years
Scooter-sulcata tortise-1 year
Mr Krabs-hermit crab-5 years
Niko-gerbil-3 years
sweet pea&niblet-dwarf hamsters-1 year
Hannibal-dwarf hamster 2 years

If you have more than one snake, the mites will spread to the others. The best bet is "Provent a Mite", it was made to kill mites. No changing bedding or wipping down cages. it's fast, safe(if used following directions). Listerine might give them good breath, but it won't stop the mites.

Scott

>>thanks for the advice, I have checked my other snakes and so far its just the one tank. I changed the bedding to newspaper and wiped the cage down with a solution of a small amount of bleach and a lot of water...its what ive always used and have had no problems but its what my local snake breeder suggested. as for the snakes, I used a solution of diluted listerine, another suggestion by my breeder and its working. I usually feed my snakes in thier cages too. thanks for your advice
>>-----
>>Owner of:
>>7 Ball Pythons
>>4 crested Geckos
>>2 Bearded Dragons
>>1 Iguana
>>1 Red tail boa hybrid
>>3 hamsters
>>8 dogs
>>10 cats
>>1 rat
>>2 red eared sliders
>> RIP:
>>Rocky-chow mix-11 years
>>Willow-lab mix-8 years
>>Kain-Savannah Monitor-2 years
>>Scooter-sulcata tortise-1 year
>>Mr Krabs-hermit crab-5 years
>>Niko-gerbil-3 years
>>sweet pea&niblet-dwarf hamsters-1 year
>>Hannibal-dwarf hamster 2 years
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How many nuns could a nunchuck chuck if a nunchuck could chuck a nun?

the listerine solution is working so far. the other snakes i was refering to is the ones in the tank. I have also checked the rest of the room and have found no mites. I have tried many different mite solutions in the past, including one from mt=y vet and none of them have worked as good as the listerine.
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Owner of:
7 Ball Pythons
4 crested Geckos
2 Bearded Dragons
1 Iguana
1 Red tail boa hybrid
3 hamsters
8 dogs
10 cats
1 rat
2 red eared sliders
RIP:
Rocky-chow mix-11 years
Willow-lab mix-8 years
Kain-Savannah Monitor-2 years
Scooter-sulcata tortise-1 year
Mr Krabs-hermit crab-5 years
Niko-gerbil-3 years
sweet pea&niblet-dwarf hamsters-1 year
Hannibal-dwarf hamster 2 years