Reptile & Amphibian Forums

If anyone read that thread on bugeyes I mentioned the colored scales.Now I dont see really well even with glasses but something didnt sit right.I could have sworn those "colored scales" were slightly raised...Well last week my corn kept soaking, I looked and looked and couldnt see anything wrong.She is on eco earth so Its hard to tell.But this morning the ratsnake was soaking and that made me take a second look and sure enough I saw some little black shiny thing walking about on him.....I checked the corn over and found one on her as well with the aid of my sons eyes.

Now it could have come from two sources, either a piece of driftwood I didnt clean properly or the new Jungle carpet I got a few weeks ago.....How do I go about demiting all these snakes(5 total including a boa)? Some are on ecoearth and some newspaper. I have Sevin Dust, will that work? I have to special order any reptile product and that could take a week or more to get here..
Thanks for any help...

The most effective method I have used is Provent a Mite. I hear you can get the generic equivalent at Walmart called Equate. Remove the snakes from their cages and clean the cages out. Then spray the cages with the PAM or equate OUTSIDE and away from the snakes (the vapors are harmful). Once the cages have completely dried, replace substrate, clean water bowls, and snakes. The vapors and wet product are harmful, but no so when dried COMPLETELY. Works great. An old method I used that worked great as well was to put a piece of the old no-pest strip on top of the cage, or inside a perforated container in the cage where the snakes couldnt come into contact with. You need to remove the water bowls during treatment as the vapors from the strips will pollute/poison the water. After a few days you can remove the strips and store in an airtight container for later. You will need to repeat the process in a few weeks after any mite eggs hatch. Apparently the PAM or Equate also kills the eggs.

What Kevin said!

I have used sevin dust decades ago with complete success, but that stuff has to be used JUST right or it can poison the animal too. I would definitely recommend the other ways Kevin described before the Sevin dust, although it has also taken care of plenty of mites in collections.

~Doug
-----
"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

Thanks, do they sell it in the pet section or in the yard stuff?Is it specific for reptiles? I know Equate is a walmart brand name for alot of different items.
Im thinking of going with Ivermectin, I can get that at a local ranch supply and dilute it down, I found a website that gives directions.

I just checked out my jungle carpet and I kid you not she is covered, Ive never seen so may mites..I've only had her a few weeks so havent handled her except to feed her up..Im really dissapointed in the petstore that I got her, it was going out of business but I had always thought they were rather up to date on reptile care...I actually am thinking about getting ahold of the old owner and giving him what for...

>>Thanks, do they sell it in the pet section or in the yard stuff?Is it specific for reptiles? I know Equate is a walmart brand name for alot of different items.
>>Im thinking of going with Ivermectin, I can get that at a local ranch supply and dilute it down, I found a website that gives directions.
>>
>>I just checked out my jungle carpet and I kid you not she is covered, Ive never seen so may mites..I've only had her a few weeks so havent handled her except to feed her up..Im really dissapointed in the petstore that I got her, it was going out of business but I had always thought they were rather up to date on reptile care...I actually am thinking about getting ahold of the old owner and giving him what for...

Personally I wouldn't experiment with pesticides. By the time you know you screwed up your pets could be damaged permanently or dead. If you search for mites the Walmart headlice equate equivalent will come up. I personally just keep a can of Provent A Mite on hand. Thankfully I haven't needed it in years. I tend to take a pile of newspaper outside, spray it and let it dry totally then change out the cages with it and lay it on the floor of the room. Dump all bedding in the cages now and trash it. Never had to repeat.
-----
Sonya

I'm not mean. You're just a sissy.
Happy Bunny

Sonya's suggestion works great. Remove snake and clean cage, then replace substrate/paper that has been sprayed with the PAM or Equate and allowed to completely dry. The JC is probably the culprit. It may not be the sellers fault. He may have gotten it with mites from his source and not noticed. The first time I had mites in my collection came from a JC python I purchased over the internet about 12 years ago!!

Im going to go look for the equate today.I have to get out all my old shoe boxes to put the snakes in.And get cleaning.
I thought about the petstore and mites and to be fair I cant guarentee that the mites didnt come off the piece of driftwood that I put in the tank at around the same time.So I wont call the guy.I did a sloppy job of cleaning it(lol)...Wont do that again either.

You dont want to run the risk of infesting your clean boxes. I would suggest spraying the clean boxes with the provent a mite or equate first as well before temporarily housing your snakes during clean up and treatment. It cant hurt. As I stated previously, just make sure to spray the boxes, substrate, etc. AWAY for the snakes and outside and make sure whatever is sprayed is COMPLETELY dry before putting the snakes in contact with it.

"I actually am thinking about getting a hold of the old owner and giving him what for"

Yes, if you know that was the source, I KNOW I would.

I would probably add a few very "colorful" words too..

~Doug
-----
"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

Well if you feed live rodents they can also bring in mites as they will hitch hike on the rodents. If you attended any reptile shows they can also hitch hike on you. Buying any products at a pet store that has mites (most that deal in WC do) gives you an opportunity to bring home mites. Buying any animal from a big wholesale operation gives you the best chance for mites.

As far as the "Equate" spray goes, it is in the pharmacy and it is Equate Bedding Spray for use in treating beds and pillows for lice. Last time I was in WalMart they did not have any but it is a little crappy WalMart. I believe RID might also have the same active ingredient as PAM but PAM despite the cost difference offers the safest option out of everything.

Treat the cage empty, bleach the water bowl inside and out, spray all the furnishings, soak the snake itself in slightly warm water, and use a newspaper or paper towel substrate for 2-3 months to take away any place for the little things to lay eggs.

Jason

I did spray the bins yesterday and the snakes are in them right now.I left the tanks outside overnight after spraying them.
I only put in water bowl a hide and papertowels.
Should I have sprayed the paper towels as well, the bins are small and I dont want to overdo it?

Also I read that baking the wood at 400 for one hour should kill the mites..The wood wont catch fire will it? That seems rather high to me(I have a gas stove).I have one piece of wood I really want to keep.

Thanks so much for all the help.

I recently did the run around trying to get rid of mites too.
Tried a bunch of things like pest strips and was anal about cleanliness too. I put wood in the oven too but only long enough to get it super hot to the touch. I usually soak it in water first. Then if if fits in the mirco wave I nuke it long enough to steam it up really well but not to where its dry (probably bust the micro) as for the oven again only long enough to steam it up so its too hot to touch. Thats enough.
I'd clean the cages (fish tanks and vision cages) with bleach solutions too. Problem is the mites and eggs are on the reptile so no matter how much you soak them or sit them under a pest strip there is something hiding in a fold that will multiply back up again.
Ok my frustration had me posting here and the cure was prevent a mite. It did the job 100%!
Clean the cage and soak the snake. Spray the cage and the bedding (mine was newspaper) and let it air dry fully.
Then set it back up as usual. You will see mites here and there for a couple of days but eventually they will die off and the problem will be gone.
Oh, don't blame the guy you think introduced the mites, hey mites happen. They just have to be dealt with when they happen.
Thanks again to all that helped me when I was mite frustrated
Mike.