Reptile & Amphibian Forums

If they do what can i do to get rid of them..
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Anthony

There are thousands of types of mites. From dust mites to beneficial mites that keep other insects/animals clean to harmful mites.

Mites that would live on a rat or mouse would not live on a snake or lizard. Mites very rarely live on more than one type of animal. Lizard mites won't even bother snakes and the reverse is true also. A mite that would live on a mammal would never live on a reptile.

That being said, it is possible that a reptile type mite could "hitch a ride" on a rat and thus infect your snakes, but if there are no wandering snake mites where you buy your rodents, you are safe. If you are buying your rodents from a rodent farm that doesn't have any reptiles, you are very safe. If you are buying from a pet shop that has mite infested reptiles, you are not so safe.

Many other types of insects, lice for example, are often confused with mites.

Rodney

Actually, there are some mites that can affect reptiles and humans. But they are more inclined to humans. As far as a mite or two hitching a ride on a rat, it is possible, but only if they had reptiles at the same place as the rats. And for one, once a mite finds a good food source, they usually only leave the host to lay eggs, then they try to return to the host ASAP. If you are worried about this, buy some De Flea Reptile Relief spray, it has no ill effects on mammals and reptiles alike, and smells ok....

Are you sure about that? (reptiles and humans being affected with the same species of mites.)

When I was enrolled in zoology in college, we were taught about the EXTREME species specific nature of mites. Not only are they species specific, they also are very specific on what they feed on. Dust mites, for example, feed on skin flakes/dander which is the major component of dust in the home. I specialize in raising parrots and I raise animals for a living. I have attended many veterinary siminars and mites are an amazing creature. There is one type of mite that only infects the air sacs (lung like structures in birds) of a couple of species of birds--primarily canaries and lady gouldian finches. This mite is almost never seen in any other species of bird--occasionally some finches, but it is vary rare in them. It is usually seen only if the finches are housed with canaries or gouldians that are vary heavily infected. There is another species that only goes after the nares/beak, legs, and vent are of a couple of species of parrots (budgies and kakarikis)-this type feeds on keratin rich tissue only. There is a species of mite that only infects the feathers of birds--it feeds on feather material and lives within the crevices of the feathers. Another species only affects the skin of the bird. Another type lives in the cage and comes out at night to feed on the bird's blood. It is almost never seen on the birds, but can be found on the ends of perches during the day. I have even read in various veterinary reference manuals that the mites that typically cause problems in dogs aren't the some species that cause problems in cats. (mange/scabbies/etc.) Dogs and cats are far more alike since they are both mammals than reptiles and mammals!--(note, there are some species that can affect both cats and dogs, but most species don't) I find it VARY hard to believe that a mite that lives on a cold blooded creature could exist on a warm blooded creature for any period of time, much less be able to feed and breed on that creature! Since there are many thousands of species of mites and many species are not even know, it is possible, but very unlikely.

There are so many wives tales out there about things like mites, that I tend not to believe such stories without evidence. (A pet shop I sell insects to once told me to never buy mice/rats from a particular rodent breeder because they bring in mites to their reptiles. I talked to this rodent breeder and they don't even carry/own any reptiles. Plus, that pet shop regularly brings in wild caught snakes. It is far more likely that they are getting mites from all the wild caught animals they bring in! Also, I talked to a vet about this and he said that it was nonsense--(rodents carrying snake or lizard mites.)

I've even seen people refer to flour beetles and lice as mites!--just because they are fairly small and crawl around.

If you can refer me to any books/sites that verify this (rodents carrying snake or lizard mites.), I would greatly appreciate it.

As for treatment. I highly recommend anything that uses the chemical carobyl (spelling) in it. You can find this in kitten flea powder, or if you want to save some money, go to a nursery (plants) and buy something called seven-dust. There are some generic dusts out there as well now. The label shold read something like 5% carobyl and 95% inert ingredients. It is really cheap and works very well. (In the old days, before there was ivomec, we even used to put canaries and lady gouldian finches in a paper bag, add a little seved dust and shake it up. The dust would be inhaled by the bird and the air sac mites would be killed without harming the bird!) If birds can breath this stuff, it is pretty safe! I've used it to kill snake mites in my collection and I have been mite free for over 4 years now. just sprinkle about 1/4 teaspoon in a 20 gal tank and leave it in the substrate for about 2 weeks. Change the drinking water often so your animals doesn't get any in its system that way.--works great on rodents too. Just don't feed them to your animals for about 2 weeks after you stop treatment.

Rodney

Wow! Well...thanks! I will definitely keep all of this in mind if I get another "outbreak".

I am convinced that they do, or at least did. I have 10 snakes, none of whom had mites. I decided to restart my mouse breeding to feed them all. I lucked into a petstore that was going out of business and were selling everything at deep discounts. I bought 2 mamas and 30 pinkies, as well as another male and female. Anyway I got them all home and fed my hungry snakes some of the live pinks. A week later I fed them again, with live pinks. Two or three days later I discovered that 4 of my snakes had mite problems. I can't think of any other source than the pinks, or their moms. I was using the same bedding as before, nothing new was added to the snake enclosures. Except the mites. They are gone now (after much fretting and treating) and I don't plan on feeding anything that hasn't spent a good long time in the freezer first.

>>I am convinced that they do, or at least did.

Mites and lice that parasitize warm-blooded animals will not affect your snakes. As has already been stated, there are hundreds of species of mites and lice, and they're very specific about the hosts from which they'll feed. The only mites and lice that you need to worry about, are those that come from other snakes. It isn't hard to rid your prey animals of mites and lice, just treat them with ivermectin, and clean their cages with a bleach solution.

Grain mites, soil mites, plant mites and lice, etc., will not parasitize your prey animals or your snakes.

tricia
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tricia

Well, seeing as nobody answered your questions, you can bathe them, tweeze them all off, or freeze the rat and the parasite will also die. I would suggest doing what you do to the carrier, to all the rats near it.