Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi; I need an effective treatment for mites ASAP, as we just discovered then on our Monkey Tail skinks! I've heard Listerine might work, but should it be used straight, or diluted, or is there something better?

I know its not a snake, but I also know many of you have alot of reptile experience, so I figured I'd ask here.

Thank you!

Freight

This treatment is from the book "Rat Snakes, A Hobbyist's Guide to Elaphe and Kin" by Staszko and Walls.

".... the best solution is to use a piece of insecticidal vapor strip. ... For a 15 gallon glass cage, cut a piece about an inch wide. Put the piece in a mesh bag ... and suspend it out of reach on the ceiling of the cage. ... I feel it is safe to leave the strip in for up to 48 hours. Thereafter, especially debillated snakes may be at risk. In all cases remove the water dish while the strip is in the cage. Otherwise, the vapors will poison the water. Make sure the cage is properly ventilated with a mesh top or wall panel. ... Never touch the brown oily liquid that sometimes oozes from the strip. ...
It is a good idea to bathe the snake and clean out the cage as thoroughly as possible before installing the strip. ... It is also a good idea to throw out any soft or cracked wood in the cage, such as climbing branches, that could harbor mite eggs."

They note that you have to be on the lookout for a second round of mites in the case that some eggs survived the treatment.

Remember, you want to kill the mites and not harm the snake. A reptile vet may have some better choices for you, but Staszko and Walls claim this works.

I snakes have never had mites, so I have not tried it myself, but it sounds like it could work well. They don't talk about it, but I would not use this method with very young or small snakes.

Good luck.

the best thing that i have found that does not hurt you animal is provent-a-mite. it is a spray can thay you just take out the animal and the water bowl, and just fog the tank quickly for like 3-4 seconds. it will kill any invert that is in you tank( it will also kill any spiders and frogs you have nere the cage).
and as a proventive, once a month spray the provent-a-mite onto a paper towl and wipe around the top of the cage.
thadd
t_deppen@yahoo.com

Thank you both! I'll be getting the Provent a mite this week!

Freight

"Provent-a-Mite", an effective treatment for invasive parasites...

Did you know it costs $20/can? It is very effective, however, and I used it for my collection a while back. I brought back some baby snakes from the Daytona Show that I thought were clean after two weeks and put them in my Herp Room to keep them warmer. Even though they were in separate cages, my whole collection became infected eventually when there was a mite hatch, and I had to treat the entire room.

Here's the proper procedure for using "Provent a Mite". Remember any kind of chemicals are going to be harmful to your animals if they ingest or inhale them. You must remove all your pet snakes and put them in separate containers while you disinfect their cages. Also remove any water or food containers and just wash them. Take the cage outdoors or in a garage to spray like I do. Make sure you don't inhale the spray, as it's not good for you either. Make sure the bedding is not more than an inch thick, so it won't protect the mites. Don't have any wood or other objects in the cage. Shake the can well and spray all over the bedding for 2 or 3 seconds, but don't lay it on too thick. Let mist fill cage and leave it out there overnight, or for 4hrs. minimum. After all is completely dry, put objects, water, snakes, back in cage.

Some will say that you don't have to wait more than a few minutes, up to an hr, for the cage to dry. Here's why you should be more cautious. This spray, as well as others, such as Black Knight and other vapors, can harm your snakes if they are inhaled or ingested. Some species are more sensitive to the sprays than others, especially if they have very thin skins. I have seen baby snakes die from exposure to recently sprayed cages. They will have seizures first. I don't like to take chances, so I make sure the spray is completely dry. I treat all my snake cages, leave overnight, put the snakes back the next day.

Now, here's a really important step. In ten to 14 days, you have to repeat the treatment, or else eggs will hatch out and you'll be infected again. Sprays do not kill the eggs. You have to do this treatment twice!! Then you will be free of mites until you infect your collection again

Remember to take precautions to protect your collection, no matter how large or small, from infections by mites or anything else. I always quarantine new animals, no matter how nice or valuable they are, and no matter who I got them from, even my best friends. I now have a small portable lab where I test for mites and look for other infectious organisms. I try to keep new animals in quarantine at least a month. I also use Proven a Mite as a preventative. If I know I'm bringing in new animals, I spray the appropriate holding containers, cages, etc, before I get the animals, and transfer them to these treated containers as soon as I get home, or even at a show. If they do have mites the mites die. Don't forget to repeat the process two weeks later in case there were eggs, which is what got me the first time. This will protect the rest of your collection and, so far, no animals I've put through this procedure have suffered any harmful consequences.

If you follow these basic protective steps you will have mite-free animals which is much appreciated by anyone who will buy from you in the future or who handles your animals, etc, and you won't have to worry about infecting other people's collections. BTW, one can of Provent a Mite was enough to treat my entire collection of about thirty ten gallon tanks, twice. Good luck and hope you have many happy, mite-free years of herp enjoyment

TC
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Ratsnake Haven: Elaphe schrencki, dione, bimaculata, mandarina, conspicillata, porphyracea, taeniura, situla, and emoryi.

Wow, I really appreciate the info! That's really helpful, as I have never had to deal with mites before. I've had these skinks since October 2003, and now have just seen the mites for the first time. I've even had them to 2 different vets, and neither of them detected mites either! Now that I've been treating the female regularly for a medical problem the mites have appeared.

Thanx again!

Freight

You're welcome. Hope it helps you and others stay mite free. Mites can be such a plague to a herper. Don't forget to read all the directions on the can and follow them. We don't want the chemicals to be a problem too

TC

Do you know how it is that the mites generally are on the animal, but spraying the cage kills them off? I'm just curious how it all works.

Freight

>>Do you know how it is that the mites generally are on the animal, but spraying the cage kills them off? I'm just curious how it all works.
>>
>>Freight

Freight, yes, the mites are on the snake or lizard, etc, when feeding. Snake mites get under the scales and burrow their head into the soft tissue and sucks out the blood. They also like to hang around by the eyes for the moisture. When they are epidemic proportions the eyes on the snake will appear sunken and the mites will be numerous enough that you can see them walking around with the naked eye. They lay their eggs in one of these locations on the snake. The hatchling mites are too tiny to see on the snake or bedding. What I do is take a sample of the snake's water and put it in a shallow dish under the dissecting microscope. Baby mites can be seen right after a hatch as the snake will soak in water to wash them off.

When you spray your cage from about 18 inches away from the bedding, some of the spray goes onto the bedding and some spray sticks to the glass of the terrarium. Then it dries. When dry it doesn't do too much harm to a large snake, but they are a little sensitive to it, especially small snakes and ones with thin skins. The mites, however, are very small and cannot stand contact with the active agent (chemical). When the snakes crawl through the bedding they die. When the mites try to get away or up the glass, they die. If the babies hatch within a day or two of the spray, they die. If the bedding is too thick, or if there is a moist area, like a big dump from your snake hidden under the bedding, the mites can survive the treatment by hiding there until the chemicals lose their affect. There are a few little tricks that work.

All herpers should be mite free. All it takes is caring enough and the time to treat your collection if it needs it. I know some folks that do the treatment at least once a year whether there are mites or not.

Good luck,

Terry