Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Note for anyone about to use Provent-a-Mite on baby rosies..

I treated a new CB2010 female Ariz rosy a week ago for mites, as the snake arrived with mites.

Sprayed Provent-a-Mite in a shoebox, let it dry overnight, then put in substrate and snake. Rosy was in there 1 day when I noticed she was not well. Twitching, occasional gasping, no tongue flicking.

I should know better. I should have not treated a baby with chemicals. Adults do fine, but the tiny size of babies makes them much more sensitive. I should have used alternatives.

I put her in a screen-top cage and cranked the heat up. She has come out from hiding the last 2 nights and flicking her tongue normally as if looking for food. No twitching. Thank goodness.
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Mark

Mark,
I totally agree with you, as it is extremely dangerous to treat small neonate snake cages with any of the mite treatments available, even the permethrin sprays. The best and safest procedure I have found with small neonates is to spray the interior of the unit and wait a few minutes and then wipe out all of the residue the best you can with a paper towel. Then lightly spray the exterior of the unit and let dry before replacing the neo, but do not wipe down the residue on the outside. Do this once or twice a week. The exterior spraying will keep mites from moving in or out of the unit and will eventually break the life cycle of the ones on your snake of concern. It takes a little longer with this procedure to get rid of the mites, but is much safer and still keeps them from spreading to other snakes in your collection. I have actually seen this procedure work with even larger snakes.

Kelly

>>Mark,
>>I totally agree with you, as it is extremely dangerous to treat small neonate snake cages with any of the mite treatments available, even the permethrin sprays. The best and safest procedure I have found with small neonates is to spray the interior of the unit and wait a few minutes and then wipe out all of the residue the best you can with a paper towel. Then lightly spray the exterior of the unit and let dry before replacing the neo, but do not wipe down the residue on the outside. Do this once or twice a week. The exterior spraying will keep mites from moving in or out of the unit and will eventually break the life cycle of the ones on your snake of concern. It takes a little longer with this procedure to get rid of the mites, but is much safer and still keeps them from spreading to other snakes in your collection. I have actually seen this procedure work with even larger snakes.
>>
>>Kelly
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Mark