Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I seem to have trouble getting rid of mites.. every few months I have an outbreak.. This time, there has been NOTHING new in at least 6 months.. Got rid of the mites, and get them back..

I think the problem is the wood fixtures I use in the tanks.. most are the grapevine jungle gym stuff, but a few are those ZooMed half logs.

Every cleaning (every 2 weeks) I soak all wood with bleach water, air it out, and then place back in.. I also oil down the snakes with Benson's Snake Oil, and Spray the enclosure with Natural Chemistry Repti-relief Mite spray AND Natural Chemistry cage cleaner.. THIS IS EVERY TWO WEEKS... AND still mites. All the small enclosures also get washed with hot soapy water...but the large heavy ones, I only managed to get done couple times a year.

Maybe I am not getting the mites from the wood? Or maybe the substrate? The latest mite outbreak is a couple of children's pythons that are housed on cypress mulch..normally it is just aspen.

What am I doing Wrong?? ANY TIPS AND ADVICE CAN ONLY HELP...

Don't feel bad about this. I am treating my collection right now for a small mite infestation. Probably came in with a shipment of supplies from a large reptile supply company I recently received. I have not had mites for years.
Mites can be brought in by a new snake, rodents, cage furniture, and loose substrate-especially bark and mulch. That is one reason I keep snakes on newspaper. A trip to a reptile show or pet shop and mites will hitch a ride on even you. They are species specific and won't feed off humans but they are sure good at finding the snakes.

Mites have several life cycles or stages and their eggs can lay dormant for up to two years. The products you use are nice but not effective in irradicating mites. I also would not be oiling the snakes all the time. Get a can of Provent A Mite which will kill all mite stages including its eggs. The directions on the can must be followed exactly. I use Equate Beeding Spray from Walmart. Equate is $4 a can, Provent A Mite is $20. Equate is the exact same formula but does not come with directions for reptiles. Here are the directions:

1) NEVER directly spray the snake with Equat/PAM-that can kill the snake. The spray when dry is harmless to the snake.
2) Remove snake and water bowl from cage.
3) VERY lightly spray the substrate and cage furniture. I can't stress lightly enough as this is powerful stuff. Mites and other insects will die being just in the vicinity of Equate/PAM. Any live feeder insects or pet spiders must be removed from that room. No need to spray all over the cage or in crevases.
4) Let the spray dry completely-at least 30 minutes.
5) Place snake and water bowl back in cage.
6) Repeat process in two weeks and all your mites will be gone-until you bring in new ones.

Give the spray time to work and don't over do it. Equate/PAM is not an instant insect killer but works by dissolving the insect's exoskeleton and eggs. Killing the mite eggs is the key. 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.

Ran out of word space on my last message.

The spray will kill mites under the snake's scales and other body areas so I would not soak/oil or use your other treatments that may block or hinder its effect. When I used loose substrate years ago I had mites all the time. I started treating the loose substrate with Equate before using it and no mites emerged.

Best of luck with this. 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.

I am very cautious about provent-a-mite as the snakes are in my bedroom..and I have to breathe that stuff. I might use the walmart stuff for the carpet.

And my first experience with mites, I over bleached everything and killed off half my collection..including a 20 yr old oregon zonota that wasn't mine... So I bleach with care..or not at all.

I do use 8 in 1 Bird Protector which does ok, I think.. but then again, I have mites again..

It is possible I used something from the last time that didnt get cleaned properly..like a bowl or feeding tote..

this is just the wrong time for mites as I have 2 major educational displays in July..oh well..

Harpy

I would look at where you are getting your feeders from, I have seen mites hitchhike on even frozen feeders. Parasites are very adaptive, just keep trying!
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hanging out under heat lights burns up my brain cells!!

I breed my own rats and use shredded paper as bedding.. Other than my cats, no other animals are in snake area..

harpy..
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Http://www.myspace.com/oregonherpaholic - Educational Show & Tell.

I would listen to Bill's advice as it is sound and effective. The only thing I would add to it is you really need to spray the outside of the cages as well. The inside of the cages are cleaned and sprayed less frequently, but the outside should be sprayed about twice a week as new mites coming in will be killed while any mites missed by the interior treatment will be killed when they try to migrate. Outside of the cage spraying is a critical step in mite control. The other thing that should be avoided is attempted mite control by using strong bleach solutions. Not only is it dangerous as you found out, but it is usually ineffective at eliminating the mite problem.

Kelly

In my case, used NIX twice on a BP and large nigritus. Followed instructions from the forum and just removed the water dish. Gave the entire cage, incl. snake, a light misting and never saw the buggers again. Water dish replaced in one hour. This was over 12 years ago or more. Never had mites again. The nigritus is still with me after 22 years (the only getulus in my collection). The BP female was sold after I bred her twice in 4 years. My other cb BP's are good so far. Some breeders have issues with NIX, but it did the job for me that one time.

Mike

not familiar with NIX. What brand is that?? I do know of Provent-a-mite..and a few others. I will seek it out.

Harpy

NIX is a brand name headlice shampoo, diluted down it makes a decent mite spray