I Have Mites

[SnoopySnake]

Well, I got my white lip out today and afterwards I noticed tiny black bugs crawling all over my hands and of course they're mites. I don't know how I missed it before it got to the point where it is, but luckily it doesn't seem to have hit my other snakes too bad yet. I did however just redo a bioactive viv that I really don't want to tear down, so I'm going to dry using predatory mites. Has anyone had good success with this?

[Minkness]

A good remedy to mites is 7-dust. It is 100% animal safe, even for snakes. Just but a little bit in the bottom then put their substrate down or paper towels or whatever you use. Any mites that fall off are killed, eggs are killed, and larvea are killed. You can also use it in a bioactive tank. Just mix it in with the dirt.

I did this method with the rescue who I got infested with mites, and they weren't moving after about 2 weeks. Some got stuck under the scales but came off with the 1st shed. Not seen a mute since!

[Jim Smith]

SnoopySnake,

I have been fighting with mites on one of my snakes for the past seven months. I have tried all the "tried and true methods" all to no avail. Several complete cleanings with a good spray of PAM and then the same thing with NIX, etc. etc. etc. That said, I have not tried 7-dust yet as I hadn't heard of it as a remedy before Minkness mentioned it. Right now, I am using the predatory mites, but the jury is still out with them. I put the mites in the cage and immediately saw some of the predatory mites on the front plexiglass of the cage. About a week later, I noticed two snake mites on my snake, so I removed her from the cage and wiped her down with "animal safe" mite products and placed her in a tub with newspaper bedding. She is mite free, but I've left the cage empty with all it bedding and decorations for the past three weeks to let the mite wars continue. In another week or so, I will try the 7-dust in the substrate to kill every thing and leave it for a week or so and do another complete cleaning and sterilization. These things are really tough to get rid of, but I'm going to be successful, one way or another. Good luck!

[Tsubaki]

http://www.ssnakess.com/forums/general-discussion/107873-way-mite-prevention-treatment-informative-thread.html

I have described how to work with predatory mites in bioactive tanks, might be worth a read for you if you're considering using them.

[SnoopySnake]

A good remedy to mites is 7-dust. It is 100% animal safe, even for snakes. Just but a little bit in the bottom then put their substrate down or paper towels or whatever you use. Any mites that fall off are killed, eggs are killed, and larvea are killed. You can also use it in a bioactive tank. Just mix it in with the dirt.


Wouldn't this kill off my other beneficial bugs? Sounds similar to diatomaceous earth.

Tsubaki, would this be a bad time to switch over to soil? I was planning on putting the rest of my snakes in bioactive tubs with no plants but now apparently they have mites. Would the soil be more suitable for predatory mites anyway? Then just hold off on my clean up crew till the situation is taken care of? I'd much more prefer to try mites before harsh chemicals, but I don't want to waste soil either.

[Minkness]

Wouldn't this kill off my other beneficial bugs?.

Sadly yes. I forgot that bioactives have clean up crews. =(

[SnoopySnake]

So I know I've mentioned before how my white lip was off food. He didn't eat from Aug. 24th to Oct. 13th. Could mites have made him drop weight much quicker?

[Tsubaki]

Wouldn't this kill off my other beneficial bugs? Sounds similar to diatomaceous earth.

Tsubaki, would this be a bad time to switch over to soil? I was planning on putting the rest of my snakes in bioactive tubs with no plants but now apparently they have mites. Would the soil be more suitable for predatory mites anyway? Then just hold off on my clean up crew till the situation is taken care of? I'd much more prefer to try mites before harsh chemicals, but I don't want to waste soil either.

Predatory mites thrive more easily in natural bedding/soil, however i have had them live just fine on newspaper as well. As long as they have appropriate places to breed they're going to thrive. Also, it takes them more time to clean up a mite infestation than chemicals, but i still prefer them.

[Ivanator]

I've always just used "no pest strips" and within a few days all mites are gone. I just cut it into whatever size strips I need and place it in the cage. They're good for 3 months so I just remove it when I mist then place it back in after and replace it every 3 months. Haven't seen mites since.

[toddnbecka]

Those strips contain chemicals that have been determined to cause neurological damage in snakes. Many years ago, before the internet, the no-pest strips were recommended for treating mites. Even then I didn't like the idea of using chemicals, and when I discovered that my baby burmese python had mites I used Crisco vegetable shortening to kill them. I simply smeared it all over the snake, then put him/her into an empty 10 gallon tank for a couple days. The mites and their eggs were suffocated by the shortening, and the snake was given a warm bath with a bit of dish soap in the water to remove the rest of the Crisco after being cleaned up with paper towels.

[SnoopySnake]

So has anyone ever used diatomaceous earth to treat mites, along with NIX? I want to try the diatomaceous earth for my bioactive enclosure since I can't use NIX on it. I'll be getting whatever bugs out that I can first, of course.

[Pogie]

I don't think that will work. It kills by drying out the critters. If it's in a natural setting it would be damp I would think.

[Ivanator]

Those strips contain chemicals that have been determined to cause neurological damage in snakes. Many years ago, before the internet, the no-pest strips were recommended for treating mites.

Can you provide a link of where you heard this? I've been using the strips for at least 10 years and none of my snakes have ever shown any signs of stress or damage. Ik many keepers that use them as well and I first heard of it bc a veterinarian suggested it as a cheaper alternative to mite specific sprays they sell.

[murrindindi]

Hi, here`s an article regarding the use of pest strips...
http://r.search.yahoo.com/_ylt=A9mSs2tkRy1WXDwALfdLBQx.;_ylu=X3oDMTByMWk2OWN tBGNvbG8DaXIyBHBvcwMyBHZ0aWQDBHNlYwNzcg--/RV=2/RE=1445836773/RO=10/RU=http%3a%2f%2fwww.reptilesmagazine.com%2fReptile-Health%2fDisease-Management%2fExternal-Parasites-Treatment-For-Reptiles-Dichlorvos-No-Pest-Strips%2f/RK=0/RS=t8bsenhx6cXtSTsnDCy3CsC7lG4-

[Tsubaki]

I had a burmese python that was treated against mites by its previous owners using those strips, this animal seemed to have neurological problems (Head twitching) and eventually died at the age of 1,5. Was it because of the strips? I have no way of knowing for sure, however I don't trust those strips even the slightest. Prefer 100% natural treatment with predatory mites, which i do preventively yearly. for newcomers who are going to be on newspapers for quarantine, i prefer to use nix (I always treat preventively). And even if people say that nix is harmless, i use it like it is a harsh chemical, nothing on the head, air it out, no water in the tank for 3 days. I rather be extremely careful than lose a single snake by my own doing.

[SnoopySnake]

Happy to report that my most infested snake (white lip) appears to be mite free :D When handling him yesterday, I didn't see any mites on him and I didn't see any come off on my hands. I'm still treating him, of course, just so happy that hes doing better!

[Jim Smith]

So, which solution did you use to get rid of your mites? I thought I had them beaten twice, but after a couple of weeks, they showed up again. It was only when I used the predatory mites that I finally got rid of the snake mites for good.

[SnoopySnake]

I NIX'd as you normally would, but I also used the hot shot no pest strips at the same time. Seems that way they're still being kept from reproducing in between the NIX treatments. I wanted to try the predatory mites but didn't really have the $50 to drop on them right now.

[Mbrd04]

When you use the term PAM, are we talking the cooking spray Pam?

[SnoopySnake]

When you use the term PAM, are we talking the cooking spray Pam?

No, we mean provent a mite.

[Albert Clark]

Congrats Snoopy! Glad things are clearing up. I believe in proventamite personally. I did have to use it several months ago when I brought a Arizona mountain kingsnake home from a expo. He had a mite issue and thankfully he was in quarantine when I spotted it. Still treated all my animals prophylactically. I feel the key to using proventamite is to leave it on the substrate and the enviornment and don't put the reptiles back in until the next day. Of course you will have removed any water dishes prior to spraying. Retreat in 3 to 4 weeks the exact same way. This way you maximize the spray effectiveness and safeguard your reptiles at the same time.

[Nightflight99]

When you use the term PAM, are we talking the cooking spray Pam?
I don't care who you are, that's some funny ***** right there! :D

[Jim Smith]

Actually, I think that many people new to the hobby make a similar assumption. It can be tough to get used to a whole new set of acronyms in a brand new hobby. It's almost like a different language. For that very reason, I try to avoid using acronyms and type out the words because I can most certainly relate to wondering what the heck people are talking about.

[Nightflight99]

I completely agree on the acronyms, but I still have hard time keeping a straight face when I imagine a snake crawling through a cage that is covered in cooking spray...

[reptiledude987]

I completely agree on the acronyms, but I still have hard time keeping a straight face when I imagine a snake crawling through a cage that is covered in cooking spray...

So youre telling me cooking spray isnt the right thing to use???

[SnoopySnake]

Lol, I couldn't imagine trying to keep ahold of my white lip or retic all greased up in pam. No thanks. I always get a laugh out of it too.

[Nightflight99]

So youre telling me cooking spray isnt the right thing to use???
Actually, I prefer sprinkling a little bit of chameleon powder all over the enclosure and snake, while humming an old Indian song. It doesn't seem to help with the mites, but it will provide some much-needed distraction from the little parasites that are plaguing your collection.

[toddnbecka]

I've been lucky so far, we've bought 22 snakes from different shows and individual breeders online, and never a single mite has turned up. Hope it keeps going so well...

[Mbrd04]

I have to laugh at this, bcas I was sure it couldn't be, and not 5 minutes after I asked the question I figured it out.

I've used a combo of diatomaceous earth, and a mite spray I got from a breeder and a tiny piece of the no pest strip. I was giving him a soak everyday too.

We are mite free! Halelujah. But I will be proactive in treatment, not that I know what to look for.



Reggie the Regular - Ball Python (3 months old)

[Nightflight99]

I've been lucky so far, we've bought 22 snakes from different shows and individual breeders online, and never a single mite has turned up. Hope it keeps going so well...
Yep, that is pretty lucky. Are you placing new arrivals into quarantine? If so, then your collection is relatively safe. Just about anyone who keeps reptiles longterm will at some point be forced to deal with mites, but as long as your new arrivals are properly quarantined, you probably won't have to deal with the nightmare of treating an entire collection. A single experience of that kind will be a learning opportunity that you won't ever want to repeat.

[SnoopySnake]

I quarantined him, but since I didn't get him out much I missed the mites, and once I thought all was clear he had an infestation. Luckily my other snakes didn't get that bad at all so they were relatively easy to get rid of. I have chemicals but I really think the combination of the NIX and the no pest strips did the job. I also gave them baths with a couple drops of original dawn dish soap, the amount of mites that came off this white lip after that was ridiculous. There were hundreds. On the plus side, I'm now going to be much more safe about new additions and going to expos, pet shops, ect.

[Nightflight99]

Its easy to miss mites on a new snakes, especially if the snake has a color pattern that easily conceals them. Another common problem is the fact that while there may not be any adult mites on the snake upon arrival, it may contain eggs. This is one of the reasons why every snake (with very few exceptions) that enters my collection is quarantined for six weeks, during which they live on newspaper or paper towels which have been treated with 0.50% permethrin. There are a few select species that don't seem to tolerate permethrin well (Heterodon, for example), but the vast majority of them respond well to the treatment.

The good news is that once you've had to deal with an infestation, you tend to develop a level of paranoia that makes it much less likely that you will make that same mistake again...

[Andy_G]

I've heard the following sayings quite often;

1. For every mite you see, there's 10 you don't.
2. If you've never encountered mites, you probably haven't been keeping for too long.

They are easy to miss for the reasons already mentioned by others, but equally as easy to wipe out as long as proper quarantine procedures are put in place. Congrats to the OP for getting rid of the little buggers!