ticks

[letters]

it seems my little girl has ticks, i've taking everything out of her cage, and replaced it with blank white paper, a fake hide and fake watering dish, i removed most of the ticks with tweesers, she's a day away from shedding, any other advise to rid her of this problem?

[Andy_G]

IF it is just ticks, pluck whenever you spot. Are you sure it isn't mites? Ticks usually come with a WC animal...

[gonesnakee]

Ticks? Obviously this is a new specimen? I've never heard of anything having ticks that wasn't farmed or wildcaught & usually it involves a BP not a Carpet. If I were you I would seek a vet for full parasite treatment both inside & out. Chances are if it has Ticks it probably also has Mites & probably a host of lots of other internal parasites as it has probably been exposed to lots of other nastys. Ticks can be removed with tweezers, but it is of major importance not to leave parts inside the snake (ie: heads) which could lead to secondary infections. I would also talk to the source of this specimen about this major issue & ask why they are selling substandard animals that have not been properly cared for/treated before being passed on to others. I would also consider a different source for all future purchases & INSPECT all future specimens before purchase. I may seem harsh but there is absolutely no reason for someone to sell a specimen with ticks EVER. Sounds like a fresh Wildcaught to me. Hopefully its health hasn't been too seriously affected by the additional parasites it is likely carrying in addition to the obvious. Good Luck Mark
P.S. I'd also run a search of the site for "Nix treatment for snake mites" & research them as well.
P.P.S. make sure it also has lots of fresh water & a dish big enough to soak its entire self in. This will help with dehydration & the snake will be able to drown out some of its external parasites as well.

[letters]

My female is a Cative breed it had nothing that i notice when i bought it, i think it might have been my fault i never bake the log, that i got from outside, "could that have done it? she does have a big water dish and i have notice there was alot of dead ones in the water this morning. Also were i bought it he said there was no way it had them when i bought it, he told me to try "ivermec" is that safe ? I can't belive i forgot to bake the log, this sucks.

[foman]

Sounds like mites to me, especially being in the water dish, ticks are a quite big parasite(bigger than fleas)mites are tiny and are difficult to see(smaller than a flea)and look a little black speck. If it is mites then head off to the drugstore and buy some NIX. I used the cream type that was about 15 bucks for a small bottle, then I lathered up my hands with it and let the snake slither through my fingers for about ten minutes( be careful around the mouth and eyes, but these are also spots mites like to infest)I then rinsed it all off and then cleaned the cage with a bucket of diluted nix and water. And wallah no more mites. There are other methods but this one worked great for me.
Good luck I hate those little buggers.

[gonesnakee]

Possibilty of contamination from the log. I too think it may be Mites not Ticks. Ticks are massive in size compared to mites which are like "pinhead" in size & aren't very likely in a CBB specimen. Whereas mites unfortunately pop up all the time in SOME collections. Again I'll suggest running the search on "Nix snake treatment for mites" read it thru & follow it. Good Luck Mark

[letters]

I'm prttey sure there ticks, when i see one on the glass i can pop it and there's blood stain. i think i got them all off her. i haven't seen one yet today, whats the egg cycle?(on ticks) i'll clean her cage again to be safe.

[Andy_G]

Originally posted by letters
I'm prttey sure there ticks, when i see one on the glass i can pop it and there's blood stain.

That, to me, screams mites...but if they are in fact ticks, don't pop them, put them in hydrogen peroxide to kill them and then put them down the drain...they are full of disease and nasty stuff.

[gonesnakee]

It should be easy to tell what they are for sure by size. If they are tiny small like pinheads Mites if they are as big as say a Ladybug or slightly smaller Ticks. If there are whacks of them more than likely they are mites. Mark