Mites!!!

triplehp4 · 09-28-14, 07:35 PM

My carpet pythons both had a very bad mite infestation, so I ordered provent a mite and reptile relief having heard good things about both. By the time the sprays came, my carpets were very dehydrated and inactive. I removed my snakes and sprayed them with reptile relief, let them sit a while, then soaked them in water briefly. At the same time, I fogged everything in my cages with provent a mite, with the exception of the water dishes. In about an hour I placed my snakes back into their cages, and replaced their water. They both drank a lot, and I didn't see any mites. That was yesterday. Today, I see mites everywhere again, especially on the snakes and on their climbing branches. According to the provent a mite can, it should keep killing them for 30 days. Most mites I see are smaller than the ones I saw before. Does provent a mite take a while to kill mites that the spray didn't directly contact? I used a lot of spray and coated all the sides and the substrate (wooden cages with soil substrate). What am I doing wrong??

Laughingman868 · 09-28-14, 09:15 PM

Hey triplehp, I just registered and haven't even posted in the intro board yet but seen your thread about mites and decided to come here first. I'm dealing with the same thing unfortunately after only having the snake for a week, Im a new snake owner after only having my rainbow boa for about 3 months then getting this one so I really didn't look it over when I got it as I just trusted the guy which was a mistake. either way they are in his eyes, under his chin and a few on his body. This is what I'm doing so far, its going to be long and not answer your question completely but maybe helpful to you or someone.

I am awaiting on a bottle of prevent a mite but in the mean time I did what I could. I picked up a bottle of reptile relief but before using that I let him soak for about thirty minutes with just enough space for him to poke out the top of his head to breath, that took a bunch of mites off which drowned. I then used the reptile relief which took more off, I sprayed it on a rag then ran it down his entire body for awhile. By this point there were only the ones in his eyes left and two under his chin trapped in the scales. Now I did not want to do this next step but I heard it was ok as long as one has steady hands, I just felt so bad for him because I could see them in his eye sockets. I used the same rag that had the reptile relief on it and held his head still right at the back then used the non pointy side of a sewing needle (the oval shaped side to put the yarn through) and I VERY...I repeat, VERY carefully scraped out the mites. It was really easy and I'm glad I did it because most of the ones I pulled out were still alive even after using the reptile relief which is supposed to kill on contact. This jungle carpet is a wild one but he was surprisingly calm during this process, he did try to escape but he wasn't biting which he usually bites non stop. Also in the process of his wiggling around the two that were under his chin worked themselves out. I looked him over and he is almost completely mite free but Im still going to treat the cage with the spray when it arrives.

Now i understand that you can spray the cage with the decor and substrate still in it, and I am, as I said, a novice keeper but I highly recommend taking every single thing out and soaking what you can in bleach then rinsing it thoroughly and let it sit for a week or so. Right now the only thing in my terrarium is a water bowl, a small cave that I cleaned and paper towel for substrate. I have already found dead and live mites which were easy to see on the paper towel. Clean the snake as best you can then clean the cage and put the bare minimum back in to easily monitor everything for a few days. Maybe my way is over kill but I'm scared that my rainbow boa will get them so I'm taking absolutely no chances with these things.

MyKuLoO · 09-28-14, 11:41 PM

Okay so here is what I have done for my jungle carpet python. Prior to this he was soaking almost 24/7 for a week or so. I would pick him up and notice how lethargic he was from being in the cold water.

Lined a large plastic box with newspaper provided water at 1 end and undertank heater at the other. Took my python and let him crawl through my hands with olive oil on them to coat him. Once coated I put him into the large plastic box to stay for a day or 2.

His original 40 gallon tank I wash with warm/hot water and bleach, rinsed and wiped it down. Put my new substrate (aspen bedding) into the bottom, took the entire tank outside then sprayed Provent-a-Mite (PAM) into it according to the directions.

Waiting an hour or so for it to vent out then i'm gonna place the snake back into it after a day or 2.

I realized that the olive oil was drying up really quickly and wouldnt be enough to suffocate the mites. A guy recommended using Crisco vegetable shortening because it's thicker. Did that for him overnight. Tonight I cleaned him off with some mild dish soap and lots of water. He tolerated all of this very well. Well my snake never really tries to bite anyways, always calm.

Back into the original tank the snake is very active and staying in the heat instead of wandering over to the water again.

MyKuLoO · 09-28-14, 11:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Laughingman868

Hey triplehp, I just registered and haven't even posted in the intro board yet but seen your thread about mites and decided to come here first. I'm dealing with the same thing unfortunately after only having the snake for a week, Im a new snake owner after only having my rainbow boa for about 3 months then getting this one so I really didn't look it over when I got it as I just trusted the guy which was a mistake. either way they are in his eyes, under his chin and a few on his body. This is what I'm doing so far, its going to be long and not answer your question completely but maybe helpful to you or someone.

I am awaiting on a bottle of prevent a mite but in the mean time I did what I could. I picked up a bottle of reptile relief but before using that I let him soak for about thirty minutes with just enough space for him to poke out the top of his head to breath, that took a bunch of mites off which drowned. I then used the reptile relief which took more off, I sprayed it on a rag then ran it down his entire body for awhile. By this point there were only the ones in his eyes left and two under his chin trapped in the scales. Now I did not want to do this next step but I heard it was ok as long as one has steady hands, I just felt so bad for him because I could see them in his eye sockets. I used the same rag that had the reptile relief on it and held his head still right at the back then used the non pointy side of a sewing needle (the oval shaped side to put the yarn through) and I VERY...I repeat, VERY carefully scraped out the mites. It was really easy and I'm glad I did it because most of the ones I pulled out were still alive even after using the reptile relief which is supposed to kill on contact. This jungle carpet is a wild one but he was surprisingly calm during this process, he did try to escape but he wasn't biting which he usually bites non stop. Also in the process of his wiggling around the two that were under his chin worked themselves out. I looked him over and he is almost completely mite free but Im still going to treat the cage with the spray when it arrives.

Now i understand that you can spray the cage with the decor and substrate still in it, and I am, as I said, a novice keeper but I highly recommend taking every single thing out and soaking what you can in bleach then rinsing it thoroughly and let it sit for a week or so. Right now the only thing in my terrarium is a water bowl, a small cave that I cleaned and paper towel for substrate. I have already found dead and live mites which were easy to see on the paper towel. Clean the snake as best you can then clean the cage and put the bare minimum back in to easily monitor everything for a few days. Maybe my way is over kill but I'm scared that my rainbow boa will get them so I'm taking absolutely no chances with these things.

Bleach isnt necessary for the stuff inside the tank. I put on the hottest water my bathtub could handle and soaked everything in there. Any mites or eggs will get drowned or destroyed. I did wash out the tank with a bleach solution.

triplehp4 · 09-29-14, 02:53 PM

Thanks for your responses! I think I'll soak my snakes every day or two for the next few days, and if I see no improvement, I'll gut out my cages. I want to avoid taking everything out since they are relatively large, planted wooden cages. It was good to hear your methods and experiences with these little bloodsuckers.

triplehp4 · 09-29-14, 02:56 PM

My only issue with soaking is that my female jungle carpet (she is quite large and a beautiful snake) has been extremely aggressive since the mites showed up. She sometimes will hiss loudly as though she is being agitated even if she is alone in her tank! I looked for RI signs such as whistling and bubbling but she seems fine. Any idea what's going on?

**millertime89** · 09-29-14, 03:37 PM

Hey guys, check the next thread in the carpet python section. We JUST went over this.

MyKuLoO · 09-29-14, 11:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by millertime89

Hey guys, check the next thread in the carpet python section. We JUST went over this.

^^^ I think he's referring to my thread haha just search my username there was a pretty good response in there.

MyKuLoO · 09-29-14, 11:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by triplehp4

My only issue with soaking is that my female jungle carpet (she is quite large and a beautiful snake) has been extremely aggressive since the mites showed up. She sometimes will hiss loudly as though she is being agitated even if she is alone in her tank! I looked for RI signs such as whistling and bubbling but she seems fine. Any idea what's going on?

Soaking honestly didn't work for me even after nearly a week of soaking. The crisco trick definitely works it smothers the mites and then a simple wash cleans her up. My snake has been very active, hasn't tried to soak at all, and ate 2 mice today. You're snake may be hissing when she is alone cause a mite is in the eye and actively causing irritation.

triplehp4 · 09-30-14, 06:45 AM

The mite population seems to be declining.... My female's enclosure is nearly mite free, but my male's cage was still crawling with them. I threw away his branch, because I think they were breeding in all the books and crannies of the old piece of grapewood. I then soaked him and sprayed him again, and fogged his enclosure again. I'll soak and spray my female today to see if I can get any remaining mites off of her (especially her eyes).

**millertime89** · 09-30-14, 12:36 PM

When you soak them get some NIX lice shampoo and mix it in at 10:1 dilution. The active ingredient is the same as PAM, permethrin.