Ugh...Retic Still Has Mites!!!

[SWDK]

The past 3 days I've noticed my retic soaking in the water bowl. Today I saw those damn mites again. I really thought I had them beat. I'm very upset about not winnng the war like I thought.

As far as I can tell it's the only snake with them. I've been preventative treating all my snakes so I'm guess it's working to fend off an outbreak.

I've been treating the retic with Nix for a month now. I slowed down the applications the past 2 weeks and I probably shouldn't have. Stupid me!!! Now I'm starting all over again. Man I hate those mites!!!!

[REM955]

Perhaps someone can speak to it, but is there differing affects between PAM (Provent-a-Mite) and Nix? I bought a thing of PAM just in case. Fortunately have not had to use it.
*knocks on wood
*boops log

[dave himself]

Sorry to hear this Dave and your not alone mate I hate those little black pinhead freaks with passion

[Jim Smith]

I have fought the battle with mites before and had similar experiences even when I tried PAM and Nix multiple times. I ended up using predatory mites to hunt down and eat the snake mites. The predatory mites even eat the eggs of the snake mites which most of the sprays can't kill resulting in you having to apply multiple treatments. I had two cages with reoccurring cases of mites over a year long period of me trying to get rid of them. I used one treatment of the predatory and they were gone in about a week The only downside is that they are somewhat expensive ($45), and you have to use them within a couple of weeks or they starve to death. One container of the predatory mites was enough to treat all five of my 36"x24"x14" cages. Considering all the work and hassles associated with spray treatments etc. this was well worth my time/effort. They come in a plastic container and you simply sprinkle them along with their bedding materials in your cage and forget about it. The predatory mites only eat other mites and they die off in a couple of weeks after you send them in to do their work. It worked great for me and if I am ever cursed with mites again, I'm going straight for the predatory mites. Here's the link to where I bought them. Stratiolaelaps scimitus (Hypoaspis miles) - Fungus Gnat, Thrips, Snake Mite Predator

Good luck and keep us posted.

[SWDK]

Originally Posted by Jim Smith

I have fought the battle with mites before and had similar experiences even when I tried PAM and Nix multiple times. I ended up using predatory mites to hunt down and eat the snake mites. The predatory mites even eat the eggs of the snake mites which most of the sprays can't kill resulting in you having to apply multiple treatments. I had two cages with reoccurring cases of mites over a year long period of me trying to get rid of them. I used one treatment of the predatory and they were gone in about a week The only downside is that they are somewhat expensive ($45), and you have to use them within a couple of weeks or they starve to death. One container of the predatory mites was enough to treat all five of my 36"x24"x14" cages. Considering all the work and hassles associated with spray treatments etc. this was well worth my time/effort. They come in a plastic container and you simply sprinkle them along with their bedding materials in your cage and forget about it. The predatory mites only eat other mites and they die off in a couple of weeks after you send them in to do their work. It worked great for me and if I am ever cursed with mites again, I'm going straight for the predatory mites. Here's the link to where I bought them. Stratiolaelaps scimitus (Hypoaspis miles) - Fungus Gnat, Thrips, Snake Mite Predator

Good luck and keep us posted.

Thanks for the info Jim. I think I'll be looking into them. It just stinks that I've been mite free since 2012 now I'm fighting them again. At least it's only 1 snake and not my whole collection.

[Minkness]

Whenever I have had an issue with mites, I have used Sevin Dust. It takes about 3-4 weeks to kill everything off because it doesn't kill the eggs, buuuuut, it's not something you have to apply. Just lut it in the substrate, mix it around a bit, and leave it. It is perfectly harmless to the snake. It is also super cheap at like 3$ for a shaker bottle.

[Andy_G]

I've always only had to use Nix. The biggest thing is the continued treatment after the mites are gone. I've always treated for a mimimum of 6 weeks after seeming to be erradicated in case they went hiding somewhere and of course because of the eggs.

I love the idea of predatory mites, but to my knowledge you have to have everything on bedding rather than paper or else they won't survive, so perhaps they won't work in all situations. Maybe worth a try for you.

[SWDK]

I changed the paper towels and retreated enclosure and snake. I'm doing a double whammy treatment with both PAM and Nix, although today I only reapplied the Nix. There were at least 50 mites that I saw dead on the paper towels. I'm glad to see those scummy bloodsuckers are dying off. The battle continues...

[PatrickV]

where do you think the mites came from? i believe i got mine from one of the two new snakes i just got and failed to quarantine. I was wondering where else they come from for other people if not from a new snake.

[SWDK]

Originally Posted by PatrickV

where do you think the mites came from? i believe i got mine from one of the two new snakes i just got and failed to quarantine. I was wondering where else they come from for other people if not from a new snake.

The mites came with the retic from day 1. Luckily, it's the only snake in my collection with them and hasn't spread.

[GyGbeetle]

Originally Posted by PatrickV

where do you think the mites came from? i believe i got mine from one of the two new snakes i just got and failed to quarantine. I was wondering where else they come from for other people if not from a new snake.

Is it possible to pick up mites from a trade show? Or do they have to be brought in with an animal? How long can mites remain dormant before an outbreak happens? The last new snake we brought into our collection was a little over a month ago (currently mite free), and the last trade show we attended was 3 weeks ago. And today, we discovered mites in only 1 tank

[REM955]

Originally Posted by GyGbeetle

Is it possible to pick up mites from a trade show? Or do they have to be brought in with an animal?

I have heard both.
Also possible to introduce them with substrate. That is why you will see some mention freezing or baking the substrate before use.

[SWDK]

Originally Posted by GyGbeetle

Is it possible to pick up mites from a trade show? Or do they have to be brought in with an animal? How long can mites remain dormant before an outbreak happens? The last new snake we brought into our collection was a little over a month ago (currently mite free), and the last trade show we attended was 3 weeks ago. And today, we discovered mites in only 1 tank

The most common ways of introducing mites are having them come with a new snake, going to trade shows or pet store and unknowingly transferring them to your collection and even sone substrates from pet stores and trade shows can harbor mites.

In my case the mites came in with the retic I had shipped in. I saw the mites crawling on the snake and white snake sack immediate upon opening the package it was shipped in. Fortunately, I was able to notice them and take the proper steps to avoid spreading them to the rest of my collection.

They don't have a very long life cycle, but they do need some type of host to survive. So surviving in substrate is only a temporary means of transportation.

[pet_snake_78]

I suppose anything is possible but mostly they would come from bringing in a snake with them.

[Tsubaki]

Be wary that predatory mites are very sensitive to nix and pam, if you used it recently (with 2 months) the residu could kill all your predatory mites even though the bloodmites seem unaffected.