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1-9 of 9 messages
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Page 1 of 1
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RE: Mites
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by idioteque4444 on September 2, 2006
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Hey Kyle. One thing that has worked for me for the last five years or so, is a product that you can get for like $2 at your local Walmart. I believe it is called "Equate bedding spray"? I spray the cage floors down with it everytime I clean out an enclosure. (Knock on wood) it has left me mite free for for years.
SAL RICCO @ WNCHerps
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RE: Mites
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by Chris_Harper on September 2, 2006
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Remove snake from cage. Treat all old substrate with mite poison and remove to an area that will not allow the mites to migrate back to your snake room. Treat cage heavily with a permethrin based mite killer. I like "Nix Lice Spray" available at your local drug store. Let it sit for a day or two. Treat snake in a seperate area with something like prevent-a-mite (read directions). Leave it long enough to kill the mites, then move it to a third clean container. Treat it again for a day and move it back to the 2nd container AFTER YOU HAVE CLEANED IT THOROUGHLY. Treat it again. By now, your snake should be free of mites, and the cage it normally stays in should also be free of mites. Keep in mind, mites hide easily in cracks and crevices, so soak them thoroughly when treating a cage. You can also use a higher strength to treat the cage when the snake is not in it. Be sure to rinse it and air it out thoroughly before putting the snake back in it. If the cage has any permethrin left in it, and you mist the cage with the snake in it, there is a chance that your snake will drink the reconstituted permethrin - and die.
When you set the new cage back up, mix some cigarette tobacco in with your substrate. The nicotine kills the mites and won't hurt the snake.
The life cycle of most mites is 3 to 4 weeks. So it may be necessary to keep an eye out for mites and treat as needed during this time.
Be sure to check all of your cages and treat the floor of your snake room as well when you discover a mite infestation. (concrete or tile floors are best for snake rooms)
Melissa Kaplan has a page of mite treatment with different information. She makes some good points about mite poisons and their potential effects on reptiles. Caution should be used when treating reptiles with poisons. http://www.anapsid.org/mites.html
By combining these methods, you will bring your mite problem under control. If you see your snake going through full body convulsions, you messed up somewhere and your snake has been poisoned. Death is usually unstoppable in these cases.
Chris Harper
webmaster@venomousreptiles.org
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RE: Mites
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by CottonmouthKyle on September 3, 2006
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I just bought some mite killer spray made for reptiles, but someone told me that it could kill my snakes easily if i wasnt careful.
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RE: Mites
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by Cro on September 3, 2006
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Kyle, as Chris stated, mite sprays that are toxic enough to kill mites are potentially strong enough to kill snakes also.
Most of these sprays contain pyrethrin, which can cause neurological problems and death in snakes.
It is very important to follow the label directions, and allow wet spray on a substrate to dry before putting a snake back on it, so that the wet spray is not absorbed into the snakes skin.
You need to throw out all of the substrates you now have in your cages, and clean the heck out of the cages. Then start using something simple like newspapers in the cages untill the mite problem is cured. You can spray the news papers with any of the mite sprays mentioned above, and let it dry. It will still be deadly to the mites for a week or 10 days. You might want to put a light cover of aquarium gravel or fresh chipps on top of the treated newspaper, which will give the snake a bit of protection from direct contact from the mite spray treated newspaper.
The mites you have now have layed eggs, and those eggs will not be killed by the sprays. So, even if you kill the existing adult mites, you will have more hatch out in a couple of weeks. That is why it is essential that you treat now, and treat again in 2 to 3 weeks. You have to break the life cycle of the mites.
I do not know what substrates you are keeping your snakes on, but I have found the wood chip products to be worse about providing hiding places for mites. I like to use news paper or large natural gravel in my cages, as I feel it helps cut down on the chances of vector animals like mites setting up shop in my reptile collection.
Hope this helps. Best Regards JohnZ
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RE: Mites
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by Cro on September 3, 2006
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Kyle, another thing you can do is sprinkle diatomatious earth ( available at swimming pool supply stores as a filter material ) in with the substrate you keep your snakes on. The diatoms will not hurt the snake, but will dehydrate the heck out of mites. This can also be used to protect stored grains like wheat, rice, flour, etc., from mite infestation, and not hurt humans. It has even been used as a slurry that is taken by folks treating intestinal parasites.These friends of mine sell the pre-mixed product: http://www.ottertrout.com/product.asp?productid=142718
Best Regards JohnZ
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RE: Mites
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by YoungHerp1 on September 3, 2006
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I use provent a mite. this stuff works great. just spray it all over the cage. but make sure that the water bowel isnt in there. and wait for the fuems to get out. the bad thing is its like 20-30$$ a bottle.
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RE: Mites
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by YoungHerp1 on September 3, 2006
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I use provent a mite. this stuff works great. just spray it all over the cage. but make sure that the water bowel isnt in there. and wait for the fuems to get out. the bad thing is its like 20-30$$ a bottle.
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