First time owner, does my snake have mites?!

[KSmith]

I just bought my first baby ball yesterday and today I noticed one small bug crawling on him. I immediately got a glove and took off said bug and killed it. I've been looking at him and I don't see any more of these bugs on him. He isn't soaking in the water bowl like most mite-ridden snakes would and there aren't any mites in the water bowl. So my question is... does my snake have mites and should I get the products to treat him OR am I a paranoid and my snake doesn't have mites? please help! Thank you!

[Morris Reese]

Sometimes there are bugs in the substrate you buy. It's not common and most of what you would find is not harmful to the snake. Just keep a close eye out for more.
Can you describe the bug you found?

[Morris Reese]

I just bought my first baby ball yesterday and today I noticed one small bug crawling on him. I immediately got a glove and took off said bug and killed it. I've been looking at him and I don't see any more of these bugs on him. He isn't soaking in the water bowl like most mite-ridden snakes would and there aren't any mites in the water bowl. So my question is... does my snake have mites and should I get the products to treat him OR am I a paranoid and my snake doesn't have mites? please help! Thank you!

Here is a picture of a mite.

[KSmith]

Sometimes there are bugs in the substrate you buy. It's not common and most of what you would find is not harmful to the snake. Just keep a close eye out for more.
Can you describe the bug you found?

Thank you for answering! The bug looked brownish and not black. When I watched the bug, it kinda crawled on Hydra a little bit and then stood in one place and didn't seem to be doing anything. As soon as I squished it, the thing popped and a good amount a blood came out.

[MisterKyte]

If it looked like these then it very well could have been some kind of a mite.


If I have reason to think that my snakes might have mites, I give them a soak in water for about thirty minutes (sometimes longer) which will either drown some of the mites or make them crowd to the snake's head or back where they can escape the water. Cleaning out the tank and pouring boiling water over it will also help kill any possible mites that may be there if you don't want to spring for Provent-A-Mite (abbreviated PAM) just yet. Then just keep an eye on your critter for the next week or so and swap your substrate to paper towel. If the mites are wood mites, they'll pretty much die off with regular cleaning and a lack of substrate, or PAM if you decide to pick some up. If they're snake mites then you'll probably see most of the mites cluster around the cloaca and eyes, you may also see some in between the scales or dead in the water dish but personally I've only seen this in really bad infestations.

[seanzee1]

Probably just a random bug... mites are pretty much microscopic and hard to see , they like to hide under scales and etc. When my snake had mites i saw just one or two and did not pay much mind to it. About a week later he had a lot. A mite war is something you never want to have, and to get rid of them is hard. My personal opinion and word of advice buy prevent a mite and use as directed just once. if you notice mites then continue to spray but if you dont have mites. You already sprayed it for mites that way you for sure know your snake is safe. For future reference its good to have just in case.

[bcr229]

I just bought my first baby ball yesterday

If you got it from a pet shop or big-box store like Petco or PetSmart, it was probably a mite.

[KSmith]

Probably just a random bug... mites are pretty much microscopic and hard to see , they like to hide under scales and etc. When my snake had mites i saw just one or two and did not pay much mind to it. About a week later he had a lot. A mite war is something you never want to have, and to get rid of them is hard. My personal opinion and word of advice buy prevent a mite and use as directed just once. if you notice mites then continue to spray but if you dont have mites. You already sprayed it for mites that way you for sure know your snake is safe. For future reference its good to have just in case.

Thank you so much, this made me feel a lot better. I'm definitely going to run to the store and grab a bottle of it, because I would rather be safe than sorry. I have moss in my cage too, should I throw all that out? I have more that I could put in.

[Pythonfriend]

if this happens later on, like a few months after you last got a new reptile, you can be sure that its just a harmless bug that came with the substrate or something.

but you purchased the BP yesterday, so it really might be a mite.

[seanzee1]

Thank you so much, this made me feel a lot better. I'm definitely going to run to the store and grab a bottle of it, because I would rather be safe than sorry. I have moss in my cage too, should I throw all that out? I have more that I could put in.

Anytime I love to help others because iv been in your position and I know how you feel. The moss should be fine the prevent a mite is a spray like Lysol it's an aerosol but for mites.You just spray it in the tank and let it sit for a while make sure you take out the snake and the water dish. Put them in a separate container or area until you can't smell the spray anymore inside the tank. Then you should be fine just monitor the snake. And once again my opinion I think if you look for it online it's a lot cheaper than in stores. But that's in my area I'm not sure about yours just do some searching. Any more questions I'll be more than glad to help you.


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