ticks/beetles on royals/balls

[Reptile_Man]

hey, today i was looking at my royal Carmen,and i noticed a lil black dot on her back, i knocked it off and it moved,it looked liek a little beetle or tick.that was the only one i saw, so i killed it and threw it out.i know the snake was 100% healthy when i got it and it is a cb royal baught from a well known dealer in Northern ireland(reptile shop but only orders from special breeders and not from wild caught specimens) the guy knowshis stuff.
there was no other ticks.beetles on her or in d tank or near the tank for that matter.
has anyone else coem across this or has anyone had problems with ticks on their royals/balls.
ok i realise that last bit sounds dirty(it really isnt tho)

[recycling goddess]

you need to treat your snake and it's enclosure. the easiest way to do that is to get some Provent-A-Mite (or PAM as it's referred to) and spray your enclosure according to the instructions on the can.

mites lay eggs... where there is one there is an infestation waiting to hatch.

[Reptile_Man]

i cleaned the tank before i set it up,and treated all items in the tank before i put them in.i have reptibark a sa substrate,and evemn before i put that in, i treated that with the repti bark treatment for cleaning the bark.the hide was also cleaned and treated before it went into the tank,and she always has fresh water.
she is never sluggish and always very active and loves being handled(in shedding cycle at the moment though)the guy in the shop, checked her out before i paid for her, she got the all clear,he only accepts 100%healthy animals,no ticks or mites or eggs were present in the shop.

[Reediculous]

i agree with aleesha.....I would take the snake off the repti bark until you found out whats going on..........sounds like mites and you NEED to treat with provent a mite ASAP.

[Reptile_Man]

what should i do with the repti bark though?leave it in and then spray or take it out and clean it then?and use the same bark or put new stuff down? nice bike in your display pic by the way,i got a ducati monster.

[SoulSmilen]

Just a note we all seem to forget about. Not all 'bugs' in enclosures are snake mites, so treating for mites when it isn't necessary is a risk that shouldn't be taken.

Reptile_Man, check the snake more closely and soak it in water and see if more come off. You may very well have mites, but it's best to be sure.

While you're doing that, check any feces in the tank and see if the same dark bugs are crawling on that. If that's the case, I'd suggest getting a picture if you can - it might not be snake mites.

Cypress mulch coming from garden centers is a prime example of one place where bugs are present that aren't snake mites. The bags of mulch often have extra cargo in them, but they are harmless to the snake.

[Reptile_Man]

there is no poop in the tank,she hasnt pooped yet,and i soaked her in water already and no other mites or ticks came off her.it was just the one i saw today thats all.

[Reediculous]

Just a note we all seem to forget about. Not all 'bugs' in enclosures are snake mites, so treating for mites when it isn't necessary is a risk that shouldn't be taken.

Reptile_Man, check the snake more closely and soak it in water and see if more come off. You may very well have mites, but it's best to be sure.

While you're doing that, check any feces in the tank and see if the same dark bugs are crawling on that. If that's the case, I'd suggest getting a picture if you can - it might not be snake mites.

Cypress mulch coming from garden centers is a prime example of one place where bugs are present that aren't snake mites. The bags of mulch often have extra cargo in them, but they are harmless to the snake.

i agree...............but i don't think there is a risk to the snake when PAM is used as directed on the bottle.............but i do agree it could be anything, we need a little more info on this "bug" in question

[Reptile_Man]

ok here it goes,it wsnt big at all, was tiny actually,tiny roundish body,tiny head, and it was all black.id say it was about the size of a fullstop.maybe a lil bigger(a fullstop on a keyboard not a hand written one)

[Reediculous]

tough call man-------------i'll let the professionals handle this one