Another mite problem...

I noticed mites on Jackson yesterday morning. (Seems to be going around lately...) So I treated all the tubs with PAM- even the empty ones, and also treated enough paper towels for 3 changes per snake. I did this before I went to work at noon yesterday. I checked on him this morning, and I saw that there were still live mites on him. Does PAM usually take a while to work?

Not sure how long the Pam takes to kick in. But you can soak him in a tub with a drop of dawn dish soap to provide a little immediate relief and get some of those little buggers off.

I did that, yesterday and this morning, too. Thanks, Doolittle. It does work pretty well.

Prevent a mite, kicking in yet ?

Well... There are some dead ones on the paper. But I can also see live ones on him still.

When I had a mite problem, it worked instantly. Didn't see any the day after I treated.

It's so weird, 'cause the last time I used it, it worked instantly. I sprayed out the tubs and after a little while when I checked there were still mites, so that's when I did the paper too. Now I'm getting a bit frustrated, 'cause I don't know what else I can do. I cleaned the heck out of everything, and dawn-bathed my Jacks.

How long ago was your last infestation?

Hmmm... it was months and months ago. Lets see, probably somewhere around september. But- he's not even in the enclosure he was in anymore, and as soon as I got my rack, I pre-treated for mites. My newer snake is in QT, and as far as I can tell, doesn't have mites.

I buy my rats frozen and vacuum sealed. Can mites survive that?

Not mites themselves, but their eggs can lay dormant and hatch later during the right conditions. So that can be possible they're from your rats.

Why would you treat 3 changes worth of paper towels ahead of time??? All you're doing by doing it this way is reducing the effectiveness of the PAM. I don't remember if it's 2 weeks or 28 or 30 days they say between treatments, but it's not like the PAM is at full strength that whole duration and then just suddenly loses its effectiveness.

I change the paper fairly often- especially Jacks' since he's the one with the mite problem. I wanted to be able to have some ready that I wouldn't have to wait for to dry just in case of spontaneous cleaning. (Poo, for example.) I will def use them within the week. (I also wanted some to keep in the empty tubs, for the traveling/hiding mites.) Do you think the effectiveness will have diminished too much to use them by then?

Well, I don't see any more live ones on my boy... and there are plenty of dead ones on the paper. I intend to treat again next week to make sure the little nasties are gone. Thanks for the advice, everyone!

Good news!