suspected mites...

I suspect my male may possible have mites, but I am not sure, what are some sure fire ways to tell if he has em? I have never seen anything on him, around his nose or his jaw where people say to look, and when I hold him and slide my hand down him nothing ever comes off. Any other tips on to be positive he doesn't have any?

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Originally Posted by SnakeEyes

I suspect my male may possible have mites, but I am not sure, what are some sure fire ways to tell if he has em? I have never seen anything on him, around his nose or his jaw where people say to look, and when I hold him and slide my hand down him nothing ever comes off. Any other tips on to be positive he doesn't have any?

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Then why do you think he has them...if you have never seen any?

what makes you suspect he does have mites? :confused:

er? yeah I'm with them, why would you think he has mites when he shows no symptoms and you've never seen them.

there are little specs in his water. Thought it was just debris from his bedding but I can like smash the specs and they kinda explode with what looks like blood... :(

You can look in the water bowl for black dots, and also for shiney things in the cage (thats their poo)


~mike

What type of bedding are you using? You can get hitchhikers on some beddings (esp. mulches like cypress)..they don't really bother your snake which may be the reason you haven't found any on him.


If they bug you (LOL) and just to be safe you can always treat the bedding and cage with PAM just to be safe.

tomorrow is my day off, I am gonna clean out his cage and put in all aspen and see if the dots come back. Right now hes on a mulch bedding that said it was safe for reptiles as it was cedar free.

Also might add, I have had him since 03/13/07, he has yet to miss a meal, and he has yet to take a crap, even AFTER his PERFECT (one complete piece with no aid from me what-so-ever) shed... :(

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Originally Posted by SnakeEyes

tomorrow is my day off, I am gonna clean out his cage and put in all aspen and see if the dots come back. Right now hes on a mulch bedding that said it was safe for reptiles as it was cedar free.

Also might add, I have had him since 03/13/07, he has yet to miss a meal, and he has yet to take a crap, even AFTER his PERFECT (one complete piece with no aid from me what-so-ever) shed... :(

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Based on what you have said I doubt you have mites:
1. currently on mulch - could just be hitchhikers (wood mites, etc.) no biggie
2. had him since 3/13 - mite egg cycle is about 30 days so you would have tons of them by now if they were on him when you got him.
3. still eating /good shed - usually with mites these 2 items become issues

I would say you are in the clear :rockon:

what would hitch hickers do to him? anything?

he just means hitch hikers in the bag of substrate, little buggies that live in there but won't affect your snake

Oh, the bug itself isnt called a hitch hicker, as in it latches onto an animal of sorts and "hitches" a ride while sucking its blood....lol.

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Originally Posted by SnakeEyes

what would hitch hickers do to him? anything?

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Usually nothing...they are more interested in the wood and stuff you can't see (like aphids). I buy Cypress in large bags and always seem to see a few...never been an issue. If for some reason I see a lot I just spray the bedding down with PAM (just to be sure)...but either way I have never had an issue.

Hope this helps.:)

maybe my girl is the same then?cause when i got her she was clean and healthy,no mites, and in perfect health.i use reptibark as substrate and she loves it.and i didnt see a "hitchhiker" on her till maybe mid march.i know she was mite free when i got her i checked in the place i got her and the guy wont sell an animal if its got anything like mites.

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Originally Posted by Reptile_Man

maybe my girl is the same then?cause when i got her she was clean and healthy,no mites, and in perfect health.i use reptibark as substrate and she loves it.and i didnt see a "hitchhiker" on her till maybe mid march.i know she was mite free when i got her i checked in the place i got her and the guy wont sell an animal if its got anything like mites.

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I am not sure of your specific issues but becareful assuming based on this thread. There is a difference between bugs in the substrate and water vs. on the animal. Just be sure or give more details. :)

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Originally Posted by lord jackel

I am not sure of your specific issues but becareful assuming based on this thread. There is a difference between bugs in the substrate and water vs. on the animal. Just be sure or give more details. :)

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i know what ya mean, but she doesnt seem bothered by them.she was mite free when i got her.and i washed and sterilised the hides and water bowl before i put them in the viv.iv never a ctually seen more than 1 or 2 of them thingies crawling on her at any time.

I took out his water bowl cause he would soak in it all the time......I feel bad, hes crawling around looking for it... :( :( :(

why not just let her soak? there's no problem in that because unless there is a real problem she'll regulate herself on her soaking.

*sorry, him

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Originally Posted by SnakeEyes

I took out his water bowl cause he would soak in it all the time......I feel bad, hes crawling around looking for it... :( :( :(

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If your bp is soaking in the water bowl and you have been finding little "specks" in the water. Then you smash the "specks" and it looks like blood, you have mites!!! Buy some PAM (Provent-A-Mite) and follow the directions.

I can get some PAM tomorrow afternoon at my pet shop, think it would be ok to let him soak tonight if that makes him feel better? he was crawling around looking for his water bowl, which I replaced with a much much smaller one, he finally gave up and went back in his hide. Thing that gets me is I can never find them anywhere but in his water, and he only soaks at night, like its his nightly routine or something...

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Originally Posted by SnakeEyes

I can get some PAM tomorrow afternoon at my pet shop, think it would be ok to let him soak tonight if that makes him feel better?

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For ONE night it should give him some relief, but get it treated right away. Then keep his water dish out of there for a couple days after you treat the cage, he will be forced to lay on the treated bedding and not in the water. ;)

you also suggest to put the aspen in and dump the mulch and then treat it? and how come I can never see any on him, ever, and its only in his water.

Sometimes mites can be hard to see, he might have been keeping the numbers down by soaking. The best spot to see them is usuaully right under their chin. Hold him up above your head and look under his scales(from the back of his head towards the front of his chin), just look, don't push on the scales. You sometimes will see little black "lumps" under his scales.

could this also explain why he hasn't "unloaded" since I got him?

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Originally Posted by SnakeEyes

you also suggest to put the aspen in and dump the mulch and then treat it? and how come I can never see any on him, ever, and its only in his water.

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you will need to completely clean the cage and put new bedding in before you treat it. When you find them in the water they are the ones that "washed" off or died from being submerged. When mites get there fill of blood they leave the host to lay eggs in the cage etc. It might not be a severe case yet, but if its not treated, it will be.

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Originally Posted by SnakeEyes

could this also explain why he hasn't "unloaded" since I got him?

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They don't always go on a regular basis. As long as your husbandry is right, he will do the deed when he's ready. ;)

Bill already said what I was going to about soaking, that it keeps the mites down, and personally there are very few reasons I would ever take away my bps water, even if it is soaking. This is usually a good indicator something is wrong and once that's corrected they'll stop. Just make sure you take the water out to treat the cage, PAM is extremely toxic, it even kills roaches in seconds.
I also would suggest that if you do have mites, don't bother with aspen or mulch, the easiest thing to do is lay down paper towels as substrate so that you can see the mites if they crawl off him, or die and fall off. But then again that's personal preference.
And yeah, they go when they go, at least he's not a blood python.

One more thing, use PAM sparingly (sp?), a very little goes a long way. Just treat your bedding with it and not the snake, let the cage air out for, AT LEAST, the recommended time on the can. Just treat the cage once a month for 3 months and you shouldn't have anymore problems. ;)

hes all coiled up around his fake plant not knowing where the hell is bowl is. gonna add it back in here in a bit. I dont like newspaper for two reasons. I dont like how it looks and I would think that bedding feels better then flat paper.

Think I would be ok with aspen and PAM?

it would be fine, its just that you'll never know if you've killed all of them, the aspen may offer places to hide away from tha PAM and then you'll get reinfested. I only meant to use it for a short time while you treat your snake for mites. It really is much easier.

well ya, I planned to use paper at first to make sure I got em then go to aspen. Are the instructions on PAM good enough or should I read up on it somewhere as well?

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Originally Posted by qiksilver

it would be fine, its just that you'll never know if you've killed all of them, the aspen may offer places to hide away from tha PAM and then you'll get reinfested. I only meant to use it for a short time while you treat your snake for mites. It really is much easier.

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Not true, PAM is extremely effective used with bedding such as aspen. If they follow the directions on the can, it will get rid of the mites. You have to remember, treating for mites is not a short term remedy. You should do the treatments for 3 months to be sure that you've killed the mites and any eggs that would hatch later on. ;)

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Originally Posted by SnakeEyes

well ya, I planned to use paper at first to make sure I got em then go to aspen. Are the instructions on PAM good enough or should I read up on it somewhere as well?

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The instructions on the can are pretty good, but here are some tips.

1. Clean cage to the extreme, wash everything!!! Let any cage decorations soak in a tub/sink for of water, to kill any uninvited guests.

2. Replace bedding in cage.

3. Spray cage (and maybe surounding areas)VERY lightly with PAM. (more spray = alot more drying time, make sure snake is out of the room)

4. Let cage dry very well. (ventilate well, open a window etc.)

5. Replace cage decorations. (hides etc., no water bowl)

6. Are the fumes gone?

7. Place snake back in cage when fumes are gone.

8. Take extra bedding outside and spray some more down. Then when you need to do some spot cleaning you have some bedding ready to go. ;)


These are some things others will probably add to this, this is just a quick list to help you understand the steps involved.

oh yea, hes got em, cleaned out his cage and got a few on my hands, poor guy, gonna nuke these bastards.

also, couldn't I just spare all his cage items to kill them all instead of soaking everything in water?

It would be much less time consuming to just soak everything in bleach water after you've sprayed the enclosure and are letting it dry.Just stick everything in a bucket or the bathtub and let it soak for awhile, then stick it outside in the sun to dry.

Try to have just newspaper or paper towels for substrate, your two hides, and a water dish until the mites are gone. Easier to keep up with in regards to mite killing.

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Originally Posted by SatanicIntention

Try to have just newspaper or paper towels for substrate, your two hides, and a water dish until the mites are gone. Easier to keep up with in regards to mite killing.

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This is where I disagree, I think using bedding works better then newspaper and paper towels in combination with PAM. But everybody has their own way of doing things. ;)

alright, got the new bedding in, sprayed it down like the directions said, and I have everything in his cage sitting in a bucket of water with a brick on it to keep everything submerged. in about 30 min ill set it all out in the sun to dry, the bedding is still venting.....man I feel so bad for him... :(