Parasytes on BP

[banished]

Hi BP lover ...
I have a question... since i bought my first BP month and a half ago some things are still much unknown to me... but more i research this forum more i know...
maybe someone asked this question before, but i couldn't find it ...
yesterday i noticed small white bug on my BP, so small that I lose it within a second... today I noticed small red one ... i lost it same as white one. ..

Please tell me what to do?
Problem is that i give him food and now few days I need to wiat for him to digest, and then I will start fighting this parasites ,... there was not so much of them but only two ... could they be mammal parasites that came from a rat or mouse?
Please help... sorry for my english ...

[thedarkwolf25]

I'm no expert but that sounds like mites, the easiest way to get rid of them is to get some Provent-a-Mite from Pro-Products and use that to kill them off.

Here is the URL for Provent-a-Mite, I think that you can find it at the local pet stores but I couldn't find a list of retailers. Provent-a-Mite

And here is a site that I found that has a load of info on Mites http://www.anapsid.org/mites.html

[shelliebear]

I think (someone correct me if I'm wrong) the red bug could be a nymph, a baby parasite.... (I know that's a phase for human parasites anyway.)
I think most mites are not white, they are black, also.
Wait a little bit and the experts will come around. They'll get this all cleaned up.

[BuckeyeBalls]

Mites should be black. If u soak ur ball in a tub of water and u take him out and theres black specs left in the water he has mites.'

Or even take a damp towel and let him run through the towel while holding on to it with a tad bit of pressure. If u see black spots/bugs left on towel thats mites.

[kalashnikov]

i have heard that the white bugs come from wood products and our harmless, dnt take my word because i am not sure.

[saber2th]

There are red mites, but they pose no threat to ball pythons. Usually find them outside. Did you bring anything from out side and place it in the enclosure with the snake?

[banished]

Hey guys thanks a lot ...
BP is digesting 3 baby rats right now ...
i found no black mites, but I will surely tend to clean all present mites ...
in a few days i will do towell and watter test ... thanks a lot for your help .

[saber2th]

You might think about getting a can of PAM and give that cage a shot. I don't like any bugs in with my snakes, harmless or not! Better safe than sorry. And it never hurts to have a can around.

[banished]

I know that prevention is the best cure ... but problem is, my curent location... Im from Serbia and here we don't have that kind of cleaning agents... is there any alternative product? I will surely throw all the enviroment on sterilization, change the substrate, and new substrate will be sterilized on the temperature of 250 celsius just to ensure that everything parasitic is dead ... and then all will be ok ...

[jason_ladouceur]

I know that prevention is the best cure ... but problem is, my curent location... Im from Serbia and here we don't have that kind of cleaning agents... is there any alternative product? I will surely throw all the enviroment on sterilization, change the substrate, and new substrate will be sterilized on the temperature of 250 celsius just to ensure that everything parasitic is dead ... and then all will be ok ...

There is a product called “vapona” it’s a no pest strip that is effective for killing all kinds of bugs including mites. It quite toxic so you need to make sure you have good ventilation and put it in some kind of container to keep the snake from coming in direct contact with it, a empty margarine container with a bunch of holes punched in it works just fine. I’ve used it years ago very successfully for treating mites but like I said it’s pretty toxic so I wouldn’t use it unless you’re sure you have a mite problem, and don’t leave it in the cage for more than a week or so.