substrate question

[DumerilDembe]

So we have had a major mite problem. After completely cleaning viv several times and spraying down with Reptile Spray and going through 2 bags of aspen substrate, I am hoping to be free of mites! My poor baby!!

We decided to try shredded paper 1. its cheaper since we are going through so much right now 2. I havent read anything saying it isnt good for her
3. I had her in shredded paper while we cleaned out her cage and she seemed to like it.

So my questions are: opinions on shredded paper? opinions on mites? How can I keep this from happening? What a pain in my arse!!
My other concern is my baby likes to soak in her water bowl and while I was cleaning her cage she soaked and came out getting her shredded paper all wet and then stuck to her. This made me wonder if the shredded paper was a good idea?? I just dont know what to do and I am a worried mommy.
On top of this, I think she might be getting ready to shed. Her eyes are a bit cloudy. She refused to eat on Sunday (her regular eating day). We feed her one small mouse once a week and normally she is a very eager eater. She has never refused a meal.




Thanks in advance

[WhompingWillow]

So we have had a major mite problem. After completely cleaning viv several times and spraying down with Reptile Spray and going through 2 bags of aspen substrate, I am hoping to be free of mites! My poor baby!!

We decided to try shredded paper 1. its cheaper since we are going through so much right now 2. I havent read anything saying it isnt good for her
3. I had her in shredded paper while we cleaned out her cage and she seemed to like it.

So my questions are: opinions on shredded paper? opinions on mites? How can I keep this from happening? What a pain in my arse!!
My other concern is my baby likes to soak in her water bowl and while I was cleaning her cage she soaked and came out getting her shredded paper all wet and then stuck to her. This made me wonder if the shredded paper was a good idea?? I just dont know what to do and I am a worried mommy.
On top of this, I think she might be getting ready to shed. Her eyes are a bit cloudy. She refused to eat on Sunday (her regular eating day). We feed her one small mouse once a week and normally she is a very eager eater. She has never refused a meal.




Thanks in advance

Plain paper towels are the best option when dealing with mites, not shredded but just laid flat in the cage.

As for treatment, I feel your pain. The most traditionally recommended option is to use PAM (Provent-A-Mite) on the enclosure and Natural Chemistry Reptile Spray on the snake.

Personally I'm having success with the diluted Nix cream method, but you will have to do your own research to see what you are comfortable with. http://bamboozoo.weebly.com/snakes-n...treatment.html

Another option I've read about is using Frontline spray, but I have not tried this.

Good luck!

[Bogertophis]

Agree...when dealing with mites, you want to line the cage with flat white paper towels so you can SEE if your treatment is working...you don't want to give them
more places to hide. (it's typical of snakes to soak for relief of the mites biting them...when you get rid of mites, your snake probably won't be soaking in bowl)

Once done with mites, I like paper towels for substrate because it's absorbent & offers traction...newspaper (& similar paper) absorbs poorly & is slippery for snakes
so I've never used it. Paper (any kind) is neutral with respect to humidity. I've mostly used paper towels alone for substrate with baby snakes I've raised, and you
can also shred & fluff them, snakes love to hide in that and it's soft. BTW, I'm talking about snakes in general...I have a variety but no Dumerils.

Once snakes occupy larger cages, I line the cage with one layer of paper towels, then cover with a mix of Carefresh & my own clean paper shreds (from shredding
my own mail & such). Very absorbent, great traction, & the paper towels make it easy to roll up & toss for cleaning when soiled. (Carefresh is hydroscopic, & also
heavier & clumpy, so the mix of my shredded paper adds lightness & recycles too.) Again, this may or may not apply to Dumerils, just discussing how I use paper.

Mites can KILL a snake...especially a baby snake...mites suck blood & even though they're tiny, they multiply exponentially & dehydrate a snake quicker than you
might expect. It's important that you get rid of the mites first, & fast. It's more important than feeding...please don't put off treating & getting rid of them, it's a
serious health risk to your snake & they are also thought to be disease vectors.

If this is your first snake (?) it's typical for a snake to refuse food when going into a shed cycle. Don't worry about feeding, most won't eat anyway then &
that is normal. After some days, your snake will "go clear" (appear normal, as if she has shed) right BEFORE they actually shed. Most of us raise the humidity
in their cage at that time to help the snake have a better shed. Yours will surely need extra humidity at that time, as the mites are also causing dehydration.

[Bogertophis]

Typo alert, meant to type 'hygroscopic' in above post -not 'hydroscopic', no such thing, oops, my bad.

[KevinK]

I've ran into mites ONCE fortunately in over 18 years now of keeping snakes. I pulled everything out of the tank, moved the bp to an ice cream bucket for the time being. Took the tank and filled it to the top with dilluted bleach water. Every water bowl, hide, thermometer.....EVERYTHING that was in the cage was moved outside and not used for at least six months. Then the BP was given a soaking bath in the ice cream bucket and wiped off from head to tail numerous times, checking the vent and around the eyes carefully.

Then you reset up the cage with new water bowls (use a sour cream container or something cheap for the time being), new hides.....replace EVERYTHING in the cage that he could have contacted. ....then like Willow pointed out, use paper towels for the time being to view any remaining mites if any.

Soaking is almost certainly the result of your mite problem, I would be very surprised if you had an animal that soaked regularly while being mite free.

If you can keep your humidity level where it needs to be, the paper shouldn't be a problem. Although a lot of people use indented kraft paper off of amazon (my personal favorite) or newspaper with boas of all kinds (when you're mite free of course)

.....but if your humidity level starts to drop and you are getting poor sheds, you need to change it up. Substrates like cypress mulch will hold humidity well and can in fact be sanitized. Simply bake the substrate in a disposable aluminum turkey pan at 300F for an hour. Then let it cool before using it. .....ensures a mite free substrate every time. I know for a FACT that the mites I received were the result of a bag of ZooMed Forest Floor cypress bedding.