Help! Mites

[Bogertophis]

She is terribly dehydrated from the mites. I'd put her in a shallow soak* (water only, not deeper than her body height (1/2" or less of water) for at least an hour, maybe 2+...her old skin needs to come loose. I've never tried "Shed Aid" products for snakes & I'm pretty sure they're a waste of money...they do what water does. She needs help, a.s.a.p. -she's miserable like this, and there's NO WAY she can do this herself.

*Best way: in small plastic carrier w/ ventilated top, 1/2" or less of water. You can put a wadded paper towel in one corner too (for traction & to rub against).
If after the soak it seems her shed is coming off fairly easy, do help with damp towel etc. If she needs more time, give her more time, by all means.
Make sure her head gets wet- mist or gently run water over her.

P.S. Underneath is a really cute snake!

Oops! Revised post, running everywhere today & haven't had lunch, for some reason was thinking about the TP that got loose & found in cat litter...but either way,
mites do the same thing...they suck snakes dry. All of us living creatures are mostly water...it's critically important for us all to function & live. If an hour or two
doesn't do the job, leave her in ventilated carrier overnight with very saturated small towel & minimal water on bottom, like 1/4". Please do not delay helping her.

[Ditto]

Oops! Revised post, running everywhere today & haven't had lunch, for some reason was thinking about the TP that got loose & found in cat litter...but either way,
mites do the same thing...they suck snakes dry. All of us living creatures are mostly water...it's critically important for us all to function & live. If an hour or two
doesn't do the job, leave her in ventilated carrier overnight with very saturated small towel & minimal water on bottom, like 1/4". Please do not delay helping her.

Thank you so much, I'll soak her right away and keep you posted!

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[Ditto]

Just checked on her after soaking for an hour, her shed definitely seemed way looser than when she first went in so I tried rubbing her with a damp paper towel. I got all the shed off of her face but couldn't get anything off of her body, though there were still bits that were flaky & almost coming off, and there were a few tiny bits of shed in the water. I put her back in to soak for another hour or so to see if we can get any more off today. I guess it's not much but progress is progress, and it seems like all the mites are gone, too. I'm just really excited for her to be able to live a normal snake life again soon

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[Bogertophis]

Just checked on her after soaking for an hour, her shed definitely seemed way looser than when she first went in so I tried rubbing her with a damp paper towel. I got all the shed off of her face but couldn't get anything off of her body, though there were still bits that were flaky & almost coming off, and there were a few tiny bits of shed in the water. I put her back in to soak for another hour or so to see if we can get any more off today. I guess it's not much but progress is progress, and it seems like all the mites are gone, too. I'm just really excited for her to be able to live a normal snake life again soon

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Don't know how late you stay up (or what time zone you're in, for that matter) but leave her in there for now, hours or over-nite, it won't get any easier to remove
by waiting.

Would not surprise me if you have the most trouble with her neck (& I hope her chin shed OK? that's another spot that tends to stick), & be sure her tail tip sheds
after all this too. Hopefully she's not upset about this, but I would think it feels good to get "free" -reminds me of that horrid movie "The Man in the Iron Mask".

That would be awesome if the mites are totally gone too...& they should be?

One other thing ('cause you don't need any more problems!)- leave the plastic cage inside her normal (locked) cage, just in case
she can manage to push open the plastic cage, she won't then be roaming your house... Also, it will help keep the temperature
stable.

[Ditto]

Don't know how late you stay up (or what time zone you're in, for that matter) but leave her in there for now, hours or over-nite, it won't get any easier to remove
by waiting.

Would not surprise me if you have the most trouble with her neck (& I hope her chin shed OK? that's another spot that tends to stick), & be sure her tail tip sheds
after all this too. Hopefully she's not upset about this, but I would think it feels good to get "free" -reminds me of that horrid movie "The Man in the Iron Mask".

That would be awesome if the mites are totally gone too...& they should be?

Okay, I'll check on her in another half hour or so to see if I can get any more off & leave her in there longer if need be. Her chin is good, I don't think she has any old skin left on her head at all.
I haven't seen any mites in over a week, so I'd like to believe they're gone, I'm just worried about if there are any eggs left on her

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[Bogertophis]

I think the eggs would most likely be in crevices in the cage.

[Jmarshall]

Wow Ditto,
I just read this entire post and bless your heart. Hoping all of this turns out well for you and Orla.. the two of you have been through enough. And kudos to you for asking for advice and following it. Best wishes!

[Bogertophis]

How's little Orla doing?

[Ditto]

How's little Orla doing?

She's good! I just got the rest of her shed off around 20 minutes ago & she's back in the safety of her tank (no mites in sight!). I think I'll try to feed her again on Thursday, and I have a small question about that? So far I've only been able to get her to eat by leaving a mouse in her tank overnight, do you think she'd eat more than one if I did this?

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[Bogertophis]

She's good! I just got the rest of her shed off around 20 minutes ago & she's back in the safety of her tank (no mites in sight!). I think I'll try to feed her again on Thursday, and I have a small question about that? So far I've only been able to get her to eat by leaving a mouse in her tank overnight, do you think she'd eat more than one if I did this?

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YESSSSSSSS! (Happy Dance!) Trust me, she's grateful for your help.

I wouldn't be a bit surprised if she eats 2 or 3 pinkies (at night, as before). It's more important that she eats now...she'll get braver when she feels better, I promise. And waiting until Thursday is perfect...she'll be settled down by then, & hungry. (good instincts...)