Reptile safe disinfectant out there?

[CakeLike]

It should not be used on the snake. UVC works by radiation and is very harmful to living things. That's why it's used for killing microorganisms in the air and water. I was just researching UVCs effectiveness on preventing the spread of airborne snake virus like nidovirus.

Well then there's nothing out there after all .
Any soaps at least so I can wash him sometime? At least that would make me feel better.

[Erie_herps]

You could use dawn dish soap or similar but I really don't see how that would help. Even if it does make you feel better it would likely cause more harm than good.

[Bogertophis]

Well then there's nothing out there after all .
Any soaps at least so I can wash him sometime? At least that would make me feel better.

We (living creatures) all have beneficial bacteria as well as those not beneficial. If your snake truly needs a bath (which I doubt- & remember they shed now & then too) then plain water is what you use ON the snake, nothing else. Actually, better yet would be to let him slide thru a damp towel a few times- it's not nearly as stressful for a snake as trying to bathe them. Please don't obsess over cleaning a snake- you'll more likely to cause harm.

(UNLESS they have mites, then it's okay to use A DROP of mild liquid soap in the water- but understand, that's not there to clean the snake, but only because it breaks the surface tension so the mites will drown rather than float & survive. It's bad if the snake swallows any soap water- it's likely to cause digestive upsets.)

[Bogertophis]

You could use dawn dish soap or similar but I really don't see how that would help. Even if it does make you feel better it would likely cause more harm than good.

PLEASE do not encourage this. (see my post above)

[Erie_herps]

You could use dawn dish soap or similar but I really don't see how that would help. Even if it does make you feel better it would likely cause more harm than good.

It just went past my editing window so I have to make a new post.
Dish soap should not be used on snakes for cleaning. It causes more harm than good and plain water should be used for bathing.

[Bleh]

Just a suggestion for you. Not that this should be your responsibility as I'm assuming you aren't the owner and keeper of the Gecko, but, maybe you could suggest having the geckos stool sample sent off for a relatively inexpensive test for cryptosporidium. Should that test come back negative, all your worries can be averted.

Yes, stick tail can be an indicator of crypto but it isn't a definitive for it.

Sadly, our first gecko suffered with stick tail and anorexia and we spent a small fortune trying to see him right, but he did pass away. Of what we're not totally certain, but it wasn't crypto as that test came back negative.

In the interim, just F10 anything and everything you think you may have touched. Spray the F10 on (watch the electrics, obviously), allow it a few minutes and wipe off.

[Bogertophis]

CakeLike, I can understand your anxiety about possibly exposing your snake to a sick gecko- please be more careful in the future & always ALWAYS practice quarantine for any new animals (even those temporarily in your care) for the safety of all the others you may have around.

But just in case someone suggests (or you get the notion to) spraying something like F10 disinfectant directly ON any live pets, please DON'T. I'd suggest that you READ ALL THE FINE PRINT ON THE PRODUCT LABEL- I think you'll see that the product is more lethal than the illness you're only imagining might be there.

I feel the same way about using F10 "off-label" in a fogger for RI's. While I know some have tried that with varying degrees of outcomes, I personally would NOT -unless that advice came from my vet & knowing there is updated safety testing to justify doing this, & then only carefully following instructions.

Because just as Erie_herps was saying earlier (cautioning against trying to use UVC) the thing about these "antiseptic" chemicals is that they KILL living things by design. And just because we get used to using these cleaning products routinely in our homes, please don't get complacent & forget their danger to living things. That goes for laundry bleach too- it KILLS- & such chemicals don't distinguish the "good" from the "bad".

While properly diluted F10, Nolvasan or chlorhexidine are safe to spray on your cages & equipment, then always wiping them dry, they're NOT made to wash our animals with. When I first saw this thread title, I assumed you were asking for suggested products to clean enclosures with. With any luck though, your snake will be just fine.

[CakeLike]

Just a suggestion for you. Not that this should be your responsibility as I'm assuming you aren't the owner and keeper of the Gecko, but, maybe you could suggest having the geckos stool sample sent off for a relatively inexpensive test for cryptosporidium. Should that test come back negative, all your worries can be averted.

Yes, stick tail can be an indicator of crypto but it isn't a definitive for it.

Sadly, our first gecko suffered with stick tail and anorexia and we spent a small fortune trying to see him right, but he did pass away. Of what we're not totally certain, but it wasn't crypto as that test came back negative.

In the interim, just F10 anything and everything you think you may have touched. Spray the F10 on (watch the electrics, obviously), allow it a few minutes and wipe off.

The gecko is dead. I safed it out of the goodness of my heart from terrible care even though I didn't know much about geckos. See where it got me. My good samaritan times are over for good now.
I shipped it off to a keeper who could care for a gecko but it died right after. And this person left me alone eith my worries after it died and got rid of the body without testing. So yeah no way of knowing now.
I did clean what I could. But I have no way of knowing where it could have spread in my home since I cannot detect these microorganisms.

[Erie_herps]

I feel the same way about using F10 "off-label" in a fogger for RI's. While I know some have tried that with varying degrees of outcomes, I personally would NOT -unless that advice came from my vet & knowing there is updated safety testing to justify doing this, & then only carefully following instructions.

Here are 2 of the main ingredients in F10, to support your claim.
https://www.unitedlabsinc.com/conten...msds/64sds.pdf
https://www.essentialingredients.com...%20070%20S.pdf
I would question anyone who says these should be inhaled.

[CakeLike]

CakeLike, I can understand your anxiety about possibly exposing your snake to a sick gecko- please be more careful in the future & always ALWAYS practice quarantine for any new animals (even those temporarily in your care) for the safety of all the others you may have around.

But just in case someone suggests (or you get the notion to) spraying something like F10 disinfectant directly ON any live pets, please DON'T. I'd suggest that you READ ALL THE FINE PRINT ON THE PRODUCT LABEL- I think you'll see that the product is more lethal than the illness you're only imagining might be there.

I feel the same way about using F10 "off-label" in a fogger for RI's. While I know some have tried that with varying degrees of outcomes, I personally would NOT -unless that advice came from my vet & knowing there is updated safety testing to justify doing this, & then only carefully following instructions.

Because just as Erie_herps was saying earlier (cautioning against trying to use UVC) the thing about these "antiseptic" chemicals is that they KILL living things by design. And just because we get used to using these cleaning products routinely in our homes, please don't get complacent & forget their danger to living things. That goes for laundry bleach too- it KILLS- & such chemicals don't distinguish the "good" from the "bad".

While properly diluted F10, Nolvasan or chlorhexidine are safe to spray on your cages & equipment, then always wiping them dry, they're NOT made to wash our animals with. When I first saw this thread title, I assumed you were asking for suggested products to clean enclosures with. With any luck though, your snake will be just fine.

I didn't know about crypto since I am only interested in ball pythons I never researched illnesses specifically common in leopard geckos. And common illnesses in ball pythons usually are not incurable and lethal, so yeah I was blissfully unaware. It was unfortunate but happend because of my caring nature. But I have learned good deeds don't pay off so even though it pains me to see mistreated animals I won't "help" again.