Soaking in water

[Ziggy31984]

Soap iodine mild, mild bleach, and heat I already made an apt a few days ago when I saw them


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[Bogertophis]

Soap iodine mild, mild bleach, and heat I already made an apt a few days ago when I saw them


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What are you putting that on? the snake or the cage? Bleach doesn't belong on or ANYWHERE NEAR a live snake- it can kill them, "mild or not". The fumes will remain in the wood, & RUIN it for any occupancy- you might as well save yourself the trouble & get another enclosure. This one of several reasons why wood homes for snakes should always be sealed. Also the issue of fecal material (germs) that are retained in wood- because wood is porous & you cannot thoroughly clean it. It also harbors mold, in the warm moist habitat that snakes like BPs require.

I'm no fan of housing snakes in plastic tubs, but right now, & for speed, that would be your best option.

Soap- bathe snake in tepid water with only a drop or 2 of mild soap (like Ivory)- you don't need or want bubbles- the tiny bit of soap breaks the surface tension so the mites on the snake drown.
BUT- some are likely to be missed because you cannot hold snake's head under water (& shouldn't!)- so some may hide on snake's face. Hence the other methods for complete eradication.

Iodine (diluted) is only for wound care- it's not for killing mites, do not use.

Heat??? I assume you mean on the wood?

[Ziggy31984]

Why on earth would I hold his head in water?


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[Bogertophis]

Why on earth would I hold his head in water?


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You wouldn't & shouldn't- but when you bathe a snake in the water with a bit of soap, as discussed, it's to drown the mites hiding on the snakes body. They hide around the eyes, mouth & nose too, & under scales anywhere on a snake. Bathing a snake with mites is the FIRST thing I'd do, to get rid of as many as you can. But again, it won't get them all because some will remain on the snake's head. The snake should be in the water for about 20-25 minutes with you right there making sure the body is submerged- you should see some drowned mites in the water afterwards, if you look closely.

The idea is to quickly minimize the number of blood sucking mites on a snake- like I said, snakes die from the dehydration- loss of blood.

[Ziggy31984]

He’s been soaking on his own and I have been replacing water daily


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[Bogertophis]

He’s been soaking on his own and I have been replacing water daily


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Yes, in plain water & mites do not drown that way- they float on surface tension of the water. But with soap, they sink. However, you need to make sure your snake stays in the water & doesn't drink the soapy water- it will make them sick.


So far, all you have are damp, clean mites, not dead ones.

[BeansTheDerp]

What I've done before whenever I need to clean my bp (he has never had mites which I'm proud of but this might work for that too, correct me if I'm wrong!) is I give him a soak in warm water and then take soap (dawn dish soap is recommended for reptiles) and put it on either a cloth or paper towel and then basically rub my snake down with it. Basically like if you were in the shower and washing yourself off and scrubbing off dirt but gentler. After that I put him in the water again and make sure he doesn't drink any of it. I finish off the process by rinsing him in the sink which sounds pretty funny but it's to make sure I get the suds off.
I usually do this if he has mud on him, or fecal matter, or if he starts to smell bad in result of sitting in his urates etc. but it might work for mites based on the treatment for them.

edit: I'm sure you don't have to put the soap on a cloth but I do it because it feels more thorough and gets off any caked dirt from urates soaking into the substrate and getting on him. Whether or not it works better with mites I don't know.

[Bogertophis]

Just one more thing: Getting a snake free of mites is not easy & it's not fun- it's serious & takes effort, because you need to kill the mites without harming your snake. Please follow directions carefully on whatever products you use, because some products more than others can & have caused harm to the snake if not used correctly.

Even then, & especially if you don't do it right the first time, they may come right back (thanks to some hiding, & also eggs left behind that hatch out) so instead of a month+ battle, it can take much longer.

[Armiyana]

Updat a few days ago I found mites I am treating him with the jurassic mite stuff

So wait... A few days ago..as in before you posted here? You first posted on the 4th and already had the Jurassic mite spray. But said there were no mites. That was the day before yesterday.

I really hope you read through the link Bogertophis provided. There are so many snakes that are poisoned by mite sprays of they're not done properly. And there can be serious diseases spread by the mites on addition to them causing stress and anemia or infection in your snake already.

[Malum Argenteum]

Updat a few days ago I found mites I am treating him with the jurassic mite stuff I am currently looking up how cold to get the coconut bedding to kill all in any of the mites of what I’m seeing conflicting numbers any recommendations?

Are the mites snake mites (Ophionyssus natricis), or something else? All enclosures with any sort of naturalistic substrate are likely to have detritivorous mites ("wood mites", "grain mites"). Where are the mites located, and what do they look like?