I need some information, because the info that I am getting from my vet has NOT been helpful. (See past posts to read up on how inept this particular vet is...)

I had a fecal float come back positive for pinworms and tapeworms. The vet explained that these are common and that most people wouldn't even bother treating them. Is this true?

She decided that she would go ahead and treat them since my snake is having problems digesting and passing food properly. So he goes in for a three-part treatment. While I was there I asked if I should worry about my other snakes getting the parasites from him. She said, "Well yeah. They probably already have them." Is this true? How are parasites spread? I had thought that in order for one animal to contract the parasites of another that they had to be in contact with the waste of the carrier animal. Do parasites travel? Are they air-borne?

The vet told me that the snake probably got the parasites from the mice it had been eating. If this is the case, then why treat the parasites if he's just going to get more every time he eats? If parasites originate in the food, how can you ever have a parasite-free snake? Just for clarification, I get my feeders (frozen and live) from a local reptile shop with a good reputation. They're even known on the web, so I don't want to name names in case anything negative comes up. They get their frozen feeders in large, sealed packages from another company which processes the rodents. I have only ever had one feeder that didn't look clean and healthy. Otherwise, they usually seem fine.

I feel as if she's just telling me these things to make me worry, have me bring in my entire collection for treatments and fecal floats, and then continue to bring them in every month or so. I don't think I'm getting the whole story here. Can someone please help me out? I'm tired of dealing with this vet, and before I call another I thought I'd hit you guys up.

Thanks in advance.